V2:98- Ruling on believing that Awliya benefit and harm
- 4 years ago
98- Ruling on believing that Awliya benefit and harm
Q: I gained considerable knowledge by listening to your program, especially when you mentioned that the Awliya (pious people) as well as all the deceased cannot benefit people with anything. However, when I told my family about it they named me a Kafir (disbeliever). They added that the Awliya will harm me as they saw them in their dreams blaming me. Could you please advise people who believe in many superstitions that are widely spread in almost all Arab countries?
A: I advise all Muslims to fear Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He) and know that all happiness and salvation both in this world and the Hereafter are attained by following the Prophet (ﷺ) and his way. Indeed, our Prophet (ﷺ) is the master of all the Awliya and the best of them. Prophets are the best Awliya and next to them are the Sahabah (Companions of the Prophet). The Awliya are people of righteousness, Istiqamah (integrity), and total obedience to Allah (Exalted be He) and His Messenger (ﷺ). Hence, loving the Awliya for the sake of Allah (Exalted be He) and imitating their good and righteous deeds are integral parts of the Din (religion). Nevertheless, it is not permissible that a person attaches themselves to the Awliya, worships or invokes them other than Allah, or seeks their protection or help by saying for example: "O my master "Abdul-Qadir! Protect me!" or, "O Messenger of Allah! Protect me!" or, "O `Aly! Protect me!", "... Grant me victory!", or, "O Husayn!, O Fatimah!, O Lady Zaynab!", and so on. All the foregoing is not permissible as Dua`a' (supplication) is to be made to Allah Alone. He (Glorified be He) says: Invoke Me, [i.e. believe in My Oneness (Islamic Monotheism) and ask Me for anything] I will respond to your (invocation). And: *And when My slaves ask you (O Muhammad ﷺ) concerning Me, then (answer them), I am indeed near (to them by My Knowledge). I respond to the invocations of the supplicant when he calls on Me (without any mediator or intercessor). And: Is not He (better than your gods) Who responds to the distressed one, when he calls on Him, and Who removes the evil And: And whoever invokes (or worships), besides Allah, any other ilah (god), of whom he has no proof; then his reckoning is only with his Lord. Surely! Al-Kafirun (the disbelievers in Allah and in the Oneness of Allah, polytheists, pagans, idolaters) will not be successful. Thus, Allah (Exalted be He) calls such people Kafirs because they invoke others beside Him. In addition, Allah (Glorified be He) says: And the mosques are for Allah (Alone): so invoke not anyone along with Allah. And: Such is Allah, your Lord; His is the kingdom. And those, whom you invoke or call upon instead of Him, own not even a Qitmir (the thin membrane over the date-stone). If you invoke (or call upon) them, they hear not your call; and if (in case) they were to hear, they could not grant it (your request) to you. And on the Day of Resurrection, they will disown your worshipping them. And none can inform you (O Muhammad ﷺ) like Him Who is the All-Knower (of everything). Allah (Exalted be He) makes it clear that the Awliya who are invoked other than Him do not hear the calls of their worshippers as they have already passed away and they are busy with their own affairs with Allah (Exalted be He). However, if they were to hear, they could not grant people's requests as forgiving sins and driving away grief are granted only by Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He). He (Exalted be He) then says: And on the Day of Resurrection, they will disown your worshipping them. It is worth mentioning that invoking the Awliya is described as an act of Shirk (associating others with Allah in His Divinity or worship) as it was an attribute of Kafirs in the Ayahs (Qur`anic verses) quoted previously. Seeking help and protection from the deceased and those who are absent, while believing that they have hidden power and can hear from afar, is false and equivalent to Shirk. Every Muslim has to avoid indulging in such practices. Every Muslim has to know that the beliefs of the ignorant to the effect that the Awliya or prophets can benefit or harm, that they - after passing away - protect people who seek refuge with them or grant them their requests, i.e. forgiving theirs, curing the sick, and so on, are all different acts of ignorance and Shirk. Indeed, Allah (Exalted be He) sent the Prophet (ﷺ) to denounce such beliefs and call both Arabs and non- Arabs to Tawhid (belief in the Oneness of Allah). The Prophet (ﷺ) called the Arabs, who used to worship idols, Awliya, trees, and stones, to abandon all this and worship Allah Alone. The Prophet (ﷺ) conveyed the saying of Allah (Exalted be He) to people: And your Lord has decreed that you worship none but Him. And: You (Alone) we worship, and You (Alone) we ask for help (for each and everything). And: And they were commanded not, but that they should worship Allah, and worship...
Q: I gained considerable knowledge by listening to your program, especially when you mentioned that the Awliya (pious people) as well as all the deceased cannot benefit people with anything. However, when I told my family about it they named me a Kafir (disbeliever). They added that the Awliya will harm me as they saw them in their dreams blaming me. Could you please advise people who believe in many superstitions that are widely spread in almost all Arab countries?
A: I advise all Muslims to fear Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He) and know that all happiness and salvation both in this world and the Hereafter are attained by following the Prophet (ﷺ) and his way. Indeed, our Prophet (ﷺ) is the master of all the Awliya and the best of them. Prophets are the best Awliya and next to them are the Sahabah (Companions of the Prophet). The Awliya are people of righteousness, Istiqamah (integrity), and total obedience to Allah (Exalted be He) and His Messenger (ﷺ). Hence, loving the Awliya for the sake of Allah (Exalted be He) and imitating their good and righteous deeds are integral parts of the Din (religion). Nevertheless, it is not permissible that a person attaches themselves to the Awliya, worships or invokes them other than Allah, or seeks their protection or help by saying for example: "O my master "Abdul-Qadir! Protect me!" or, "O Messenger of Allah! Protect me!" or, "O `Aly! Protect me!", "... Grant me victory!", or, "O Husayn!, O Fatimah!, O Lady Zaynab!", and so on. All the foregoing is not permissible as Dua`a' (supplication) is to be made to Allah Alone. He (Glorified be He) says: Invoke Me, [i.e. believe in My Oneness (Islamic Monotheism) and ask Me for anything] I will respond to your (invocation). And: *And when My slaves ask you (O Muhammad ﷺ) concerning Me, then (answer them), I am indeed near (to them by My Knowledge). I respond to the invocations of the supplicant when he calls on Me (without any mediator or intercessor). And: Is not He (better than your gods) Who responds to the distressed one, when he calls on Him, and Who removes the evil And: And whoever invokes (or worships), besides Allah, any other ilah (god), of whom he has no proof; then his reckoning is only with his Lord. Surely! Al-Kafirun (the disbelievers in Allah and in the Oneness of Allah, polytheists, pagans, idolaters) will not be successful. Thus, Allah (Exalted be He) calls such people Kafirs because they invoke others beside Him. In addition, Allah (Glorified be He) says: And the mosques are for Allah (Alone): so invoke not anyone along with Allah. And: Such is Allah, your Lord; His is the kingdom. And those, whom you invoke or call upon instead of Him, own not even a Qitmir (the thin membrane over the date-stone). If you invoke (or call upon) them, they hear not your call; and if (in case) they were to hear, they could not grant it (your request) to you. And on the Day of Resurrection, they will disown your worshipping them. And none can inform you (O Muhammad ﷺ) like Him Who is the All-Knower (of everything). Allah (Exalted be He) makes it clear that the Awliya who are invoked other than Him do not hear the calls of their worshippers as they have already passed away and they are busy with their own affairs with Allah (Exalted be He). However, if they were to hear, they could not grant people's requests as forgiving sins and driving away grief are granted only by Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He). He (Exalted be He) then says: And on the Day of Resurrection, they will disown your worshipping them. It is worth mentioning that invoking the Awliya is described as an act of Shirk (associating others with Allah in His Divinity or worship) as it was an attribute of Kafirs in the Ayahs (Qur`anic verses) quoted previously. Seeking help and protection from the deceased and those who are absent, while believing that they have hidden power and can hear from afar, is false and equivalent to Shirk. Every Muslim has to avoid indulging in such practices. Every Muslim has to know that the beliefs of the ignorant to the effect that the Awliya or prophets can benefit or harm, that they - after passing away - protect people who seek refuge with them or grant them their requests, i.e. forgiving theirs, curing the sick, and so on, are all different acts of ignorance and Shirk. Indeed, Allah (Exalted be He) sent the Prophet (ﷺ) to denounce such beliefs and call both Arabs and non- Arabs to Tawhid (belief in the Oneness of Allah). The Prophet (ﷺ) called the Arabs, who used to worship idols, Awliya, trees, and stones, to abandon all this and worship Allah Alone. The Prophet (ﷺ) conveyed the saying of Allah (Exalted be He) to people: And your Lord has decreed that you worship none but Him. And: You (Alone) we worship, and You (Alone) we ask for help (for each and everything). And: And they were commanded not, but that they should worship Allah, and worship...