It is firmly established from the Companions that they used to seek blessings
through certain things from his body which had separated from his body, such as
his hair, or the water from the wudhoo’ or blood etc. These hadeeths have
come in the two Saheehs and are authentic.
The Messenger (sallallaahu alayhi wasallam) has been given the greatest rank of barakah, more than
all the other Messengers and from his various parts (such as hair etc.) barakah
is brought about and it is permissible to seek barakah through them. A group
from the Companions used to do this.
As for seeking barakah from the places where the Messenger (sallallaahu alayhi wasallam) went, such
as a place in which he stopped and rested (on a journey) or a place in which he
prayed or where he placed his foot or placed his hand etc., then there is no
text or evidence that has been reported which shows that the barakah of the
physical essence rubbed off onto these places such that they possessed barakah
of the physical essence and that tabarruk should be made through them. And for
this reason, none of the Sahaabah used to do this, neither during his life nor
after his life.
Therefore, wherever the Messenger (sallallaahu alayhi wasallam) went or stopped then it is not
correct to seek tabarruk through these things, this in this there is a
glorification of such things and places for which it is not permissible for us
to glorify and also this is one of the avenues which leads to shirk. Never did a
people follow up the tracks of their Prophets except that they went astray.
Umar forbade this practice. Ma’roor bin Suwaid al-Asadi said, "I
went along with Umar (from Makkah to Madinah). When we arose in the morning,
Umar saw people going in a certain direction. He said, ‘Where are they
going?’ and they said, ‘They are going to a mosque in which the
Prophet prayed’. Umar said, "Verily the Prophet before you were
destroyed because of their veneration of the places where the Prophets prayed.
They used to follow the tracks of their Prophets and made them into places of
worship. So whoever manages to pray in these (other) mosques when the time for
prayer comes, then let him prayer and whoever misses the prayer at its time,
then let him continue (and not to deliberately pray in these places). [Ibn
Waddah al-Qurtubi in al-Bida, Ibn Abi Shaibah in his Musannaf with a sahih
isnad].
This Umar is the same one about whom the Messenger (sallallaahu alayhi wasallam) said, "Verily
Allaah Ajjawajall has placed the truth upon the heart and tongue of Umar"
[Ahmad from Ibn Umar with sahih isnad, also in Abu Dawud, Ahmad with other
chains of narration].
And there is not doubt that this statement about following the tracks of the
Prophets and seeking what they touched as a means of barakah from Umar is from
the truth that Allaah placed upon the tongue of Umar (ra).
Ibn Waddah al-Qurtubi (d. 270ish H) also states (p.34 al-Bida): "Malik
bin Anas and others from the Scholars of Madinah would detest that people should
go to those Masjids, and the following of the tracks of the Prophet (sallallaahu alayhi wasallam) ,
unless it was Uhud or Quba".
He also said, "Therefore you must adhere to the Imaams of guidance,
those who are well known. And one of those who has passed before us has said,
"How many matters are there which are well known considered to be good
today, but which were considered evil by those who have passed before us."
[Refer also to the statement of Abdullah ibn al-Mubaarak d.181H].
Hence, the point here is that the Salaf used to dislike seeking tabarruk from
places, and they used to dislike being attached to these places and hoping for
their blessings.
There is no report to show other than this except for that of Ibn Umar (ra)
about whom it is known that he used to follow the tracks of the Messenger (sallallaahu alayhi wasallam) ,
such that he would pray where he would pray and so on. And there is no other
truthful report about any other Companion that he used to do what Ibn Umar used
to do.