Tawassul

Blocking of Means (Sadd-i Dhara'i')

Some of the Wahhabi 'ulama' such as Dr. Muhammad bin Sa'd Suway'ir who is one of the deputies of Shaikh Bin Baz, say thattawassul and tabarruk are permissible for 'ulama' who are cognizant of the essence of faith, but this is forbidden for the common people, who are prone to drift towards polytheism and who might gradually start believing in the personal influence of the Prophet and saints in the granting of boons and prevention of the detrimental things. Therefore, it is obligatory to stop them fromtawassul and tabarruk in the name of Blocking of Means.

Critique

Ayatollah Wa'iz-Zadeh rejecting the Wahhabi theory againsttawassul says:

When the permissibility or recommendation for this act has been confirmed with rational proof, it is not permissible to prohibittawassul for such unfounded fears that the ignorant might give it the color of polytheism. If such were the case, the Prophet (S.A.W.A.) himself would have prohibited people as a precaution from seeking blessing, visiting the graves or kissing the sacred black stone (Hajar al-Aswad) at the holy Ka'bah. On the contrary, judicious measures for checking possible deviation are for the 'ulama' to exercise greater control.[^41]

Takfir of Shi’a for Tawassul

Ibn Taymiyyah, despite his extreme and biased approach for prohibitingtawassul , has admitted:

This is a controversial issue and to accuse of heresy those who maketawassul isharam and is a sinful act, since no one has said that a person makingtawassul to the Prophet (S.A.W.A.) after his death is a kafir. This is an ambiguous issue and there are no certain proofs in this regard. Kufr is confirmed when a person rejects any of the tenets of faith deliberately and being fully aware. Therefore, those who accuse a person of heresy for makingtawassul deserve the most severe punishment.[^42]

It is unfortunate that the blind prejudice which the colonial powers had skillfully exploited to create differences among Sunni Muslims as a result of the Wahhabiyyah opposition to the issue oftawassul , has been widened to sow discord between Sunni and Shi’a Muslims and to label the Shi’a as kafir (infidel) or mushrik (polytheist) on the allegation that they seek their requests from other than God. To quote Ayatollah Wa'iz-Zadeh, those who do not permittawassul and tabarruk are only a fraction of a minority among the 'ulama' of the Muslim world, and despite their efforts over the past seven centuries, have not been able to convince the upholders oftawassul .[^43]

Thus, as should be clear, according to the statement of Ibn Taymiyyah the issue oftawassul is a moral one and does not concern the principles of faith, since a kafir is the one who rejects any of the tenets of Islam.