CHAPTER 8

Whoever Seeks Blessings in

Trees, Stones and Similar Things
Keywords
At-Tabarruk is to seek blessings, and Barakah (blessing) means the continuation and multiplication of good.
"And Similar Things": like the different locations, a specific cave, a grave, or water spring etc.
Seeking the blessings of Trees, Stones etc: Also included among such condemned practices is the act of
seeking blessings of a shrine, a tomb or a relic.

Allaah ‫ﷻ‬
Read Pages 66-75
Only Allaah grants blessings

Certain Places Certain Humans

Certain Times
Allaah ‫ ﷻ‬makes some places blessed. Allaah ‫ ﷻ‬makes some humans
blessed.
Meaning: These places contain abundant, inherent
and lasting goodness. Allaah ‫ ﷻ‬makes Allaah made Prophets and Messengers
certain times blessed in themselves. This means that
How? their bodies are blessed, and it is possible
blessed.
1. The reward of worship at these places is for the effects of this blessing and
Times such as
multiplied. goodness to be transferred from their
Ramadan, Lailatul
bodies to others. Therefore, if anyone
Qadr, 'Arafa,
2. The worshipper gets many great benefits sought blessings from their bodies, either
'Aashoora' etc.
from visiting these blessed places. by wiping them, or taking some of their
How? sweat or hair, then this was permissible.
{And [mention] when We made the House a place
The reward of
of return for the people and [a place of] security. worship during
And take, [O believers], from the standing place of those times will be The companions of the Prophet
Abraham a place of prayer. And We charged Abraham multiplied. Muhammad ‫ ﷺ‬used to seek blessings in
and Ishmael, [saying], "Purify My House for those his sweat, his hair, and various things.
Q. What is the
who perform Tawaf and those who are staying [there]
reward of one Is there any other than the Prophets
for worship and those who bow and prostrate [in who stands for
prayer].} [2:125] who has such personal blessing?
prayer during
Lailatul Qadr? No. Even the best of this Ummah, Abu
{In it are clear signs [such as] the standing place of Bakr and Umar, did not have such
Abraham. And whoever enters it shall be safe.} [3:97] personal blessings, and no one of the
companions or their followers (At-
Why did Allaah make these places blessed? Tabi'een) asked to be blessed by them.
To encourage people to constantly attend them and
benefit. After studying
this chapter you are There is blessings in every Muslim
expected to know: Every Muslim is blessed by the faith
Reward of prayer in Al-Masjid Al-Haram is: and good deeds that he has within him.
1. Meaning of
............................................................................................... However his blessings is not transferable.
Tabarruk.
Reward of prayer in Al-Masjid Al-Nabawy is: Verdict of seeking blessings from
2. Only Allaah them
.............................................................................................. makes some
If we want to seek the blessings of a
Reward of prayer in Al-Masjid Al-Aqsa is: places, times and person of knowledge, this would be
.............................................................................................. some humans through taking from his knowledge,
blessed. and if we are seeking the blessings of
is the blessings transferable? righteous people, this would be by
3. Verdict of seeking
No, The blessing of the place is in the worship that is following them in their righteousness.
the blessings of
done there and in following the Prophet ‫ ﷺ‬only. It is not permissible to seek blessings by
trees and stones.
Touching the Black Stone, or the walls of the Ka'abah touching them or taking from their hair
does not bless the person touching it because the 4. Verdict of seeking or saliva etc.
blessing is not inherent in it. the blessings of
rightous humans

1
 Allaah ‫ ﷻ‬said (interpretation of the meaning):
{Have you seen Al-Laat and Al-'Uzzaa, and Manat the third
other one?
Keywords
Al-Laat: It is the name of an idol that used to be worshipped
in the Pre-Islamic Period of Ignorance (Jahiliyyah). It originally
refers to a white rock on which a building was erected in At-Ta’if.
It may also refer to the name of a man who used to prepare food
for pilgrims. Upon his death, people devoted acts of worship at
his tomb.
Al-'Uzza: It was the name of a tree surrounded by a wall and
decorated with curtains. It was located in the road between
Mecca and At-Ta’if.
Manat: It was an idol, which used to be located at a Mushallal
between Mecca and Medina.
The Idolaters had a lote tree which they held a belief in. Their
belief included three things.
First: That they used to have great esteem and reverence for it.
Second: They used to make religious devotion at this tree.
Third: They used to hand their weapons at it hoping that the
blessings would transfer from the tree to the weapon. Their
deed was major Shirk due to these three things together.
Relevance of the verse to the chapter
These verse proves the prohibition of seeking the blessings of
trees or stones, which is categorically regarded as Shirk. Idol
worshippers believed they can gain the blessings of their idols
and their intercession by glorifying, revering, calling them and
depending on them to get what they want. This is what they did
with Al-Laat, Al-'Uzza and Manat.
And whoever seeks the blessings of trees and stones and
believes in them, he has done the same of what the Arab pagans
used to do with their idols.
Verdict
Seeking blessings may be major Shirk if:
Seeking the blessings in a tree, a stone, a grave, or various locations
is major Shirk if the one who seeks their blessings believes that
this tree, stone or grave will be a means of intercession for him
with Allaah if he wipes it, rubs himself against it or clings to it. This
is what the ignorant people or pre-Islamic days used to claim in
reference to the trees and stones that they used to worship and
seek the blessings from.
{And those who take Awliyaa' (protectors, supporters, lords, gods)
besides Him (say): 'We only worship them so that they may bring us
nearer to Allaah'" [39:3]
So, if his heart is attached to this thing that he is wiping and
seeking blessings from or revere, and he devotes himself there
and believe there is a spirit there, or that he can use this place as a
means of mediation with Allaah, then this is major Shirk.
2
Abu Waaqid Al-Laythee said, " We went out with Allah's
Messenger ‫ ﷺ‬to Hunayn and we had just recently left
disbelief ( kufr). The Mushrikun ( polytheists, idolaters) had
a lote tree, which they used to frequent for devotion and hang
their weapons upon, and it was called Thaatu Anwaat, so we
passed by a lote tree and said, 'O Allah's Messenger make a
Thaatu Anwaat for us just like their Thaatu Anwaat."
Allah's Messenger ‫ ﷺ‬said : " Allahu Akbar Verily it is the ways
( of earlier nations). By He in Whose Hand is my soul, you all
have said the same as the children of Israel said to Musa: {Make
for us a god just like their gods, he said, Verily you are a people
who know not} [7:138]
"Certainly you all will follow the ways of those who were before
you. "
(At-Tirmithi)
General Meaning of the Hadeeth
Abu Waqid gives an account of an interesting incident that
took place immediately before the Battle of Hunayn. Some
Muslims had just embraced Islam, and thus they were unaware
of specific acts of Shirk. Whey they witnessed the polytheists
seeking the blessings of a tree, they asked the Prophet ‫ ﷺ‬to
assign a tree for them to seek blessings from. The Prophet
‫ ﷺ‬was greatly surprised and shocked by their suggestion. He
disapproved of their mistaken proposal and likened it to the
affair of the Children of Israel who asked Moses to assign an
idol for them to worship. The Qur'an states:
{..Make for us a god just as they have gods..}
The Prophet ‫ ﷺ‬informed that the Muslim Ummah (nation) would
follow the steps of the Jews and Christians. He condemned such
and imitation.
Relevance of the Hadeeth to the chapter
The Hadeeth proves that seeking the blessings of trees
or any other object is an act of polytheism.
Seeking blessings may be minor shirk if:
A person takes the dirt of the grave and sprinkles it on himself
due to his belief that this dirt is blessed, and if it touches his body,
his body will become blessed as a result of the dirt. This is minor
shirk because he has not directed worship to other than Allaah.
Rather, he only believed that something is a means that is not an
islamically allowed means.
So he wipes something with the belief that this place is blessed
and that it is a means that will cure him.