The Ruling on Supplication, Seeking Help, and Calling for Aid from the Jinn

We begin with a message from Habban Hassan 'Abd al-Ghani from Riyadh, from the industrial area, where he says in his message: There is, or it is said around us, that in northern Yemen, some people, and they are not few, invoke the jinn when there is rain, thunder, or lightning, or at an inappropriate time, such as when one of them is in a dispute with another person, so he begins to invoke the jinn and so on, and some believe that this invocation ... or harms himself, so we ask your eminence to inform us according to what came in the Qur'an, and what came in the Islamic Shari'ah, and what is the validity of these statements? Are they valid or merely customs that some people followed out of ignorance, or lack of knowledge of the religion? Thank you, and may Allah guide you?
Answer: In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Praise be to Allah, and blessings and peace be upon the Messenger of Allah, and upon his family and his Companions, and upon those who follow his guidance.
As for what follows: Supplication, seeking help, and seeking refuge are to be done with Allah alone, not with people, nor with the jinn, nor with the angels, nor with the prophets. Seeking refuge is with Allah, seeking help is with Allah, and all supplication is for Allah alone, (Glorified and Exalted is He), as He, (Exalted and Majestic is He), said: [Surat al-Jinn:18], and He said: [Surat al-Falaq:1] ... [Surat al-Nas:1], He said: [Surat al-A'raf:200], He said: [Surat al-Fatihah:5]. It is not permissible for anyone to seek help from the jinn, nor to invoke them, nor to call for aid from them, as if one says: O so-and-so, or O so-and-so, help me, or help me against the jinn, or against the dead, or against the prophets or the angels. All of this is not permissible. Allah has criticized those who do this, saying: [Surat al-Jinn:6], meaning: they increased them in transgression and misguidance, or they increased them in evil upon their evil; because of their invoking them.
The point is that supplication, seeking refuge, calling for aid, and seeking help are all with Allah alone. It is not permissible to seek help from the jinn, nor to seek refuge in them, nor to invoke anyone alongside Allah, as if one says: O jinn, take him, or O Satan, so-and-so, naming him, do such and such, or do such and such, or help me against such and such, or protect me from such and such, or assist me with such and such. All of this is not permissible; rather, this is major shirk (associating partners with Allah). Likewise, what some ignorant people do at the graves of the dead, saying: O my master al-Badawi, do such and such, O my master al-Badawi, O my master al-Husayn, I am under your protection, I am under your kinship, help me, or have mercy on me, or cure my sick person. All of this is major shirk. And so if he said it with others, saying: O Messenger of Allah! Help me, or O Messenger of Allah, cure my sick person, or O Messenger of Allah, help me. All of this is major shirk; because when a person dies, his deeds are cut off, so he has no control, neither the prophets nor others. It is not permissible to invoke the prophets, nor to call for aid from them, nor to make vows for them, nor to slaughter for them. Rather, this is from the deeds of the pre-Islamic age of ignorance (jahiliyyah), and from shirk with Allah, (Glorified and Exalted is He). It is obligatory upon all Muslims, and upon whoever desires Islam, to beware of these matters, and to distance themselves from them, and to be sincere to Allah in worship. And this is the meaning of: There is no god but Allah, for its meaning is: There is no true object of worship except Allah. So Allah is the One who is invoked, hoped for, sought for help, called for aid, and approached with vows and sacrifices, and no one else. Those who approach the dead, or the jinn, or the angels, with sacrifices or vows, or seek help from them, or ask them to fulfill needs, or relieve distress, or give victory over enemies, or cure the sick, all of this is shirk with Allah, whether with the jinn, or with the dead like al-Badawi and others, or with the angels, or with the messengers, the best of whom is the Messenger Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him). And this is not permissible. Rather, he invokes his Lord alone: O my Lord, do such and such with me, O my Lord, help me, O my Lord, cure my sick person, O my Lord, help me, O my Lord, grant me well-being. He asks his Lord, (Exalted and Majestic is He): [Surat al-Jinn:18]. [Surat Ghafir:60]. He, (Exalted and Majestic is He), says: [Surat Ghafir:60], [Surat al-Baqarah:186]. So no one is invoked except Allah, and no one is called for aid except Him, (Glorified and Exalted is He). These are matters that some people grew up with and became accustomed to following their ancestors, and they were wrong in that. And Allah, (Glorified and Exalted is He), sent His Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) to make clear to people that worship is the right of Allah, and that no one is invoked alongside Allah, (Glorified and Exalted is He). So it is obligatory upon the person of intellect to pay attention to this matter, and to advise whoever is afflicted with this thing, and to remind them that this is what is wrong (munkar), and shirk, and from the deeds of the pre-Islamic age of ignorance. And Allah is the One to be sought for help.