And the Most High said:

“There were men among humankind who sought refuge with men among the jinn, so they only increased them in burden.”

Whenever one of them encamped in a valley, he would say, “I seek refuge with the chief of this valley from its foolish inhabitants.” The jinn then said, “Humans seek refuge with us,” so they increased them in burden.

The leading scholars—such as Ahmad and others—have explicitly stated that seeking refuge in a created being is impermissible. This is among the proofs they cited that Allah’s speech is uncreated, since it is authentically established that the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, sought refuge in Allah’s words and instructed others to do so. If seeking refuge in a created being is impermissible, then saying, “You are the best one in whom to seek refuge,” is all the more impermissible. Seeking refuge, seeking protection, and appealing for rescue are all forms of supplication or petition, and these expressions are close in meaning.

Since the Kaaba is Allah’s House, where He is invoked and remembered, it is in Him, glorified be He, that protection is sought there. One may cling to the Kaaba’s coverings just as someone seeking protection clings to the hem of the person whose protection he seeks. As ʿAmr ibn Saʿīd said:

“The Sanctuary offers no refuge to a sinner, to anyone fleeing on account of bloodshed, or to anyone fleeing on account of a crime.”

An authentic hadith states:

“Someone seeking refuge will take refuge in this House.”

The point is that many misguided people appeal for rescue to those of whom they think highly, even though it is inconceivable that these beings could fulfill most of their requests. Likewise, most of what the devils report about unseen matters is false: they tell the truth about one thing and lie about many times as many. They meet one of their needs but prevent many times as many from being met.