Types of Intercession (Al-Syafā’ah)

Types of Intercession (Al-Syafā’ah)

By Sheikh Muhammed Salih Al-Munajjid

Question: Some people saying that intercession belongs to Allāh and can only be asked from Him, while others say that Allāh has also given the power of intercession to His Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) and to His righteous close friends (awliyā’) so that we may ask them to intercede for us. What is the correct view, and can you quote syar’īe evidence to support it?

In the name of Allāh, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful;

All the praise and Thanks is due to Allāh, the Lord of al-‘ālameen. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allāh, and that Muhammad, Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam, is His Messenger

Syafā’ah (Intercession) means mediating for someone else to gain some benefit or ward off some harm. It is of two types: The first: intercession that will take place in the Hereafter, on the Day of Resurrection. The second type: intercession concerning matters of this world.

1.      The First: The Intercession That Will Take Place on the Day of Resurrection and it is of two types.

1.1.  The First Type is the Exclusive Intercession, which will be granted only to the Prophet Muhammad (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) and no one else in creation will have a share in that with him.

The Exclusive Intercession that consists of various kinds:

1.1.1. The Greater Intercession: This is The Station of Praise and Glory (Al-Maqām al-Mahmūd) which Allāh has promised to Prophet Muhammad (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam), when He said:

“And in some parts of the night (also) offer the Solāt with it (i.e. recite the Qur’ān in the prayer) as an additional prayer (Tahajjud optional prayer Nawāfil) for you (O Muhammad). It may be that your Lord will raise you to Maqām Mahmūd (a Station of Praise and Glory, i.e., the honour of intercession on the Day of Resurrection)”

[Al-Isrā’, 17:79]

In this intercession the Prophet Muhammad (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) will intercede for all of mankind when Allāh delays the Reckoning and they have waited for so long in the place of gathering on the Day of Resurrection. Their distress and anxiety will reach a point where they can no longer bear it, and they will say, “Who will intercede for us with our Lord so that He will pass judgement amongst His slaves?” and they will wish to leave that place. So the people will come to the Prophets of the nations, each of whom will say, “I am not able for it,” until when they come to our Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) he will say, “I am able for it, I am able for it.” So he (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) will intercede for them, that judgement may be passed. This is the greater intercession, and it is one of the things that belong exclusively to the Prophet Muhammad (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam).

There are many ahādīth which tell of this intercession, in Al-Sahīhayn and elsewhere, such as the hadīth narrated from Ibn ‘Umar (radiyallāhu’anhu): “The people will fall on their knees on the Day of Resurrection, each nation following its Prophet, saying, ‘O So and so, intercede!’ until intercession is granted to the Prophet Muhammad (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam). On that Day Allāh will resurrect him to a Station of Praise and Glory.” [Al-Bukhāri (1748)]

Jabir Ibn ‘Abdullāh (radiyallāhu'anhu) reported that the Messenger of Allāh (Sallallāhu'alayhi wa sallam) said: “Whoever hears the adzān and  says:‘Allāhumma Rabba hādzihid-da’wat il-tāmmah wal-solātil-qā imah, āti Muhammadan il wasīlata wal-fadīlah, wab 'athhu maqāman mahmūdan illadzi wa 'ad tah(O Allāh, Lord of this perfect call and the solah to be offered, grant Muhammad the privilege (of intercession) and also the eminence, and resurrect him to the praised position that You have promised),’ My intercession for him will be permitted on the Day of Resurrection." [Recorded by Al-Bukhari, 589]

In a narration from Anas bin Malik (radiyallāhu’anhu) who said: The Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Allah will gather the believers on the Day of Resurrection in the same way (as they are gathered in this life), and they will say, ‘Let us ask someone to intercede for us with our Lord that He may relieve us from this place of ours.’

Then they will go to Adam (‘alayhissalam) and say, ‘O Adam! Don't you see the people (people's condition)? Allah created you with His Own Hands and ordered His angels to prostrate before you, and taught you the names of all the things. Please intercede for us with our Lord so that He may relieve us from this place of ours.’ Adam (‘alayhissalam) will say, ‘I am not fit for this undertaking' and mention to them the mistakes he had committed, and add, ‘But you’d better go to Noah(‘alayhissalam)  as he was the first Apostle sent by Allah to the people of the Earth.’

They will go to Noah (‘alayhissalam) who will reply, ‘I am not fit for this undertaking,’ and mention the mistake which he made, and add, ‘But you'd better go to Abraham, Khalil Ar-Rahman (‘alayhissalam).’

They will go to Abraham (‘alayhissalam) who will reply, ‘I am not fit for this undertaking,’ and mention to them the mistakes he made, and add, ‘But you'd better go to Moses (‘alayhissalam), a slave whom Allah gave the Torah and to whom He spoke directly’

They will go to Moses (‘alayhissalam) who will reply, ‘I am not fit for this undertaking,’ and mention to them the mistakes he made, and add, ‘You’d better go to Jesus, Allah's slave and His Apostle and His Word (Be: And it was) and a soul created by Him.’

They will go to Jesus (‘alayhissalam) who will say, ‘I am not fit for this undertaking, but you'd better go to Muhammad whose sins of the past and the future had been forgiven (by Allah).’

So,  they will come to me and I will ask the permission of my Lord, and I will be permitted (to present myself) before Him. When I see my Lord, I will fall down in (prostration) before Him and He will leave me (in prostration) as long as He wishes, and then it will be said to me, ‘O Muhammad! Raise your head and speak, for you will be listened to; and ask, for you will be granted (your request); and intercede, for your intercession will be accepted.’ I will then raise my head and praise my Lord with certain praises which He has taught me, and then I will intercede. Allah will allow me to intercede (for a certain kind of people) and will fix a limit whom I will admit into Paradise.

I will come back again, and when I see my Lord (again), I will fall down in prostration before Him, and He will leave me (in prostration) as long as He wishes, and then He will say, ‘O Muhammad! Raise your head and speak, for you will be listened to; and ask, for you will be granted (your request); and intercede, for your intercession will be accepted.’ I will then praise my Lord with certain praises which He has taught me, and then I will intercede. Allah will allow me to intercede (for a certain kind of people) and will fix a limit to whom I will admit into Paradise.

I will return again, and when I see my Lord, I will fall down (in prostration) and He will leave me (in prostration) as long as He wishes, and then He will say, ‘O Muhammad! Raise your head and speak, for you will be listened to, and ask, for you will be granted (your request); and intercede, for your intercession will be accepted.’ I will then praise my Lord with certain praises which He has taught me, and then I will intercede. Allah will allow me to intercede (for a certain kind of people) and will fix a limit to whom I will admit into Paradise.

I will come back and say, 'O my Lord! None remains in Hell (Fire) but those whom Qurān has imprisoned therein and for whom eternity in Hell (Fire) has become inevitable.’ "

The Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) added, “There will come out of Hell (Fire) everyone who says: ‘Lā ilāha illal-lāh,’ and has in his heart good equal to the weight of a barley grain. Then there will come out of Hell (Fire) everyone who says: ‘Lāilāha illal-lāh,’ and has in his heart good equal to the weight of a wheat grain. Then there will come out of Hell (Fire) everyone who says: ‘Lā ilāha illal-lāh,’ and has in his heart good equal to the weight of an atom (or a smallest ant).”

[Al-Bukhari (507)]

1.1.2. Intercession for the People of Paradise To Enter Into The Paradise.

It was narrated that Anas ibn Mālik (radiyallāhu’anhu) said: “The Messenger of Allāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said: ‘I will come to the gate of Paradise on the Day of Resurrection and will ask for it to be opened. The gatekeeper will say, “Who are you?” I will say, “Muhammad.” He will say, “I was commanded not to open it for anyone before you”.” [Narrated by Muslim, 333]

According to another report narrated by Muslim (332), “I will be the first one to intercede concerning Paradise.”

1.1.3. The Intercession of the Messenger (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) For His Uncle Abu Tālib.

It was narrated from Abu Sa’īd al-Khudri (radiyallāhu’anhu) that mention was made of his uncle Abu Tālib in the presence of the Messenger of Allāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam). He said, “Perhaps my intercession will benefit him on the Day of Resurrection, and he will be placed in a shallow part of the Fire which will come up to his ankles and cause his brains to boil.” (Narrated by al-Bukhāri, 1408; Muslim, 360).

1.1.4. Rasūlullāh Intercession So That Some People Of His Ummah Will Enter Paradise Without Being Brought To Account.

This kind of intercession was mentioned by some of the scholars, who quoted as evidence the lengthy hadīth of Abu Hurayrah (radiyallāhu’anhu) concerning intercession, in which it says: “Then it will be said, ‘O Muhammad, raise you head; ask, it will be given to you; intercede, your intercession will be accepted.’ So I will raise my head and say, ‘My ummah, O Lord; my ummah, O Lord; my ummah, O Lord.’ It will be said, ‘Admit those among your ummah who are not to be brought to account through the right-hand gate of Paradise. They will share the other gates with the people of other nations.’” [Narrated by al-Bukhāri, 4343; Muslim, 287].

1.2. The second type: the general intercession. This will be granted to Prophet Muhammad (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) and others – angels, Prophets and righteous people – will share in it as Allāh wills. This is of various kinds.

1.2.1. Intercession for some people who have entered Hell that they might be brought forth from it.

There is a great deal of evidence for this, for example:

The marfū’ hadīth of Abu Sa’īd al-Khudri (radiyallāhu`anhu): “By the One in Whose hand is my soul, none of you can be more insistent in asking Allāh to restore his rights against his opponent than the believers who will ask Allāh, on the Day of Resurrection, (to grant them the power of intercession) for their brothers who are in the Fire. They will say, ‘Our Lord, they used to fast with us and pray and perform Hajj.’ It will be said to them, ‘Bring out those whom you recognize, so the Fire will be forbidden to burn them.’ So they will bring out many people… And Allāh will say: ‘The angels have interceded, and the Prophets have interceded, and the believers have interceded. There is none left but the Most Merciful of those who show mercy.’ Then He will seize a handful of the Fire and bring forth from it people who never did anything good.” [Sahīh Muslim (269)]

1.2.2. Intercession for people who deserve Hell, that they may not enter it.

This may be indicated by the words of the Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam): “There is no Muslim who dies and forty men who associate nothing with Allāh pray the funeral prayer for him, but Allāh will accept their intercession for him.” [Narrated by Muslim, 1577] For this intercession happens before the deceased enters Hell, and Allāh will accept their intercession concerning it.

1.2.3. Intercession for some of the believers who deserve Paradise, that they may be raised in status in Paradise.

It was narrated that the Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) prayed for Abu Salamah and said: “O Allāh, forgive Abu Salamah and raise his status among those who are guided, and take good care of his family that he has left behind. Forgive us and him, O Lord of the Worlds, make his grave spacious for him and illuminate it for him.” [Muslim (1528)]

1.2.3.1.This Intercession Is Subjected To Following Conditions.

The evidence indicates that intercession in the Hereafter will only happen if the following conditions are met:

1.2.3.1.1. Allāh must approve of the one for whom intercession is made.

Allāh says: “And they cannot intercede except for him with whom He is pleased” [Al-Anbiyā, 21:28]

This implies that the one for whom intercession is made must be a believer in Tawhīd, because Allāh is not pleased with the mushrikeen.

It is narrated from Abu Hurayrah (radiyallahu’anhu) that he said: “It was said, ‘O Messenger of Allāh, who will be the most blessed of people by your intercession of the Day of Resurrection?’ The Messenger of Allāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said: “I thought, O Abu Hurayrah that no one would ask me about this hadīth before you, because I have seen how keen you are to learn hadīth. The people who will be most blessed by my intercession on the Day of Resurrection are those who say Lā ilāha ill-Allāh sincerely from the heart.’” [Sahīh al-Bukhāri (97)]

1.2.3.1.2. Allāh must give permission to the intercessor to intercede.

Allāh says: “Who is he that can intercede with Him except with His Permission?” [Al-Baqarah, 2:255]

1.2.3.1.3. Allāh must approve of the intercessor.

Allāh says:  “…whose intercession will avail nothing except after Allāh has given leave for whom He wills and is pleased with” [Al-Najm, 53:26]

The Messenger (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) has stated that those who curse much will not be intercessors on the Day of Resurrection, as narrated that Abul-Darda’ (radiyallāhu’anhu) said: “I heard the Messenger of Allāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) say, ‘Those who curse much will not be witnesses or intercessors on the Day of Resurrection’.” [Muslim (4703)]

2. The Second Type: Intercession Concerning Matters Of This World Consists Of Two Types.

2.1. It is within a person’s ability to do something which is subjected to two conditions:

2.1.1. That it should have to do with a permissible thing.

It is not correct to intercede concerning something that will result in the loss of people’s rights or in wrong being done to them. It is also not correct to intercede concerning something that is harām, such as those who intercede concerning those who deserve the hadd punishment, asking that it not be carried out on them. Allāh says:

“Help you one another in Al-Birr and At-Taqwa (virtue, righteousness and piety); but do not help one another in sin and transgression”

[Al-Mā’idah, 5:2]     

    

According to a hadith narrated by ‘Aishah (radiyallāhu’anha), Quraysh were concerned about a Makhzūmi woman who had stolen, and they said, “Who will speak to the Messenger of Allāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) concerning her? Who is better than Usāmah, the beloved of the Messenger of Allāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam)?” So Usāmah spoke to him, and the Messenger of Allāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Are you interceding concerning one of the hadd punishments prescribed by Allāh?” Then Allāh’s Messenger  (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) stood up and addressed the people, and said: “O people, those who came before you were only destroyed because if one of their nobles stole, they would let him off but if one of the weak stole they would carry out the punishment on him. By Allāh, if Fātimah the daughter of Muhammad were to steal, I would cut off her hand.” [Narrated by Al-Bukhāri, 3261; Muslim, 3196].

It is narrated that Abu Mūsa Al-Ash’ari (radiyallāhu’anhu) said that if someone came with a need to the Messenger of Allāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam), he would turn to those who were sitting with him and say: “Intercede, and you will be rewarded, and Allāh will decree what He wills through the lips of His Messenger.”  [Al-Bukhāri (5568) and Muslim (4761)] 

Intercede in this hadith means to “supplicate to Allāh Almighty” because Allāh Says: “He is Allāh beside whom none has the right to be worshiped but He: the King, the Holy, the One free from all defects, the Giver of Salām (Security), the Watcher over His creatures, the All-Mighty, the Compeller, and the Supreme.” [Hashr, 59:23]

2.1.2. Barring in his heart, the person must depend on Allāh alone to realize his aim and ward off what is disliked.

He should know that this intercessor is no more than a means which Allāh has permitted to us, and that benefit and harm are in the hand of Allāh alone. This meaning is expressed clearly in the Book of Allāh and the Sunnah of His (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam).

If either of these two conditions is not met, then the intercession is not allowed.

2.2. That which is not within a person’s ability to do something, such as seeking intercession from the dead and occupants of graves, or from a living person who is absent, believing that he is able to hear and meet one’s need.

This is the kind of intercession that constitutes syirik, which is clearly forbidden in many verses of the Qur’ān and ahādīth from the Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam), because it ascribes to them attributes which belong only to the Creator, for He is the Ever-living Who never dies.

Their argument is that the awliya’ (“saints”) and Sayyids intercede for their relatives and for those who call on them and take them as friends and love them, and because of that they ask them for intercession. This is exactly what Allāh described the early mushrikeen as doing, when they said,

“These are our intercessors with Allāh” [Yūnus 10:18]

This is in referring to those whom they worshipped among the angels, righteous people and others, and meaning that they would intercede for them with Allāh. In the same way, the contemporary mushrikūn say: “the awliya’ (‘saints’) intercede for us; we cannot ask of Allāh (directly) so we ask them and they ask of Allāh.” And they say that the Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) and all the Prophets and righteous people were given the power of intercession, and we call upon them and say, intercede for us as Allāh has given you the power of intercession. They give the example of kings in this world, and say that the kings of this world can only be approached through intercession; if you need something, you go to their friends and those who are close to them, their ministers, gatekeepers, servants, etc., to intercede for you so that the king can deal with your matter; so we reach Allāh by approaching and asking His awliyā’ and the Sayyids who are close to Him. By doing this they fall into the same shirik as those who came before them, and they compare the Creator to His creation.

Allāh tells us of a righteous man in Sūrat Ya-Seen, who said:

“‘Shall I take besides Him ālihah (gods)? If the Most Gracious (Allāh) intends me any harm, their intercession will be of no use for me whatsoever”

[Ya-Seen, 36:23]

And Allāh tells us that the kuffār will confess it themselves:

 “They will say: ‘We were not of those who used to offer the Salāh (prayers), Nor we used to feed Al-Miskeen (the poor); And we used to talk falsehood (all that which Allāh hated) with vain talkers. And we used to belie the Day of Recompense, Until there came to us (the death) that is certain’. So no intercession of intercessors will be of any use to them”

[Al-Muddaththir, 74:43-48 ]

The Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam), even though he will be given the power of intercession on the Day of Resurrection, will not be able to use it until after Allāh has given him permission and has approved of the one for whom intercession is to be made.

Hence Rasūlullāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) did not let his ummah ask him to intercede for them in this world, and that was not narrated from any one of his Sahābah (radiyallāhu’anhum). If that had been a good thing, he would have conveyed it to his ummah and called them to do it, and his Companions who were keen to do good would have hastened to do it. Thus we know that seeking intercession from him now (in this world) is a great wrong, because it involves calling upon someone other than Allāh and doing something which is an obstacle to intercession, for intercession is available only to those who sincerely believe in Allāh alone (Tawhīd)

The people in the place of standing (on the Day of Resurrection) will only ask the Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) to intercede for them so that judgement will be passed, because he will be there with them and because he will be able to turn to his Lord and ask Him. This is like asking a person who is alive and present to do make du’ā’ for one, which is something that he is able to do.

Hence it is not narrated that any of the people in the place of standing will ask him (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) to intercede for them that their sins might be forgiven.

Those who ask him for intercession now, based on the fact that it will be permissible to ask him for that in the Hereafter, if their claims were justified, would have to limit what they say to, “O Messenger of Allāh, intercede for us that judgement may be passed!” But they do something other than that. They do not limit it to a request for intercession, rather they ask the Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) and others to relieve their distress and send down mercy; they turn to him at times of calamity; they pray to him on land and sea, at times of ease and times of difficulty, ignoring the words of Allāh:

“Is not He (better than your gods) Who responds to the distressed one, when he calls on Him, and Who removes the evil, and makes you inheritors of the earth, generations after generations?”

[Al-Naml, 27:62]

From the above it is clear to every fair-minded person that the correct kind of intercession is intercession that depends on the permission and approval of Allāh, because all intercession belongs to Him. That also includes asking for intercession from living people who are able to do that concerning worldly matters, for which Allāh has granted permission. It should be pointed out here that this kind of intercession is permitted because Allāh has given permission for it, since it involves no kind of emotional attachment to the person; rather the point is that it is a means, like all other means which Islam permits us to use. The kind of intercession which is forbidden is asking someone other than Allāh to do something that no one is able to do except Allāh, because intercession belongs to no one besides Allāh, and no one can do it unless Allāh grants him leave and approves of him. So whoever seeks intercession from anyone else has transgressed upon the exclusive preserve of Allāh and has wronged himself, and has exposed himself to being deprived of the intercession of the Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) on the Day of Resurrection.

We ask Allāh to keep us safe and sound, and we ask Him to cause our Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) to intercede for us. Ameen. Ameen. Wal-hamdulillāhi Rabbil ‘alameen .

(See al-Shafā’ah ‘inda Ahl al-Sunnah wa’l-Jamā’ah by Shaykh Nasir al-Juday’; al-Qawl al-Mufīd by Shaykh Muhammad ibn ‘Uthaymeen, 1/423; A’lām al-Sunnah al-Manshūrah, 144.)

[Via Islam Q&A Fatwa No: 26259]