and they found beside him a book recording events. The people of that region used to seek rain through him. Abū Mūsā al-Ashʿarī wrote to ʿUmar about this. ʿUmar wrote back instructing him to have thirteen graves dug during the day, then to bury him in one of them at night and erase all traces of his grave, lest people be led astray by him.

This resembles what has been reported about ʿUmar: when he learned that some people were visiting the tree beneath which the Pledge of Divine Pleasure had been given and praying there, he ordered the tree to be cut down.

It is authentically reported that, while travelling, he saw people frequenting a spot to pray there. He asked, “What is this?”

They replied, “This is a place where the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, prayed.”

He said, “So it is a place where the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, prayed! Do you wish to turn the sites associated with your prophets into mosques? This was precisely what brought about the destruction of the Children of Israel. Whoever happens to be there when prayer falls due should pray; otherwise, he should continue on his way.”

Know that none of these people has anything with which to counter this except an anecdote reporting that one of them said, “If you have a need to ask of Allah, call upon Him at my grave,” or, “The grave of so-and-so is the tried-and-tested antidote,” and similar anecdotes that may be true or false. Even supposing such an account is true, the person who made the statement is not infallible. Only those who are astray—the brothers of devils—would counter an established report from the infallible Prophet with an unsubstantiated report from someone who is not infallible. This is among the causes of associating partners with Allah and altering the religion.