Some Polytheistic Practices in the Present Era:
Below are some examples of polytheism prevalent in Muslim countries, presented to the readers. It is possible that a misguided person may come onto the straight path and this may be a means for our and their forgiveness and salvation.
(1) Grave Worship:
Coming to the graves of deceased saints with the purpose of seeking fulfillment of needs and desires, and seeking help and cooperation for solving difficulties is grave worship. The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, forbade this in the following words:
«لعنة الله على اليهود والنصارى اتخذوا قبور أنبياء هم مساجد»
“May Allah’s curse be upon the Jews and Christians, for they made the graves of their prophets places of prostration.”
He also said:
«ألا وإن من كان قبلكم كانوا يتخذون قبور أنبياء هم مساجد، ألا فلا تتخذوا القبور مساجد فإني أنهاكم عن ذلك»
“Beware! The people before you used to make the graves of their prophets places of prostration, so beware! Do not make the graves places of prostration.”
Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah, may Allah have mercy on him, says:
«والذين يزرون قبور الأنبياء والصالحين ويحبون إليهم ليدعوهم وليسألوهم أوليعبدوهم ويدعوهم من دون الله هم مشركون»
“Those who come to visit the graves of the Prophets, peace be upon them, and the righteous, and come with the intention to call upon them and ask them or come for the purpose of worshiping them, are polytheists.”
During the blessed era of the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, there was worship even of the pictures of the Prophets, graves of elders, and trees. It is mentioned in a hadith that:
“Lat was a righteous man who used to give water to the pilgrims.”
Furthermore, Hafiz Ibn Kathir writes:
“Lat was a white stone on which a building was constructed, curtains were hung, and there were caretakers living there, and a boundary was set around it.”
Ibn Jarir wrote:
“Uzza was a tree between Makkah and Ta’if, on which a magnificent building was constructed, and curtains were hung there. After the conquest of Makkah, all these shrines and places of worship were demolished and such trees were cut down.”
Sayyida Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her, narrated:
“Some people of the Ansar tribe used to wear the Ihram for Manat. Manat was an idol placed between Makkah and Madinah.”
(2) Vows and Offerings for Anyone Other Than Allah:
Making vows or offerings for anyone other than Allah is shirk (associating partners with Allah). The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said:
«من نذر أن يطيع الله فليطعه، ومن نذر أن یعصي الله فلا يعصه»
“Whoever makes a vow to obey Allah in a matter must fulfill that vow, and whoever makes a vow that results in disobedience to Allah should not fulfill it and thus disobey Allah.”
Allama Hasfaki wrote in Al-Durr Al-Mukhtar:
«واعلم أن الذى يقع للأموات من أكثر العوام وما يؤخذ من الدراهم والشمع والزيت ونحوها إلى ضرائج الأولياء الكرام تقربا إليهم فهو بالإجماع باطل وحرام»
“Know that most people who give vows and offerings in the name of deceased elders, and who bring money, oil, lamps, etc., as offerings at the shrines of saints for the purpose of seeking nearness, all of this is entirely false and forbidden.”
Maulana Abdul Hay Lakhnawi states:
“Vows and promises made to anyone other than Allah are forbidden, and whatever is offered as sweets or food at shrines is forbidden for every rich and poor person to eat.”
(3) Slaughtering for Anyone Other Than Allah:
In the Book of Allah, at four places, slaughtering for anyone other than Allah has been declared forbidden. Accordingly, it is stated:
«انما حرم عليكم الميتة والدم ولحم الخنزير وما أهل به لغير الله»
“Allah has forbidden you carrion, blood, pork, and that which has been slaughtered in the name of other than Allah.”
Ibn Jarir al-Tabari has narrated the interpretation of وما اهل لغير الله from some of the Salaf as «ما ذبح لغير الله».
Similarly, Allama Suyuti has narrated the interpretation of «وما أهل لغير الله» from the Quranic commentator Sayyiduna Abdullah ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) as «ما ذبح لغير الله».
And the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said:
«لعن الله من ذبح لغير الله»
“May Allah curse the one who slaughters for other than Allah.”
In Tafsir Nishapuri it is recorded:
«أجمع العلماء لو أن مسلما ذبح ذبيحة وقصد بها التقرب إلى غير الله صار مرتدا وذبيحته ذبيحة مرتد»
“Meaning, the scholars have consensus that if someone slaughters any animal intending to seek nearness to other than Allah through that slaughter, then that person will become an apostate, and his slaughtered animal will be like that of an apostate.”
(4) Magic, Sorcery, and Divination:
Magic is disbelief, and it is counted among the seven major sins that lead to destruction, and it always causes harm instead of benefit. Allah Almighty has said:
«ويتعلمون ما يضرهم ولا ينفعهم»
“And they learn that which harms them, and does not benefit them.”
«وما كفر سليمن ولكن الشيطين كفروا يعلمون الناس السحر وما انزل على الملكين ببابل هاروت وماروت وما يعلمن من أحد حتى يقولا إنما نحن فتنة فلا تكفر»
“And Solomon did not disbelieve, but the devils disbelieved, teaching people magic, and that which was revealed to the two angels at Babylon, Harut and Marut. But they did not teach anyone until they said, ‘We are a trial, so do not disbelieve.'”
Divination is also among the matters of disbelief and polytheism. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said:
«من أتى كاهنا أو عرافا فصدقه بما يقول فقد كفر بما أنزل على محمد»
“Whoever comes to a soothsayer or astrologer and confirms what he says has denied the Shariah revealed to Muhammad (peace be upon him).”
It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abbas bin Abdul Muttalib (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: “Allah has purified the Arabian Peninsula from polytheism and made it pure, except that the knowledge of the stars causes their misguidance.”
(5) Accidents and the belief in the influence of stars on human life:
The belief in the influence of stars on human life is also a polytheistic belief. The Arabs used to think that rain would fall with the setting of one constellation and the rising of another. Therefore, they attributed rain to these constellations and used to say: «مطرنا بنوء كذا» “We have been given rain from such and such a star or such and such a constellation (nakshatra).”
Therefore, Allah Almighty refuted their polytheistic belief by saying:
«وتجعلون رزقكم انكم تكذبون»
“And you take your portion and deny (the truth).”
In the explanation of this noble verse, it is narrated from Sayyidina Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said:
«وتجعلون رزقكم يقول شكركم أنكم تكذبون يقولون مطرنا بنوء كذا وكذا وبنجم كذا وكذا»
“You adopt this way of expressing gratitude for Allah’s blessings that you deny that the blessing is from Allah (and say) that we have been given rain from such and such a star or such and such a constellation.”
Thus, it is clear that attributing rain to stars instead of Allah Almighty is among the causes of polytheism. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: My Ummah will not abandon four practices of ignorance (one of them is) «الاستسقاء بالنجوم» “the belief that rain falls because of stars.”
(6) The belief of the amulet makers:
Hanging tamim and shells before the occurrence of the evil eye and other calamities and afflictions, hoping that they can avert them, is shirk. The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:
«من تعلق تميمة فقد أشرك»
“Whoever hangs an amulet has committed shirk.”
Sayyida Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her, said:
«ليست الثميمة ما تعلق به بعد البلاء إنما الثميمة ما تعلق به قبل البلاء»
“Tamimah is not that which is hung after the calamity, tamimah is that which is hung before the calamity.”
The Arabs had the custom of hanging shells and pearls on a child’s head to protect them from the evil eye, but the Shariah has declared this invalid. Imam Baghawi, may Allah have mercy on him, says:
«التمائم جمع تميمة وهى خزرات كانت العرب تعلقها على أولادهم يتقون بها العين بزعمهم فأبطلها الشرع»
“Tamaim is the plural of tamimah, and these are shells which the Arabs used to make their children wear, thinking it would protect them from the evil eye, etc. The Shariah has declared them invalid.”
Muhaddith Albani, may Allah have mercy on him, says:
“And of the same kind is hanging a shoe on the door of some people’s houses, or at the front part of the house, or some drivers hanging shoes in front of or behind their vehicles, or hanging blue beads on the front windshield in front of the driver; all of these are due to their false belief that they protect from the evil eye.”
(7)Swearing by other than Allah:
Swearing by anyone other than Allah is shirk, because it is a form of reverence that is due only to Allah Almighty. The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:
«من حلف بغير الله فقد كفر وأشرك»
“Whoever swears by other than Allah has committed shirk or disbelief.”
Buraidah, may Allah be pleased with him, said that the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:
«من حلف بالأمانة فليس منا»
“Whoever swears by a trust is not one of us.”
It is narrated from the Commander of the Faithful, Umar ibn al-Khattab, may Allah be pleased with him, that the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, heard him swearing by his father in a caravan, and he said:
«إن الله ينهاكم أن تحلفوا بآبائكم فمن كان حالفا فليحلف بالله أوليسكت»
“Indeed, Allah forbids you from swearing by your fathers. Whoever wants to swear should swear by Allah or remain silent.”
(8) Declaring what Allah has forbidden as permissible and what He has permitted as forbidden:
Declaring what Allah has forbidden as permissible, and what He has permitted as forbidden, is also a form of major shirk, which is common in our society. Also, holding the belief that a person has full authority to declare something halal or haram, whether in the form of a council or a court, is also a type of shirk. Accordingly, Allah Almighty has mentioned this shirk in His sacred scripture as follows:
«اتخذوا أحبارهم ورهبانهم اربابا من دون الله»
“Those people have taken their scholars and monks as lords besides Allah.”
When Sayyiduna Adi bin Hatim (may Allah be pleased with him) heard the recitation of these verses, he said in astonishment:
“We did not worship them, did we?” Upon this, the Noble Messenger (peace be upon him) said:
«أجل ولكن تحلون لهم ما حرم الله فيستحلون، ويحرمون عليهم ما أحل الله فيحرمونه فتلك عبادتهم لهم»
“Yes, but they made permissible for themselves what Allah had forbidden, which those people considered permissible, and they made forbidden what Allah had permitted, which those people considered forbidden. So this is their worship.”
(9) Belief in the presence of benefit in certain objects:
Some people believe that certain objects contain benefit, while Allah Almighty has not placed any kind of benefit in them. Doing so is shirk (associating partners with Allah) and goes against trusting Allah Almighty. For example, some people wear rings with various gems, some wear mineral bracelets, some have different types of beads, and some hang amulets that clearly contain shirk-related phrases, such as seeking protection from jinn and devils, etc. Therefore, hanging any kind of (shirk-related) amulet around the neck, hanging it in the house, or keeping it in the car, etc., is a major sin, indeed shirk. Accordingly, the Noble Messenger ﷺ said:
«من علق تميمة فقد أشرك»
“Whoever hangs an amulet has indeed committed shirk.”
(10) Nationalism:
In any era, when people fall into the sedition of nationalism and consider it their entire life’s capital, they then put the collar of polytheism around their neck and anger the Merciful Lord, as a result of which they suffer eternal degradation and ruin both their worldly life and hereafter. Just as Qazman bin Harith fought bravely and courageously in the Battle of Uhud and killed many polytheists, yet the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) counted him among the people of Hell.
«أما إنه من أهل النار»
“Indeed, he (Qazman…) is among the inhabitants of Hell.”
This is because Qazman bin Harith’s bravery and killing of polytheists was merely for the fame of his own tribe, as he himself expressed in front of the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them).
«والله ما قاتلنا إلا على الأحساب»
“By Allah! We fought for family honor and lineage.”
It should be noted that nationalism has been maintained by all the religions of the world in various forms and shapes. For example, the idea has been instilled in the minds of the people of a nation that the kings of the state are the shadow of the Merciful, before whom no one dares to question, and they have always been called the Shadow of God (Zillullah).
(11) Belief in “Light from the Light of Allah”
To call Imam al-Anbiya Muhammad Rasul Allah صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم or any other exalted being «نور من نور الله», meaning “a light from the light of Allah,” is essentially equivalent to considering Allah as having a part or component. However, Allah has neither offspring nor any part; rather, He is unique and alone.
As the Divine Revelation states:
«قل هو الله احد . الله الصمد . لم يلد ولم يولد. و لم يكن له كفوا احد.»
“(O Prophet! Say to those who ask about Allah: He is One, Allah is Self-Sufficient. He neither begets nor is begotten, and there is none comparable to Him.)”
This belief, i.e., calling the Messenger of Allah صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم «نور من نور الله», is explicitly opposed by the Quranic verses and authentic Hadith.
Thus, the honorable command of Allah, the Exalted, is:
«قل إثما أنا بشر مثلكم يوحى إلى أنما الهكم إله واحد»
“Say, I am but a man like you, to whom it has been revealed that your god is one God.”
(12) Taking Bad Omen:
When the noble Prophet Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, was sent, the world was immersed in the darkness of ignorance and was entangled in various satanic whispers and polytheistic superstitions. Among the polytheistic beliefs of ignorance were idol worship, considering the prophets, peace be upon them, as troublemakers, seeking refuge from jinn, and also the belief in bad omens.
The Arabic word «الطيرة» is used for bad omen, which means “to consider something as a cause of misfortune and bad omen.” As the Divine command states:
«فإذا جاءتهم الحسنة قالوا لنا هذه ۚ وإن تصبهم سيئة یطيروا بموسى و من معه ، ألا إنما طئرهم عند الله ولكن أكثرهم لا يعلمون»
“So when they receive a good thing, they say, ‘We are indeed entitled to it,’ but if evil befalls them, they attribute it to Moses and those with him. But their misfortune is from Allah, yet most of them do not know.”
In any case, the belief in bad omen is absolutely forbidden and completely contradicts monotheism. Therefore, the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, refuted this belief by saying:
«الطيرة شرك»
“Bad omen is shirk (polytheism).”
A Doubt and Its Refutation:
Some people, due to lack of knowledge, say that there is absolutely no fear of polytheism entering the Ummah of Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, because the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:
«والله ما أخاف عليكم أن تشركوا بعدي ولكن أخاف عليكم أن تنافسوا فيها»
“By Allah! I do not fear that after me you will commit polytheism, rather I fear that you will compete for worldly gains.”
Refutation:
Firstly:
The meaning of this hadith is that the Muslim Ummah as a whole will not commit shirk. However, some individuals or tribes will commit shirk. Hafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on him) states:
«قوله: ”ما أخاف عليكم أن تشركوا“ أى على مجموعكم لأن ذلك قد وقع من البعض أعاذنا الله تعالى»
“The meaning of the Prophet’s (peace be upon him) statement: ‘I do not fear shirk for you’ is that you will not become polytheists as a whole. Because shirk has occurred from some individuals and tribes within the Muslim Ummah. May Allah protect us in His refuge.”
It is narrated from Sayyiduna Thawban (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said:
«لا تقوم الساعة حتى تلحق قبائل من أمتي بالمشركين وحتى تعبد قبائل من أمتي الأوثان»
“The Hour will not be established until some tribes among my Ummah join with the polytheists, and until some tribes of my Ummah worship idols.”
And it is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said:
«لا تقوم الساعة حتى تضطرب أليات نساء دوس على ذي الخلصة وذو الخلصة: طاغية دوس التى كانوا يعبدونها فى الجاهلية»
“The Hour will not be established until the tribe of Daws moves upon the women of Daws at Dhul-Khalasa. Dhul-Khalasa was an idol of the tribe of Daws which they used to worship in the time of ignorance.”
It is understood that before the Day of Judgment, idol worship will enter the Muslim Ummah, and such people deserve to be called polytheists.
A Glimpse of Polytheistic Beliefs and Doctrines in the Muslim Ummah:
All the polytheistic matters mentioned, and besides them, explicit beliefs and ideologies are found in the Muslim Ummah to a great extent. Below we will present a glimpse of these beliefs and leave the commentary to the readers.
(1) A poet, in praise of his spiritual master Murtaza of Qila Sharif, Sheikhupura district, says that he is the light of God and the deputy of the Holy Prophet ﷺ; indeed, God and the Pir are one and the same, so we do not need to perform Tawaf at the Kaaba, because the Pir’s threshold itself is the Kaaba. Therefore, we will perform Tawaf here. May Allah protect us!
“Dosti rab di lor naeen, Qilay walay da palra chhor naheen
Qilay walay de gird tawaf kar lay, Makka jaonay di koi lor naheen
Eh kasoor-e-nigah da nadanoo, Rab hor naeen, Pir hor naeen
Fazl-e-rab da jay matloob howay, Qilay walay walon mukh mor naheen”
(2) In the Diwan of Khawaja Ghulam Farid Chishti Chachran Sharif, page 207, it is written:
“Chachran wang Madina ja tum te Kot Mithan Baytullah
Rang bana be rangi aya keetam roop tajalla
Zahir de vich Murshid badi batin de vich Allah
Nazuk mukhra Pir Farida sanu dassda hai wajah Allah”
(3) A person has written in his book “Bagh-e-Firdous, known as Gulzar-e-Rizvi,” pages 25, 56 about Sheikh Abdul Qadir Jilani:
“Mere Sarkar ki muthi mein hain aalam ke quloob
Dam mein rotuon ko hansa dete hain Ghaus al-Aghwas
Jis ne ya Ghaus museebat mein pukara dil se
Kaam sab us ke bina dete hain Ghaus al-Aghwas
Lauh-e-Mahfuz mein tasbeet ka haq hai haasil
Mard aurat se bana dete hain Ghaus al-Aghwas”
Read these couplets and decide yourself in the light of the Quran and Sunnah whether these nominal Muslims are following the footsteps of the foremost polytheists or not?
Allah Almighty has truly said:
«وما يؤمن أكثرهم بالله إلا وهم مشركون»
“And most of them do not believe in Allah except while associating others with Him.” (Translation by Ahmad Raza)
The Holy Prophet ﷺ said:
“In this Ummah, shirk will be found more hidden than the movement of a black ant on a black rock in the darkness of night.”
Secondly:
Then in this Hadith, the addressed are the Companions of the Prophet ﷺ, meaning they will not commit shirk after him. Hafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on him) writes:
وأن أصحابه لا يشركون بعده فكان كذلك
“Certainly, the Companions of the Prophet ﷺ did not commit shirk after him, and thus no shirk or innovation occurred from any Companion.”
Thirdly:
This Hadith does not mean that this Ummah cannot commit shirk; rather, most people of this Ummah are polytheists, as is proven by the aforementioned Quranic verse and the Hadith of the Prophet ﷺ.
