QUESTION:
Is it permissible to say, ‘Ya Ali enrich me’ or ‘cure me’? Or, should the phrase be altered to:
O Allah! Verily I ask you by the right of the Commander of the Faithful that you enrich me or cure me? or the phrase: “O Commander of the Faithful! Intercede for me with Allah that He enriches me?
And is it correct that supplication (Du’a) is worship? If that is the case, then is supplicating to other than Allah allowed? And is there a difference between Tawasul that we Shias perform, and supplicating to other than Allah?
ANSWER:
In the Name of Allah, the All-Beneficent, the All-Merciful.
May Allah bless Muhammad and his Family and damn their enemies.
Both of these statements are Islamically correct with the belief that the enrichment of the Commander of the Faithful for example, is only possible by the permission of Allah (Exalted be He). And with the Divine Authority that Allah has granted to him. So it is correct to say
O Commander of the faithful! Enrich and cure me by the permission of Allah.
And supplication (Du’a) is worship; Tawasul, is from worship just as Allah (Exalted be He) commanded in the Quran:
O ye who believe! Be mindful of your duty to Allah, and seek the means (of approach) unto Him, and strive in His way so that ye may succeed.
(Qur’an 5:36)
As for supplication to other than Allah (Exalted be He), then this is polytheism and not worship (to Allah). And with that, the difference between the two positions has been made clear to you.
The Office of Sheikh al-Habib
