In the name of Allah, the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful

Visiting Graves and Seeking Help from the Deceased

[Text of the Question]

Ahmad ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him) was asked:

about someone who visits graves and seeks help from the buried saint when he, his horse, or his camel is afflicted with an illness, requesting that the sickness be removed;

and who says, “O my master, I am under your protection, I am relying on your safeguard. So-and-so has wronged me, so-and-so intends to harm me”;

and who says, “The one in the grave acts as an intermediary between me and Allah, exalted is He”;

and about a person who vows offerings for mosques, zawiyas (Sufi lodges), and shaykhs—whether they are alive or deceased—such as money, camels, sheep, candles, oil, and the like,

saying, “If my child recovers safely, I owe the shaykh such-and-such.”