WASEELA : ISLAMIC POINT OF VIEW

Assalam Alaikum Warahmatulahi Wabarakatuhu...

Dear Brothers And Sisters In Islam.

:::WASEELA : ISLAMIC POINT OF VIEW:::
=========================
[In the Name of Allah, Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful]

The Arabic word Waseela means - way or medium or closeness.

Allah says in the Holy Qur'an:

"يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اتَّقُوا اللَّهَ وَابْتَغُوا إِلَيْهِ الْوَسِيلَةَ وَجَاهِدُوا فِي سَبِيلِهِ لَعَلَّكُمْ تُفْلِحُونَ"

"O you who have believed, fear Allah and seek the means [of nearness] to Him and strive in His cause that you may succeed."
[Qur'an 5:35]

Meaning to seek means to get nearness/favors of Allah.
Now the question arises -

"What means should we seek in order to attain nearness to Allah?"

To cast out any mis-conceptions that might arise in the mind through the above mentioned verses and in order to understand the correct means one should seek in order to attain nearness to Allah, one must first fully understand what has been prohibited.
Allah says in the Glorious Qur'an:

" Unquestionably, for Allah is the pure religion. And those who take protectors/helpers besides Him [say], "We only worship them that they may bring us nearer to Allah in position." Indeed, Allah will judge between them concerning that over which they differ. Indeed, Allah does not guide he who is a liar and [confirmed] disbeliever."
[Qur'an 39:3]

Alhamdulillah, Allah Himself made it very clear to us not to seek waseela through any human being. May it be a very pious person(auliya, peer etc.), Sahaba(raziallahu anhu), earlier Prophets(allihi salaam) or even our beloved Prophet sallahu allihi wasallam. We are not allowed to seek waseela through any living or dead.

Then what mean should one seek while seeking waseela?

Seeking waseela means seeking to draw close to Allah through acts of worship which He loves and which pleases Him; these may be waajib (obligatory) or mustahabb (encouraged) and may take the form of words, actions or beliefs. These forms are studied and derived from the Quran, Sunnah and religious practices of the righteous predecessors [1st three generations which include the companions of the Prophet (peace be upon him), taba’een (students of the companions) and taba’ taba’een (students of the taba’een)].

Some permissible waseela, as per Qur'an and Hadith, are as follows :-

1> Seeking waseela by means of Names and Attributes of Allah.

Allah says in the Glorious Qur'an:
"And to Allah belong the best names, so invoke Him by them. And leave [the company of] those who blaspheme, concerning His names. They will be recompensed for what they have been doing."

So when a person makes duaa’ to Allah, he must begin by praising and calling on Allah with the name that is most apt and praiseworthy.
For example -- “Al-Rahmaan” (the Most Merciful) when seeking mercy ; ‘’Al-Ghafoor’’ (the All-Forgiving) when asking for forgiveness etc.

2> Seeking waseela by means of ones rightious deeds.

This is where a person asks Allah by the virtue of the best deeds that he has done, such as salaah, fasting, reading Quran, avoiding haraam things and so on. An example of this is the sahih hadeeth narrated in the Books ‘Sahih Bukhari’ & ‘Sahih Muslim. They asked Allah by the virtue of their best deeds (to save them).

Sahih Bukhari : Volume 3: Book 36: Number 472 ::
Narrated by 'Abdullah bin 'Umar

I heard Allah's Apostle saying:
"Three men from among those who were before you, set out together till they reached a cave at night and entered it. A big rock rolled down the mountain and closed the mouth of the cave. They said (to each other), Nothing could save you Tom this rock but to invoke Allah by giving referenda to the righteous deed which you have done (for Allah's sake only).' So, one of them said, 'O Allah! I had old parents and I never provided my family (wife, children etc.) with milk before them. One day, by chance I was delayed, and I came late (at night) while they had slept. I milked the sheep for them and took the milk to them, but I found them sleeping. I disliked to provide my family with the milk before them. I waited for them and the bowl of milk was in my hand and I kept on waiting for them to get up till the day dawned. Then they got up and drank the milk. O Allah! If I did that for Your Sake only, please relieve us from our critical situation caused by this rock.' So, the rock shifted a little but they could not get out." The Prophet added, "The second man said, 'O Allah! I had a cousin who was the dearest of all people to me and I wanted to have sexual relations with her but she refused. Later she had a hard time in a famine year and she came to me and I gave her one-hundred-and-twenty Dinars on the condition that she would not resist my desire, and she agreed. When I was about to fulfill my desire, she said: It is illegal for you to outrage my chastity except by legitimate marriage. So, I thought it a sin to have sexual intercourse with her and left her though she was the dearest of all the people to me, and also I left the gold I had given her. O Allah! If I did that for Your Sake only, please relieve us from the present calamity.' So, the rock shifted a little more but still they could not get out from there." The Prophet added, "Then the third man said, 'O Allah! I employed few laborers and I paid them their wages with the exception of one man who did not take his wages and went away. I invested his wages and I got much property thereby. (Then after some time) he came and said to me: O Allah's slave! Pay me my wages. I said to him: All the camels, cows, sheep and slaves you see, are yours. He said: O Allah's slave! Don't mock at me. I said: I am not mocking at you. So, he took all the herd and drove them away and left nothing. O Allah! If I did that for Your Sake only, please relieve us from the present suffering.' So, that rock shifted completely and they got out walking."

They asked Allah by the virtue of their best deeds (to save them). This is what we must do. That will encourage doing good deeds and abstrain from evil, so as to present those deeds before Allah, while praying and seek waseela through them.

3> Seeking waseela by sending blessings upon the Prophet (peace be upon him)

Whenever a Muslim makes dua, it is necessary for him to first prase his Lord, then send blessings upon the prophet (peace be upon him) and then make his personal dua. The blessings ( for e.g durood e Ibrahim) sent upon the prophet is also considered to be a waseela for our duas to reach Allah and this is supported by various authentic Ahadith which state that Umar (RA) narrated that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: ‘Du’a is detained between the heavens and the earth and no part of it is taken up until you send blessings upon Prophet (peace be upon him)’ [Al-Tirmidhi #486]
The rationale for durud for the Prophet before our own personal prayers is to acknowledge that the Prophet has been the most important person for us, being the bearer of God's message to us. He, therefore, deserves to be remembered first while we pray to God for our needs. Likewise, we can pray for other elders too, who have made contributions in our lives. However, praying for them should not include asking God for his special favours, in light of these invocations. There is no such concept in the kingdom of the Almighty.

4> Seeking to draw close to Allah by means of faith and Tawheed.

A powerful dua from the Quran helps us understand this category:
“Our Lord! We have indeed believed: forgive us then our sins and save us from the agony of the fire.” [Quran 3:16].

AND
"Truly distress has seized me, but Thou art the Most Merciful of those that are merciful." [Qur'an 21:83]
AND
""There is no deity except You; exalted are You. Indeed, I have been of the wrongdoers."
[Qur'an 21:87]

There are similar duas from the Sahih Ahadith also, which can be recited while seeking waseela.

SUCCESS COMES FROM ALLAH AND ALLAH KNOWS THE BEST.