To Seek Help of Other than Allaah is Shirk

To Seek Help of Other than Allaah is Shirk

Imaam Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahhab rahimahullaah
From 'Kitaab at-Tawheed'

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Allaah subhanahu wa ta'ala said:

"Do not call onto any beings other than Allaah. These are capable of neither benefiti nor harm. To do so is therefore guilty of wrongdoing. When Allaah inverts you with an affliction, none can remove it except Him." (Qur'aan 10:106-107)

"Seek your livelihood from Him and worship Him alone." (Qur'aan 29:17)

"Who I smore foolish than he who prays to other beings than Allaah, to beings who are ever impotent to answer his prayer?" (Qur'aan 46:5)

"Is He not Allaah Who answers the appeal of the needy when he calls upon Him and removes the deed?" (Qur'aan 27:62)

At-Tabarani reported, with respective isnad: At the time of the Prophet there was a hypocrite who rendered so much harm to the believers that some of them summoned the others to seek the help of the Prophet against him. When the Prophet sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam heard of it, he said, 'No man may seek my help. Only the help of Allaah is worthy of being sought.'


Issues addresses in this chapter:

1. Adding prayers for the specific purposes to the general prayer of recoursing for help is like adding the particular to the general

2. Explanation of the verse, "Do not call onto any beings other than Allaah. These are capable of neither benefit nor harm." (Qur'aan 10:106)

3. To do this is the greatest shirk

4. To this by even the most righteous and for totally altruistic purposes is nonetheless an act of wrong-doing

5. Explanation of the verse that follows [viz. "When Allaah invests you with an affliction." (Qur'aan 10:107)]

6. That, in addition to being blasphemous, recoursing to other than Allaah will not avail in this world

7. Explanation of the third verse [viz. "Seek your livelihood from Him." (Qur'aan 29:17)]

8. Prayer for livelihood may never be addressed to anyone besides Allaah. Similarly prayer for paradise

9. Explanation of the fourth verse [viz. "Who is more foolish." (Qur'aan 46:5)]

10. That nobody is more astray than he who recourses to other than Allaah

11. That the called is ignorant of the prayer of the caller

12. Such prayer even causes hatred to develop between the caller and the called

13. Calling to anyone is a kind of worship of the person called

14. Blasphemy of such worship

15. All these matters make the calling person the most foolish of all

16. Explanation of the fifth verse [viz. "Who answers the appeal of the needy." (Qur'aan 27:62)]

17. The really amazing fact is that idolaters do admit that none responds to the needy except Allaah; and for this reason; they too call on Him sincerely when they are in distress

18. The Prophet's protection of tawhid and discipline before Allaah.

[Sadly in this day and age there are many who call upon those other than Allaah. For anyone living in the Indian sub continent it becomes apparent that there is much grave worshipping - supposedly under the name of Islam. When a person goes to visit a dead person, often someone who is considered more pious than they are, and ask them for something or to approach Allaah on their behalf, they commit some degree of shirk, for it is Allaah subhanahu wa ta'ala alone who has the ability to listen and respond to prayers - and He subhanahu wa ta'ala does as He subhanahu wa ta'ala wills, and may He subhanahu wa ta'ala make things easy for all, ameen.

In the words of Hud alayhis-salaam the messenger to the people of Ad : "I put my trust in Allaah my Lord and your Lord! There is not a moving creature but He hath grasp of its forelock. Verily it is my Lord that is on a Straight Path." (Qur'aan 11:56). Therefore our trust and our intentions and our actions should be to Allaah subhanahu wa ta'ala alone.

I was wondering about why any of us do good deeds. Some say that we do them to please others, e.g. I help a friend with some work in class. Others give other reasons, and Allaah subhanahu wa ta'ala knows best. But when I considered this, and thought about it, effectively what any of us should be doing, whether it is kindness to a partner, to a friend, family member whoever, we do these things, to please Allaah. To me the wise person is the one who recognizes this, and whenever they act they do not do it for themselves, or to show of - so it could be said of them - rather they do it because this life is in essence a worship of Allaah subhanahu wa ta'ala and part of worshipping Allaah subhanahu wa ta'ala is to keep good relations, and to help one another in whatever way we are able.

The greatest task however is that of pride and arrogance, that all of us face. Usually when we help someone, we feel good for doing it. That in itself is a very powerful rewards, however none of us should become big headed, and we should always remember that everything that we do do in this world should be as a preparation for the hereafter. And there is no better way to navigate this world that by remembering our Creator and attempting to live our lives as best we can in accordance to the laws He subhanahu wa ta'ala ordained for us, and may Allaah subhanahu wa ta'ala make it easy for us all.


There are a couple of duas that are important for us:

O Ever Living, O Self Sustaining, by Your mercy I call for help. Set right my affairs completely and do not entrust me to myself even for the wink of an eye - Ya haiyul ya kaiyumu birahmatika astaghithu us lili shanikulahu walatuklini ilainafsi tarfaha ain

O Allaah make sufficient for me what you have made lawful so that I may avoid that which is unlawful. And make me self sufficient by your favour, free from need of anyone but you. - Alla humak fee nee bi halaali ka un haraamika wa ag nee nee bi faz li kaummun siwa ka

In both of the above examples, we are seeking refuge in Allaah subhanahu wa ta'ala, we are asking Allaah subhanahu wa ta'ala to have mercy upon us, and we are asking Allaah subhanahu wa ta'ala to guide us, and provide for us. And surely as written in the following: "O ye who believe! when ye meet a force be firm and call Allaah in remembrance much (and often); that ye may prosper." Qur'aan 8:45 "Say: 'He is my Lord! There is no god but He! On Him is my trust and to Him do I turn!' " [Qur'aan 13:30]