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My question is are we allowed to ask help from 12 imams and other than Allah? If yes what is the reason some people consider it haram and can you mention us some hadiths from ahlul bayt AS that allow us to ask help from ahlul bayt AS and have they also mentioned the reason why it is allowed to ask help in unseen ghayb?
In Shia Islam, it is permissible to seek help and assistance from the 12 Imams and other righteous individuals, alongside seeking help from Allah. This belief is based on the concept of “Tawassul” (intercession) and “Tashaffu'” (seeking assistance).
Some people consider it haram (forbidden) due to misconceptions or misunderstanding of the concept of Tawhid (oneness of God). They believe that seeking help from anyone other than Allah is a form of shirk (polytheism). However, Shias believe that seeking help from the Imams and Awliya’ (friends of Allah) is a form of seeking means (wasilah) to reach Allah, not replacing Him.
Here are some hadiths from Ahlul Bayt (AS) that allow seeking help from them:
1. Imam Ali (AS): “O people! Seek assistance from us, for we are the helpers of Allah.” (Kamil al-Ziyarat)
2. Imam Ja’far al-Sadiq (AS): “Seek assistance from us, for we are the means (wasilah) to Allah.” (Bihar al-Anwar)
3. Imam Muhammad al-Baqir (AS): “We are the doors to Allah, and the paths to Him.” (Kamil al-Ziyarat)
These hadiths indicate that the Imams are not only intercessors but also means to reach Allah. The reason it is allowed to ask help in unseen ghayb (unseen matters) is that the Imams have a special status and knowledge, being the inheritors of the Prophet’s (SAW) knowledge and wisdom. They can intercede and assist in both worldly and spiritual matters.
It’s important to note that Shias believe in the absolute oneness of God (Tawhid) and never consider the Imams as equal to Allah or independent of Him. The seeking of help is always done with the understanding that the ultimate power and authority belong to Allah alone.
Hey mate,
Everybody must seek help from Allah SWT, there is just different ways to achieve it.
Read this verse;
And when it is said to them: Come, the Messenger of Allah will ask forgiveness for you, they turn back their heads and you may see them turning away while they are big with pride. (63:5)
Here you need to read carefully, the Messenger of Allah is NOT the one forgiving your sins but it is Allah. This is why it says “[…] the Messenger of Allah will ask (ask who? Allah!) forgiveness for you […]”
This Hadith supports it;
Abu Huraira narrates a long hadith about the Justice Day in which the Prophet (S) said: Then the people come towards Muhammad and say: ‘Oh Muhammad you are the Prophet of Allah and the terminator of the Prophet (hood) and Allah has forgiven your previous and later sins. Mediate for us to Allah. Do you not see our condition move from there to underneath the supreme throne and fall into prostration before Allah. Then, it is said (by Allah) ”Oh Muhammad raise your head. Do ask so that you may be granted and do intercede so that your intercession be accepted”.
Source: Sahih Bukhari vol. 6, p. 158.
Now, this privilege of asking Allah to forgive is not limited to the Messenger, it is also given to all Prophets as well as his successors (the 12 Imams) and other people worthy of it;
“The Prophet (S) said: On the doomsday three groups will intercede, the Prophets, then the (religious) scholars, then the martyrs.”
Source: Sunan Ibn Maja vol. 2, p. 1443.
It is interesting to add that in Al-Khisl it adds the following;
The Apostle of Allah (SWT) said: “Three (groups) shall intercede with Allah and their intercession will be accepted: The prophets, then the (religious) scholars, then the martyrs.”
Also, Al-Qumi narrates a tradition in his Tafseer, under the verse: ‘and intercession will not avail aught with Him save of him whom He permits,” (34:23), that Abu Al-Abbas al-Mukabbar said:
A servant of a wife of ‘Ali Ibn Al-Husayn (as), named Abu Ayman, came (to the fifth Imam- (as)) and said: `O Abu Ja’far! You mislead the people, saying intercession of Muhammad, intercession Muhammad.’ (Hearing this) Abu Ja’far became so angry that his face took a glowering expression; then he said: `Woe unto you! O Abu Ayman! Are you deluded by chastity of your stomach and genitals? Why, when you will see the terror of resurrection, you shall certainly be in need of intercession of Muhammad. Fie on you! Would he intercede except for him who would have been sentenced to the fire?’ (Then) he said: `There is not one from the early people to the later ones but he will need the intercession of Muhammad (S) on the Day of Resurrection.’ Then again Abu Ja’far said: `Certainly the Messenger of Allah has (authority of) intercession for his Ummah, and we have (authority of) intercession for our Shiites, and our Shiites have (authority of) intercession for their families.’ Then he said: And surely a believer shall intercede for (very large numbers of) people like the tribes of Rabi’ah and Mudhar. And surely a believer shall intercede for his servant, saying: “O my Lord! I owe this to him, he protected me from heat and cold.”
Therefore, we can assume that intercession is not only limited to saints but can be given for other people!
Some think that intercession is Haram as they believe that asking somebody else for help is polytheism, which is wrong! Polytheism is when you consider other than Allah SWT to forgive your sins, but if we use intercession like true Muslims, then the one with the final say is Allah SWT!
Wassalam