Shaykh al-Islaam Ibn Taymiyyah [May Allaah have Mercy on
him] said:
At-Tawheed that the Messengers came with reinforces the
Lordship of Allaah; that it is for him Alone. They came witnessing the
Shahaadah 'There is no God except Allaah', meaning there is no god worthy of
worship except Allaah. This statement means that we rely (or have Tawakkul)
upon none but Him, we do not seek assistance except from Him, we do not ally or
have enemies except for His Sake; in general, we do not do any deed except for
His Sake.
"And your Ilah (God) is One Ilah (God - Allah), La ilaha illa Huwa (there is none who has the right
to be worshipped but He), the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful." [al-Baqarah 2:163]
And,
"And Allah said (O mankind!): "Take
not ilahain (two gods in worship, etc.).
Verily, He (Allah) is (the) only One Ilah (God)" [al-Nahl 16: 51]
And,
"And whoever invokes (or worships),
besides Allah, any other ilah (god), of whom he has no proof,
then his reckoning is only with his Lord. Surely! Al-Kafirun (the disbelievers in Allah and in
the Oneness of Allah, polytheists, pagans, idolaters, etc.) will not be
successful."
[al-Mu'minoon 23:117]
And,
"And ask (O Muhammad
) those of Our
Messengers whom We sent before you: "Did We ever appointaliha (gods) to be worshipped besides the
Most Beneficent (Allah)?"" [az-Zukhruf 43:45]
And,
"Indeed there has been an excellent
example for you in Ibrahim (Abraham) and those with him, when they said to
their people: "Verily, we are free from you and whatever you worship
besides Allah, we have rejected you, and there has started between us and you,
hostility and hatred for ever, until you believe in Allah Alone,"" [al-Mumtahinah
60:4]
And,
"Indeed there has been an excellent
example for you in Ibrahim (Abraham) and those with him, when they said to
their people: "Verily, we are free from you and whatever you worship
besides Allah, we have rejected you, and there has started between us and you,
hostility and hatred for ever, until you believe in Allah Alone,"" [as-Saaffaat 37:35-36]
And the Qur’aan is full of concurring evidences.
(Note:) Tawheed does not (merely) mean to believe in One
Lord. If we were to affirm that Tawheed is to believe only in one Lord (Tawheed
ar-Ruboobiyyah), then this would mean that He is the sole creator and nothing
more. This is the very same belief held by those who are misguided, such as the
philosophers and the Soofees. They believe that affirming the oneness for
Allaah as being the sole Creator is sufficient for one to have Tawheed. They argue
that He is the only One Who has Created everything that exists from the creation
(thus this being their version of Tawheed). Undoubtedly, these groups have been
misguided from understanding the true meaning of at-Tawheed, which is to single
out Allaah Alone, without any partners, for all your acts of worship as He is
the only One Who Deserves it.
Another reason why their understanding is false is because
they have misunderstood what the word Ilaah or God means.
Al-Ilaah (trans. deity or god) is something that is
worshipped because it deserves it. An Ilaah is not something that has the
ability to create something. So if one believes that God is someone who creates
and has no other quality in relation to Tawheed of that god, then they have not
understood what at-Tawheed truly means.
Based on this definition, if one was to say Tawheed means
to believe only in one god then this would make many from the Mushrikeen as
being Muslims, as they too believe in one god or one creator. And this is the
meaning of the statement:
"And most of them believe not in Allah
except that they attribute partners unto Him [i.e. they are Mushrikun -polytheists - see Verse 6: 121]." [Yoosuf 12:106]
Some of the Salaf used to say about this, “Ask these
people, who created the Heavens and the Earths? They will say Allaah. So why do
you worship other than him?”
"Say: "Whose is the earth and whosoever is therein? If you
know!" They will say: "It is Allah's!" Say:
"Will you not then remember?" Say: "Who is (the)
Lord of the seven heavens, and (the) Lord of the Great Throne?"
They will say: "Allah." Say: "Will you not then fear Allah
(believe in His Oneness, obey Him, believe in the Resurrection and Recompense
for each and every good or bad deed)." Say "In Whose
Hand is the sovereignty of everything (i.e. treasures of each and everything)?
And He protects (all), while against Whom there is no protector, (i.e. if Allah
saves anyone none can punish or harm him, and if Allah punishes or harms anyone
none can save him), if you know." [Tafsir Al-Qurtubi, Vol. 12, Page
145]. They will say: "(All that belongs) to Allah."
Say: "How then are you deceived and turn away from the truth?"" [23:84-89]
So not understanding this point! At-Tawheed means more
than believing in one creator and understanding this is vital, as the
Mushrikeen erred in this as well. They did not understand that at-Tahweed
believes in worshipping One Lord Alone, without any partners, thus not
understanding what truly worship means;
"Have they taken others as intercessors besides Allah? Say: "Even if
they have power over nothing whatever and have no intelligence?" Say:
"To Allah belongs all intercession. His is the Sovereignty of the heavens
and the earth, then to Him you shall be brought back."" [az-Zumar 39:43-44]
And,
"And they worship besides Allah things
that hurt them not, nor profit them, and they say: "These are our
intercessors with Allah." Say: "Do you inform Allah of that which He
knows not in the heavens and on the earth?" Glorified and Exalted be He
above all that which they associate as partners with Him!" [Yoonus 10:18]
And,
"Say (O Muhammad
): "Shall I
take as a Wali (helper, protector, etc.) any
other than Allah, the Creator of the heavens and the earth? And it is He Who
feeds but is not fed." Say: "Verily, I am commanded to be the first
of those who submit themselves to Allah (as Muslims)." And be not you (O
Muhammad
) of the Mushrikun[polytheists, pagans,
idolaters and disbelievers in the Oneness of Allah]." [al-An'aam 6:14]
And,
"They will abide therein (under the
curse in Hell), their punishment will neither be lightened, nor will they be
reprieved."
[al-Baqarah 2:162]
So they would worship the sun, the moon and the stars,
they would supplicate to them and rely upon them and they would fast and
slaughter for their sake and would say, “This is not Shirk! Shirk is only to
believe that these things that we worship had the ability to create and sustain
(i.e. the universe).”
Therefore, they worshipped these things as a means to get
closer to God, they did not believe that these things they worshipped could
help them rather they were a vice to get closer to God. This was their
definition of Tawheed and thus it was not Shirk to them. However, it is known
by to every Muslim that this is Shirk.
[Fath al-Majeed Sharh Kitaab at-Tawheed (Pg. 9-10)]
