Ruling on Making Vows and Offerings for Other than Allah in Light of Aḥādīth
Source: Fatāwā Amunpūrī by Shaykh Ghulām Muṣṭafā Ẓahīr Amunpūrī
❖ Question
What is the ruling on making vows and offerings (nadhar/niyāz) for other than Allah?
❖ Answer
A vow (nadhar) is an act of worship, and worship of creation is impermissible.
❖ Scholarly Statements
◈ Shaykh al-Islām Ibn Taymiyyah (d. 728H) said:
((قد اتفق العلماء على أنه لا يجوز لأحد أن ينذر لغير الله لا نبي ولا لغير نبي وأن هذا النذر شرك لا يوفى به))
“The scholars are in agreement that it is not permissible for anyone to make a vow for other than Allah—neither for a Prophet nor for anyone else. Such a vow is shirk and must not be fulfilled.”
(Majmūʿ al-Fatāwā 1/286)
◈ ʿAllāmah Amīr al-Ṣanʿānī (d. 1182H) said:
((أما النذور المعروفة فى هذه الأزمنة على القبور والمشاهد والأموات فلا كلام فى تحريمها...))
“As for the vows made in our times at graves, shrines, and for the dead, there is no doubt in their prohibition. This is because the one making the vow believes that the occupant of the grave can benefit or harm, bring good, repel evil, grant relief to the distressed, and cure the sick. This is exactly what idol-worshippers used to do. Hence, such vows are as prohibited as those made for idols. Accepting such vows is also forbidden, as it endorses shirk. It is obligatory to forbid them and clarify that they are among the gravest prohibitions. This was the very practice of idol-worshippers. Over time, truth has been inverted—good has been regarded as evil, and evil as good. Banners are raised to collect these vows for the dead, feasts are prepared for visitors at the houses of the deceased, and animals are slaughtered at their doors. This is precisely what idolaters used to do.”
(*Amīr al-Ṣanʿānī, cited in Aḥkām al-Masājid)
Conclusion
- Nadhar (vows and offerings) is an act of worship.
- Directing it to anyone besides Allah is shirk.
- Vows made at graves, shrines, or for the dead are harām and impermissible.
- It is obligatory to forbid such practices, as they resemble the rituals of idol-worshippers.
