Ḥadīth of Dhāt Anwāṭ and the Shirk & Innovations Prevalent in Our Society
Compiled by: Tauheed.com
◈ Foundation of Islam – Tawḥīd
Islam is founded upon Tawḥīd — worshipping Allāh alone, seeking help from Him alone, relying on Him alone, and humbling oneself before Him alone.
Sadly, today a large portion of the Muslim Ummah has fallen into practices that the Prophet ﷺ declared as shirk or pathways leading to shirk. The Ḥadīth of Dhāt Anwāṭ is a guiding light in this regard, warning us that hoping in, seeking help from, or seeking blessings from other than Allāh resembles the misguidance of previous nations.
🌴 Ḥadīth of Dhāt Anwāṭ
عَنْ أَبِي وَاقِدٍ اللَّيْثِيِّ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ قَالَ:
خَرَجْنَا مَعَ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ﷺ إِلَى حُنَيْنٍ وَنَحْنُ حُدَثَاءُ عَهْدٍ بِكُفْرٍ، وَلِلْمُشْرِكِينَ سِدْرَةٌ يَعْكُفُونَ عِنْدَهَا، وَيُنِيطُونَ بِهَا أَسْلِحَتَهُمْ، يُقَالُ لَهَا: ذَاتُ أَنْوَاطٍ، فَمَرَرْنَا بِسِدْرَةٍ فَقُلْنَا: يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ، اجْعَلْ لَنَا ذَاتَ أَنْوَاطٍ، كَمَا لَهُمْ ذَاتُ أَنْوَاطٍ، فَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ: اللَّهُ أَكْبَرُ! إِنَّهَا السُّنَنُ! قُلْتُمْ وَالَّذِي نَفْسِي بِيَدِهِ، كَمَا قَالَتْ بَنُو إِسْرَائِيلَ لِمُوسَى: اجْعَلْ لَنَا إِلَهًا كَمَا لَهُمْ آلِهَةٌ، قَالَ: إِنَّكُمْ قَوْمٌ تَجْهَلُونَ، لَتَرْكَبُنَّ سَنَنَ مَنْ كَانَ قَبْلَكُمْ.
Narration:
Abū Wāqid al-Laythī رضي الله عنه said:
We went out with the Messenger of Allāh ﷺ to Ḥunayn when we were newly converted from disbelief. The polytheists had a lote tree around which they used to devote themselves and upon which they would hang their weapons. It was called Dhāt Anwāṭ.
We passed by a lote tree and said: “O Messenger of Allāh, make for us a Dhāt Anwāṭ as they have a Dhāt Anwāṭ!”
The Messenger of Allāh ﷺ replied:
“Allāhu Akbar! These are the ways (of previous nations)! By the One in Whose Hand is my soul, you have said what Banū Isrāʾīl said to Mūsā: ‘Make for us a god as they have gods.’ Mūsā said: ‘Indeed, you are an ignorant people.’ Surely you will follow the ways of those who came before you.”
📚 References:
- Jāmiʿ al-Tirmidhī, Kitāb al-Fitan, 2180
- Sunan al-Nasāʾī al-Kubrā: 8612
- Musnad Aḥmad: 21309
- Muṣannaf Ibn Abī Shaybah: 26689
✅ Status of Ḥadīth: Ḥasan Ṣaḥīḥ (as stated by Imām al-Tirmidhī)
🧨 Modern-Day “Dhāt Anwāṭ” – Examples of Shirk & Bidʿah
🔹 Graves, Shrines, and Dargāhs
- Seeking blessings from graves, kissing them, spreading sheets, or believing the dust, oil, or water connected to them gives shifāʾ or barakah.
- Asking needs from saints — this is shirk in duʿāʾ.
📖 “And your Lord says: Call upon Me, I will respond to you.” (Ghāfir: 60)
📖 “Duʿāʾ is worship.” (Sunan al-Tirmidhī 2969 – Ṣaḥīḥ)
🔹 Seeking Help from Dead Saints & Belief in Miracles
- Believing awliyāʾ know the unseen, hear our pleas, or act as ḥājāt-rawā (fulfillers of needs) is against Qurʾān & Sunnah.
📖 “Whoever calls upon another deity besides Allāh, for which he has no proof…” (Al-Muʾminūn: 117)
🔹 Tabarruk (Sacred Objects) & False Means
- Flags, amulets, threads, water, or sticks associated with saints or shrines are non-Sharʿī forms of seeking blessing.
📖 “Actions are but by intentions.” (Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī)
🔹 Mīlād, ʿUrs, Giyārwīn, Chālīswan
- Such rituals have no basis in Qurʾān or Sunnah, nor were they practiced by the Ṣaḥābah or Tābiʿīn.
📖 “Every innovation is misguidance.” (Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim)
⚠️ Conclusion
All these acts are modern versions of Dhāt Anwāṭ, representing shirk and bidʿah.
When the Prophet ﷺ rebuked a simple request by the Companions for Dhāt Anwāṭ, how severe then is the case of today’s grave-worshippers, shrine-worshippers, and amulet-wearers?
🛡 Call to Pure Tawḥīd
✔ Call only upon Allāh — not the dead, not creation.
✔ Use only means established by Sharīʿah.
✔ Follow only the Sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ in worship.
✔ Shun every bidʿah — for that is the path of salvation.
🤲 Masnūn Duʿāʾ for Protection from Shirk
اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَعُوذُ بِكَ أَنْ أُشْرِكَ بِكَ وَأَنَا أَعْلَمُ، وَأَسْتَغْفِرُكَ لِمَا لَا أَعْلَمُ
Translation:
“O Allāh! I seek refuge in You from knowingly associating anything with You, and I seek Your forgiveness for what I do unknowingly.”
📚 Musnad Aḥmad (4/403) – Ṣaḥīḥ
