him to supplicate, seeking to draw near to Allah through him and seeking his intercession with Allah, just as all creation will come to him on the Day of Resurrection and ask him to intercede for them with Allah. Then, after his death, when drought afflicted them in the Year of Ashes during Umar’s caliphate—a time of tremendous hardship—they brought al-Abbās and sought to draw near to Allah through him and sought rain through him instead of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace. They did not come to the Prophet’s grave, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, to supplicate there, nor did they seek rain through him or seek to draw near to Allah through him.

Likewise, in Syria, they did not go to the graves there; rather, they sought rain through the righteous among them. It is well known that if supplicating at graves and seeking to draw near to Allah through the dead had been recommended for them, then doing so through the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, would have been better than doing so through al-Abbās or anyone else.

They used to seek rain in “three ways”: sometimes they supplicated after the prayers; sometimes they went out to the prayer ground and supplicated without performing a prayer; and sometimes they performed a prayer and supplicated. The first two ways are prescribed by the consensus of the Muslim community. The third is prescribed according to the majority, including Mālik, al-Shāfiʿī, and Ahmad. Abū Hanīfah did not know of it.

When seeking rain, they were instructed to seek it through righteous people, especially the relatives of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, as the Companions did. They were also instructed to invoke blessings upon the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, when seeking rain. None of them instructed people to seek rain at any grave, whether that of a prophet or anyone else, or to seek help