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Just as the
polytheists would worship the sun, stars and moon etc, they also worshipped Iblis
(Satan) as Allah Almighty says in the Qur?an:
004.117 They
invoke in His stead only females; they pray to none else than Iblis, a rebel
019.044 O
my father! Serve not the devil. Lo! the devil is a rebel unto the Beneficent.
036.060 Did
I not charge you, O ye sons of Adam, that ye worship not the devil - Lo! he is your
open foe! ?
These verses
prove that the polytheists used to worship Iblis, although they did not worship
him directly. By this I mean that Iblis was the one who told people to worship the
idols, therefore he inspired them to comit shirk and so one can say that they were
worshipping Iblis. This proves that Shaytaan in reality was their intermediate between
themselves and God not the deceased pious!
They Sacrificed animals
in the name of their idols
The polytheists
of Makkah had created an area where they would go and slaughter animals in the name
of their idols. They would never sacrifice an animal in the name of Allah.
005.003 Forbidden
unto you (for food) are carrion and blood and swineflesh, and that which hath been
dedicated unto any other than Allah, and the strangled, and the dead through
beating, and the dead through falling from a height, and that which hath been killed
by (the goring of) horns, and the devoured of wild beasts, saving that which
ye make lawful (by the death-stroke), and that which hath been immolated unto idols.
And (forbidden is it) that ye swear by the divining arrows. This is an abomination.
This day are those who disbelieve in despair of (ever harming) your religion; so
fear them not, fear Me! This day have I perfected your religion for you and completed
My favour unto you, and have chosen for you as religion al-Islam. Whoso is forced
by hunger, not by will, to sin: (for him) lo! Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.
From this verse
we can understand that the polytheists would mention the name of their idols when
sacrificing animals to please their gods.
They dedicated their animals
for their Idols
The polytheists
of Makkah had dedicated some of their animals to their gods, such ad ?Bahirah and
Sai?bah?. They would say that Allah told us to do this but Allah Most Glorious
informs them that this is a lie against Allah:
005.103 Allah
hath not appointed anything in the nature of a Bahirah or a Sa'ibah or a Wasilah
or a Hami, but those who disbelieve invent a lie against Allah. Most of them have
no sense.
005.104 And
when it is said unto them: Come unto that which Allah hath revealed and unto the
messenger, they say: Enough for us is that wherein we found our fathers. What! Even
though their fathers had no knowledge whatsoever, and no guidance ?
These verses
prove that the polytheists used to dedicate their animals to their gods so that
their gods will be pleased with them. We also learn that they used to invent lies
against Allah; they would say that Allah has told us to respect and make sacrifice
for gods besides him (I seek shelter in Allah!) However this was obviously a lie
against Allah. You should understand that those who we love and respect (Prophets
and pious), Allah has mentioned their Excellency repeatedly in the Qur?an.
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They gave a higher status to
their idols than Allah
By tongue they
claimed that Allah is the creator and higher than anything else, however they did
not put this belief into practice as they gave more excellence to their idols over
Allah. They were liars!
006.136 They
assign unto Allah, of the crops and cattle which He created, a portion, and they
say: "This is Allah's" - in their make-believe - "and this is for
(His) partners in regard to us." Thus that which (they assign) unto His partners
in them reacheth not Allah and that which (they assign) unto Allah goeth to their
(so-called) partners. Evil is their ordinance.
From this verse
we understand that not only did they make their idols rivals against Allah but they
gave them a higher status than Allah. For example, if they were to put down ten
dates in the name of Allah and ten dates in the name of their idols, and two of
the dates from the idols set were rotten, they would remove two dates from ?Allah?s
dates? and replace the ?idol?s? rotted dates. Though if the set of dates they had
placed for Allah had rotted away, they would not have replaced them with the idols
dates. This explains how they would give more importance and higher status to their
idols.
They sacrificed they children
to please their idols
The polytheists
of Makkah would go to such extents to please their idols that they would even sacrifice
their children for them. The Qur?an discusses how the polytheist used to bury their
daughters alive in order to please their idols.
006.137 Thus
have their (so-called) partners (of Allah) made the killing of their children to
seem fair unto many of the idolaters, that they may ruin them and make their faith
obscure for them. Had Allah willed (it otherwise), they had not done so. So leave
them alone with their devices.
So you see,
from all these ayats that I have mentioned, it becomes manifestly clear that the
polytheists gave more importance to their idols than to Allah. As I have just mentioned,
they went to such lengths to show their reverence for them that they would even
sacrifice their own children.
They believe their idols were
entitled to being worshipped
The polytheists
of Makkah would admit that they worshipped idols. They also believed their idols
were their intermediates.
039.003 Surely
pure religion is for Allah only. And those who choose protecting friends beside
Him (say): We worship them only that they may bring us near unto Allah. Lo! Allah
will judge between them concerning that wherein they differ. Lo! Allah guideth not
him who is a liar, an ingrate.
This verse that
I have recited confirms that they used to worship their idols, believing that such
worship was permissible. This stemmed from their belief that without worshipping
their idols, they would not be able to approach Allah. There are two things wrong
in this, firstly for the plain reason that you cannot worship besides Allah and
secondly the way to approach Allah was not through idol worshipping but following
the commands of Allah and His Prophet.
They sacrificed for the idols
The polytheists
used to sacrifice in the way of their idols, though Allah informed them that all
worship, sacrifice, living and dying are for Him alone:
006.162 Say:
Lo! my worship and my sacrifice and my living and my dying are for Allah, Lord of
the Worlds.
108.002 So
pray unto thy Lord, and sacrifice.
They respected their idols more
than Allah
The polytheists of Makkah used to think better of their idols than Allah. The polytheists
would insult and swear at Allah if they were angry as Allah informs us in the Qur?an:
006.108 Revile not those unto whom they pray beside Allah lest they wrongfully revile
Allah through ignorance. Thus unto every nation have We made their deed seem fair.
Then unto their Lord is their return, and He will tell them what they used to do.
We can understand that the polytheists did believe Allah to be the Creator; however
they would revile Allah at the same time (I seek shelter in Allah!) but never their
idols, clearly proving that they gave their idols a higher status that Allah.
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Do you Understand!?
The Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jama?a do believe that the noble Prophet (may Allah bless
him and grant him peace) and the pious are intermediates between us and Allah
Azawajul, as they have given us the message
of Islam. They have fought for our din and made it what it is today with the help
of Allah. We dearly love them and respect them and believe that they will intercede
for us on the Final Day, which we have previously proved. Some claim that the love
and respect we have for the blessed Prophet and the pious is the same in which the
polytheists of Makkah loved and respected their idols (I seek shelter in Allah!).
However, as I have tried to explain to you, the polytheists really did not worship
Allah! They worshipped more than one god. They made their idols rivals against Allah,
they gave their idols a higher status than Allah, they slaughtered animals in the
name of their gods, they sacrificed their daughters to please them and they would
swear at Allah! (I seek shelter in Allah!)
Alhamdulilalh, the Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jama?a does
not carry out any of the above! Our love
for the beloved Prophet and pious is not in rivalry against the love for Allah!
(I seek shelter in Allah!) Rather, as Muslims we must acknowledge that it is
La-Ila Ha Ilala-Muhammad
ur
Rasulullah ! There is no God but Allah and he
(may Allah bless him and grant him peace) is the final and beloved prophet of Allah!
The pious are those who love Allah and His Prophet and have given their whole lives
for Islam, which is more than those people who claim the Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jama?a
are like the polythesists of Makkah! Also Allah
Azawajal
tells us that, what the polythiests of Makkah worshipped will be the fuel of hell
fire, though I am sure we are all aware that the blessed Prophet (may Allah bless
him and grant him peace) and the pious will receive the highest ranks in heaven!
The Muslim Ummah
will not
worship besides Allah!
Hadith No 1
Imam Bukhari writes:
Narrated Uqba bin Amir:
Allah's Apostle offered the funeral prayers of the martyrs of Uhud eight years after
(their death), as if bidding farewell to the living and the dead, then he ascended
the pulpit and said, "I am your predecessor before you, and I am a witness
on you, and your promised place to meet me will be Al-Haud (i.e. the Tank) (on the
Day of Resurrection), and I am (now) looking at it from this place of mine. I am
not afraid that you will worship others besides Allah, but I am afraid that
worldly life will tempt you and cause you to compete with each other for it."
That was the last look which I cast on Allah's Apostle.
Imam Muslim writes:
Uqba b. 'Amir reported Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) as saying: Allah's
Messenger offered prayer over those who had fallen matyrs at Uhud. He then climbed
the pulpit as if someone is saying good-bye to the living and the dead, and then
said: I shall be there as your predecesor on the Cistern before you, and it is as
wide as the distance between Aila and Juhfa (Aila is at the top of the gulf of 'Aqaba).
I am not afraid that you would associate anything with Allah after me, but I am
afraid that you may be (allured) by the world and (vie) with one another (in possessing
material wealth) and begin killing one another, and you would be destroyed as were
destroyed those who had gone before you. 'Uqba said that that was the last occasion
that he saw Allah's Massenger on the pulpit.
An objection to this narration
This hadith proves that the Muslim Ummah could not possibly
worship anything besides Allah, However some people object to this by claiming that
Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) is only addressing his companions
in this hadith, and as a result, only his companions will not commit shirk. The
answer to this objection is that whenever Allah and his Prophet have commanded something
such as to perform the Salat, to pay the Zakat, to fast during the month of Ramadhan
etc, it is first addressed to the companions and then to us: one cannot possibly
argue that these commands were only addressed to the companions! No of course not,
because all these commands are for the entire Muslim Ummah. Secondly, Prophet Muhammad
(may Allah bless him and grant him peace) said that he will meet them at Al-Haud,
however we are aware that Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) will
not only meet the companions there but the whole Muslim Ummah! Thirdly the blessed
Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) says that you will be tempted
by worldly things and this will cause you to compete with one another, however the
Prophet could not possibly have said this to the companions as they had sacrificed
everything for Allah and His Rasul. So therefore this hadith is applicable for the
whole Muslim Ummah not just the companions!
Hadith No 2
Imam Muslim writes:
Jabir reported:
I heard Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) as saying: Verily, the Iblis has
lost all hopes that the worshippers would ever worship (him) in the
peninsula
of Arabia
, but he (is hopeful) that he would sow the seed of dissension amongst them.
In the first
hadith I presented, the beloved Prophet informs us he is not afraid that the Muslim
Ummah will worship besides Allah. The Messenger is giving us a guarantee that his
ummah will not commit shirk. In the second Hadith, we learn that even Iblis has
no hope of causing the Muslim Ummah to commit shirk. From this we understand that
the beloved Prophet himself has said his ummah will not commit shirk and then he
who tells the people to commit shirk (Iblis) has no ability to persuade Muslims
to do so, especially in the
Arabian Peninsula
.
Do you now understand
how unfortunate and wrong it is at how the khawarij (who by the way, are a minority
of the Muslim Community!) allegedly say the majority of the Muslim Ummah, the Ahl
al-Sunnah wa al-Jama?a are committing shirk. Some further claim that the
Arab Peninsula
was full of Shirk and Muhammad bin Abdul-Wahab al-Najdi, removed this shirk! Astagfirullah!
What kind of an absurd claim is this? From the hadiths that I have just mentioned,
we understand that the Muslim Ummah will never commit shirk as a whole. If an ignorant
individual commits shirk this is a different matter. The Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jama?a
are the majority of the Muslim Ummah. Does this mean that the majority of the Muslim
community is committing shirk, even though the blessed Prophet gave the guarantee
that his ummah will not commit shirk?
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An Example
The Zabur, (Psalms)
Injil, (Gospel) and the Torat (Torah) and many others were all previous books sent
down by Allah, though Allah Almighty did not give any guarantee or promise that
He would preserve any of these books. The reason was that Allah was to send a continuing
line of Prophet?s that would constantly remind people of their duties and to correct
any changes made by the people to the books or Allah would simply reveal a new book
to the Prophet. On the other hand, the Qu?an has been given a perfect guarantee
and promise that it will be preserved for eternity. The reason for this is because
the Qur?an was revealed to the final Messenger; there is never to be a Messenger
after him who would be able to correct any changes made to the Qur?an. Therefore
Allah has promised that no changing will ever occur in the Qur?an.
Another Example
If previous
nations committed shirk, a Prophet or Messenger was sent to guide them. The reason
why we have been given a guarantee for ?No shirk in the Muslim Ummah? is because
there will be no Prophet to guide us after the final Prophet, Muhammad al-Mustafa
(may Allah bless him and grant him peace). Therefore, if we began to commit shirk
we would be mislead forever. Fortunately for us, the beloved Prophet left us with
a complete din, meaning the end of shirk and worship for Allah alone, as Allah Most
High says in the Qur?an
005.003 This
day are those who disbelieve in despair of (ever harming) your religion; so fear
them not, fear Me! This day have I perfected your religion for you and completed
My favour unto you, and have chosen for you as religion al-Islam. Whoso is forced
by hunger, not by will, to sin: (for him) lo! Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.
In this verse,
?those who disbelieve? are Iblis and disbelieving leaders, who cause people to commit,
shirk! Though, Allah is telling us that even they are in despair of ever harming
our religion. Our religion is perfect and complete so we do not need to fear them.
Those who say loving the beloved Messenger and the pious is shirk are hugely mistaken
and they are the ones who are mistaken in understanding the Qur?an.
Ali: I presented
you with a simple verse, explaining that the deceased pious were worshipped, however
you have taken a very long way to simply explain that the deceased pious were not
worshipped and that the verses were talking of idols. However the
following verses which I am about to recite to you are crystal clear
in explaining the worship of Isa (peace be upon him) Sayyida Maryam and Uzayr, I
am sure even a child would be able to understand the following verses:
005.075 The
Messiah, son of Mary, was no other than a messenger, messengers (the like of whom)
had passed away before him. And his mother was a saintly woman. And they both used
to eat (earthly) food. See how We make the revelations clear for them, and see how
they are turned away!
009.030 And
the Jews say: Ezra is the son of Allah, and the Christians say: The Messiah is the
son of Allah. That is their saying with their mouths. They imitate the saying of
those who disbelieved of old. Allah (Himself) fighteth against them. How perverse
are they!
There you are!
These verses clearly speak of those deceased pious who were worshipped by the people
of Makkah! Will you now deny these and say they were idols! Also, in the following
verses that you mentioned earlier, you said that that which was worshipped besides
Allah will be the fuel of the hell fire, so does this mean that Sayyidna Isa (peace
be upon him), Sayyida Maryam and Uzayr will be the fuel of hell fire?
021.098 Lo!
ye (idolaters) and that which ye worship beside Allah are fuel of hell. Thereunto
ye will come.
021.099 If these had been gods they would not have come thither, but all will
abide therein.
Qadhi: You have
said that the polytheists of Makkah used to worship Isa (peace be upon him) however
this is untrue. When Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) mentioned
Isa (peace be upon him) to the polytheists, they laughed and claimed their idols
were better (I seek shelter in Allah!) as Allah Almighty says in the Qur?an:
043.057 And
when the son of Mary is quoted as an example, behold! the folk laugh out,
043.058 And say: Are our gods better, or is he ? They raise not the objection save
for argument. Nay! but they are a contentious folk.
These verses
prove that the polytheists of Makkah could have not possibly have worshipped Isa
son of Maryam as they would laugh just hearing his name as they denied him. So how
could they worship him if they did not believe him or give him any importance?
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Incarnation
The Christians
however do worship Isa son of Maryam, though the reason is not due to Isa being
pious. They believe that god had taken the human form as Isa (I seek shelter in
Allah!) and prayed directly to him, as Allah
Azawajul says in the Qur?an:
005.017 They
indeed have disbelieved who say: Lo! Allah is the Messiah, son of Mary. Say: Who
then can do aught against Allah, if He had willed to destroy the Messiah son of
Mary, and his mother and everyone on earth ? Allah's is the Sovereignty of the heavens
and the earth and all that is between them. He createth what He will. And Allah
is Able to do all things.
Divinity?
We are aware
that Christians believe in Isa?s divinity, however they did not worship him because
he was pious, or respectable, or he showed his nation miracles. The reason they
worshipped him was because of his miraculous birth. Allah
Azawajul answers this claim of theirs in the Qur?an:
003.059 Lo!
the likeness of Jesus with Allah is as the likeness of Adam. He created him of dust,
then He said unto him: Be! and he is.
They also called
Isa (peace be upon him) the son of god, which is the worse possible insult to Allah
Most Glorious as Allah the One says in the Qur?an:
019.088 And
they say: The Beneficent hath taken unto Himself a son.
019.089 Assuredly ye utter a disastrous thing
019.090 Whereby almost the heavens are torn, and the earth is split asunder and
the mountains fall in ruins,
019.091 That ye ascribe unto the Beneficent a son,
019.092 When it is not meet for (the Majesty of) the Beneficent that He should choose
a son.
019.093 There is none in the heavens and the earth but cometh unto the Beneficent
as a slave.
Regarding Sayyidina Uzayr (Ezra)
Peace be upon him
Some mistakenly
believe that Sayyidina Uzayr (peace be upon him) was worshipped by the Jews due
to his piety, however this is incorrect. They only believed him to be the son of
God. While this is Kufr this does not
mean they worshipped him. The Jews and Christians believe they are sons of god,
though this is not in the literal meaning; they believe they are all the beloved
of god, as Allah Most Gracious says in the Qur?an:
005.018 The
Jews and Christians say: We are sons of Allah and His loved ones. Say: Why then
doth He chastise you for your sins ? Nay, ye are but mortals of His creating. He
forgiveth whom He will, and chastiseth whom He will. Allah's is the Sovereignty
of the heavens and the earth and all that is between them, and unto Him is the journeying.
This verse proves
that they only thought Sayyidnia Uzayr (peace be upon him) to be the son of god;
they did not worship him.
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Regarding the Trinity
The Christians
worship both Sayyidnia Isa (peace be upon him) and his mother Maryam. They are worshipped
because the Christians regard them to be a part of the trinity; the union of three
persons of the father, son and holy spirit in a single god. Some wrongly believe
that they were worshipped due to their piety but the following verse clearly explains
they were worshipped as being part of god (I seek shelter in Allah!):
005.116 And
when Allah saith: O Jesus, son of Mary! Didst thou say unto mankind: Take me and
my mother for two gods beside Allah ?
005.072 They
surely disbelieve who say: Lo! Allah is the Messiah, son of Mary. The Messiah (himself)
said: O Children of
Israel
, worship Allah, my Lord and your Lord. Lo! whoso ascribeth partners unto Allah,
for him Allah hath forbidden paradise. His abode is the Fire. For evil-doers there
will be no helpers.
005.073 They surely disbelieve who say: Lo! Allah is the third of three; when there
is no God save the One God. If they desist not from so saying a painful doom will
fall on those of them who disbelieve.
005.074 Will they not rather turn unto Allah and seek forgiveness of Him ? For Allah
is Forgiving, Merciful.
005.075 The Messiah, son of Mary, was no other than a messenger, messengers (the
like of whom) had passed away before him. And his mother was a saintly woman. And
they both used to eat (earthly) food. See how We make the revelations clear for
them, and see how they are turned away!
005.076 Say: Serve ye in place of Allah that which possesseth for you neither hurt
nor use ? Allah it is Who is the Hearer, the Knower.
What Isa, son of Mary said about himself
In the following
verses that I shall recite, Allah informs us of how He will ask Isa (peace be upon
him) if he in any way told people to worship him:
005.116 And
when Allah saith: O Jesus, son of Mary! Didst thou say unto mankind: Take me and
my mother for two gods beside Allah ? he saith: Be glorified! It was not mine to
utter that to which I had no right. If I used to say it, then Thou knewest it. Thou
knowest what is in my mind, and I know not what is in Thy Mind. Lo! Thou, only Thou,
art the Knower of Things Hidden ?
005.117 I spake unto them only that which Thou commandedst me, (saying): Worship
Allah, my Lord and your Lord. I was a witness of them while I dwelt among them,
and when Thou tookest me Thou wast the Watcher over them. Thou art Witness over
all things.
We understand
that Allah will not be angry with Isa (peace be upon him) but rather Isa (peace
be upon him) will explain what he preached and how the divinity and trinity were
made up after he had been taken.
Regarding death of Isa son of Mary
Your claim is
that the deceased pious have been worshipped, however, Muslims believe that Isa
(peace be upon him) has not passed away and he will return to this earth, therefore
your claim cannot apply to him as he is still alive. I shall recite two verses from
the Qur?an explaining how Isa (peace be upon him) will return when the hour is near:
043.057 And
when the son of Mary is quoted as an example, behold! the folk laugh out,
043.061
And lo! verily there is knowledge of the Hour. So doubt ye not concerning it,
but follow Me. This is the right path.
?Knowledge?
means Sayyidina Isa (peace b upon him) will return, being a major sign that the
day of resurrection is close. I am aware that some Khawarij believe that Sayyidnia
Isa (peace be upon him) is dead and will not rise, however the verse that I have
just recited proves otherwise. Anyway, that is a different subject from what we
are discussing but I would be happy to discuss that issue at another time.
Isa son of Mary was not humiliated by
Allah
Allah has insulted
and humiliated all that which has been worshipped besides Him, however Allah has
not criticized or humiliated Isa son of Maryam in the following verse He has reassured
him that he will not be disrespected:
004.172 The
Messiah will never scorn to be a slave unto Allah, nor will the favoured angels.
Whoso scorneth His service and is proud, all such will He assemble unto Him.
A Question
A question may
arise due to some verses of the Qur?an such as: Will Isa son of Maryam, Sayyida
Maryam and Uzayr (peace be upon them all) be the fuel of the hell fire as the following
verse says?
021.098 Lo!
ye (idolaters) and that which ye worship beside Allah are fuel of hell. Thereunto
ye will come.
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