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What is tawassul?

 What is tawassul?

Tawassul in Arabic means seeking to draw close. Allah says in the Quran (interpretation of the meaning): [they] desire means of access to their Lord [al-Isra 17:57], i.e., means of drawing close to Him. 


Types of tawassul 

There are two types of Tawassul ; correct Islamic tawassul and forbidden tawassul.


Correct Islamic tawassul

This means seeking to draw close to Allah through acts of worship which He loves and which please Him; these may be obligatory or encouraged, and may take the form of words, actions or beliefs. Some types are as follows:


1.      Seeking to draw close to Allah by means of His names and attributes. Allah says (interpretation of the meaning): “And (all) the Most Beautiful Names belong to Allah, so call on Him by them, and leave the company of those who belie or deny (or utter impious speech against) His names. They will be requited for what they used to do.” [al-A'raf 7:180]

 

So when a person makes du’a to Allah, he begins by calling on Allah with the name that is most apt, such as al-Rahman (the Most Merciful) when seeking mercy and al-Ghafur (the All-Forgiving) when asking for forgiveness, and so on.

1.     Seeking to draw close to Allah by means of faith and Tawhid. Allah says (interpretation of the meaning): “Our Lord! We believe in what You have sent down, and we follow the Messenger, so write us down among those who bear witness (to the truth).” [Al ‘Imran 3:53]


1.     Seeking to draw close to Allah through righteous deeds, whereby a person asks Allah by virtue of the best deeds that he has done, such as salah, fasting, reading Quran, avoiding haram things, and so on. An example of this is the sahih hadith narrated in the Sahihayn about the three people who entered a cave, and a rock fell and blocked their way out. They asked Allah by virtue of their best deeds (to save them).

 

A person may also ask Allah by virtue of his total dependency upon Him, as Allah mentions in the Quran (interpretation of the meaning): “[Ayyub said:] Verily, distress has seized me, and You are the Most Merciful of those who show mercy.” [al-Anbiya 21:83]; or by admitting his own wrongdoing and his need for Allah, as Yunus is described as saying (interpretation of the meaning): “None has the right to be worshipped except You (O Allah). Glorified (and exalted) are You. Truly I have been of the wrong-doers.” [al-Anbiya 21:87]

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