[الواثقة بالله]

السلام عليكم ورحمة الله وبركاته

PART 3


Ibn Kathir said (52) that the pagans' plea, that if Allah disliked what they were doing then He would have punished them and would not have enabled them to do so, was refuted as Allah said in the Holy Quran: "Our Messengers duty is only to convey the message clearly." The following verse of the Holy Quran presents some facts regarding that topic. He, the Almighty stated in the Holy Quran : "We assuredly sent among every people an apostle, (with the command) "Serve Allah and eschew evil" of the people (i.e. the refusing pagans) were some whom Allah guided and some on whom error were inevitably (established). So travel through the earth and see what was the end of those who denied the truth." (53)


So, it is evident that Allah the Almighty has conveyed to every people His disapproval of their deeds of idolatry through His apostles. All Prophets called their people to worship Allah Alone and to avoid evil.

When idolatry appeared among mankind with the people of Noah (peace be upon him ) , he came to his people with a clear message . Thereafter , Messengers of Allah continuously were sent until they ended with the advent of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). His message was universalised for all jinn and mankind throughout the world and will last until the Day of Judgement. Allah the Almighty said in the Holy Quran: "Not an apostle did We send before you without this inspiration sent by Us to him : that there is no god but I, therefore worship and serve Me." (54) The Holy Quran also stated, "And question you Our apostle whom We sent before you. Did We appoint any deities other than Allah, Most Gracious, to be worshipped?" (55)

Moreover, the Holy Quran also stated : "We assuredly sent amongst every people an apostle (with the command) Serve Allah and eschew evil." (56)

How could it be, after all this that a pagan could dare to say, "If Allah willed we should not have adored anything except Him."! It is clear that Allah did not will it so because He forbade it through His Messengers. Their setting up partners to Him does not mean that they were predestined to it. Allah had given them freewill and they, themselves, chose to follow evil despite warnings by Allah and His Messengers of the severest punishment With these arguments, pagans do not mean to apologize because they think they are doing good, and that they are adoring deities to "draw them close to Allah." (57) Indeed their arguments are not meant for an excuse, but they are trying to prove that what they have been doing was legitimate, and that Allah was pleased with it. Allah the Almighty therefore refuted their arguments by saying that if it were so, then why did He send Messengers to convey His disapproval to them, and why were they then punished for it.

THIRD : A suspicion raised by pagans is that by merely uttering the testimony (There is no god but Allah), one is entitled to enter Paradise, even if he held others as equal to Allah and acted in aversion to the articles of faith. They argue so in the light of a Hadith (saying by the Holy Prophet) that "one who utters the testimony of faith, (There is no god but Allah, and Muhammad is the Prophet of Allah) is protected from the fires of hell." The reply to this suspicion is that the above saying of the Prophet refers to the person who uttered the testimony of faith without acting contrary to it until his death - the person who uttered it whole-heartedly and honestly, and rejected worshipping anything except Allah throughout his life will then be saved from the fires of hell." The Hadith narrated by Atban, states: "Allah has protected from the fire those who said" (There is no god but Allah) seeking only the pleasure of Allah" (58)

A Hadith narrated in the collection of Muslim stated, "A person who utters", (There is no god but Allah), and rejected deities, his wealth and blood become inviolable, and he is rewarded by Allah". (59)



In this Hadith, the Prophet (peace be upon him) put forth two conditions for the protection of wealth and. blood : pronouncing (There is no god but Allah) and rejecting deities. The mere utterance of words is not enough, but it has to be substantiated by acting upon it. Pronouncement of (There is no god but Allah) will lead the believer to enter Paradise and be rescued from the fires of hell provided that all conditions of faith have been fulfilled and he has not acted in contradiction to them. AI-Hassan ( Allah's mercy be upon him ) was told that people who pronounced (There is no god but Allah) will enter Paradise. He said, whoever uttered: (There is no god Allah), and fulfilled its conditions, will enter Paradise. Wahb ibn Munabbih was asked Is "(There is no god but Allah) the key to Paradise?" He replied, "Yes indeed it is, but every key has teeth. So, if you bring the key with its teeth, Paradise will be opened for you; otherwise, it will not." Thus, we understand that the mere utterance of: (There is no god but Allah) is not enough to enter Paradise, particularly when we act contrarily by invoking the dead pious men or saints for instance, and failing to reject deities other than Allah the Almighty.

FOURTH : Pagans also claimed that no idolatry will take place among the people of Muhammad (peace be upon him) as long as they say 'There is no god but Allah and Muhammad is the Prophet of Allah", and what they do in connection to the cult of the saints is not idolatry. First of all, it is wrong to assume that no idolatry will take place among the people of Muhammad. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said that similarities to Jews and Christians will appear in the deeds of his people. We know that they have also adored their popes and monks the same as deities. The Prophet (peace be upon him) also said, "You will follow the ways of those who passed before you exactly in the same manner. Even if they enter the hole of a lizard, you will also enter it." They (his companions) said: "O, Messenger of Allah, do you mean Jews and Christians ?" He said, "Then, who else?" (60)

So the Prophet has informed us that among his people will be those who follow the previous people in their dogmas, manners and general characteristics. As idolatry was present in previous nations, it will also be found among people today. This has already happened, for we still hear of people adoring graves of pious men and saints in different manners and sacrifices are offered to them. The Prophet had also warned us that the Day of Resurrection would not come until a group from among his people joined idolaters and worshipped deities. (61)

Today, a number of false groups and destructive ideologies have emerged and led people out of the bounds of Islam.

FIFTH : They also argue on the basis of a Hadith which says, 'Certainly Satan has despaired from being adored by prayer holders in the Arabian Peninsula." Though the Hadith is sound, drawing a conclusion that idolatry would be impossible in the Arabian Peninsula would be incorrect. Ibn Rajab (Allah's mercy be upon him) said : "It means that Satan has despaired from the entire people falling into idolatry." The same interpretation has been given by Ibn Kathir in the meaning of the following Quranic verse : Today, the unbelievers have despaired at averting you from your religion." Grammatically, the Arabic verb for despair is in a transitive form which, in Arabic, demonstrates that Satan's despairing isa result of his own assumption, based on incorrect knowledge. Moreover, such an interpretation is contradicting the previously mentioned Prophetic traditions and also it is in contradiction in reality because we know that many Arabs turned away from Islam just after the death of the Prophet (peace be upon him).

SIXTH : Regarding the pagans' attachment to the issue of intercession, such claimers say, "We do not want virtuous people and saints to provide for our needs, but we want them to intercede with Allah for us because they are pious people and they have an honourable status with Allah the Almighty. Such people add that intercession is proven by a verse in the Holy Quran and the Prophetic traditions. In fact, this is the same argument presented earlier by the pagans in trying to justify their adherence to their deities. About them, Allah the Almighty has said in the Holy Quran "Those who take as protectors other than Allah, say we only serve them in order that they may bring us nearer to Allah." (62)

Furthermore, the Holy Quran has discussed the situation of such claimers as in the verse "They serve, besides Allah, things that neither hurt them nor profit them. And they say : these are our intercessors with Allah." (63)




Although intercession is authentic and valid, it is an attribute of Allah alone as He stated in the Holy Quran "Say : To Allah belongs exclusively (the right to grant) intercession. To Him belongs the dominion of the heavens and the earth." (65)
Therefore, intercession should be sought from Allah alone, and not from the graves of the pious dead and saints. Allah the Almighty has informed us about the two essential conditions for granting intercession. One concerns the intercessor. Allah has said in the Holy Quran "Who is there who can intercede in His presence except as He permits." (65)
The second condition is that intercession may only be sought for a person who is a true believer who has never set up partners with Allah and with whom Allah is pleased. Allah has said in the Holy Quran "And they offer no intercession except for those who are acceptable." (66)

Also, He the Almighty has stated in the Holy Quran "No matter how many the angels are in the heavens, their intercession will avail nothing except after Allah has given leave for whom He pleases and that he is acceptable to Him." (67)
Moreover, Allah the Almighty has so stated in the Holy Quran "On that Day shafl no intercession avail except for those for whom permission has been granted by ( Allah ) Most Gracious and whose word is acceptable to Him." (68)
It is clear from the above verses that Allah has not granted the right of intercession in His presence to any one from among the angels, prophets or deities because it is His exclusive right, and it can be solicited only for Him. Allah the Almighty has said in the Holy Quran "To Allah belongs exclusively (the right to grant) intercession " (69)
Allah alone grants permission for intercession. Without His permission, no one will dare come forward to intercede in His presence. The matter is not like what happens among our people in that intercessors may approach even if they have no permission, and their intercession may be accepted against one's will if the intercessor is an influential person and can prevail. But such can-not be the case with Allah because Allah is under pressure from no one. Everyone seeks His pleasure, so one cannot present anything against Allah's rules. Man's knowledge does not comprehend everything about Allah's creatures, and, thus, he is not allowed to interfere. Allah's knowledge about His people is comprehensive and all inclusive. Therefore, He does not need anyone to inform Him about anything or recommend to Him what to do. In fact, the reality of intercession with Allah is that Allah wants to forgive certain lapses of His true servants. So, Allah grants this forgiveness through prayers by those who have permission to intercede as an honour.

SEVENTH : Another suspicion concerns the status of virtuous people and saints whom Allah has raised in dignity. Allah has said in the Holy Quran "Behold! Verily on the friends of Allah there is no fear, or shafl they grieve. Those who believe and constantly guard against evil. For them are glad tidings in this life and the hereafter." (70) Thus, to be devoted to the items and ask their blessings is, in fact, an expression of love for them. Similarly, because of their exalted rank, one may seek to become nearer to Allah.

In order to clarify these suspicions, we should know that all believers are the friends of Allah. Their friendship with Allah the Almighty will depend on the strength of their belief and their good deeds, but to specifically designate an individual as Allah's friend requires evidence from the Holy Quran and Prophetic traditions. If such a case is supported by Quranic proofs, then it may be accepted ; without such proofs no one can be designated as such with certainty. Hopefully, every true believer will be a friend of Allah. If a particular individual, upon support of Quranic proofs, is from among lah's friends, then his status should not be exaggerated to excess. Such acts may lead to idolatry and, therefore, are prohibited. Good people should be imitated in deed and action, but exaggeration of their status may lead to a deification as it did in the case of the people of Noah. Allah, and the Prophet, warned about excessive exaltation of virtuous people in several verses. Allah said in the Holy Quran "Say : O people of the Book (i.e. Jews and Chris-tians) exceed not the proper bounds in your religion." (71)
Also, the Prophet (peace be upon him) said "Do not exalt me as Christians did with Mary's son. Verily, I am a human, so call be servant of Allah and His prophet." (72) In addition, Guardian Lord said in the Holy Quran "Invoke Me, I will answer your call." (73) Also he said, "When My servants ask you about Me, I am indeed close (to them). I listen to the prayer of every supplicant when he calls on Me." (74)

footnotes:

52. Ibid; 2 : 586-7.
53. H.Q. Nahl (Bee) 16 : 36.
54. H.Q. Anbiya (The Prophets) 21:25.
55. H.Q. Zukhruf (Gold Adornments) 43 : 45.
56. H.Q. Nahi (Bee) 16 : 36.
57. H.O. AI-Zumar (The Crowds) 39
58. Sahih Muslim (Arabic Edition) : 456.
59 Ibid 153.
60. Sahih Bukhari 13 : 300 (Fath-ul-Bari).
61. See Sunan Abu Dawood (Arabic Edition) No.4252 concerning afflictions.
62. H.Q. Ai-Zumar (The Crowds) 39 : 3.
63. H.Q. Yunus 10:18.
64. H.Q. Zurnar (The Crowds) 39 : 44.
65. H.Q. Baqarah (Cow) 2 : 255.
66. H.Q. Anbiya (The Prophets) : 28.
67. H.Q. Najrn (The Star) 53 : 26.
68. H,Q.Taha20: 09.
69. H.Q. AI-Zumar (The Crowds) 39 44.
70. H.Q. Yunus 10 : 62-4.
71. H.Q. Maidab (The Table) 5 : 77.
72. Sahih Bukhari.(Arabic Edition) 6 : 478.
73. H.Q. Cihafir (The Believer) 40 : 60.
74. H.Q. Baqarah 2 :186.

وعليكم السلام ورحمة الله وبركاته