The Weakness of the Hadith “O Allah’s Servants, Help Me”: Clarifying Misconceptions About Seeking Help from the Dead
The hadith “O Allah’s servants, help me” regarding seeking intercession from the dead is weak
The dead cannot help the living in any way; rather, they are themselves in need of the living to benefit them through supplication, seeking forgiveness, and acts of charity. Sufi individuals often present fabricated incidents claiming that when someone visits the grave of the dead, the deceased look at the visitor like a thirsty soul gazes at water, yearning for some reward (Isal-e- sawab) to bring them comfort.
There are countless Quranic evidences proving that the dead cannot hear us, help us, or influence any gain or harm. Similarly, this is also established in the Hadith. However, those who worship graves, and earn their livelihood through such practices, twisting and distorting the texts of the Quran and Hadith, attempt to justify seeking intercession or assistance from the dead. Not only are they themselves misguided, but they also mislead the straightforward masses. If they didn’t misguide people, where would their income come from? May Allah protect us.
Sufi and grave-worshipping individuals present numerous arguments to justify seeking help from the dead. Some of these arguments are fabricated, some are based on weak hadiths that cannot be used as evidence, and others involve twisting the original meanings and interpretations of texts. My aim here is to clarify one such argument that grave-worshippers frequently cite to support seeking help from the dead.
The Hadith in Question
This narration, as mentioned by Tabarani, is as follows:
"Narrated by Ibrahim bin Nailah al-Asbahani, Hasan bin Umar bin Shaqiq, Ma'ruf bin Hassan al-Samarqandi, Saeed bin Abi Aroobah, Qatadah, Abdullah bin Buraidah, from Abdullah bin Masood: The Prophet (peace be upon him) said, 'When one of your mounts escapes in a desert, let him call out, ‘O servants of Allah, help me! O servants of Allah, help me!’ Indeed, Allah has servants on this earth who will hold it for you.'"
(Reported by Tabarani in al-Mu’jam al-Kabeer)
Authenticity of the Hadith:
This narration is found in Tabarani and other books, all from the chain of Abdullah bin Masood (may Allah be pleased with him). Haythami commented on its chain, stating that Ma’ruf bin Hassan is weak (Majma’ al-Zawaid: 10/135).
First Weakness: Qatadah is a Mudallis (a narrator who omits the intermediary) and narrates this with “an” (an ambiguous chain).
Second Weakness: Hafiz Ibn Hajar mentions a disconnection between Ibn Buraidah and Ibn Masood (Sharh al-Adhkar: 5/150).
Third Weakness: Sheikh Albani also ruled it weak (Silsilah al-Da’eefah: 655, Da’eef al-Jaami’: 404, al-Kalim al-Tayyib: 178).
A Supporting Hadith and Its Weakness:
Another narration presented by Sufis is as follows, also mentioned by Tabarani:
"Narrated by Hussain bin Ishaq al-Tustari, Ahmad bin Yahya al-Sufi, Abdur Rahman bin Sahel, from his father, Abdullah bin Isa, from Zaid bin Ali, from Utbah bin Ghazwan, from the Prophet (peace be upon him): ‘If one of you loses something or needs help in a place with no companion, let him say: O servants of Allah, assist me! O servants of Allah, assist me! Surely Allah has servants we cannot see,’ and this has been experienced."
(Reported by Tabarani in al-Mu’jam al-Kabeer)
Authenticity of the Hadith:
First Weakness: Abdur Rahman bin Sahel is a weak narrator.
Second Weakness: His father (Sharik bin Abdullah al-Nakhai) has memory issues.
Third Weakness: Hafiz Ibn Hajar states there is a disconnection between Zaid bin Ali and Utbah bin Ghazwan.
Hence, this narration is also weak, as ruled by Sheikh Albani (Silsilah al-Da’eefah: 656, Da’eef al-Jaami’: 383).
Key Points to Consider:
- 1. Both narrations are weak and cannot serve as definitive evidence. Using them to justify intercession through the dead is incorrect.
- 2. The phrase “وَقَدْ جُرِّبَ ذَلِكَ” (this has been experienced) does not hold weight in Islamic law. Personal experiences cannot serve as proof in religion; only what has been established through the Prophet (peace be upon him) can be considered valid.
- 3. Even if, for the sake of argument, these narrations were considered authentic, they refer to calling upon angels (not jinn, humans, or saints). Sheikh Albani clarified that “servants of Allah” in these hadiths refers to beings other than humans, as supported by phrases like “there are present servants of Allah on earth” and “there are servants of Allah we cannot see,” which apply to angels. Seeking help from jinn is prohibited, leaving only angels in this context.
- 4. Calling upon angels is akin to asking for assistance from a living person in permissible matters, such as helping locate a lost object or providing directions. It does not justify invoking the dead or saints for assistance.
- 5. Some people claim that generally, jinn inhabit deserts, and therefore, “ʿIbād Allāh” (servants of Allah) refers to jinn in such cases. However, according to the Salaf (righteous predecessors), there is an almost unanimous consensus that calling upon jinn for help is an act of shirk (associating partners with Allah). The Permanent Committee for Islamic Research and Ifta in Saudi Arabia, in Fatwa No. 433, stated:
“Seeking help from jinn, relying on them to fulfill needs, or seeking their protection to harm or benefit someone constitutes shirk in worship. This falls under the category of benefiting from jinn, such as when a jinn answers someone’s call and fulfills their needs. Similarly, humans may honor jinn, rely on them, or seek their assistance to fulfill desires, leading to mutual benefit between humans and jinn.”
The following Quranic evidences have been cited to support this position:
Allah says:
And on the Day when He will gather them (all) together (and say): “O you assembly of jinns! Many did you mislead of men,” and their Auliya’ (friends and helpers, etc.) amongst men will say: “Our Lord! We benefited one from the other, but now we have reached our appointed term which You did appoint for us.” He will say: “The Fire be your dwelling-place, you will dwell therein forever, except as Allah may will. Certainly your Lord is All-Wise, All-Knowing.” And thus We do make the Zalimun (polytheists and wrong-doers, etc.) Auliya’ (supporters and helpers) one to another (in committing crimes etc.), because of that which they used to earn.
(Surah Al-An’am: 128-129)
Allah also says:
"And there were men from mankind who sought refuge in men from the jinn, so they only increased them in burden."
(Surah Al-Jinn: 6)
This fatwa clarifies that “ʿIbād Allāh” cannot refer to jinn here because seeking help from jinn is explicitly prohibited.
6. Grave worshippers use weak hadiths as a basis to call upon deceased saints and the dead. However, such hadiths are not admissible as proof. Even hypothetically assuming their validity, using them as evidence to call upon beings other than Allah (jinn or humans) is entirely invalid. The Quran and authentic hadiths strictly prohibit calling upon anyone other than Allah, as this constitutes shirk. One should call solely upon Allah.
Allah says:
“And invoke not besides Allah, any that will neither profit you, nor hurt you, but if (in case) you did so, you shall certainly be one of the Zalimun (polytheists and wrong-doers).”
(Surah Yunus: 106)
Allah says:
"And who is more astray than one who calls (invokes) besides Allah, such as will not answer him till the Day of Resurrection, and who are (even) unaware of their calls (invocations) to them?"
(Surah Al-Ahqaf: 5)
Allah also says:
"And you cannot make those in the graves hear."
(Surah Fatir: 22)
And He says:
"So verily, you (O Muhammad ﷺ) cannot make the dead to hear (i.e. the disbelievers, etc.), nor can you make the deaf to hear the call, when they show their backs, turning away."
(Surah Ar-Rum: 52)
These verses clearly demonstrate that the dead neither hear us nor can we make them hear. Even if they were to hear, they hold no power to bring benefit or harm. Hence, it is evident that only Allah should be invoked.
Finally, I would like to point out that in regions like Kerala and Karnataka, this matter has caused disputes among Salafis based on the aforementioned hadith. However, such disputes should not arise. When the hadith itself is unreliable, the matter ends there. Even if some among the Salaf acted upon this hadith, they neither sought help from jinn nor called upon saints or the dead. Instead, they invoked as directed in the hadith, which involves calling upon the angels, as I have already presented the hadith mentioning the group of angels.
✍️ Written by: Sheikh Maqbool Ahmed Salafi (Hafizahullaah)
❪Jeddah Dawah Center, Hayy al-Salamah – Saudi Arabia❫
✍🏻 English Interpreter: Hasan Fuzail