the one who says, ‘We have been given rain by the bounty of Allah and His mercy,’ is a believer in Me and a disbeliever in the star; whereas the one who says, ‘We have been given rain by such-and-such constellation,’ is a disbeliever in Me and a believer in the star. The secondary means that Allah has designated as means are never to be treated as partners, rivals, or helpers alongside Him.

When someone declares, ‘By the blessing of the shaykh,’ he may be referring to the shaykh’s supplication—and the supplication made for an absent person is answered most swiftly. He may be referring to the blessing that lies in the good the shaykh ordered and taught him. He may be referring to the blessing of the shaykh’s assistance in upholding the truth and his loyalty in religion, and similar matters; all of these are legitimate meanings.

But he might instead be alluding to the shaykh’s praying for the dead or the absent while attributing the effect to the shaykh alone, or imagining that the shaykh performs an act on his behalf that he himself is incapable of, unable to do, or never even intended. Following or complying with such notions is among the reprehensible innovations and comparable false ideas.