One of the problems that leads to an incomplete understanding of religious teachings is to focus on one piece of evidence and overlooking others. In order to have a comprehensive idea about Islamic teachings one should take all related issues into account.
One of the protests of Wahhabis against the Shiites is the issue of intercession. They accuse the Shiites of polytheism because they believe in intercession.
One example that the Shiites bring as evidence to prove that intercession has a base in religion is the verse No. 35 of Surah Ma'idah. It says: "O, you who have believed, fear Allah and seek the means [of nearness] to Him and strive in His cause that you may succeed."[1]
The Wahhabis have thrown doubts on this verse saying that: this verse addresses all the believers and the Prophet (PBUH) was among the first believers. Thus how could it be possible that God the Almighty orders the Prophet (PBUH) to be a means of proximity to God for himself? Therefore, the meaning of Wasilah in the verse should be something else. According to hadiths and the verse No. 153 Surah Baqarah. Wasilah is nothing but prayer and fasting: Translation: "O you who have believed, seek help through patience and prayer. Indeed, Allah is with the patient."[2]
To answer this skepticism first we should clarify the meaning of Wasilah. Wasilah has different meanings. In Lisan al-Arab which is on the most authentic Arabic dictionaries we read:'' Wasilah is that by which one thing becomes close to another.''[3]
In Misbah al-Lughah it has been defined as follows: ''Wasilah is that by which one becomes close to another thing or person and the plural is Wasa'il.''[4]
Thus Wasilah includes everything by which one can attain proximity to God among which is the intercession of the Prophet (PBUH) and the Imams (AS). It includes prayer, fast, almsgiving, good deeds, paying visits to relatives and so on and it also includes the praying of the Prophet (PBUH) and the Imams (AS) to God to forgive a sinner who has acquired the conditions of being interceded.
By referring to hadiths and verses of the Quran one can conclude that Wasilah is not limited to prayer and fast but it includes everything that brings man close to his creator including the intercession of the pious people. Here are some examples:
1- Intercession of prophet Jacob for his children
The Quran narrates the story of the children of Jacob who said to their father:"O our father, ask for us forgiveness of our sins; indeed, we have been sinners."[5]
As is evident of this verse, the children of Jacob asked him to intercede with God on their behalf to forgive their sins.
2- The intercession of the Prophet of Islam (PBUH)
The Quran reprimands some Muslims for not coming to the Prophet (PBUH) to ask God for forgiveness and ask the prophet to pray to God to forgive them. It says: "And if, when they wronged themselves, they had come to you, [O Muhammad], and asked forgiveness of Allah and the Messenger had asked forgiveness for them, they would have found Allah Accepting of repentance and Merciful."[6]
3- The best Wasa'il in the words of Imam Ali (AS)
In a hadith narrated from Imam Ali (AS) we read: "the best means for seekers a way unto Allah are: believing in God and his Prophet and Jihad in the way of God which is the apex of Islam, and the word of devotion (i.e. ) which is inherent in man's nature, and establishing prayer which is the sign of Islam and paying Zakat which is an obligatory creed, and fasting in the month of Ramadan which is a shield against (sins and God's) punishment, and obligatory and recommended pilgrimage to Mecca which do away with poverty and austerity and washes away sins, and paying visits to relatives which brings about wealth and prolongs the lifespan, giving money to charity secretly which compensates sins and openly which banishes dreadful deaths, and doing good deeds which prevents from falling humiliated."[7]
According to what mentioned earlier we can conclude that there is no problem about the verse addressing the Prophet (PBUH) regarding the rest good deeds and addressing other believers regarding all means of proximity to God including intercession through the Prophet (PBUH) and the Imams (AS).
Footnotes:
[1] يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اتَّقُوا اللَّـهَ وَابْتَغُوا إِلَيْهِ الْوَسِيلَةَ وَجَاهِدُوا فِي سَبِيلِهِ لَعَلَّكُمْ تُفْلِحُون.
[2] يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اسْتَعِينُوا بِالصَّبْرِ وَالصَّلَاةِ ۚ إِنَّ اللَّـهَ مَعَ الصَّابِرِينَ.
[3] Lisan al-Arab.
[4] Misbah al-Lughah.
[5] Yusuf: 97, قَالُوا يَا أَبَانَا اسْتَغْفِرْ لَنَا ذُنُوبَنَا إِنَّا كُنَّا خَاطِئِينَ.
[6] Nisa', 64, وَ لَوْ اَنَّهُمْ اِذْ ظَّلَمُوا اَنْفُسَهُمْ جاءُوکَ فَاسْتَغْفَرُوا اللّهَ وَ اسْتَغْفَرَ لَهُمُ الرَّسُولُ لَوَجَدُوا اللّهَ تَوّاباً رَحِیْماً.
[7] Nahj al-Balaghah, Serom 110