Clarification of Some Doctrinal Deviations

Question: Various deviations have spread in some Muslim communities, including: what occurs at some graves, and what relates to oaths, vows, and pledges. The rulings on these deviations differ, ranging from those that constitute shirk (associating partners with Allah) that expel one from the religion, to those that are less severe. It would be desirable if Your Eminence would elaborate on the rulings of these issues for them, and offer another piece of advice to the general Muslim public, warning them against being lax in the matter of these deviations and being negligent regarding them.

Answer: Praise be to Allah, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon the Messenger of Allah, and upon his family and his Companions, and upon those who follow his guidance.
As for what follows: Many people are confused about the prescribed matters and the matters of shirk (associating partners with Allah) and religious innovation (bid'ah) surrounding graves. Also, many of them fall into major shirk due to ignorance and blind following (taqlid).
It is obligatory for the people of knowledge in every place to clarify the religion for the people and to explain to them the reality of tawhid (the oneness of Allah) and the reality of shirk (associating partners with Allah). It is also obligatory for the people of knowledge to clarify for the people the means of shirk and the types of bid'ah (religious innovation) that occur among them so that they may guard against them, due to the saying of Allah: the verse [Al Imran:187], and He the Exalted said: except except those who repented and reformed and made clear. Then those are the ones to whom I will turn, and I am the Accepter of Repentance, the Merciful[Al Baqarah:159-160].
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Narrated by Muslim in his Sahih. He also said, may prayers and blessings be upon him: Also narrated by Muslim.
In the two Sahihs, from Mu'awiyah (may Allah be pleased with him) , from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), that he said: The verses and hadiths regarding the call to spread knowledge, encouraging people to do so, and warning against turning away and concealing knowledge are numerous.
As for what occurs at graves in many countries in the form of types of shirk and religious innovation, it is a known matter worthy of attention, clarification, and warning. Among this is calling upon the occupants of graves and seeking aid from them, asking for the healing of the sick, victory over enemies, and the like. All of this is major shirk, which was the practice of the people of the pre-Islamic age of ignorance (jahiliyyah). Allah, the Exalted, said: [Al-Baqarah: 21]. And He, the Exalted, said: [Adh-Dhariyat: 56]. And He, the Exalted, said: [Al-Isra: 23], and the meaning is: He commanded and advised. And He, the Exalted, said: [Al-Bayyinah: 5]. The verses in this meaning are numerous.
The worship for which the two worlds were created and for which they were commanded is His tawhid (the oneness of Allah) and singling Him out for all the acts of obedience He commanded, such as prayer, fasting, zakah (the obligatory alms), Hajj (the major pilgrimage), slaughter, vows, and other types of worship, as He the Exalted said: and with that I was commanded, and I am the first of the Muslims[Al An'am:162-163]. And the ritual: it is worship, and among it is slaughter, as He the Exalted said: so pray to your Lord and sacrifice[Al Kawthar:1-2]. And the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: It was narrated by Muslim in his Sahih from the hadith of the Commander of the Faithful, 'Ali ibn Abi Talib (may Allah be pleased with him), and Allah the Exalted said:[Surat al-Jinn:18] and He said: [Surat al-Mu'minun:117] and He saidin Surat al-Fatir: If you call them, they will not hear your call, and even if they did hear, they would not respond to you. And on the Day of Resurrection, they will deny your association of partners with Allah, and none can inform you like One who is fully aware.[Surat al-Fatir:13-14].
Thus, He, the Exalted, clarified in these verses that praying to other than Him, slaughtering for other than Him, and calling upon the dead, idols, trees, and stones, all of this is shirk with Allah and disbelief in Him.
And that all those called upon other than Him, whether prophets, angels, awliya (close friends of Allah), jinn, idols, or others, do not possess any benefit or harm for their caller. And that calling upon them other than Him, the Exalted, is shirk and disbelief. As He, the Exalted, also clarified that they do not hear the call of their caller, and even if they did hear, they would not respond to him.
Therefore, it is obligatory upon all those charged with religious duties, from jinn and humans, to beware of this and warn against it, and to clarify its invalidity, and that it contradicts what the Messengers, may prayers and blessings be upon them, came with, which is the call to the tawhid of Allah and the sincerity of worship to Him. As He, the Exalted, said: [An-Nahl: 36]. And He, the Exalted, said: [Al-Anbiya: 25].
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) remained in the Noble Mecca for thirteen years, calling people to Allah the Exalted, warning them against associating partners with Him, and clarifying to them the meaning of "There is no god but Allah." The few responded to him, while the majority were arrogant and refused to obey him or follow him. Then he migrated to Madinah (peace and blessings be upon him), where he spread the call to Allah the Exalted among the Muhajireen and the Ansar. He struggled in the path of Allah, wrote to the kings and rulers, and clarified to them his call and the guidance he brought. He and his Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) were patient and persevered in this,until the religion of Allah became manifest and people entered the religion of Allah in large groups. Tawhid (the oneness of Allah) spread, and shirk (associating partners with Allah) was removed from Mecca, Madinah, and the rest of the Arabian Peninsula by his hand (peace and blessings be upon him) and the hands of his Companions after him. Then his Companions engaged in calling people to Allah the Exalted and struggling in His path in the East and the West, until Allah granted them victory over their enemies and established them in the land, and the religion of Allah became superior to all other religions, as He promised in His Great Book, where He said (Glorified and Exalted is He):: [Surah al-Saff: 9].
Among the religious innovations and means of shirk is what is done at graves, such as praying at them, reciting the Qur'an at them, and building mosques and domes over them. All of this is religious innovation (bid'ah) and an abomination, and a means of major shirk. For this reason, it is authentically reported from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) that he said: Agreed upon as authentic from the hadith of Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her).
In Sahih Muslim, from Jundub ibn Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) , from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), that he said: Thus, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) clarified in these two hadiths and what came in their meaning: that the Jews and Christians used to take the graves of their prophets as mosques. So he warned his Ummah (community) from imitating them by taking them as mosques, praying at them, staying at them, and reciting at them, because all of this is a means of shirk. Among this is building over them and making domes and curtains over them, so all of this is a means of shirk and exaggeration regarding their occupants.
Similarly, this occurred among the Jews and Christians and the ignorant people of this Ummah, until they worshipped the occupants of graves, slaughtered for them, sought aid from them, made vows to them, and asked them for the healing of the sick and victory over enemies. This is known to those who know what is done at the grave of al-Husayn, al-Badawi, Shaykh Abdul Qadir al-Jilani, Ibn Arabi, and others, in the forms of major shirk. May Allah be our helper, and there is no power or strength except with Allah.
It is authentically reported from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) that he prohibited plastering graves, sitting on them, building over them, and writing on them. This is only because plastering them and building over them are means of major shirk regarding their occupants.
Therefore, it is obligatory for all Muslims, whether governments or peoples, to be cautious of this shirk (associating partners with Allah) and these bid'ah (religious innovations), to ask the scholars known for their correct 'aqidah (creed), and to follow the methodology of the Salaf (the earliest generations) regarding matters of their religion that are unclear to them, so that they worship Allah with knowledge, in accordance with the saying of Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He):: [Surah al-Anbiya: 7] and the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): and his saying (peace and blessings be upon him):.
It is well known that the servants were not created in vain, but rather for a great wisdom and a noble purpose, which is to worship Allah alone, without anything besides Him, as He said (Glorified and Exalted is He):: [Surah al-Dhariyat: 56] And there is no way to know this worship except by reflecting upon the Great Book and the pure Sunnah, knowing what Allah and His Messenger commanded regarding the types of worship, and asking the scholars about what is unclear in that. By doing so, one comes to know the worship of Allah (Mighty and Majestic), for which the servants were created, and performs it in the manner prescribed by Allah. This is the only path to the pleasure of Allah the Exalted, to attaining His favor, and to safety from His anger and punishment.for which the servants were created, and performs it in the manner prescribed by Allah. This is the only path to the pleasure of Allah the Exalted, to attaining His favor, and to safety from His anger and punishment.
May Allah guide the Muslims to everything that brings His pleasure, and grant them understanding in His religion, and appoint the best of them as their leaders and reform their rulers, and guide the scholars of the Muslims to perform what is obligatory upon them of calling, teaching, advising, and directing; indeed, He is Generous and Bountiful.
Among the types of shirk is swearing by other than Allah, such as swearing by the prophets, by the head of so-and-so, by the life of so-and-so, and swearing by trust and honor. It is authentically reported from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) that he said: Agreed upon as authentic.
And his saying (peace and blessings be upon him): narrated by Imam Ahmad from Amir al-Mu'minin 'Umar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) with a sound chain, and his saying (peace and blessings be upon him): reported by Abu Dawud and al-Tirmidhi with a sound chain from the hadith of Ibn 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both).
And he said (peace and blessings be upon him): And he also said (peace and blessings be upon him): .
The hadiths in this meaning are numerous, and swearing by other than Allah is minor shirk (associating partners with Allah), and it may lead to major shirk if one believes in its exaltation like the exaltation of Allah, or that it benefits and harms without Allah, or that it is suitable to be called upon or sought for aid. And by this it is known that there is no harm in saying: "If not for Allah, then so-and-so," or "This is from Allah, then so-and-so," if he had a role in it.
And it is established from him (peace and blessings be upon him) that a man said to him: "What Allah willed and you willed," so he said to him (peace and blessings be upon him): So this hadith indicates that if one says: "What Allah willed alone," that is the most complete, and if he says: "What Allah willed, then so-and-so willed," there is no harm, combining the hadiths and all the evidence. And success is from Allah.