All praise is due to Allah, Lord of the worlds. I send salutation and blessings upon His slave and our Prophet Mohammed and upon his family, companions and those who follow his approach and aid him till the day of judgment, thereafter:

The supplication (dua) is a mighty exalted worship, the Prophet peace and blessings be upon him said: “Supplication is the worship.” Then he recited: ‘And your Lord said: ‘Call upon Me, I will answer you. Verily, those who scorn my worship, they will surely enter Hell in humiliation (40:60).'” 

A mighty exalted worship that the Prophet peace be upon him made it the (essence of) worship, meaning: it is from the greatest forms for worship, rather the Prophet peace and blessing be upon him said: “There is nothing more noble to Allah the Glorified, than supplication.” 

The supplication contains humbling of the servant between His (Allah) hands, presenting himself between His (Allah) hands, bring oneself into favour of His Lord, humbling oneself to Him (Allah) and showing your need for Him (Allah).

 “Who responds to the distressed when they cry to Him, relieving ˹their˺ affliction, and ˹Who˺ makes you successors in the earth? Is it another god besides Allah? Yet you are hardly mindful!” 27:62 

This contains believe from the servant that Allah Glorified be He hears him, and that Allah Glorified be He can relieve him, and that Allah is Merciful, Most Loving, close to His servant, it contains affirmation to Allah’s Lordship, affirmation of His Names and Attributes, it is only befitting that the slave’s tongue should be abundantly attached to supplication. 

Allah says: “Rather, ask Allah for His bounties.” 4:62 Allah loves from you that you ask from Him.

Allah gets Angry when you abandon asking him, while the children of Adam get angry when they’re asked.

And if supplications are like this, then know that the opposite is extremely dangerous, if the supplication to Allah is a fulfillment of monotheism, then supplication for something else is the height of polytheism with Allah, beware, O servant of Allah!! Praying to other than Allah abandons faith, and leaves monotheism levelled flat. The greatest crime on earth is that a person calls upon other than Allah. 

This matter, my brothers, is extremely dangerous, and a person should not take it easy, for the consequence is dire, serious. What does a person want when he calls upon the living or the dead, abandons the Lord of the earth and the heavens?! Do you seek someone to listen to you other than your Lord?! Do you seek someone more capable of answering than your Lord?! Do you seek someone more merciful to you than your Lord?! No way, by Allah, neither was nor will be. So why do some people resort to invoking someone other than Allah? 

Allah Almighty said  “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, etc.) will not be successful”.

(Al-Muminoon 117)

The Almighty says  “And the mosques are for Allah (Alone), so invoke not anyone along with Allah”.

(Al-Jinn 18)

Allah Almighty says 

“And who is more astray than one who calls (invokes) besides Allah, such as will not answer him till the Day of Resurrection, and who are (even) unaware of their calls (invocations) to them?”

“And when mankind are gathered (on the Day of Resurrection), they (false deities) will become enemies for them and will deny their worshipping”.

(Al-Ahqaf 5-6)

Watch out, O servant of Allah!! For the condition of polytheistic supplication, are three situations in which supplication becomes too other than Allah as major polytheism, major disbelief, removing one from the religion, the doer is a disbeliever in Allah Almighty, according to the text of the Book of Allah, and the text of the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah, may Allah blessing and peace be upon him.

I do not say the evidence for this is one evidence., or two evidence, rather in dozens, the evidence that supplications should be dedicated to Allah, and the prohibition of supplications to others. Rather, supplications by other than Him is polytheism with dozens (evidence). 

My noble brothers beware of these three scenarios, and warn of them: 

First, the calling upon the dead, whether the person is near the grave or far from it, if he comes to the grave, or is far from the grave, and the person calls out to the grave owner, my master so and so protect me, provide aid, because we have helped the extended periods of time. Displacing something solely for Allah with other than Him.

The second scenario is that he calls upon someone alive and absent: whether he was able to fulfill your supplications if he was present or not. When a person calls another, Sheikh so-and-so, sir, so-and-so, while he is in the Emirates and his sheikh is in Mecca or in America, This Allah forbid is a greater shirk because he thinks that this sheikh has general hearing and a general ability to answer those who call upon him, and this is associating partners with Allah in that which is specific to Him. Included in this, my brothers, the calling upon of the jinn and the calling upon of the angels because they are in the rule of absentees for us.

The third scenario is that he calls upon someone who’s alive, present regarding a matter that only Allah is capable of (in its fulfilment). Calls upon someone who’s alive and present but you ask of them that which only Allah can fulfill. He approaches a person and says: O sayid so and so, I want a child. O sayid so and so, we haven’t had rain so we want rain, asking for things that only Allah can give. This (individual) -we seek refuge in Allah- has placed something that’s solely for Allah to other than Allah. 

Therefore, my brothers, we must be weary regarding these three matters, by Allah this is from the uttermost dangerous matters, yet so many fall into it.

O my dear brothers, our obligation is to abstain (from it) and warn (against it), that we forbid and advise, and that we enjoin the good and forbid the evil.

“The believing men and believing women are allies of one another. They enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong and establish prayer and give zakāh and obey Allah and His Messenger. Those – Allah will have mercy upon them. Indeed, Allah is Exalted in Might and Wise” Tawbah 71

However, if someone asks a person who’s alive and present regarding something they can do, then there’s no issue in that praise be to Allah. 

As Allah said:

“The man from his people called to him for help against his foe” Qasas 15. 

O so and so, give me such and such, take me to there, bring me that, praise be to Allah this is permissible in Islam, but to ask a dead person, or a person who’s alive but absent, or a person who’s alive and present regarding something that only Allah can fulfil, then this is dangerous. And this individual has subjected his belief to demise, and has fallen into disbelief. 

May Allah bless me and you, keep our steps firm, and protect us from major shirk and the minor. We supplicate with the supplication the messenger which he taught the truthful, 

(My lord I seek refuge in you that I associate something with you while I know, and I seek your refuge in that which I don’t know of) 

Peace and salutation and blessings upon his servant and messenger, our Prophet Mohammed and his family and companions.

Source: https://youtu.be/SuG9E55U_2o

Translated By:  Abdulkadir Abdullahi