❖ Are Qur’anic Verses About Shirk Limited to Stone Idols Only?
✍ Excerpted from: Ummat aur Shirk ka Khatrah by Shaykh Abu al-Asjad Muhammad Siddiq Raza
The accursed Shayṭān has implanted a dangerous misconception in the hearts of some Muslims:
That all the verses condemning shirk (polytheism) in the Qur’an only refer to stone idols and statues, and not to the Prophets or the righteous. They claim: “The Prophets and pious individuals will intercede for us on the Day of Judgement anyway.”
This is one of Shayṭān’s most dangerous deceptions. Through such whispers, he has led countless people astray.
✔ Undoubtedly, the Prophets will intercede by the permission of Allah ﷻ.
✔ But only for the people of Tawḥīd—those who upheld pure monotheism and remained far from all forms of shirk.
✔ Those who indulged in shirk will be publicly disowned by the very figures they idolized.
Allah ﷻ mentions this in Surah al-Mā’idah, where ʿĪsā (AS) will declare his innocence from those who exaggerated in his veneration.
It must be understood:
❖ ʿĪsā (AS) and his mother Maryam (RA) are not mere stone statues (maʿādhallāh), but beloved and honored servants of Allah.
❖ Yet, as per the Qur'an, even they will renounce those who exaggerated in their veneration.
From the beginning of human deviation into shirk, idol worship was never about random stones. Rather, these idols were often made in memory of individuals believed to be righteous.
Allah ﷻ says in Sūrah Nūḥ (23):
﴿وَقَالُوا لَا تَذَرُنَّ آلِهَتَكُمْ وَلَا تَذَرُنَّ وَدًّا وَلَا سُوَاعًا وَلَا يَغُوثَ وَيَعُوقَ وَنَسْرًا﴾
“And they said: Do not forsake your gods, and do not forsake Wadd, nor Suwāʿ, nor Yaghūth, nor Yaʿūq, nor Nasr.”
(Sūrah Nūḥ: 23)
Commentary by ʿAbdullah ibn ʿAbbās (RA):
“These were the names of righteous men from the people of Nūḥ. When they died, Shayṭān inspired their people to erect statues at their places of gathering and name them after them. Initially, they were not worshipped. But when the initial generation passed away and knowledge faded, people began to worship them.”
(Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī: 4920)
Thus, even righteous individuals were later turned into objects of worship, once the original purpose of reverence was forgotten.
Just as in the past, modern idolaters also attribute supernatural tales to their idols—Buddha, Krishna, Sita, Kali, etc.—and claim that these were once real, living humans, around whom legends were constructed.
No sincere Muslim can deny the evil and abomination of shirk.
✔ There is not even the slightest room in Islam for justifying or tolerating shirk.
✔ Allah ﷻ has declared His extreme hatred for shirk.
✔ The one who dies upon shirk without repentance:
The verses of shirk in the Qur’an are not limited to stone idols.
They include all forms of exaggerated reverence—whether of stone, image, or human—when it leads to associating partners with Allah.
Shirk is not defined by form, but by belief and action.
May Allah protect us from every trace of it.
✍ Excerpted from: Ummat aur Shirk ka Khatrah by Shaykh Abu al-Asjad Muhammad Siddiq Raza
A Satanic Whisper
The accursed Shayṭān has implanted a dangerous misconception in the hearts of some Muslims:
That all the verses condemning shirk (polytheism) in the Qur’an only refer to stone idols and statues, and not to the Prophets or the righteous. They claim: “The Prophets and pious individuals will intercede for us on the Day of Judgement anyway.”
🛡 Refuting the Misconception
This is one of Shayṭān’s most dangerous deceptions. Through such whispers, he has led countless people astray.
✔ Undoubtedly, the Prophets will intercede by the permission of Allah ﷻ.
✔ But only for the people of Tawḥīd—those who upheld pure monotheism and remained far from all forms of shirk.
✔ Those who indulged in shirk will be publicly disowned by the very figures they idolized.
Allah ﷻ mentions this in Surah al-Mā’idah, where ʿĪsā (AS) will declare his innocence from those who exaggerated in his veneration.
🏛 The Reality of Stone Idols vs. Revered Individuals
It must be understood:
❖ ʿĪsā (AS) and his mother Maryam (RA) are not mere stone statues (maʿādhallāh), but beloved and honored servants of Allah.
❖ Yet, as per the Qur'an, even they will renounce those who exaggerated in their veneration.
How Shirk Originated: Not Just About Stone Idols
From the beginning of human deviation into shirk, idol worship was never about random stones. Rather, these idols were often made in memory of individuals believed to be righteous.
Allah ﷻ says in Sūrah Nūḥ (23):
﴿وَقَالُوا لَا تَذَرُنَّ آلِهَتَكُمْ وَلَا تَذَرُنَّ وَدًّا وَلَا سُوَاعًا وَلَا يَغُوثَ وَيَعُوقَ وَنَسْرًا﴾
“And they said: Do not forsake your gods, and do not forsake Wadd, nor Suwāʿ, nor Yaghūth, nor Yaʿūq, nor Nasr.”
(Sūrah Nūḥ: 23)
Commentary by ʿAbdullah ibn ʿAbbās (RA):
“These were the names of righteous men from the people of Nūḥ. When they died, Shayṭān inspired their people to erect statues at their places of gathering and name them after them. Initially, they were not worshipped. But when the initial generation passed away and knowledge faded, people began to worship them.”
(Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī: 4920)
Thus, even righteous individuals were later turned into objects of worship, once the original purpose of reverence was forgotten.
A Parallel with Modern Idolatry
Just as in the past, modern idolaters also attribute supernatural tales to their idols—Buddha, Krishna, Sita, Kali, etc.—and claim that these were once real, living humans, around whom legends were constructed.
The Absolute Condemnation of Shirk in Islam
No sincere Muslim can deny the evil and abomination of shirk.
✔ There is not even the slightest room in Islam for justifying or tolerating shirk.
✔ Allah ﷻ has declared His extreme hatred for shirk.
✔ The one who dies upon shirk without repentance:
- Will not be forgiven
- Paradise is forbidden for him
- His abode is Hellfire
Conclusion
The verses of shirk in the Qur’an are not limited to stone idols.
They include all forms of exaggerated reverence—whether of stone, image, or human—when it leads to associating partners with Allah.
Shirk is not defined by form, but by belief and action.
May Allah protect us from every trace of it.
