This excerpt is taken from Sheikh Ghulam Mustafa Zaheer Amanpuri's book The Shariah Status of Blessings.
It is not permissible to seek blessings from objects attributed to the bodies of the saints; rather, it is an innovation. There is absolutely no evidence for this from the pious predecessors. Here is a review of some people's arguments on this matter:
The incident of Imam Shafi'i, may Allah have mercy on him:
It is narrated from Rashid, Rabi' bin Sulaiman, a student of Imam Shafi'i, may Allah have mercy on him:
Imam Shafi'i, may Allah have mercy on him, came to Egypt. He said to me: Deliver this letter safely to Abu Abdullah Ahmad bin Hanbal and bring me a reply. I took the letter and reached Baghdad, where I met Imam Ahmad bin Hanbal, may Allah have mercy on him, at the time of Fajr prayer. When he came out of his room, I handed him the letter and said: This letter has been sent to you by your brother Imam Shafi'i, may Allah have mercy on him, from Egypt. Imam Ahmad, may Allah have mercy on him, asked me: Have you read it? I said: No. He broke the seal and read it, and his eyes filled with tears. I asked: Abu Abdullah! What happened? What is written in it? He said: Imam Shafi'i wrote to me that he saw the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, in a dream. The Prophet, peace be upon him, told him: Write a letter to Abu Abdullah, send him greetings, and tell him that he will soon be tested and invited to the false belief of the creation of the Quran, so do not accept it. Allah will raise you on the Day of Judgment as an honored scholar of religion.
After this, Rabi' bin Sulaiman, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
[قلت له: البشارة يا أبا عبد الله، فخلع أحد قميصيه الذي يلي جلده، فأعطانيه، فأخذت الجواب، وخرجت إلى مصر، وسلمت إلى الشافعي، فقال: أيش الذي أعطاك؟ فقلت: قميصه، فقال الشافعي: ليس نفجعك به، ولكن بله، وادفع إلي الماء، لأتبرك به]
I said to Imam Ahmad, may Allah have mercy on him: Abu Abdullah! You have received good news. He took off his shirt, which he had worn close to his body, and gave it to me as a gift. I took the reply and went to Imam Shafi'i, may Allah have mercy on him, in Egypt. He asked: Did Imam Ahmad, may Allah have mercy on him, give you anything? I said: His shirt (kamees). Imam Shafi'i, may Allah have mercy on him, said: We do not trouble you regarding this (shirt), but soak it in water and give me the water so that I may gain blessings from it.
Reference: Tarikh Ibn Asakir: 311/5, Manaqib Ahmad by Ibn al-Jawzi: 609-610
This is a fabricated chain.
① Muhammad bin Husayn Abu Abdur Rahman Salmi is accused of lying.
② Abu Bakr Muhammad bin Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz bin Shadhan Razi is also accused.
③ The biography of Ali bin Abdul Aziz Talhi is not found.
Its other chain is present in Manaqib Ahmad by Ibn al-Jawzi
Reference: (610-611)
.In it, Abu Ali al-Hasan bin Ali bin Muhammad Abi Ali bin Madhhab is weak.
◈ Hafiz Dhahabi, may Allah have mercy on him, says:
[إنه شيخ ليس بالمتقن]
He was not a Sheikh with a strong memory.
Reference: (Mizan al-I'tidal: 512/1)
◈ Shuja' Dhahli, may Allah have mercy on him, says:
[كان شيخا عسرا في الرواية، وسمع الكثير، ولم يكن ممن يعتمد عليه في الرواية، كأنه خلط في شيء من سماعه]
He was a narrator with few transmissions, although he heard from many people, but his narration is not trusted, as if he was confused in his hearing.
Reference: Mizan al-I'tidal by Dhahabi: 511/1
◈ Hafiz Abu Tahir Salafi, may Allah have mercy on him, says:
[كان مع عسره متكلما فيه، لأنه حدث بكتاب الزهد لأحمد بعد ما عدم أصله من غير أصله]
Despite narrating very few traditions, he is a weak narrator because he narrated from a forged copy of Imam Ahmad's book Al-Zuhd even after the original was lost.
Reference: Mizan al-I'tidal by Dhahabi: 511/1
◈ Khateeb Baghdadi, may Allah have mercy on him, says:
[كان يروي عن ابن مالك القطيعي مسند أحمد بن حنبل بأسره، وكان سماعه صحيحا؛ إلا في أجزاء منه، فإنه ألحق اسمه فيها، وكذلك فعل في أجزاء من فوائد ابن مالك، وكان يروي عن ابن مالك أيضا كتاب الزهد لأحمد بن حنبل، ولم يكن له به أصل عتيق، وإنما كانت النسخة بخطه، كتبها بأخرة، وليس بمحل للحجة]
He narrated the entire Musnad Ahmad from Ibn Malik Qati'i. Except for some parts, his hearing was correct because he included his name in the chain. He did the same with parts of Fawa'id Ibn Malik. Similarly, he narrated Imam Ahmad's book Al-Zuhd from Ibn Malik Qati'i, although he did not have the original. He only had a handwritten copy he wrote in his old age, which is not reliable.
Reference: Tarikh Baghdad: 390/7
The third chain of this incident is found in Tarikh Ibn Asakir
Reference: (311/5, 312)
and Tabaqat al-Shafi'iyyah al-Kubra by al-Subki
Reference: (36/2)
, but it is also weak.① Ja'far bin Muhammad al-Maliki is not authenticated.
② Abu Bakr Muhammad bin Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz bin Shadhan Razi is unreliable.
◈ Hafiz Dhahabi, may Allah have mercy on him, says:
[ليس بثقة] He was not trustworthy.
Reference: (Tarikh al-Islam: 360/6)
Hafiz Dhahabi's ruling is upheld by Allama Subki, may Allah have mercy on him.
Reference: Tabaqat al-Shafi'iyyah al-Kubra: 65/1
◈ Hafiz Dhahabi, may Allah have mercy on him, says:
[صاحب تيك الحكايات المنكرة، روى عنه الشيخ أبو عبد الرحمٰن (السلمي) أوابد وعجائب، وهو متهم، طعن فيه الحاكم]
He is responsible for the rejected narrations. Sheikh Abu Abdur Rahman Salmi narrated strange and unusual narrations from him. He is an accused narrator, and Imam Hakim, may Allah have mercy on him, criticized him.
Reference: (Mizan al-I'tidal: 606/3)
◈ Idris, may Allah have mercy on him, says:
[ليس هو في الرواية بذاك]
He is not reliable in narration.
Reference: (Lisan al-Mizan by Ibn Hajar: 230/5)
In short, this incident is weak and baseless with all three chains.
Regarding the life of Rabi' ibn Sulayman, Hafiz Dhahabi (may Allah have mercy on him) states:
[لم يكن صاحب رحلة، فأما ما يروى أن الشافعي بعثه إلى بغداد بكتابه إلى أحمد بن حنبل؛ فغير صحيح]
Rabi' ibn Sulayman (may Allah have mercy on him) was not one who traveled extensively in pursuit of knowledge, so the incident narrated that Imam Shafi'i (may Allah have mercy on him) sent him with a letter to Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal (may Allah have mercy on him) in Baghdad is not authentic.
Reference: (Siyar A'lam al-Nubala: 587/12)
Hafiz Dhahabi's statement is further supported by the fact that Rabi' ibn Sulayman's name is not mentioned by the Khateeb Baghdadi (may Allah have mercy on him) in Tarikh Baghdad. If he had come to Baghdad, his mention would certainly have been in Tarikh Baghdad. The absence of his mention in Tarikh Baghdad is evidence that he never came to Baghdad, so this incident is not authentic.
The incident of Imam Sufyan al-Thawri (may Allah have mercy on him):
Imru' bin Qais Malai, about Abu Abdullah Kufi, may Allah have mercy on him, Imam Ajli, may Allah have mercy on him, narrates:
[كان سفيان يأتيه يسلم عليه يتبرك به]
Imam Sufyan Thawri, may Allah have mercy on him, used to come to him, greet him, and seek blessings from him.
Reference: (Al-Thiqat: 368)
This narration is weak due to discontinuity. Imam Sufyan Thawri, may Allah have mercy on him, died in 161 AH, while Imam Ajli, may Allah have mercy on him, was born in 182 AH, so how could he have heard from Imam Sufyan Thawri? The link in between is missing.
Therefore, the chain is weak.
The story of Sultan Muhammad Ghaznavi:
Some people say that Sultan Muhammad Ghaznavi (son of Sabuktakin Abu al-Qasim, died 421 AH) was granted victory and help in the battle of the Somnath fort through the blessing of the cloak of Ali bin Ahmad Abu al-Hasan Khirqani Bastami (425 AH).
Reference: (Tazkirat al-Awliya by Farid al-Din Attar, p. 344)
This is a false story.
It is the religion of misguided Sufis. It has been proven that some people who advocate seeking blessings from objects attributed to the bodies of saints, their claim is baseless.
