Tawassul and the Means: Between What Is Prescribed and What Is Forbidden

Question:
The first message in this episode is from listener (A. F. G.), our brother. In his message, which contains more than thirty questions, he says that he quoted them from the reality of people, and they are—according to him—important questions, especially those related to the matter of creed. His Eminence the Shaykh summarized his questions as follows: In his first question, he says: Tell us about tawassul (seeking nearness to Allah through a means) and the means (wasilah)? Clarify for us the doubts and the responses to them, especially since there are those who cite as evidence the saying of Allah the Exalted: [Al-Ma'idah: 35], and they also cite as evidence tawassul through al-Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) ? What is the difference between tawassul through the prophets and the righteous, and tawassul through righteous deeds? May Allah reward you with good.

Answer:
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Praise be to Allah, and may Allah send prayers and peace upon His Messenger, and upon his family and his Companions, and upon those who follow his guidance. As for what follows:
This is an important question that deserves attention, because the subject is confusing for many people.
The means (wasilah) are of two types: a permissible means, indeed a prescribed one that is commanded, and a forbidden means.
As for the prescribed means: it is tawassul (seeking nearness to Allah through a means) to Allah through faith, righteous deeds, and all that Allah has prescribed—(Exalted and Majestic is He)—and this is what is intended in His saying: [Al-Ma'idah: 35], meaning: drawing near to Him through obedience to Him, such as prayer, fasting, charity, Hajj, and the sincerity of worship to Allah, and the like. So His saying: [Al-Isra: 56] means: other than Allah, such as idols, trees, stones, prophets, and others. [Al-Isra: 56] means: those who are called upon do not possess the ability to remove hardship from the one who calls upon them, whether it be illness, madness, or otherwise. means: nor can they change a condition from one state to another, from difficulty to ease, or from one limb to another. They do not possess that ability; rather, they are incapable of it, and it is only in the hand of Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) .
Then he said: [al-Isra:57] meaning: they seek to ask Allah for the wasilah, which is nearness to Him through obedience to Him, such as prayer, fasting, charity, and other things. [al-Isra:57] And for this reason they worked and exerted themselves in His obedience, and they fear His punishment .
This means (wasilah) is fulfilling His right by tawhid (the oneness of Allah), and obeying Him by doing the commands and leaving the prohibitions. It is faith, guidance, and taqwa (mindfulness of Allah). It is what Allah sent the messengers with—(may prayers and peace be upon them)—in terms of speech and action.
This means is obligatory in the obligatory matters, and recommended in the recommended matters. So tawassul to Him through His tawhid, sincerity to Him, establishing prayer, giving zakah (the obligatory alms), fasting Ramadan, and performing Hajj to the House, this is a necessary matter and an obligation in the first Hajj of one's life. Likewise, tawassul to Him by leaving sins is a necessary matter, an obligation.
And tawassul to Him through voluntary acts, such as voluntary prayer, voluntary fasting, voluntary charity, and increasing in the remembrance of Allah, is also recommended, a means of drawing near, and an act of obedience. Allah has made these among the causes of entering Paradise and being saved from the Fire.
As for the other means that is not permissible: it is tawassul to Him through the supplication of the dead, and seeking aid from the dead. This means is shirki (related to shirk), and the polytheists call it a means (wasilah). It is major shirk (associating partners with Allah), and it is what is intended in His saying: [Yunus: 18]. And He says—(Exalted and Majestic is He)—: [Az-Zumar: 3], meaning: they say, "We do not worship them except to bring us closer to Allah in rank." So they took them as a means in this sense, meaning: through their supplication, asking them, seeking intercession from them, seeking victory over enemies, healing the sick, and the like. And they claimed that by this they would have a means to them. This is major shirk, and this is the religion of the polytheists. We ask Allah for safety from it.
Indeed, the polytheists claim that their worship of the prophets, angels, righteous people, and jinn is a means to their objectives, and that these worshipped entities intercede for them with Allah and bring them closer to Allah in rank. So Allah invalidated that and refuted them in it. Allah the Exalted said... It came regarding them: [Yunus: 18], after His saying: [Yunus: 18]. Allah invalidated that by His saying: , meaning: you inform Allah [Yunus: 18].
And He said in the verse of Az-Zumar: , meaning: they say: [Az-Zumar: 2-3]. So Allah refuted them by His saying: [Az-Zumar: 3]. So He called them liars in their claim that it brings them closer to Allah in rank, and disbelievers by this act, by their calling upon them, seeking aid from them, making vows to them, slaughtering for them, and the like.
So it is obligatory upon all those who are accountable, and indeed upon all people, to be cautious of this wasilah, so the accountable person does not do it, nor does the non-accountable person. It is obligatory upon the accountable person to be cautious of it, and he must be cautious that his children, who are not accountable, do it as well. Allah is the One who is worshipped , He is the One who is invoked, He is the One who is hoped for, He is the One from whom victory over enemies and healing for the sick are sought, and other needs of the servants. He says in His great Book: [al-Dhariyat:56-58] And He says, Exalted is He: [al-Baqarah:21] And He says about His Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): [al-A'raf:188] So he is a warner and a bringer of good news, not one to be worshipped besides Allah, and not a god along with Allah . And He said -Exalted and Majestic is He-: [al-Jinn:18-19], meaning: Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him). meaning: Say, O Muhammad, to the people: [al-Jinn:19-23] Rather, that is in His hand . These matters are in the hand of Allah; He is the One who controls benefit and harm, giving and withholding, healing from diseases, and victory over enemies; it is in His hand .
And there is a second type of forbidden means: it is tawassul through the status (jah) of so-and-so and the right (haqq) of so-and-so. This means is forbidden, but it is not major shirk; rather, it is among the means to shirk. For example, saying: "O Allah, I ask You by the status of Muhammad, or by the status of so-and-so, or by the right of Your prophets." This is not permissible. This is a bid'ah (religious innovation) for which there is no evidence. Allah says: [Al-A'raf: 180]. He is called by His names and attributes.
And likewise, tawassul to Him through righteous deeds, such as: prayer, fasting, dutifulness to parents, maintaining family ties, and chastity from immorality. These are lawful means, as in the story of the companions of the cave who took shelter in it from the night and the rain. They entered it, and a rock closed over the mouth of the cave, blocking it. So they said among themselves: "Nothing will save you from this except that you call upon Allah with your righteous deeds." So they asked Allah and turned to Him with their righteous deeds. One of them called upon his Lord and asked Him by his dutifulness to his parents. The other tawassul'd to Allah by his chastity from zina (unlawful sexual intercourse) after his ability to commit it with a woman. The third tawassul'd to Allah by fulfilling the trust of a worker who had wages with him. His wages increased, so when he came, he gave him the full amount. So the rock opened for them with this righteous, practical means.
When the first one called upon his Lord and asked Him by his dutifulness to his parents, and that he had two old, elderly parents, and that he did not go to his family or his wealth before them, and that one night he went far to seek firewood, so he was delayed with them. He came to them with their evening drink and found them sleeping. So he remained with the cup in his hand, waiting for them to wake up, and he did not go to his family or his children. Rather, he was patient and did not wake them so as not to disturb their sleep. So he was patient until they woke up when the dawn broke. So he gave them their evening drink. Then he said in his supplication: "O Allah, if You know that I did this seeking Your Face, then remove from us what we are in." So the rock opened a little, but they could not exit with it.
Then the second one called upon Him, saying that he had a cousin whom he loved as much as men love women, and that he wanted her for herself, meaning: for immorality. So she refused him. Then a year of need struck her, so she came to him seeking his help. He said: "No, until you allow me to have access to yourself." So she agreed to that because of the severity of her need. So he feared Allah and left the zina, and left the gold for her. Then he said: "O Allah, if You know that I did this seeking Your Face, then remove from us what we are in," meaning: I left the immorality despite my ability, out of fear of Allah. So the rock opened a bit, but they still could not exit.
Then he called the third man, who said: “O Allah, I had hired workers, meaning laborers who were owed wages. I paid every worker his wage except for one who was left with his wage due. I increased his wage for him, so he bought from me camels, cows, sheep, and slaves. Then he came to me and said: ‘O servant of Allah! Give me my wage.’ I said to him: ‘All of this is from your wage.’ He said: ‘O servant of Allah! Do not mock me.’ I said to him: ‘I am not mocking you; it is yours.’ So he drove away all of it. O Allah, if You know that I did this seeking Your Face, then relieve us from what we are in.” So the rock split open, and they walked out.
This is from the mercy of Allah, and from His excellence—(Exalted and Majestic is He)—and from His great signs, that He relieved them, and made the closing of this rock a means for them to seek nearness to Allah through these deeds; so that people would know the virtue of righteous deeds, and that they are among the means of relieving distress and facilitating matters. And it is obligatory for the servant to fear the anger of Allah and the causes of His punishment. Whenever he is able to commit sin, let him fear and stay away from it. And whenever he is able to do righteousness and good, let him do it.
As for 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) seeking nearness to Allah through al-'Abbas, this is seeking nearness through his supplication, through the supplication of al-'Abbas. For when the people were suffering from drought, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) would ask Allah for rain, and the people would turn to him, saying: “O Messenger of Allah! Call upon Allah for us, for the wealth has perished and the paths have been cut off,” meaning because of the drought. He would call upon Allah and ask Him (Glorified and Exalted is He) to relieve the servants; so He would relieve them. When they suffered from drought in the time of 'Umar, he said: “O Allah, we used to seek nearness to You through our Prophet when he was among us, and You gave us rain. And now we seek nearness to You through the uncle of our Prophet, so give us rain. Rise, O al-'Abbas! Call upon Allah for us.” So al-'Abbas rose and called upon Allah for them and sought relief; so Allah gave them rain. Al-'Abbas was the uncle of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). This is seeking nearness through the supplication of al-'Abbas, just as they used to seek nearness through the supplication of the Prophet during his lifetime (peace and blessings be upon him). This indicates that after his death, he is not called upon for aid, nor is relief sought from him—(peace and blessings be upon him)—because he is not able to do that. His deeds connected to the worldly life have ceased. For this reason, 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) asked al-'Abbas to call upon Allah and to relieve the people. So al-'Abbas rose and called upon Allah, and Allah relieved the people.
And Mu'awiyah (may Allah be pleased with him) did the same in Sham with Yazid ibn al-Aswad. He asked Yazid ibn al-Aswad, the noble Companion, to ask Allah for relief. So Yazid rose and asked Allah, and Allah relieved the people. There is nothing wrong with this. This seeking of aid is not wrong; it is permissible according to the Shari'ah. It is permissible for the one in authority, or the learned imam of the mosque from among the scholars, or some of the righteous, to say: “Call upon Allah, O so-and-so, for the Muslims, that Allah may relieve them.” There is nothing wrong with this, just as 'Umar did with al-'Abbas, and just as Mu'awiyah did with Yazid ibn al-Aswad.
And in this way, a person says: “O Allah, I ask You by Your beautiful names and Your exalted attributes to relieve us... to have mercy on us... to send down rain upon us... to forgive us.” Allah says (Glorified and Exalted is He): [Al-A'raf: 180]. So you ask, and others ask, seeking nearness to Allah by His names and attributes, and calling upon Allah for the Muslims in times of drought and otherwise.
And with this, it becomes clear that the means of seeking nearness (tawassul) are of three categories:
A prescribed category: which is seeking nearness to Allah through His oneness (tawhid), faith in Him, righteous deeds, and His names and attributes.
And a category of shirk (associating partners with Allah): which is seeking nearness to Allah through the supplication of the dead, calling upon the dead for aid, making vows to them, slaughtering for them, or seeking nearness through idols, or trees, and stones, or through the jinn. This is major shirk.
The third category is bid'ah (religious innovation); it is not permissible, it is not shirk, and it is not prescribed. Rather, it is bid'ah. It is seeking nearness by the right of so-and-so, or the status of so-and-so, or by the status of the Prophet, or by the status of so-and-so, or by the right of the prophets. This is the blameworthy thing, and this is bid'ah, and it is among the means of shirk.
And among the lawful means—as mentioned earlier—is seeking nearness through righteous deeds—as mentioned earlier—seeking nearness by the names of Allah and His attributes, and seeking nearness through righteous deeds. All of this is prescribed seeking nearness. Yes.

The presenter: May Allah reward you with good. Does Your Eminence address the doubts of those who seek nearness through created beings?

The Shaykh: These doubts have no basis; rather, they are false. Some of them liken it, saying: If seeking nearness by the status of so-and-so, or the right of so-and-so, were permissible, it would indicate that he is called upon and asked. This is false; because seeking nearness by status is not permissible; it is bid'ah. And even if it were permissible, it would not be valid as evidence that aid should be sought from a person; because seeking nearness by status is asking Allah, asking from Allah by the status of so-and-so. So this is asking Allah, not asking a created being. But the means itself is blameworthy, bid'ah, by the status of so-and-so and the right of so-and-so.
As for asking Allah by His names and attributes, or asking Allah without seeking nearness through anything, saying: “O Allah, save us from the Fire... O Allah, relieve us... O Allah, relieve us,” all of this is good. And if he says: “O Allah, relieve us by Your grace... by Your names and attributes... by Your mercy,” it is good.
As for the doubt that the prophets have status and a rank with Allah; so we call upon them so that they may intercede for us. This is false; because their status and their rank with Allah, Allah did not make it a justification for the polytheists to worship them along with Allah. He rebuked them when they called upon them for aid, and asked them for intercession, and asked them to bring them near to Allah. He rebuked them for that and called them: “Lying disbelievers.” And He informed that what they did was false, and that Allah is free from it, in His saying (Glorified and Exalted is He):: [Yunus: 18]. And He said (Glorified and Exalted is He):: [Az-Zumar: 3].
So this means of seeking nearness that the polytheists did with the idols, and with the prophets, and with the jinn, and they called upon them for aid, and made vows to them, and claimed that they intercede for them. This is false. Allah invalidated it, and the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) invalidated it, and he warned the community against it, and commanded them to purify worship for Allah alone (Glorified and Exalted is He). Yes.

The presenter: May Allah reward you with good.