The Prophet's Presence, Tawassul and Tabarruk

A matter that causes a lot of confusion is whether the rūḥ of the Prophet (peace be upon him) becomes present in gatherings where immense ṣalawāt are being sent upon him, and whether the Prophet (peace be upon him) can be present in different places at the same time.

Mawlānā Thānawī, in Nashr al-Ṭīb, says that the Prophet (peace be upon him) can come in many people's dreams at the same time. That is agreed upon, because a different dimension is being spoken of. This dimension is very limited, but that dimension is very different. So that dimension cannot really be restricted to the limits of this dimension. As for whether his rūḥ can appear, or physically appear, in gatherings: Mawlānā Shaykh al-Islām says it is possible. Now, that is something to think about. It is possible, but it is not necessary. Nobody can hold a gathering and say that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) is here. That is problematic.

But if he is observed… Mawlānā Ishāmatullāh related that in Rander, it seems, there was a programme, a jalsah, a conference going on, a Bukhārī Sharīf or something of the kind, and one of the shuyūkh actually observed that the Prophet (peace be upon him) was present there. But this is not something that can be inferred. Nobody should say that with this many durūd sharīf he is definitely going to come, or anything like that, because that is not mentioned in hadith. It is up to Allah; it is up to Allah (swt) where He wants to send His Prophet.

Can tawassul be made through the awliyāʾ? Tawassul is permitted, but there are some scholars who insist on tawassul, make it a really big part of their duʿās, and make it a regular thing. Others say that it is permissible: if you want to do it, if you feel like doing it, just as some people did, as mentioned in hadith, then it is fine; but it is not necessary to make it some kind of regular action. So there are some people who emphasise it a lot more, and some who do not. Experience shows that when it is emphasised a great deal, it really draws away a lot of people who are just new to this concept. There is the account of a programme at which a particular shaykh spoke and really insisted on tawassul, and one person there, who was just coming out of Sufism, was really thrown off by it.

Can tabarruk be sought from the Prophet (peace be upon him) and other awliyāʾ? Absolutely. The Ṣaḥābah did that. Muʿāwiyah (may Allah be pleased with him) kept something back. Others kept the hair. One of the women kept some of the perspiration. Tabarruk can be sought. But do not do as Muḥsin Khān did, where he translated it as souvenir: they kept the hair as a souvenir. Lā ḥawla wa lā quwwata illā billāh. Tabarruk is different from a souvenir. A souvenir is what you bring back from Dubai.