‘Abd Allah ibn Mas‘ud reports—his narration being traced back to the Prophet—that he said: “Tiyarah is shirk; tiyarah is shirk. There is none among us except that something of it may occur to him, yet Allah dispels it through reliance upon Him.” (1) The tradition was recorded by Abu Dawud and al-Tirmidhi, who authenticated it and regarded the last clause as the statement of Ibn Mas‘ud himself.
Tiyarah is shirk: because it causes the heart to cling to other than Allah.
There is none among us except…: an ellipsis is understood, meaning: there is no one among us without something of it crossing his mind.
Allah dispels it through reliance: placing one’s trust in Allah to obtain benefit and ward off harm eliminates tiyarah.
The last clause is the statement of Ibn Mas‘ud—namely, “and there is none among us …”—and this is correct, for tiyarah is shirk and the Prophet is protected from shirk.
Overall meaning of the hadith: The Messenger of Allah—peace and blessings be upon him—declares, and repeats the declaration for emphasis, that tiyarah is shirk, because it makes the heart depend on other than Allah and entertain ill thoughts about Him.
Relevance of the hadith to the chapter: it establishes that tiyarah is a form of shirk.
Points derived from the hadith:
- Tiyarah is shirk, as it links the heart to something other than Allah.
- Repetition of important matters is legislated so that they may be memorized and firmly rooted in the hearts.
- Allah removes tiyarah through reliance upon Him; thus, whoever senses something of it within himself and then trusts Allah and disregards it will suffer no harm from it.