What is "tawassul"

Tawassul is an Arabic word originated from wa-sa-la- wasilat . The wasilah is a means by which a person, goal or objective is approached, attained or achieved. In another version of the meaning of tawassul in another text: Tawassul is an Arabic word that comes from a verbal noun, wasilah, which according to Ibn Manzur (d. 711/1311) in Lisān al-'Arab means "a station with King, a rank, or act of devotion. In other words, it refers to a position of power due to one's proximity to the king or sovereign. While the tawassul or tawassulan is the use of wasilah for this purpose. In religious contexts,the tawassul is the use of a wasilah to arrive at or obtain favour of Allah.

We can find various examples of tawassul in the Books of Hadith.One good example is found in well-known hadith of the young men trapped in a cave whose mouth was covered by a stone: Each of them prays to God by mentioning some acts that he did for God's sake, in hopes that it might cause his prayer to be accepted. This is a good example of doing tawassul with one's good action.