The word · Belief

الاِسْتِغَاثَة

Istighathah

Calling for help, and the disputed question of whom a Muslim may call on when it is not Allah.

Also written · Istighatha · Istighasa · Istigatha · Isteghatha · Istighathah bil awliya · Seeking help · Calling upon saints · Madad · Ya Rasulallah madad

The meaning

What Istighathah means in Islam

Everyone agrees that asking a present living person for help within their ability is ordinary and permitted, and that asking anyone at all for what only Allah can give is shirk. The dispute is narrower than it sounds: calling on an absent or deceased prophet or righteous person. Many Sufi and traditional scholars read it as a request for that person's prayer and permit it, while Hanbali and Salafi scholarship reads it as calling upon the dead and forbids it. Both sides are arguing over the meaning of one line said seventeen times a day: You alone we worship, You alone we ask for help (Qur'an 1:5).

Evidence · Scholars differ · The scholars read this one differently