Tawassul Resorting to Intermediary

Tawassul Resorting to Intermediary


Some people claim that asking for help to other than god is polytheism.Such people should never go to doctor when they becomes sick because thisis polytheism (shirk)! Their going to doctor is a type of seeking a helpfrom a specialist even though they do not say by their tongue that they aregetting help from the doctor. Acting shirk is enough. Also they should notask any question from anyone or request anything from any one because allthese are shirk. Furthermore, they shouldn't eat any food because theyshould not help themselves by any other than God! If they say that we do all these because Allah told us to do so, then basedon their own doctrine Allah is also polytheist (Mushrik). Na'udhu Billah! Here is what they are missing: If we get help from any body, we do it withthe understanding that he by his own can not help us. He can not benefit usunless Allah wishes to. If one calls Prophet Muhammad (PBUH&HF) or Imam Ali(AS) for help, he is, in fact, calling Allah for help through intermediaryof the Prophet or the Imams, and he does that with the understanding thatthe Prophet or the Imams doe not have any independent power, but ratherwhat they have (which many others lack) is that they have CREDIT in frontof Allah and that Allah does not put down their requests if they pray toAllah on my behalf. Imam Ali and all the martyrs are alive as Quran clearlytestifies, though they are not on the earth. So please do not treat them asdead. Allah states in Quran: Think not of those who are martyred in the way of Allah as dead. Nay! They are living, finding their sustenance in the presence of their Lord." (Quran 3:169) In fact all of our Imams except Imam Mahdi were martyred either by sword orby poison. Moreover, there are quite strong proofs in both Shia and Sunnithat the Prophet himself was also poisoned by a Jew in the battle ofKhaibar, and the poison slowly worked on his body till it finally killedhim. I just bring two traditions from Sahih al-Bukhari: Sahih al-Bukhari Hadith: 5.551 Narrated Abu Huraira: When Khaibar was conquered, a (cooked) sheep containing poison, was given as a present to Allah's Apostle. Sahih Bukhari Hadith: 5.713 ... Narrated 'Aisha: The Prophet in his ailment in which he died, used to say, "O 'Aisha! I still feel the pain caused by the food I ate at Khaibar, and at this time, I feel as if my aorta is being cut from that poison." So they should not be called dead since they are alive according to Quran.Thus we can make Tawassul to them the same way that the Shia of Moses madeTawassul to Moses: "And he (Moses) went into the city at a time when people (of the city) were not watching, so he found therein two men fighting, one being of his Shia and the other being his enemy, and the one who was of his Shia cried out to him for help against the one who was of his ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ enemy" (Quran 28:15) Two things which distinguishes Tawassul and Shirk should be noted here.First, we do not believe that the Prophet and Imams have any independentpower from Allah. Second, Allah is the one who assigned the intermediate.The idol worshipers used a wrong intermediate, and that was another reasonwhy it was condemned. Moreover, the idol worshippers believed that theidols can cause harm or render a benefit. Muslims are monotheists and theyknow that only Allah can cause harm or render a benefit. But calling theProphet and Imams with the understanding that they could only be anintermediary to Allah, is not polytheism. ALL Muslims agreed on this pointfrom the time of the Prophet (PBUH&HF) up to the present day, exceptWahhabis. They contradict all Muslims with their new creed and accusedMuslims of blasphemy; they never let any body touch the blessed grave ofProphet (PBUH&HF). The Holy Quran further supports intermediary for approaching toward Allahwhere it states: "O' you who believe! Be mindful (of your duties) to Allah, and seek the means of approaching toward Him." (Quran 5:35) ^^^^ ^^^^^^^^^^^^ : . : : : . T . 4__,_w q_ 4_,_ q_e_,_,q 4__ q_o_, q_,_o . _, ]__8_, _, : / : / . / / / (_): : : Quran tells us that there exists a means of approaching "al-Wasilah" for usin each era, which is different than Allah and we should seek him if wewant to approach toward Allah. In fact, both Tawassul and Wasilah are fromthe same root. When we make Tawassul, it means that we seek the Mercy ofAllah by resorting to a connection who was more obedient toward Allah and,as a result, Allah answers his/her prayers faster than us. Allah mayforgive us for the credit and the honor of that man/woman. It is true everywhere that doing a job (specially if it is asking for a big courtesy)without any connection is difficult or might be impossible. Approving sucha courtesy needs credit, and the one without it should resort to the onewho has the credit and the connection. This credit has been acquired byabsolute obedience of Allah. Nonetheless, approving any intercession stilldepends on Allah: "Who can intercedes with Him except the cases that He permits?" (Quran 2:255) ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ "They (i.e., prophets and Imams) do not say anything until He orders, and they act (in all things) by His command. He knows what is before them and what is behind them and they (i.e., those saints) offer no intercession except for anyone whom Allah accepts, and they ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ are in awe and reverence of His (glory)." (Quran 21:27-28) As you see there are exceptions. Some specific people can intercede withAllah by His permission. But this is not granted to every people. Now, I would like to give also more references from Sunni Hadithcollections in this regard. The first reference is on the Tawassul of IbnAbbas (RA) to Imam Ali (AS). Please note that Ibn Abbas spoke the followingwords after the martyrdom of Imam Ali. Thus he did ask for intermediary ofwhat you called a dead person. "When the death time of Abdullah Ibn Abbas (RA) approached, he said: `O Allah! I seek to approach toward you by means of Wilayah (accepting the mastery) of Ali Ibn Abi Talib.'" ^^^^^^^^^^^ Sunni references:- Fada'il al-Sahaba, by Ahmad Ibn Hanbal, v2, p662, Tradition #1129- al-Riyadh al-Nadhirah, by Muhibbuddin al-Tabari, v3, p167- Manaqib Ahmad : : . .. . o_8__ : _o o _9 q_ w _,_c . _, 4__]_,_c .__, ,_p_7 _o_( (_ / (_/ . (_). . / : / : : . .__,__D _, . _, __c 4_, _q_, (__)_,_ .__, _o_, _, . (_S. (_). (_S : /. : . / (_S Please note that Ibn Abbas died in 68/687 which was 28 years after themartyrdom of Imam Ali (AS). If resorting (Tawassul) to a dead wasconsidered association (shirk), then Ibn Abbas would not dare to say so,and Ahmad Ibn Hanbal would not have recorded it. As for resorting to alive, al-Bukhari reported that Umar used make Tawassulto al-Abbas for rain: Sahih al-Bukhari Hadith: 5.59 Narrated Anas: Whenever there was drought, 'Umar bin Al-Khattab used to ask Allah for rain through Al-'Abbas bin 'Abdul Muttalib, saying, "O Allah! We used ^^^^^^^ to request our Prophet to ask You for rain, and You would give us. Now we request the uncle of our Prophet to ask You for rain, so give us rain." And they would be given rain." Another related question is that: Is kissing the grave of the ProphetShirk (association)? Is honoring the belongings of Prophet association?Sahih al-Bukhari tells us it is NOT Shirk: Sahih al-Bukhari Hadith: 1.373 Narrated Abu Juhaifa: I saw Allah's Apostle in a red leather tent and I saw Bilal taking the ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ remaining water with which the Prophet had performed ablution. I saw ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ the people taking the utilized water impatiently and whoever got some ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ of it rubbed it on his body and those who could not get any took the ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ moisture from the others' hands. Then I saw Bilal carrying an 'Anza (a ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ spear-headed stick) which he planted in the ground. The Prophet came out tucking up his red cloak, and led the people in prayer and offered two Rakat (facing the Ka'ba) taking 'Anza as a Sutra for his prayer. I saw the people and animals passing in front of him beyond the 'Anza. Sahih al-Bukhari Hadith: 7.750 Narrated Abu Juhaifa: I came to the Prophet while he was inside a red leather tent, and I saw Bilal taking the remaining water of the ablution of the Prophet, and the people were taking of that water and rubbing it on their ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ faces; and whoever could not get anything of it, would share the ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ moisture of the hand of his companion (and then rub it on his face). ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ As we see, the great companions were honoring the drop of water which hadtouched the Prophet (PBUH&HF). Sayyid Sharafuddin, a famous Shia scholar, went on pilgrimage to theHouse of Allah during the reign of King Abdul Aziz Ibn Saud. He was one ofthose who were invited to the King's palace to celebrate the Eid of al-Adh'ha. When his turn came to shake the King's hand, he presented a leatherbound Quran to the King. The King took the Quran and placed it on hisforehead and then kissed it. Sayyid Sharafuddin said: "O' King! why doyou kiss and glorify the cover which is made of a goat's skin?!" The kinganswered: "I meant to glorify the Holy Quran, not the goat's skin." SayyidSharafuddin said: "Well said O' King! We do the same when we kiss thewindow or the door of the Prophet's Chamber, we know that it is made ofiron, and could not harm or render a benefit, but we mean what is behindthe iron and wood, we mean to respect the Messenger of Allah in the sameway as you meant with the Quran when you kissed its goat's skin cover." The audience was impressed by his speech and said: "You are right." TheKing was forced to allow the pilgrims to ask for blessings from theProphet's relics, until the order was reversed by the successor of thatKing. The issue is not that they are afraid of people associating others withAllah, rather, it is a political issue based on antagonizing Muslims inorder to consolidate their own power and authority over Muslims, andhistory is the witness to what they have done.************************************************************************** ____________________________________ o_,_7 _ . _o_7 _ 4__ o_w_, ( : / (_) / ( . ____________________________________ Evidence for Tawassul by a Sunni Writer From: mas@cadence.com (Masud Khan)Date: 3 Jul 1994 22:55:34 GMT There has been a lot of discussion about intercession recently,and a few ill-informed people have issued "fatawa's" condeming thepractice as "shirk". If, as some individuals say, tawassul is"shirk" then from from the evidence available it seems thatThe Prophet (pbuh) taught a man to commit "shirk" and so didthe Rightly Guided Khalifa 'Uthman ibn Affan! (May Allah be our refugefrom such thoughts). wa'asalaam Mas'udTawassul - Supplicating Allah through and Intermediary.======================================================= Definition: Supplicating Allah by means of an intermediary, whether it be aliving person, dead person, or a name or attribute of Allah Most High. Yusuf Rifa'i: I here want to convey the position, attested to by compellinglegal evidence, of the orthodox majority of Sunni Muslim on the subject ofsupplicating Allah through an intermidiary (tawassul), and so I say (andAllah alone gives success) that since there is no disagreement amongscholars that supplicating Allah through an intermediary is in principlelegally valid, the discussion of it's details merely concerns derivedrulings that involve interschool differences, unrelated to questions ofbelief or unbelief, monotheism or associating partners with Allah (shirk);the sphere of the question being limited to permissibility orimpermissibility, and its ruling being that it is either lawful orunlawful. There is no difference among groups of Muslims in their consensuson the permissibilty of three types of supplicating Allah through anintermediary (tawassul): 1 tawassul through a living righteous person to Allah Most High, as in theHadith of the blind man with the Prophet (Allah bless him and grant himpeace) as we shall explain; 2 the tawassul of a living person to Allah Most High through his own gooddeeds, as in the hadith of the three people trapped in a cave by a greatstone, a hadith related by Imam Bukhari in his Sahih [Ref: vol 3 no 418]; 3 and the tawassul of a person to Allah Most High through His entity(dhat), names, attributes, and so forth. Since the legality of these types is agreed upon there is no reason to setforth the evidence for them. The only area of disagreement is supplicatingAllah (tawassul) through a righteous dead person. The majority of theorthodox Sunni community hold that it is lawful, and have supporting hadithevidence, of which we will content ourselves with the hadith of the BlindMan, since it is the central pivot upon which the discussion turns. The Hadith of the Blind Man=========================== Tirmidhi relates, through his chain of narrators from 'Uthman ibn Hunayf,that a blind man came to the Prophet (Allah bless him and grant him peace)and said, "I've been afflicted in my eyesight, so please pray to Allah forme." The Prophet (Allah bless him and grant him peace) said: "Go makeablution (wudu), perform two rak'as of prayer, and then say: " 'O Allah, I ask You and turn to You through my Prophet Muhammad, theProphet of Mercy; O Muhammad [Ya Muhammad], I seek your intercession withmy Lord for the return of my eyesight [and in another version: "for my need, that it may be fulfilled. O Allah, grant him intercession for me"].'" The Prophet (Allah bless him and grant him peace) added, "And if there issome need, do the same." Scholars of Sacred Law infer from this hadith the recommended character ofthe need, in which someone in need of something from Allah Most Highperforms such a prayer and then turns to Allah with this supplicationstogether with other suitable supplications, traditional or otherwise,according to the need and how the person feels. The express content of thehadith proves the legal validity of tawassul through a living person (asthe Prophet (Allah bless him and grant him peace) was a alive at the time).It implicitly proves the validity of tawassul through a deceased one aswell, since tawassul through a living or dead person is not through aphysical body or through a life or death, but rather through the positivemeaning (ma`na tayyib) attached to the person in both life and death. Thebody is but the vehicle that carries that significance, which requires thatthe person be respected whether alive or dead; for the words "O (Ya)Muhammad" are an address to someone physically absent - in which state theliving and the dead are alike - an address to the meaning, dear to Allah,that is connected with his spirit, a meaning that is the ground oftawassul, be it through a living or a dead person. =============================The Hadith of the Man in Need=============================Moreover, Tabarani, in his al-Mu`jam al-saghir, reports a hadith from'Uthman ibn Hanayf that a man repeatedly visited 'Uthman ibn 'Affan (Allahbe well pleased with him) concerning something he needed, but 'Uthman paidno attention to him or his need. The man met Ibn Hunayf and complained tohim about the matter - this being after the death of the Prophet (Allahbless him and grant him peace) and after the caliphates of Abu Bakr and'Umar - so 'Uthman ibn Hunayf, who was one of the Companions who collectedhadiths and were learned in the religion of Allah said: "Go to the place ofablution and perform ablution (wudu), then come to the mosque, perform tworak'as of prayer therein, and say, " 'O Allah, I ask You and turn to You through our Prophet Muhammad, theProphet of Mercy; O Muhammad [Ya Muhammad], I turn through you to my Lord,that He may fulfill my need,' "and mention your need. Then come so that I can go with you [to the caliph'Uthman]." So the man left and did as he had been told, then went to the door of'Uthman ibn 'Affan (Allah be pleased with him), and the doorman came, tookhim by the hand, brought him to 'Uthman ibn 'Affan and seated him next tohim on a cushion. 'Uthman asked, "What do you need?" and the man mentionedwhat he wanted, and 'Uthman accomplished it for him and then said, "Ihadn't remembered your need until just now," adding, "Whenever you needsomething, just mention it." Then the man departed, met 'Uthman ibn Hunayf,and said to him, "May Allah reward you! He didn't see to my need or pay anyattention to me until you spoke with him." 'Uthman ibn Hunayf replied, "ByAllah, I didn't speak to him, but I have seen a blind man come to theMessenger of Allah (Allah bless him and grant him peace) and complain tohim of the loss of his eyesight. The Prophet (Allah bless him and grant himpeace) said, 'Can you not bear it?' and the man replied, 'O messenger ofAllah, I do not have anyone to lead me around, and it is great hardship forme.' The Prophet (Allah bless him and grant him peace) told him, 'Go to theplace of ablution and perform ablution (wudu), then pray two rak'as ofprayer and make these supplications.' " Ibn Hunafy went on, "By Allah, wedidn't part company or speak long before the man returned to us as ifnothing had ever been wrong with him." This is an explicit, unequivocal text from a prophetic Companion provingthe legal validity of tawassul through the dead. The account has beenclassed as rigorously authenticated (SAHIH) by Bayhaqi, Mundhiri, andHaytami. (Muhammad Hamid - a leading Hanafi scholar of this century:) As for callingupon (nida') the righteous [when they are physically absent, as in thewords "O (Ya) Muhammad" in the above hadiths], tawassul to Allah Most Highthrough them is permissable, the supplication (du'a) being to Allah MostGlorious, and there is much evidence for its permissibility. Those who callon them intending tawassul cannot be blamed. As for someone who believesthat those called upon can cause effects, benefit, or harm, which theycreate or cause to exist as Allah does, such a person is an idolator whohas left Islam - Allah be our refuge! This then,and a certain person haswritten an article that tawassul to Allah Most High through the righteousis unlawful, while the overwhelming majority of scholars hold itpermissable, and the evidence that the writer uses to corroborate his viewpoint is devoid of anything that demonstrates what he is trying to prove.In declaring tawassul permissable, we are not hovering on the brink ofidolatory (shirk) or coming anywhere near it, for the conviction that AllahMost High alone has influence over anything, outwardly, is a convictionthat flows through us like our very lifeblood. If tawassul were idolatory(shirk), or if there were any suspicion of idolatory in it, the Prophet(Allah Most High bless him and give him peace) would not have taught it tothe blind man when the latter asked him to supplicate Allah for him,though in fact he did teach him to make tawassul to Allah through him. Andthe notion that tawassul was permissible only during the lifetime of theperson through whom it is done but not after his death is unsupported byany viable foundation from Sacred Law (Rudud 'ala abatil wa rasa'il al-Shaykh Muhammad al-Hamid). Mostly taken from "Reliance of the Traveller" (Umdat as-Salik) by Ahmad ibnNaqib al-Misri [b. 702/1302 d. 769/1368] translated by Noah Ha Mim Keller.