Only righteous deeds constitute the means that bring a servant close to Allah:

It is, indeed, remarkable that some who lay claim to knowledge consistently cite the two preceding verses to support the notion—repeated by many of them—of seeking nearness through the very persons of the prophets, or by invoking their “rights,” their sanctity, or their rank. Such an argument is unsound; the two verses cannot legitimately be forced into that meaning, for the revealed law nowhere establishes this form of tawassul as prescribed or commendable. Accordingly, none of the early righteous generations ever employed these verses in that way, nor did they recommend the tawassul just mentioned. What they actually understood from the verses is that Allah, exalted is He, bids us to approach Him with every desire, to draw near to Him by every act of devotion, and to seek His pleasure through every lawful avenue.

Moreover, in numerous other texts Allah—glorified be He—has taught us that if we wish to draw closer to Him, we must do so through the righteous deeds He loves and approves. He has not entrusted the selection of those deeds to us, nor left their definition to our own thoughts and tastes, for then they would differ and diverge, clash and contend. Rather, He has commanded us to return to Him on this matter and to follow His guidance and instruction, for none knows what pleases Allah except Allah alone. Therefore, in order to recognize the means that draw us near to Allah, it is obligatory for us, in every question, to refer back to what Allah has legislated and what the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, has clarified—in other words, we must turn to