and Muhammad—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—who is the foremost of the intercessors and has forms of intercession reserved for him. Yet, despite this, it is established in the two Sahīh collections that the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—said:
“When you hear the caller to prayer, repeat what he says, then invoke blessings upon me. Whoever invokes blessings upon me once, Allah will bless him ten times. Then ask Allah to grant me al-Wasīlah, for it is a rank in Paradise reserved for only one of Allah’s servants, and I hope to be that servant. Whoever asks Allah to grant me al-Wasīlah will be entitled to my intercession on the Day of Resurrection.”
When ʿUmar intended to perform ʿumrah (the lesser pilgrimage) and bade him farewell, he said to him: “My brother, do not forget me in your supplications.”
Thus, the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—asked his community to supplicate for him. However, this was not a matter of seeking something from them. Rather, his instruction to them was like his instructions concerning all other acts of obedience for which they are rewarded. Moreover, he—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—receives rewards equal to theirs for everything they do, for it is authentically reported that he said:
“Whoever calls to guidance will receive a reward equal to the rewards of those who follow him, without diminishing their rewards in the least. Whoever calls to misguidance will bear a burden of sin equal to the burdens of those who follow him, without diminishing their burdens in the least.”
He is the one who calls the community to every form of guidance, so he receives rewards equal to theirs for everything in which they follow him.
Likewise, when they invoke blessings upon him, Allah blesses each of them ten times, and he receives rewards equal to theirs, in addition to what Allah grants in answer to their supplications for him. Allah has rewarded them for those supplications, while the benefit he receives through them is a blessing bestowed upon him by Allah. It is also established in the Sahīh that he said:
“Whenever a man supplicates for his brother in his absence, Allah appoints an angel over him. Each time he supplicates for his brother, the appointed angel says, ‘Amen, and may you have the same.’”
Another hadith states:
“The supplication answered most swiftly is that of one person for another in his absence.”