this turning to Allah and seeking a means of approach is through his supplication and intercession.

As for someone saying:

“I ask You, or adjure You, by the right of Your angels, or by the right of Your prophets, or by Your prophet so-and-so, or by Your messenger so-and-so, or by the Sacred House, or by Zamzam and the Station, or by Mount Sinai and the Frequented House,”

or similar expressions, this kind of supplication has not been transmitted from the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, his Companions, or those who followed them in righteousness. Indeed, a number of scholars, including Abū Hanīfah and his companions—such as Abū Yūsuf—and other scholars, explicitly stated that such supplication is impermissible. For the person has adjured Allah by a created being, and an oath by anything other than Allah is not valid, even if he asks Him through it on the grounds that it is a cause and a means of having his need fulfilled.

But when someone asks Allah through righteous deeds and through the supplication of His Prophet and His righteous servants, righteous deeds are a cause of reward, and supplication is a cause of receiving an answer. Asking Him through these is therefore asking through something that is a cause of attaining what is sought. This is the meaning of what is reported in the supplication said when going out to prayer:

“O Allah, I ask You by the right that those who ask You have upon You, and by the right of this walk of mine.”

Likewise, the people in the cave supplicated to Allah through their righteous deeds. Seeking a means of approach to Allah through the prophets therefore means doing so through faith in them and obedience to them—such as invoking blessings and peace upon them, loving them, and being loyal to them—or through their supplication and intercession.

As for their very persons, there is nothing in them that entails the fulfilment of what the servant seeks, even though they possess great standing and an exalted rank with Allah because of His honouring them, His kindness to them, and His bounty toward them. Nor is there