MEDIATION IN ISLAM
Table of Contents
There are certain narrations that are deemed to be authentic according to Sunni Islam, which plainly show Muhammad’s followers using either him or someone close to him as a means of mediating between the Islamic god and his followers.
Take, for instance, the following hadiths which speak of gazing at Muhammad’s face, or using his paternal uncle Abbas, as the community prayed to their lord for him to cause it to rain:
15 Invoking Allah for Rain (Istisqaa)
(3) Chapter: Request of the people to the Imam to offer the Istisqa’ prayer
Narrated `Abdullah bin Dinar:
My father said, “I heard Ibn `Umar reciting the poetic verses of Abu Talib: And a white (person) (i.e. the Prophet) who is requested to pray for rain and who takes care of the orphans and is the guardian of widows.” Salim’s father (Ibn `Umar) said, “The following poetic verse occurred to my mind while I was looking at the face of the Prophet while he was praying for rain. He did not get down till the rain water flowed profusely from every roof-gutter: And a white (person) who is requested to pray for rain and who takes care of the orphans and is the guardian of widows . . . And these were the words of Abu Talib.”
Reference: Sahih al-Bukhari 1008, 1009
In-book reference: Book 15, Hadith 4
USC-MSA web (English) reference: Vol. 2, Book 17, Hadith 122 (https://sunnah.com/bukhari:1008)
Narrated Anas:
Whenever drought threatened them, `Umar bin Al-Khattab, used to ask Al-Abbas bin `Abdul Muttalib to invoke Allah for rain. He used to say, “O Allah! We used to ask our Prophet to invoke You for rain, and You would bless us with rain, and now we ask his uncle to invoke You for rain. O Allah! Bless us with rain.”(1) And so it would rain.
Reference: Sahih al-Bukhari 1010
In-book reference: Book 15, Hadith 5
USC-MSA web (English) reference: Vol. 2, Book 17, Hadith 123 (https://sunnah.com/bukhari:1010)
This last report gives the readers the impression that Umar and the Muslims used to ask Muhammad to pray for rain, but now after his death they would ask his paternal uncle to do so.
Here’s another rendering of the aforementioned ahadith:
III: People asking the Imam to ask for rain when there is a drought
963. It is related that the father of ‘Abdullah ibn Dinar said, “I heard Ibn ‘Umar reciting the poem of Abu Talib:
Faultless, he is asked, by his noble face, to pray for rain,
A support for the orphans, a defence for the widows.”
It is related that Salim said that his father (Ibn ‘Umar) said, “Sometimes I remembered the words of the poet while looking at the face of the Prophet when he was praying for rain. He did not get down until the rain was flowing in every gutter:
Faultless, he is asked, by his noble face, to pray for rain,
A support for the orphans, a defence for the widows.
Those were the words of Abu Talib.”
964. It is related from Anas, “If there was a drought, ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab would ask al-‘Abbas ibn ‘Abdu’l-Muttalib to do the rain prayer. He would say, ‘O Allah, we seek intercession with You by Your Prophet and we ask You for rain. We seek intercession with You by the uncle of our Prophet, so give us rain!'” He added, “And they were given rain.” (Aisha Bewley, The Sahih Collection of Al-Bukhari, Chapter 21. The Rain Prayer)
Note that in Bewley’s version, the narration of Umar does not have him say “we used to seek…” in respect to Muhammad’s intercession, thereby implying they still continued to do so long after he died.
With that said, this same narration from Anas is cited elsewhere in al-Bukhari where both English versions contain the words “used to” in respect to the time when they would seek Muhammad’s mediation when he was physically among them:
62 Companions of the Prophet
(11) Chapter: The mention of Al-‘Abbas
Narrated Anas:
Whenever there was drought, `Umar bin Al-Khattab used to ask Allah for rain through Al-`Abbas bin `Abdul Muttalib, saying, “O Allah! We used to request our Prophet to ask You for rain, and You would give us. Now we request the uncle of our Prophet to ask You for rain, so give us rain.” And they would be given rain.”
Reference: Sahih al-Bukhari 3710
In-book reference: Book 62, Hadith 60
USC-MSA web (English) reference: Vol. 5, Book 57, Hadith 59 (https://sunnah.com/bukhari:3710)
And:
XI: Concerning al-‘Abbas ibn ‘Abdu’l-Muttalib
3507. It is related from Anas, “If there was a drought, ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab would ask al-‘Abbas ibn ‘Abdu’l-Muttalib to do the rain prayer. He would say, ‘O Allah, we used to seek intercession with You by Your Prophet and You gave us rain. We seek intercession with You by the uncle of our Prophet, so give us rain!'” He added, “And they were given rain.” (Bewley, https://aishabewley.netlify.app/bukhari28#companions)
In another instance, the son of the second caliph called out to Muhammad when seeking aid for his sleepy foot:
437. What a man says when his foot goes to sleep
964. ‘Abdu’r-Rahman ibn Sa’d said, “Ibn ‘Umar’s foot went to sleep and a man said to him, ‘Mention the person you love most.’ He said, ‘Muhammad (ya muhammad).'” (Al-Adab al-Mufrad by al-Bukhari, translated by Aisha Bewley, XD. Gestures)
Here, again, is an alternate translation:
(437) Chapter: What a man says when his foot goes to sleep
‘Abdu’r-Rahman ibn Sa’d said, “Ibn ‘Umar’s foot went to sleep and a man said to him, ‘Mention the person you love most.’ He said, ‘Muhammad.'”
Grade: Da’if (Al-Albani)
Reference: Al-Adab Al-Mufrad 964
In-book reference: Book 41, Hadith 13
English translation: Book 41, Hadith 964 (https://sunnah.com/adab:964)
There are two important points to highlight.
First, the Arabic literally reads, “O Muhammad” (ya muhammad), showing that Ibn Umar wasn’t simply mentioning his name, but actually calling out to him even though he was already dead and buried.
Second, a supposed da’if (“weak”) report doesn’t mean it is forged or a fabrication. Rather, it simply may refer to the fact that there is some weakness or defect in the chain of transmission. As such, weak narrations cannot be rejected altogether, since they may have some validity to them, which is why they are still included.
What the foregoing shows is that, contrary to the assertions of some Muslims, Islam does not prohibit or outright condemn mediation/intercession by individuals that are either alive or dead. Rather, there are traditions which are deemed to be highly authentic along with some that are said to be weak, which expressly affirm that the Muslim god allows for his followers to employ a middleman to act as a go-between them and him.
FURTHER READING
Grave Worship: More of Muhammad’s Duplicity Exposed
Unveiling Islam’s Real Savior and Middleman
No Need for Mediation in Islam? Refuting the Repeated Distortion of a Muslim Dawagandist Pt. 1, Pt. 2
Answering Islam – Sam Shamoun Theology Newsletter
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