Praise to Allah alone and peace and blessing are upon the Prophet of Allah, the members of his family and his companions and on all those who shall until Day of Judgment; proceed on right path shown by Him.
Verily, Allah SWT, the Almighty created mankind and sent the Messengers SA in order that he alone is worshipped. Allah states in Holy Qur’an:
“I have only created jinns and men that they may serve Me.” [51:56]
To worship means to obey the Almighty Allah and the Prophet SAW by carrying out what Allah and His Prophet have ordered us to do by abstaining from what they have forbidden us to do. We carry out these actions with faith, humility and sincere devotion to Allah and His Prophet SAW. The Holy Qur’an states:
“Thy Lord hath decreed that ye worship none but Him” [17:23
In other words, He has ordained that He alone be worshipped. Allah says in Holy Qur’an:
“Praise be to Allah, the Cherisher and Sustainer of the Worlds; Most Gracious Most Merciful; Master of the Day of Judgment; Thee do we worship and Thine aid we seek.” [1:2-5]
These verses make it amply clear that Allah alone is to be worshipped and His help alone is to be sought. Allah also says:
“So serve Allah offering Him sincere devotion. Is it not to Allah that sincere devotion is due?” [39:2-3]
And
“Call ye then upon Allah with sincere devotion to Him even though the Unbelievers may detest it.” [40: 14]
And
"And the places of worship are for Allah (alone): so invoke not anyone along with Allah.” [72:18]
There are several verses in Holy Qur’an in this context pointing out the necessity and duty to worship Allah alone. Invocation, as you all know, is, in all its forms, a manner of worship; it is therefore not permissible for anybody to invoke anyone and to neither seek the help of anyone nor plead assistance from anyone except Allah, as stated in above verses. However, in matters pertaining the daily routine of life and in connection with material things on which every human being has control, a person may seek help of another person; this is not worship; a person may for example, one may ask help from his colleague either directly or by correspondence to the building of his house or repairing his car. In this context, Allah SWT says while narrating the story of the Prophet Moses S.A.,
“Now the man of his own religion appealed to him against his foe,” [28:15]
The help and aid that a man seeks from his fellow human beings at times of Jihad and conflict is like the above said help. But seeking help and aid from the dead, the Jinns, the Angels, the trees and the Stone is an act of major polytheism; it is similar to practices of polytheists of early ages with their gods such as Al-Uzza and Al-Latt, etc. Similarly, it is an act of polytheism to believe that certain human beings enjoy or possess certain super natural powers which belong only to Allah SWT. It is believed that such people can help in curing the sick and attaining the paradise and salvation from hell.
The verses quoted above and the saying of the Prophet emphasizes the need to guide all people to the path of Allah in all matters and to be sincere in worshipping Allah and only Allah in all matters and to be sincere in worshipping Allah and Allah only because all human beings have been created for that purpose and had been thus ordained as mentioned in the versed quoted above, Allah SWT also Says:
“Serve Allah, and join not any partners with him.” [4:36]
And
“And they have been commanded no more than this: to worship Allah offering Him sincere devotion being True (in faith),--“ [98:5]
And Prophet SAW has said as narrated by Muaadh:
“It is Allah’s right over the worshippers that they worship only him and do not associate anyone with him”
And Prophet SAW has said in another tradition narrated by Masud and recorded by Imam Bukhari:
“Whoever dies while invoking someone as rival to Allah will be doomed to hell”
When Prophet SAW sent the companion Muaadh to Yemen, he said to him, “You shall be meeting people who profess faith in revealed Book; therefore, your plea to them should be to profess the Statement of faith: “THERE IS NO GOD EXCEPT ALLAH AND THAT I (Muhammad) AM THE MESSENGER OF ALLAH;” In the narration of Imam Bukhari it is mentioned as [/I] “Plead to them to until they accept oneness of Allah.”[/i]
It is narrated in the collections of Traditions (Hdith) compiled by Imam Muslim that according to a saying by Tarek Ibn Ashyam Al-Ashjayi that Prophet SAW said:
“Whoever accepts oneness of Allah and disbelieves whatever is worshipped other then Allah enjoys the protection from Allah in his wealth, blood and his reward is with Allah”
There are numerous traditions on this subject.
The faith in oneness of Allah is the sum and substance of the religion of Islam; it is the basic principle and most important of all the duties. And it is for this purpose that the human beings and the Jinns were created. It was for same object that the Messengers of Allah SWT were sent. We had earlier quoted several verses from holy Qur’an affirming this fact. Among such verses are:
“I have only created jinns and men that they may serve Me. (Q-51: 56)
and
“For we assuredly sent amongst every People an apostle, (with the Command), Serve Allah, and eschew Evil" (Q 16:36)
and
“Not an apostle did We send before thee without this inspiration sent by Us to him that there is no god but I; therefore worship and serve Me." (Q21: 25)
Referring to Prophets Noah, Hud, Saleh and Sooib PBU All of them Allah SWT says that these prophets advised their peoples:
"O my people! Worship Allah! ye have no other god but Him.” [7:59]
These were the message of all the Prophets. All those who oppose the Prophets have themselves confessed that the Prophets commanded them to worship Allah only and to give up the worship of all other gods. The Holy Qur’an says in this context, referring to the story of Aad that they told Prophet Hud SAW.
“They said: "Comest thou to us that we may worship Allah alone and give up the cult of our fathers? Bring us what thou threatenest us with if so be that thou tellest the truth!" [7:70]
And Allah SWT says about the people of the tribe of Quraish when our prophet Muhammad SAWS, to worship Allah only, called them upon, to give up worshipping the Angels, the friends (read here; saints and walis) and guides (read here; Dais and Mullahs) , idols and trees etc.;
"Has he made the gods (all) into one Allah? Truly this is a wonderful thing!” [38:5]
And
“For they, when they were told that there is no god except Allah, would puff themselves up with pride, and say: "What! Shall we give up our gods for the sake of a Poet possessed?" [37:35-36]
There are many verses in Holy Qur’an and Sayings of the Holy prophet SAWS which expounds this concept. May Allah grant us success to us all in understanding our religion and educating ourselves regarding the true path of Allah.
All the invocations and different expressions seeking help and succor are various forms of polytheism because they are addressed as worship to other then Allah; and they seek to achieve things thru the dead and the departed whereas Allah alone can achieve things.
Such invocations are worse form of polytheism when compared to polytheism of the early ages because the people of early ages indulged in polytheism only when they enjoined material comfort, peace and luxury, But at times of crises and hardship they worshipped Allah alone because they knew that Allah alone can bring salvation to them from their hardship, The holy Qur’an refers to those polytheists and says;
“Now if they embark on a boat they call on Allah making their devotion sincerely (and exclusively) to Him; but when He had delivered them safely to (dry) land Behold they give a share (of their worship to others)!” [29:65]
And Allah says in another verse;
“When distress seizes you at sea those that ye call upon -besides Himself- leave you in the lurch! But when He brings you back safe to land, ye turn away (from Him). Most ungrateful is man!” [17:67]
If the later day polytheists were to say, “We do not mean that those whose help we seek can by themselves benefit us and cure the sick among us or be of use to us or hurt us; we only mean to seek their intercession with Allah for us, the answer to such an observation should be as follows:
Verily, the unbelievers of the early periods also had the same purpose and desire; they too did not believe that their gods create or give livelihood or do good or harm.
Such a statement will negate what Allah has mentioned about them in the Holy Qur’an. Those unbelievers also claimed that they only sought, through such worship, the intercession and good offices of those whom they worshipped so that they make take them nearer to Allah. Allah says in the Holy Qur’an: in the context of the story of the Prophet Yunus A.S.:
“They serve besides Allah things that hurt them not nor profit them and they say: ‘These are our intercessors with Allah.’ Say: ‘Do ye indeed inform Allah of something He knows not in the heavens or on earth?’ Glory to Him! And far is He above the partners they ascribe (to Him)!” [10:18]
Thus Allah states in unmistakable words that he has no knowledge of any intercessor from the heavens or from the earth as claimed by the unbelievers. So, the existence of anything not known to Allah does not in fact exist because nothing is hidden from his knowledge. Allah says in the Holy Qur’an:
“The revelation of this Book is from Allah, The Exalted in Power, Full of Wisdom.
Verily, it is We who have revealed the Book to thee in Truth; so serve Allah offering Him sincere devotion. Is it not to Allah that sincere devotion is due? - -“ [39:1-3]
It evident from these verses that Allah alone is to be worshipped and such worship should be in all sincerity because Allah has commanded the Prophet SAWS to be sincere in worship. The above quoted verse; the word “Ad-Deen” meaning religion in Arabic has been interpreted as worship; worship means obedience to Allah and His Prophet SAWS as stated earlier; it includes invocations, seeking help, fear, hope, vows and sacrifices besides prayers and fasting and other duties ordained by Allah and His prophet SAWS. Later on, Allah says in the Holy Qur’an:
“But those who take for protectors other than Allah (say): "We only serve them in order that they may bring us nearer to Allah." Truly Allah will judge between them in that wherein they differ. But Allah guides not such as are false and ungrateful.” [39:3]
Thus the falsehood of their claim that their gods take them nearer to Allah has been exposed and the worship they perform has been described as blasphemy . It should therefore be clear to any person who has minimum of intelligence that the source of blasphemy and polytheism in earlier ages was because Prophets, friends and advisors besides trees and stones and other creations were considered intercessors between worshippers and Allah and they believed that such intercessors achieve for them their hopes and aspirations, needs and ambitions without the permission nor consent of Allah the Almighty. It was considered to be like the recommendation of the ministers to the kings and they (such worshippers) presumed Allah SWT to be equal to kings and leaders therefore, they uttered words which one may utter when making petition to a king or a leader. This is worst form of falsehood because Allah SWT has none similar to Him and He cannot be compared with His own creations; no one intercedes with Him without his permission; intercession is granted only to believers in the Oneness of Allah; Allah is Omnipotent and Omniscient and he is Most Merciful; He does not fear anyone and neither can frighten Him since He has power over all His servants and He alone disposes their affairs as He wills. On the contrary, kings and leaders cannot have power over anything and they don not have knowledge about everything. So they need to have people to assist them in matters, which they are unable to achieve or implement. Hence, an entourage of ministers, advisers and bodyguards, etc always surrounds them. They also need to be informed about those who are in want; this is yet another reason for being surrounded by ministers and advisers. But Allah SWT is above all such needs and all such assistance. He is more merciful to them then their mothers; and He is just ruler who as per His Supreme Knowledge, Wisdom and Ability assigns to its proper place; it is therefore not proper to compare Him with His own creations. It is for this reason that Allah SWT has stated in Qur’an that He is the Creator and the Sustainer; it He who responds to call of one who is in distress and exposes the evil; gives life and takes it away; and does so many other actions, The dispute between the polytheists and the Messenger of the Allah is in fact about sincerity in worshipping Allah Alone. The Holy Qur’an says:
If thou ask them who created them they will certainly say Allah: how then are they deluded away (from the Truth)? [43:87]
And
Say: "Who is it that sustains you (in life) from the sky and from the earth? Or who is it that has power over hearing and sight? And who is it that brings out the living from the dead and the dead from the living? And who is it that rules and regulates all affairs?" They will soon say "Allah." Say, "Will ye not then show piety (to Him)?" [10:31]
There are several verses in his context in the Holy Qur’an. We had earlier referred to the verses that point out that, the dispute between the Messenger of Allah and the nations was regarding sincerity in worshipping Allah alone. we may quote another verse:
For We assuredly sent amongst every People an apostle (with the Command) "Serve Allah and eschew Evil" [16:36]
Regarding intercession, Allah SWT has mentioned in several places in Holy Qur’an the real meaning of intercession. We may for example quote:
Who is there can intercede in His presence except as He permitteth? [2:255]
Allah will not accept from His worshippers blasphemy, heathenism; He will accept only gratitude expressed by the belief in oneness of Allah and obedience to Him. It is stated in the Holy Quran:
It ye reject (Allah) truly Allah has no need of you; but He liketh not ingratitude from His servants: if ye are grateful He is pleased with you. [39:7]
It is narrated in the Collections of Traditions (Hadith) compiled by Imam Bukhari that Abu Hurayra said that when he asked the Prophet SAW, “Who shall be most happy people with your intercession, O Prophet of Allah?” The Prophet said, “He who says that there is no god except Allah, and says so with all the sincerity of his heart (or of his self).” [/I]
It is narrated on the authority of Anas R.A. that the Prophet SAW said, “Every Prophet has a plea responded to; and every Prophet hastened to make his plea while I withheld mine, so I may intercede for my Ummah (nation) on the Day of Judgment; and by the will of Allah my intercession will include all my Ummah who have departed from this world without setting up partners to Allah in worship.”
There are several verses in the Holy Qur’an and several Traditions of the Prophet which emphasize the fact that worship is a right preserved for Allah alone and it is not permissible to perform any worship to anyone other then Allah, whether they may be Prophets or any other person. They also emphasize the fact that intercession is with Allah, the Almighty Alone as said in Qur’an:
“ Say: "To Allah belongs exclusively (the right to grant) Intercession: “ [39:44]
No one shall deserve intercession except by His permission. And He, the Almighty, will permit for intercession to person who only believes in Oneness or Allah as stated earlier. Therefore, the polytheists will not be granted intercession. The Holy Qur’an says:
“Then will no intercession of (any) intercessors profit them.” [74:48]
“Neither intimate friend nor intercessors will the wrongdoers have who could be listened to.” [40:18]
The expression “wrong-doers” in these verses is interpreted as the polytheists; this is stated in another verses:
“Those who reject faith they are the wrong-doers.” [2:254]
“For false worship is indeed the highest wrong-doing." [31:13]
With regards to your question concerning some of Sufis (Mystics) who utter in Mosques and some other places phrases such as “O Lord, grant peace and blessings on the one whom you have ordained to be instrumental in unfolding of your mighty secrets and in opening the doors of to sublime lights of Your Mercy and who has thus become your vicegerent and who has inherited your secrets ----etc.” The answer to this question is as follows:
All such utterances are nothing but pedantry and empty talk against which our Prophet SAW has warned us. It is narrated in the collection of Traditions (Hadith) by Imam Muslim on the authority of Abdulla Ibn Masud that the Prophet SAW said: “The Pedants shall be doomed to destruction.” (The Prophet repeated this remark three times). Imam Al-Khattab RA has defined a pedant as one who delves into problems and issues which are beyond his intellectual abilities, as was indulged by the scholastic theologians.
Abus-Sadaat ibnul Athis has said that the pedants are those who show extravagance in their speech and try to speak loudly. The Arabic word for this expression “Mutanatti” “is derived from Nat’ “ meaning forepart of the palate. Later, the word was used for every extravagant either in speech or action.
Any person, eve with limited intelligence, will understand from the above that such utterances referred to, in praise of our Prophet SAW is for of affection and pedantry forbidden in our religion. The correct approach for a Muslim in this context should be to learn the Traditional method of praying on the Prophet SAW. Imam Bukhari and Imam Muslim have narrated in their collection on the authority of Kabb RA that the Companions of the Prophet SAW said to the Prophet “O Prophet of Allah, we have been ordained to pray on you; how shall we pray on you?” The Prophet Said, “Say, O Lord, bless Muhammad and the family of the Muhammad as you blessed Ibrahim and the family of Ibrahim; verily thou art Praiseworthy and Glorious; and O Lord; grant your benedictions to Muhammad and the family of Muhammad as you granted to Ibrahim and the family of the Ibrahim; verily thou art Praiseworthy and Glorious.”
It is also narrated in the collections of Imam Bukhari and Imam Muslim on the authority of Abi Masud Al-Ansari RA that Basheer Ibn-Sa’ad said: “O Prophet of Allah, Allah has ordered us to pray on you; so how shall we pray on you?” The Prophet remained silent for few moments and then said: “Say, O Lord, bless Muhammad and the family of the Muhammad as you blessed Ibrahim and the family of Ibrahim; verily thou art Praiseworthy and Glorious.” This is the prayer taught to you.”
All such utterances that are authentically attributed to the Prophet SAW should be only utterances used by a Muslim whenever he seeks to pray for the prophet and ask Allah’s benediction for him. A Muslim should abide only by these authentic words because the Prophet SAW knows best regarding words that are to be used for him and he also knows best regarding the words that are to used for His Lord. All innovated and affected words and phrases besides the words which are loaded with the possibility of incorrect connotations such as words mentioned in your query; such words should not be used because they are affected forms of speech because they can be interpreted with false meanings and also for the reason they are different from the words selected by the Prophet of Allah SAW. He has instructed his Ummah (nation) and he is best informed among all human beings and most righteous; he is the least inclined to affections. May the best of peace and blessings of our Lord on him. I hope the discussion I have in these pages, supported by the adequate proofs, shall suffice in explaining the truth of the doctrine of the Oneness of Allah and exposing polytheism besides explaining the difference between the polytheist of the early ages and those of the later ages in this regard.
A person who seeks to know truth should be convinced by the explanation given regarding the permissible form of prayer on the Prophet SAW. But if a person has no desire to know the truth, he can indulge in his own fanciful thoughts. Allah has referred to them in the Holy Quran and said:
“But if they hearken not to thee know that they only follow their own lusts: and who is more astray than one who follows his own lusts devoid of guidance from Allah? For Allah guides not people given to wrongdoing.” [28:50]
In the above verse Allah SWT has classified the people in two groups with regard to their attitude to our Prophet Muhammad SAW and his mission; one group responds to Allah and His messenger whereas the other group follows its own lusts and Allah says that those who follow their lusts are deprived of all guidance from Him.
We pray Allah SWT that we may be safe from becoming the followers of lusts and may Allah make you and all of us among those who always abide by the path of Allah and His Messenger SAW and by those who enlighten us about His Divine Law (Sharia) and caution us against the fanciful opinions. Peace and Blessings be on His slave and Messenger, Our Prophet Muhammad and on his Family, his companions and his followers until the Day of Judgment.
The above hadith of Musa as and Harun a.s should be matched with Al quran and you will get the answer of sucessor of rasullah saw .
