the Messenger ﷺ can remove affliction—so much so that, at his grave, they address him directly, asking him to lift their hardships and bring them benefit. Such excess regarding the Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him, is sheer exaggeration and outright polytheism, for no one possesses that power except Allah, Glorified and Exalted. After his death, the Prophet ﷺ no longer controls anything, even for himself.

Consider the Companions: when drought struck during the caliphate of ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb—may Allah be pleased with him—they gathered in the Prophet’s mosque to seek rain. Yet they did not go to the grave, nor did they say, “O Messenger of Allah, pray for us,” or “Intercede with Allah on our behalf so that rain may fall.” Instead, ʿUmar supplicated, saying, “O Allah, we used to seek rain through our Prophet ﷺ and You would send it down to us. Now we seek it through the uncle of our Prophet, so send us rain.”

ʿUmar then told al-ʿAbbās to stand and implore Allah Most High to send the rain. Why? Because the Prophet ﷺ is deceased; once a person dies, his deeds cease. He himself said, “When a human being dies, his deeds come to an end except for three: a continuous charity, knowledge from which others benefit, or a righteous child who prays for him.” Therefore, the Prophet ﷺ on his own cannot do anything; he cannot pray for you while he is in his grave. Whoever elevates him beyond the station Allah has granted him has failed to fulfill the testimony that “Muhammad