TAWASSUL-Seeking a means of nearest to Allah

“The people are in great confusion about the matter of Tawassul and its rulings in
the religion, and they greatly differ concerning it, some declaring it lawful and
others prohibiting it, some going to extremes and others being over-lenient. Also.
a large number of the Muslims have been used to saying in their supplications for
centuries such things as: ‘O Allaah by the right of your Prophet…,’ or ‘by the right
of the Sacred House… forgive me.‘ ‘O Allaah by the right of the Aw/iyaa and the
pious. and so and so, etc.’ Or ‘O Allaah by the honour of the men of Allaah to You.
and by the honour of those in whose presence we are, and under whose
assistance we exist, relieve us and the distressed from all distress’…
“…Some people even go so far beyond bounds that they even allow tawassul to
Allaah, the Most Highjthrough some inanimate objects from the creation that do
not even reach the level of the aforementioned, such as graves of the Awliyaa,
metal structures built upon their tombs, and earth, stones and trees found nearby.
They claim that whatever is near to those who are honoured itself becomes
honoured, and that the honour which Allaah bestows upon the occupant of a grave
passes on to the grave itself, so that it becomes a means of Wasee/ah to draw
nearer to Allaah thereby. Indeed some of the later people allow directly seeking aid
from others besides Allaah!
“So what is Tawassul? What are its types? What is the meaning of the Aayaat and
the ahaadeeth which mention it? And what is the correct ruling for it in lslaam?”
BY SHEIK MUHAMMED. N. AL-ABANI