Commit to Allâh or others?
Undivided loyalty: A Muslimah offering prayer at the newly finished Masjid Syeikh Zayed in Abu Dhabi. Picture: AFP
Friday, June 20, 2008
THE greatest mistake written by Imam Adh-Dhahabi in Al-Kabair (the Great Sins) is Shirk. This word used for idolatry in Arabic means "partnership/association".
In the Quran, to practise idolatry is to associate any other being, any other person, or concept with Allâh, considering them to be equal to Allâh, and to act upon this unsound belief.
In translations of the Quran, idolatry is explained as "associating a partner with Allâh". It is expressed thus: "having another god besides Allâh", or "worshipping another god besides Allâh".
In its broadest sense, idolatry is to adhere to principles and values, or pursue a life style other than is consistent with the teachings and moral values of the Quran.
Someone adopting such principles simply sets up the person laying down these principles as a partner to Allâh.
This person may be anyone; his father, grandfather, an ancestor he may so exalt the society he is a member of, the founders of an ideology, a philosophy or its followers.
Someone adhering to a different way of living other than the Quran, simply practices idolatry.
He may call himself an atheist, Christian, or Jew.
He may even appear to be a Muslim, performing his regular prayers, fasting and obeying the laws of Islam, but also committing and loyal to other than Allâh.
Nevertheless, anyone harbouring a thought or judgment opposing the Quran is a mere idolater; by such a stance he simply manifests his acceptance of the existence of a ruler other than Allâh.
Idolatry does not essentially require an absolute denial of the existence of Allâh. Rather, the majority of the idolaters avoid explicitly accepting such an attribute or "title".
Never scrupulous in conduct, they deceive themselves throughout their lives. On the Day of Judgment, they still reject being involved in idolatry. The stance they adopt is explained in the following verse: "One day shall We gather them all together: We shall say to those who ascribed partners (to Us): 'Where are the partners whom you (invented and) talked about?'
There will then be (left) no subterfuge for them but to say: 'By Allâh, our Lord, we were not those who associated other gods with Allâh.' Behold! How they lie against their own souls! But the (lie) which they invented will leave them in the lurch." (translation of the Quran surah al-An'am: 22-24)
An idolater does not necessarily have to make "declarations". You will certainly never hear a statement like this: "I hereby take this divine being as a god besides Allâh and I swear an oath of loyalty to him."
Idolatry resides primarily, in the heart and is then disclosed through word and deed. From the standpoint of the Quran, having a preference for a being other than Allâh underlies it.
Idolatry is the diversion of the feeling of "love" from Allâh to other beings. The strong attachment formed to idols is explained in the following verse: "Yet there are men who take (for worship) others besides Allâh, as equal (with Allâh): They love them as they should love Allâh. But those of the Faith are overflowing in their love for Allâh. If only the unrighteous could see, behold, they would see the penalty: that to Allâh belongs all power, and Allâh will sternly enforce the penalty." (surah Al-Baqarah:165)
"Love" given to the wrong people lays the basis for "worshipping others than Allâh" as well as idolatry.
Passion for women is the most striking example of ascribing partners to Allâh in terms of love.
In consequence, if the love felt for a woman makes a man drift apart from Allâh, makes him see a woman as equal to or at a higher level than Allâh, then this is explicitly "ascribing partners to Allâh".
Such a mentality, assumed to be innocent behaviour in society, has serious consequences, however, in the presence of Allâh:
"(The Pagans), leaving Him, call but upon female deities: they call but upon Syaitan the persistent rebel!" (An-Nisa: 117)
This point of view also holds true for women. This type of love, unacceptable in the presence of Allâh, is however encouraged in modern societies under the "innocent" rubrics of "love", "romanticism" or "dating".
The indoctrination of romanticism — especially targeting young people — has devastating effects upon new generations.
The basis of idolatry is the preference for a person, or a thing over Allâh, for instance, to prefer somebody's approval to Allâh's, to fear somebody as one fears Allâh or to love him as one loves Allâh or to do for an idol what he doesn't do for Allâh, or to make a sacrifice which he does not do for Allâh's approval.
Allâh will forgive any sin except idolatry: "Allâh does not forgive those who set up partners with Him; but He forgive to whom He pleases; for anything else; to set up partners with Allâh is to devise a sin most heinous indeed." (An-Nisa: 48)
The Quran defines the end of the musyrikin (people who commit to others than Allâh) as follows: "But when they saw Our punishment, they said: 'We believe in Allâh, the one God and we reject the partners we used to associate with Him'.
But their professing the faith when they actually saw Our punishment was not going to profit them. Such has been Allâh's way of dealing with His servants from the most ancient times. And so the rejecters of Allâh perished utterly!" (Ghafir: 84-85)
Harun Yahya Internasional
In the Quran, to practise idolatry is to associate any other being, any other person, or concept with Allâh, considering them to be equal to Allâh, and to act upon this unsound belief.
In translations of the Quran, idolatry is explained as "associating a partner with Allâh". It is expressed thus: "having another god besides Allâh", or "worshipping another god besides Allâh".
In its broadest sense, idolatry is to adhere to principles and values, or pursue a life style other than is consistent with the teachings and moral values of the Quran.
Someone adopting such principles simply sets up the person laying down these principles as a partner to Allâh.
This person may be anyone; his father, grandfather, an ancestor he may so exalt the society he is a member of, the founders of an ideology, a philosophy or its followers.
Someone adhering to a different way of living other than the Quran, simply practices idolatry.
He may call himself an atheist, Christian, or Jew.
He may even appear to be a Muslim, performing his regular prayers, fasting and obeying the laws of Islam, but also committing and loyal to other than Allâh.
Nevertheless, anyone harbouring a thought or judgment opposing the Quran is a mere idolater; by such a stance he simply manifests his acceptance of the existence of a ruler other than Allâh.
Idolatry does not essentially require an absolute denial of the existence of Allâh. Rather, the majority of the idolaters avoid explicitly accepting such an attribute or "title".
Never scrupulous in conduct, they deceive themselves throughout their lives. On the Day of Judgment, they still reject being involved in idolatry. The stance they adopt is explained in the following verse: "One day shall We gather them all together: We shall say to those who ascribed partners (to Us): 'Where are the partners whom you (invented and) talked about?'
There will then be (left) no subterfuge for them but to say: 'By Allâh, our Lord, we were not those who associated other gods with Allâh.' Behold! How they lie against their own souls! But the (lie) which they invented will leave them in the lurch." (translation of the Quran surah al-An'am: 22-24)
An idolater does not necessarily have to make "declarations". You will certainly never hear a statement like this: "I hereby take this divine being as a god besides Allâh and I swear an oath of loyalty to him."
Idolatry resides primarily, in the heart and is then disclosed through word and deed. From the standpoint of the Quran, having a preference for a being other than Allâh underlies it.
Idolatry is the diversion of the feeling of "love" from Allâh to other beings. The strong attachment formed to idols is explained in the following verse: "Yet there are men who take (for worship) others besides Allâh, as equal (with Allâh): They love them as they should love Allâh. But those of the Faith are overflowing in their love for Allâh. If only the unrighteous could see, behold, they would see the penalty: that to Allâh belongs all power, and Allâh will sternly enforce the penalty." (surah Al-Baqarah:165)
"Love" given to the wrong people lays the basis for "worshipping others than Allâh" as well as idolatry.
Passion for women is the most striking example of ascribing partners to Allâh in terms of love.
In consequence, if the love felt for a woman makes a man drift apart from Allâh, makes him see a woman as equal to or at a higher level than Allâh, then this is explicitly "ascribing partners to Allâh".
Such a mentality, assumed to be innocent behaviour in society, has serious consequences, however, in the presence of Allâh:
"(The Pagans), leaving Him, call but upon female deities: they call but upon Syaitan the persistent rebel!" (An-Nisa: 117)
This point of view also holds true for women. This type of love, unacceptable in the presence of Allâh, is however encouraged in modern societies under the "innocent" rubrics of "love", "romanticism" or "dating".
The indoctrination of romanticism — especially targeting young people — has devastating effects upon new generations.
The basis of idolatry is the preference for a person, or a thing over Allâh, for instance, to prefer somebody's approval to Allâh's, to fear somebody as one fears Allâh or to love him as one loves Allâh or to do for an idol what he doesn't do for Allâh, or to make a sacrifice which he does not do for Allâh's approval.
Allâh will forgive any sin except idolatry: "Allâh does not forgive those who set up partners with Him; but He forgive to whom He pleases; for anything else; to set up partners with Allâh is to devise a sin most heinous indeed." (An-Nisa: 48)
The Quran defines the end of the musyrikin (people who commit to others than Allâh) as follows: "But when they saw Our punishment, they said: 'We believe in Allâh, the one God and we reject the partners we used to associate with Him'.
But their professing the faith when they actually saw Our punishment was not going to profit them. Such has been Allâh's way of dealing with His servants from the most ancient times. And so the rejecters of Allâh perished utterly!" (Ghafir: 84-85)
Harun Yahya Internasional
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