Du'a Tawassul (Supplication of Intercession)

Du'a Tawassul (Arabic: دعاء التوسل) is a supplication in Shia Islam where the believer addresses Allah through the intercession (tawassul) of the Prophet Muhammad and his household (Ahl al-Bayt). Tawassul means "to seek a means" to draw near to Allah, and this supplication asks the 14 Infallibles (Ma'sumeen) to intercede with Allah on the supplicant's behalf.

The supplication mentions by name: the Prophet Muhammad, Imam Ali, Fatimah al-Zahra, Imam Hasan, Imam Husayn, and the nine subsequent Imams of Ahl al-Bayt (peace be upon them all). For each person, a passage is recited that acknowledges their rank with Allah and asks them to intercede.

The Quranic basis for tawassul is found in Surah Al-Ma'idah 5:35: "O you who believe! Fear Allah and seek a means (wasilah) to Him." And in Surah An-Nisa 4:64: "And if they, when they had wronged themselves, had come to you and asked forgiveness from Allah, and the Messenger had asked forgiveness for them, they would have found Allah Forgiving, Merciful." These verses form the theological basis for seeking intercession.

Du'a Tawassul is traditionally recited on Tuesday evening (the night before Wednesday) in Shia mosques. It is narrated in Bihar al-Anwar by Allamah al-Majlisi (vol. 99) and in Mafatih al-Jinan by Shaykh Abbas al-Qummi, which is the most widely used Shia prayer book. For Shia Muslims, tawassul is not worship of the Imams, but an acknowledgment of their special nearness to Allah and their ability to intercede on behalf of believers — just as one can ask a living person to pray for them.