have power to bring you harm or right guidance”—that is, I have no power except to convey what I have been sent with from Him. There are many such passages in the Quran.

It is thus clear that safety from Allah’s punishment and the attainment of happiness come only through obedience to Him, the Most High, for He says:

“Why would Allah punish you if you are grateful and believe?”

The Most High also says:

“Say, ‘My Lord would not care for you were it not for your supplication.’”

That is, if you did not call upon Him as He commanded, obeying Him, worshipping Him and obeying His messengers, He would pay you no heed whatsoever.

This is the means of drawing near to Him that Allah commanded people to seek. The Most High said:

“O you who believe, fear Allah and seek the means of drawing near to Him.”

Quran commentators generally, including Ibn ‘Abbās, Mujāhid, ‘Atā’ and al-Farrā’, said: “The means is drawing near.”

Qatādah said: “Draw near to Allah through what pleases Him.”

Abū ‘Ubaydah said: “‘I sought a means of approach to him’ means ‘I drew near to him.’”

‘Abd al-Rahmān ibn Zayd said: “Seek Allah’s love.”

Seeking His love and drawing near to Him are achieved only through obedience to His Messenger. Faith in the Messenger and obedience to him are the means by which creation draws near to Allah. They have absolutely no means of drawing near to Him except faith in His Messenger and obedience to him. No created being has any means of drawing near to Allah, Blessed and Exalted, except through faith in this noble Messenger and obedience to him.

A person is commanded to do this wherever they may be and at all times. As for acts of worship assigned to a particular place, such as Hajj, or a particular time, such as fasting and the Friday prayer, each is to be observed in its appointed place and time. The interior of the chamber itself—let alone its outer wall—has no special status whatsoever with respect to the prescription of