Divine Pleasure and Intermediation
"O you who have believed! Fear Allah and seek the means [of nearness] to Him and strive in His cause that you may succeed." (Al-Maidah, 35)
Surah Al-Maidah was revealed during the latter period in Medina following the auspicious hijrah. It derives its name from the word "maidah," which translates to a table spread with food, as mentioned in ayahs 112 and 114. While the mention of the table spread requested by Isa (alayhissalam) in this surah is apparent, the title also metaphorically signifies the surah’s role as a banquet of guidance for the believers.
Threefold Duties
This surah encapsulates various fundamentals of faith and morality. It delves into marital and penal laws, aspects of the Hajj pilgrimage, the impermissibility of certain animal slaughters, purification rituals like ablution (wudu) and dry ablution (tayammum), witness laws, injunctions about theft, intoxicants, and gambling, and touches upon jurisprudential subjects. Additionally, extensive mentions and critiques of the fallacies in beliefs and behaviors of the Children of Israel and Judeo-Christian communities are also present.
In the aforementioned ayah of surah Al-Maidah, Almighty Allah encourages believers, following their affirmation of faith, towards taqwa, which is the source of all virtues and a means to avert evils. He urges them to refrain from immoral conduct and vile actions, to seek ways to approach Him, and to strive in His path for salvation. In light of this profound ayah, for believers to achieve safety from their fears and hopes, they need to heed three aspects:
• act with piety, avoiding evils for the sake of Allah
• seek ways towards Allah's pleasure
• strive in His path
Human responsibility can be broadly categorized into:
• abandoning everything prohibited by Allah: This is hinted at in the ayah's command to "Fear Allah."
• fulfilling the commands: This is signified by the directive, "seek the means [of nearness] to Him."
Abstaining from prohibitions is prioritized before the performance of commanded actions; hence, Allah the Exalted mentions it first. This sequence is also observed in moral ethics; to attain good character, one first abandons negative traits and then adorns oneself with virtues.
The same principle applies to one’s beliefs. The first step involves renouncing denial and polytheism, followed by contemplating the evidence that points to the oneness of Allah, the truthfulness of the Prophet Muhammad (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam), and the existence of the Hereafter.
This sequence is echoed in our declaration of faith, "la ilaha illallah." Here, negation (the act of denial and renouncement) precedes affirmation. It first states the non-existence of any deity other than Allah and then affirms His existence and oneness.
From the viewpoint of those whose hearts have been enlightened with divine truths, renunciation implies emptying the heart of everything other than Allah, the Mighty and Majestic. Once this is achieved, the heart brims with His divine light and numerous manifestations.
What Is Wasilah?
'Wasilah' means a medium or cause that bridges one to a particular end, a way to draw nearer. Mufassirs opine that the 'wasilah' referred to in ayahs encapsulates all forms of worship, deeds, and states that bring one closer to Allah and aid in obtaining His pleasure. Indeed, qudsi hadiths affirm that the paramount means to draw closer to Allah is primarily through obligatory acts of worship, followed by voluntary ones.
The act of seeking a wasilah is termed "tawassul." Scholars have reached a consensus on three primary modes of tawassul:
• invoking Allah through His Most Beautiful Names and Attributes
• seeking through the supplications made by prophets and pious awliya while they were alive
• tawassul in honor of righteous deeds
Notably, tawassul by invoking Allah’s sacred names is affirmed in the Quran and hadiths, with Allah’s commandment: “To Allah belong the most beautiful names, so call on Him by them.” (Al-A’raf, 180)
As for the legitimacy of seeking tawassul through the prayers of prophets and righteous awliya, it is inferred, from the ayahs highlighting the prophets’ prayers for their communities and their followers’ prayers for one another, that such a means of intercession is accepted in Allah's sight. (See: An-Nisa, 64; Yusuf, 97-98; Muhammad, 19)
Moreover, the Quran encourages tawassul through righteous deeds, exemplified in several supplications of the believers. (See: Al-Baqarah 285; Ali Imran 16, 53, 191, 193)
Tawassul Through Righteous Deeds
There’s a profound hadith that further testifies to the legitimacy of using righteous actions as a means of tawassul:
“While three persons were walking, rain began to fall and they had to enter a cave in a mountain. A big rock rolled over and blocked the mouth of the cave. They said to each other, 'Invoke Allah with the best deed you have performed (so Allah might remove the rock)'.’
One of them said, 'O Allah! My parents were old and I used to go out for grazing (my animals). On my return I would milk (the animals) and take the milk in a vessel to my parents to drink. After they had drunk from it, I would give it to my children, family and wife. One day I was delayed and on my return I found my parents sleeping, and I disliked to wake them up. The children were crying at my feet (because of hunger). That state of affairs continued till it was dawn. O Allah! If You regard that I did it for Your sake, then please remove this rock so that we may see the sky.'
So, the rock was moved a bit.
The second said, 'O Allah! You know that I was in love with a cousin of mine, like the deepest love a man may have for a woman, and she told me that I would not get my desire fulfilled unless I paid her one-hundred Dinars (gold pieces). So, I struggled for it till I gathered the desired amount, and when I sat in between her legs, she told me to be afraid of Allah, and asked me not to deflower her except rightfully (by marriage). So, I got up and left her. O Allah! If You regard that I did it for Your sake, kindly remove this rock.'
So, two-thirds of the rock was removed.
Then the third man said, 'O Allah! No doubt You know that once I employed a worker for one Faraq (three Sa's) of millet, and when I wanted to pay him, he refused to take it, so I sowed it and from its yield I bought cows and a shepherd. After a time that man came and demanded his money. I said to him: Go to those cows and the shepherd and take them for they are for you. He asked me whether I was joking with him. I told him that I was not joking with him, and all that belonged to him. O Allah! If You regard that I did it sincerely for Your sake, then please remove the rock.'
So, the rock was removed completely from the mouth of the cave." (Bukhari, Buyu 98; Muslim, Dhikr 27)
This narration reveals that one sought closeness to Allah through the kindness he had shown to his parents, another through resisting temptation at its peak, and the third by scrupulously preserving another's right.
In essence, tawassul is one of the gateways to supplication, a means to draw nearer to Allah the Almighty. A Muslim’s true objective remains to be with Allah the Exalted; the means of tawassul is but a medium, a bridge, to that end.
Intercession Through the Prophets
We previously elaborated on the consensus that using righteous deeds to draw closer to Almighty Allah is permissible. In addition, knowing that the Prophet Muhammad (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) and his heirs, namely the ulama and awliya, cannot confer any benefit or ward off any harm without Allah's permission, seeking intercession through them based on their proximity to Him and their esteemed rank in His sight is also deemed acceptable. Let us cite some evidence on this matter.
The Qur'an says, in translation:
"And when there came to them a Book (i.e., the Qur’an) from Allah confirming that which was with them - although before they used to pray for victory against those who disbelieved - but (then) when there came to them that which they recognized, they disbelieved in it; so the curse of Allah will be upon the disbelievers." (Al-Baqarah, 89)
Numerous authoritative tafsirs cite Ibn Abbas (radiyallahu anh) saying about this ayah:
When the Jews of Khaybar were at war with the Gatafan tribe and faced defeat, they implored, “O our Lord! We beseech You for the sake of the unlettered Prophet You promised to send in the latter times.” With this prayer, they overcame the Gatafan. Every time they faced an adversary, this supplication led them to victory. This underscores the Jews' use of tawassul through the Prophet Muhammad (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) for Allah’s aid. Allah, in this ayah, acknowledges their prior prayers for assistance in His Messenger’s name before he was sent but condemns their disbelief when the Prophet was eventually sent to them. In essence, Allah did not rebuke their act of intercession; rather, He condemned their rejection of His Messenger.
Another hadith narrated by Uthman ibn Hunayf (radiyallahu anh) is as follows:
A blind man approached the Prophet and said, “Pray to Allah for me so I may regain my sight.” The Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) responded, “If you wish, I can defer your request.” When the man persisted, the Prophet instructed him to perform ablution, offer two units of prayer, and then supplicate, saying, “O Allah! I ask of You and turn to You through Your Prophet Muhammad, the Prophet of Mercy. O Muhammad! I turn with your plea to my Lord regarding my present need. O Allah, accept his intercession on my behalf.” The narrator, Ibn Hunayf, added: "By Allah, before we departed from that gathering or even had a conversation, the man entered our presence as if he had never been afflicted."
On the Day of Judgment, after a prolonged wait on the Plains of Resurrection known as Arasat, when humanity, in distress, approaches Prophets Adam, Noah, Ibrahim, Musa, and Isa (alayhimussalam) for help, each will refer them to the leader of the prophets. May endless blessings and peace be upon them. Ultimately, our beloved Prophet Muhammad (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) will declare, "That status is for me." He will hasten to assist, prostrating in fervent supplication, until Allah commands, “O Muhammad, raise your head! Speak, and you shall be heard. Intercede, and it shall be granted. Ask, and you shall receive.” (Bukhari, Muslim)
Can One Achieve the End Without the Means?
Every believer requires a mediator. It is essential to seek and invoke them. Faith, piety, desire, and will are the leading forces that propel a person towards such wasilah. At its core, true wasilah is the intent to draw nearer to Allah the Almighty and the longing to love Him. With this intention, one should search for causes and establish ways aligned with Allah’s pleasure, such as having good character and doing righteous deeds. In this context, the concluding part of the sacred ayah instructs us to "strive" in our pursuit of means. Faith is perfected by piety, piety by seeking wasilah, and the quest for wasilah is completed by striving. Once faith is followed by the fulfillment of these three commands, we can hope for salvation.
In the holy ayah, when Allah the Most High commands, "Fear Allah," He directs us to abandon what shouldn't be done. With the decree, "Seek the means [of nearness] to Him," He is instructing us to fulfill our obligations. All these are daunting tasks for the nafs since it is easily lured by the temporary and material pleasures of this world. Given this reality, Allah the Exalted further advises, "Strive in His cause that you may succeed."
The term "strive" in the sacred ayah is multifaceted. Besides referring to battling against adversaries with appropriate means, it also encapsulates every sincere and persistent effort made in the path of Allah the Almighty. As expressed in the ayah, iman is augmented by fear of Allah and the quest to find means that bring one closer to Him, and this pursuit of means can only be completed through struggle as specified in the ayah.
A believer’s struggle is the most potent factor that removes barriers in their path towards drawing closer to Allah the Almighty. Thus, the ayah concludes with a command that for iman to truly flourish, believers must resist and combat any overt or covert obstacles that deter them from Allah’s path or force them into servitude to anything other than Him.
To summarize, Allah the Most High has conditioned salvation upon four pillars: iman, taqwa, seeking wasilah, and struggling in the path of Allah. Thus, a broader interpretation of the ayah would be:
O believers, illuminated by the timeless light! Reform your characters and actions out of fear of Allah the Almighty. Seek out means to eradicate your unfavorable traits and expend your wealth and your very being in struggling on His path. Perhaps, in doing so, you may achieve your true purpose - attaining proximity to your Creator and finding ultimate success.
Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) knows best.
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