The Wahhabi Charge of Grave Worship

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ

The heretic, Muhammad ibn ‘Abd al-Wahhab wrote Nawaqid al-Islam, where he listed acts and beliefs that nullified Islam, according to his limited understanding, notwithstanding the established position of the Ahl as-Sunnah wa al-Jama’ah. 

The Wahhabi creed, as set down by ibn ‘Abd al-Wahhab, is explicit that those who seek tawaswswul, through the “dead”, by calling upon them, are out of Islam: “He who sets up intermediaries between him and Allah, calling unto them, and asking them to intercede on his behalf with Allah, and putting trust in them, is a disbeliever according to the consensus of the scholars.” 

When Muslims make tawaswswul, through the Prophet (s.a.w.), and the pious, they address them with harf an-nida’, which is an invocative particle.  For example, we say, “Ya Muhammad”, or “Ya ‘Abd al-Qadir al-Jilani”.  This is a deliberate mischaracterisation of munada’.  al-Munada’ is an ism whose position is located after one of the letters of the letters of nida’. 

It is the position of the Wahhabi sect that calling upon other than Allah (s.w.t.) is a form of ‘ibadah, worship, and therefore, shirk.  They deliberately misuse the hadits that du’a is worship, and brand Muslims mushrikin, polytheists. 

We know the swahabah addressed the Prophet (s.a.w.) respectfully, by calling, “Ya Muhammad”, or “Ya Rasulullah”.  The basis is this ayat: 

سُوۡرَةُ النُّور

لَّا تَجۡعَلُواْ دُعَآءَ ٱلرَّسُولِ بَيۡنَڪُمۡ كَدُعَآءِ بَعۡضِكُم بَعۡضً۬ا‌ۚ … (٦٣) 

Deem not the summons of the Messenger among yourselves like the summons of one of you to another ... (Surah an-Nur:63) 

In this ayat, Allah (s.w.t.) Uses the word “du’a”, in the sense of calling.  The Wahhabi sect make a distinction, arguing falsely, that when the Prophet (s.a.w.) was alive, it was permissible to du’a, call, upon him with the vocative pronoun, “ya”, but now that he is “dead”, it is impermissible.  They have limited the Qur’an to time and space, and made Revelation fit their limited understanding.  In effect, they believe to use it now is shirk.  ibn ‘Abd al-Wahhab has made it explicit that to do so is to take the person out of Islam, and make their blood “halal”, which is their justification for violence against the Muslims, historical and contemporary. 

This position has not changed.  The contemporary Wahhabi “scholar”, the kafir, Abu Aminah Bilal Phillips, wrote in his “Fundamentals of Tawheed”: “If someone prays to the Prophet (s.a.w.), to so-called saints, jinn, or angels asking for help or asking them to request help from Allah for them, they have also committed shirk.” 

Wahhabism is an anti-intellectual, simplistic interpretation of an expansive religion.  It understands no nuance.  The Wahhabi sect regards any act of tawaswswul to be major shirk, regardless of asking for help, or asking for intercession.  That is not the position of Islam. 

In the Tafsir of Hafizh ‘Imad ad-Din Abu al-Fida’ Isma’il ibn ‘Umar ibn Katsir (r.a.), regarding the ayat above, it is not shirk to call upon the Prophet (s.a.w.) whilst he is in his grave.  When we quote these books, we are referring to the originals, not the abridged and “corrected” versions put out by the Wahhabi sect.  They have, for example, Swahih Tafsir ibn Katsir, where they have redacted what they consider to be dhalalah, misguidance.  They have done this for all the major books they put out, including ash-Shaykhayn. 

It is written, in Tafsir ibn Katsir, and elsewhere, that Sayyidina ‘Ali ibn Abu Thalib (k.w.) said, “Three days after burying the Prophet (s.a.w.), an Arab came and threw himself upon the grave of the Prophet (s.a.w.), took the earth and threw it on his head.  He said, ‘Ya Rasulullah!  You did speak and we did hear, you learned from Allah (s.w.t.) and we did learn from you.  Between those things which Allah (s.w.t.) did Send you, is following: 

سُوۡرَةُ النِّسَاء

... وَلَوۡ أَنَّهُمۡ إِذ ظَّلَمُوٓاْ أَنفُسَهُمۡ جَآءُوكَ فَٱسۡتَغۡفَرُواْ ٱللَّهَ وَٱسۡتَغۡفَرَ لَهُمُ ٱلرَّسُولُ لَوَجَدُواْ ٱللَّهَ تَوَّابً۬ا رَّحِيمً۬ا (٦٤) 

… If they had only, when they were unjust to themselves come unto thee and asked Allah’s Forgiveness and the Messenger had asked Forgiveness for them, they would have found Allah indeed Oft-Returning, Most Merciful. (Surah an-Nisa’:64) 

I am the one who is a sinner, and now I do come to you, so that you may ask for me.’ 

After that, a call from the grave did come: ‘There is no doubt, you are Forgiven.’” 

There has never been any controversy regarding tawaswswul, nida’, and istighatsa’, until the coming of the Great Fitnah, and the rise of the Wahhabi sect.  They, the kafirun, who have led others astray, label Muslims as kafirun.