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by Abdul Aziz bin Abdullah bin Baz Praise is to Allah and peace and blessings be upon the Prophet of Allah, the members of his Family and his Companions and on all those who proceed on his path. The weekly magazine, Al-Mujtama of Kuwait, had in its issue No.15 dated 19-4-1390 A.H., published a poem containing invocation to the Prophet (s.a.w) and appeals to him to help the Ummah (Islamic Community) and to salvage it from mutual disaccord and disagreements. The poem signed by someone called Amina, ran as follows:
And the poem concludes with the following lines:
Thus the person who wrote this poem cries out to the Prophet beseeching him to rescue the Ummah by achieving speedy victory; she forgets or ignores the fact that victory is granted by Allah the All-Mighty Alone and that it is not in the hands of any other creation. Allah the All-Mighty says in the Noble Quran:
" If Allah helps you, none can overcome you: and if He forsakes It has been established by the verses of the Noble Quran and by the consensus of the Ummah that Allah the All-Mighty created all human beings so that they may worship Him. He sent the Messengers and revealed the Books to expound the manner of worship and the path of the mission. In this regard, Allah the All-Mighty states in the Noble Quran:
" And verily, We have sent among every Ummah (community, nation) a Messenger (proclaiming): ' Worship Allah (Alone), and avoid (or keep away from) Taghut ...' " [16:36]
" And We did not send any Messenger before you (O Muhammad s.a.w) but We inspired him (saying): La ilaha illa Ana [none has the right to be worshipped but I (Allah)], so worship Me (Alone and none else) " [21:25]
" Alif-Lam-Ra. [These letters are one of the miracles of the Quran and none but Allah (Alone) knows there meanings]. (This is) a Book, the Verses whereof are perfected (in every sphere of knowledge, etc.), and then explained in detail from One (Allah), Who is All-Wise and Well-Acquainted (with all things). (Saying) worship none but Allah. Verily, I (Muhammad s.a.w) am unto you from Him a warner and a bringer of glad tidings. " [11:1,2] It is clear from the above verses that Allah has created human beings and jinns but for one purpose only: to worship Him Alone and not to attribute any partner to Him. And He has said clearly that the Messengers were sent to call for this worship and to forbid what is contrary to it. The verses of the Noble Quran are clear and categorical in stating that Allah and Allah Alone is to be worshipped. This worship implies Faith in the Oneness of Allah, obedience to Him, compliance of His Commands and abstention from all that has been forbidden by Him. Allah has ordained these tenets in numerous verses:
" And they were commanded not, but that they should worship Allah, and worship none but Him Alone... (abstaining from ascribing partners to Him)." [98:5]
" Verily, We have sent down the Book to you (O Muhammad s.a.w) in truth: So worship Allah (Alone) by doing religious deeds sincerely for Allah's sake only, (and not to show off, and not to set up rivals with Him in worship). Surely, the religion (i.e. the worship and the obedience) is for Allah only ..." [39:2,3] The verses dealing on this concept are abundant in The Noble Quran. They all point to the necessity of sincerity in worshipping Allah Alone and to give up worshipping of all others including the Prophets. There is no doubt that Dua (invocation) is a vital and comprehensive form of worship; it is to be addressed in all sincerity to Allah Alone as Allah says in The Noble Quran:
" So, call you (O Muhammad s.a.w and the believers) upon (or invoke) Allah making (your) worship pure for Him (Alone) (by worshipping none but Him and by doing religious deeds sincerely for Allah's sake only and not to show off and not to set up rivals with Him in worship). However much the disbelievers (in the Oneness of Allah) may hate (it). " [40:14]
This applies to all the creations including the Prophets because the word Ahad in Arabic is indefinite noun used in the context of total negation. Therefore, it applies to all except Allah the All-Mighty. Allah says:
This verse is Addressed to the Prophet. Needless to say, the Prophet enjoys Divine protection from polytheistic beliefs; the purpose of this verse is to caution others. The All-Mighty says:
Thus, the foremost among the mankind, namely the Prophet has himself been cautioned that if he invokes anyone other than Allah, he shall be deemed as one who does wrong. What to say of other human beings? It must be noted that the word Zulm (wrongdoing) is used in the sense of major Shirk i.e. Polytheism. Allah says:
" ... Verily! Joining others in worship with Allah is a great Zulm indeed " [31:13] It is evident from all these verses that invocation to anyone other than Allah, whether they be from the dead or trees or idols,etc., is an act of joining others with Allah in worship; it contradicts the purpose of worship for which Allah has created the human beings and the jinns and had sent Prophets and had revealed the Devine Messages so that they convey the Message to the people and call them to act upon it. This is the meaning of the phrase 'there is no god except Allah', this statement affirms that there is nothing to be worshipped except Allah the All-Mighty. It is stated in The Noble Quran:
" That is because Allah, He is the Truth, and that which they invoke besides Him is Al-Batil... (the falsehood, Satan and all other false deities)." [31:30] This is the essence of religion, and the basic principle of our Faith; no worship will be true unless this principle is truly accepted. Allah says in The Quran:
" And indeed it has been revealed to you (O Muhammad s.a.w), as it was to those (Allah's Messengers) before you: 'If you join others in worship with Allah, (then) surely (all) your deeds will be in vain, and you will certainly be among the losers.' " [39:65]
The religion of Islam is based on two great principles:
This is the meaning of the Shahadah i.e. the Statement of Faith: " There is no god except Allah and that Muhammad (s.a.w) is the Messenger of Allah ". Therefore, it will be a contradiction of this principle if anyone invokes the dead including the Prophets or others or invokes idols, trees and stones, etc. and seeks their help or seeks to gain favour from them by offering sacrifices of animals or vows or praise for them or prostrates to them. It will be an act of associating others as Lords of the creation besides Allah the All-Mighty; it will also amount to setting up of rivals to Allah. In other words, it will be a negation of this basic tenet. It must also be mentioned that anyone who introduces into religion something which has not been permitted by Allah, will be failing to abide by the meaning of the Shahadah that " Muhammad
(s.a.w) is the Messenger of Allah." Allah the All-Mighty says:
" And We shall turn to whatever deeds they (disbelievers, polytheists, sinners etc) did, and We shall make such deeds as scattered floating particles of dust. " [25:23] The deeds referred to here, are the deeds of those who spent their lives in polytheistic beliefs. In this category of deeds are also included all contrived actions which have not been permitted by Allah; these actions will, on the Day of Judgement, be like floating dust scattered about because it was not in accordance with the Divine Guidance. Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w) has said in an authentic hadith:
The above referred lady writer has addressed an invocation to the Prophet (s.a.w) and calls for his help. She has turned away from the Lord of the creations in Whose Hand there is victory as well as defeat, Who Alone bestows help or loss or benefit; none other can benefit nor bestow any such thing. No doubt such an action is a serious violation and it is a Shirk (polytheism), the consequences of which will be very grave. Allah has commanded us to invoke Him and to seek His help; He has promissed to respond and He has also threatened with dire consequences to all those who are haughty. He says:
" And your Lord said: ' Invoke Me, [i.e. believe in My Oneness (Islamic Monotheism)] (and ask Me for anything) I will respond to your (invocation). Verily! Those who scorn My worship [i.e. do not invoke Me, and do not believe in My Oneness, (Islamic Monotheism)] they will surely enter Hell in humiliation!' " [40:60] This verse points out that invocation is a form of prayer and whoever is haughty, his ultimate place of abode will be Hell. If such is the case with regard to one who has had the audacity to avoid praying to Allah, what will be the condition of a person who invokes other than Allah while Allah is Omnipotent and Omnipresent? The Noble Quran says:
" And when My slaves ask you (O Muhammad s.a.w.) concerning Me, then (answer them), I am indeed near (to them by My Knowledge). I respond to the invocations of the supplicant when he calls on Me (without any mediator or intercessor). So let them obey Me and believe in Me, so that they may be led aright. " [2:186] It is narrated in an authentic Hadith (tradition of the Prophet) that the Prophet advised his cousin Abdullah bin Abbas(r.a) as follows:
And he also said:
In another Hadith, the Prophet said in an answer to a query as to which is the greatest sin:
So anyone, who prays to other than Allah, seeks his help or gives offering to him or slaughters an animal or offers a prayer to him will be adopting someone as rival to Allah, whether he be a Prophet or a devout person or a king or jinn or an idol or anything else. As regards, invocation to a person who is alive and present before you, it is not an act of Shirk (polytheism) because it is quite normal to seek the help of those around you in matters pertaining to the material life to the possible extent; it is a normal and sanctioned practice among Muslims. Allah says in The Noble Quran in the story pertaining to Moses (p.b.u.h):
and in another verse pertaining also to the story of Moses (Musa, p.b.u.h) Allah says:
" So he escpaed from there, looking about in a state of fear ... " [28:21] Man therefore seeks the help of his fellow human beings at times of war or at times of difficulties that occur to him and which require the help of others. Allah ordered His Prophet to convey to the people that he (the Prophet) does not possess for anyone any good nor any harm. The Noble Quran states:
" Say (O Muhammad s.a.w): ' I invoke only my Lord (Allah Alone), and I associate none as partners along with Him.' Say: ' It is not in my power to cause you harm, or to bring you to the right path.' " [72:20,21]
" Say (O Muhammad s.a.w): I possess no power of benefit or hurt to myself except as Allah will. If I had the knowledge of the Ghaib (unseen), I should have secured for myself an abundance of wealth, and no evil should have touched me. I am but a warner, and a bringer of glad tidings unto people who believe. " [7:188] The Quranic verses on this concept are many in number. The Prophet never invoked anyone other than Allah and he never sought help from anyone other than Him; he beseeched Allah the All-Mighty during the battle of Badr and asked Him for victory against the enemy; he persistently prayed to Him saying, " O Lord, fulfill for me Your Promise." He kept repeating these words to the extent that his friend and companion Abu Bakar (r.a) said: " May it suffice you, O Prophet of Allah; verily Allah will fulfill His Promise to you." In this context, Allah revealed the following verses of the Noble Quran:
" (Remember) when you sought help of your Lord and He answered you (saying): ' I will help you with a thousand of the angels each behind the other (following one another) in succession.' Allah made it only as glad tidings, and that your hearts be at rest therewith. And there is no victory except by the help of Allah. Verily, Allah is All-Mighty, All-Wise. " [8:9,10] Thus Allah the All-Mighty reminds them of their call for help and how He responded to them by sending reinforcements of angels to them and that victory is not from the angels, but the angels were sent only to convey the good news of victory and contentment. Allah says:
" And Allah has already made you victorious at Badr, when you were a weak little force. So fear Allah much (abstain from all kinds of sins and evil deeds which He has forbidden and love Allah much, perform all kinds of good deeds which He has ordained) that you may be grateful. " [3:123] Thus Allah granted help at the battle of Badr; the weapons, the power to fight and the angels were all the factors that brought victory and glad tidings. They were only the means by which the Divine victory was granted; victory is therefore from Allah only. So how could the lady writer referred to above or anyone else seek help and victory from the Prophet and turn away from the Lord of all creations Who is Omnipresent and Omnipotent. No doubt, this attitude only betrays ignorance in its worst forms and indeed it is a major act of Shirk (polytheism). It is therefore a duty on the writer to repent to Allah in all sincerity and to never repeat such a mistake. Sincere repentance requires total conviction and compliance to what has been ordained by Allah. And if the repentance is with regards to the rights of any fellow human beings, such rights should be returned to whom they belong or he (the repentant) should obtain an acquital thereof. Allah has ordered His worshippers to repent and He has promised acceptance of their repentance. He says in the Noble Quran:
that you may be successful. " [24:31] and Allah says with regard to the Christians:
Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful " [5:74] and Allah says:
" And those who invoke not any other Ilah (god) along with Allah, nor kill such life as Allah has forbidden, except for just cause, nor commit illegal sexual inter-course --- and whoever does this shall receive the punishment. The torment will be doubled to him on the Day of Resurrection, and he will abide therein disgrace; Except those who repent and believe (in Islamic Monotheism), and do righteous deeds, for those, Allah will change their sins into good deeds, and Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful. " [25:68-70]
The Prophet has said:
In this brief essay, I have sought to explain the magnitude and danger of the sin of Shirk (polytheism) because it is one of the major sins. It is my ernest desire that the readers should understand the issue in its right perspective and should not be misled by such writers. In conclusion, I pray to Allah the All-Mighty to make these few words of use to Muslims and may He reform us all and make us proceed always on the right path and fortify us with the knowledge of religion and steadfastness in adhering to it. May Allah protect us from the evils of ourselves and from our bad actions. Verily He is the Protector and Sustainer. Peace and blessings of Allah be upon His slave and Messenger Muhammad and the members of his Family and his Companions.
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