CHAPTER 2 – THE TYPES OF SHIRK

Shirk literally means partnership, sharing or association Shirk literally means partnership, sharing or association. In Islam it refers to assigning partners to Allah in whatever form it may take. Some mention of Shirk has already been made in the previous section, we will go into more detail in this section.

Allah says: إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ لَا يَغۡفِرُ أَن يُشۡرَكَ بِهِۦ وَيَغۡفِرُ مَا دُونَ ذَٲلِكَ لِمَن يَشَآءُ‌ۚ “Surely Allah will not forgive the association of partners (shirk) with Him, but He forgives (sins) less then that of whomever He wishes.” [Surah An-Nisaa 4:48] The sin of Shirk denies the very purpose of man’s creation and to Allah it is a grave and unforgivable sin.

The following is an analysis of Shirk in accordance to the 3 broad categories of Tawheed.

Shirk in Ruboobeeyah This category of Shirk refers to: (I) Shirk by Association Belief that others share Allah’s Lordship over creation as His equal/near equal (II) Shirk by Negation Belief that there exists no Lord over creation at all (generally, philosophers and their man-made philosophy fall under this category)

Shirk by Association Beliefs which fall under this sub category are ones in which a main God over creation is recognised. However, this dominion is shared by other lesser gods, spirits, mortals, heavenly bodies or earthy objects. These belief systems are commonly referred as either monotheistic (having one God) or polytheistic (having more than one God). According to Islam, all these systems are polytheistic.

Aspects of Hinduism, Christianity, Zoroastrians, Yoruba religion and Zulu religion all have Shirk in Ruboobeeyah taking place. Even in Islam Shirk in Ruboobeeyah is manifested in some Muslim’s beliefs. Hinduism – Brahman is seen as the Supreme Being. Other gods are Brahma (the personified creator of the universe), Vishnu the (preserver god) and Shiva (the destroyer) who form a trinity. Thus, Shirk in Ruboobeeyah is expressed in Hinduism by the delegation of God’s creative, destructive and preservative powers to other gods.

Christianity – Christian belief states that one God reveals himself in three persons of Father, Son (Jesus Christ) and Holy Spirit), also forming a trinity. Thus, Shirk in Ruboobeeyah is expressed in Christianity by the belief that Jesus and the Holy Spirit are God’s partners in all His dominion. Islam – Among some Muslims, Shirk in Ruboobeeyah is in their belief that souls of saints and other righteous humans can affect affairs of this world, even after their death. It is believed their souls can fulfil ones needs, remove calamities and aid whoever calls them.

Common among some Sufis (Muslim mystics) is the belief in “Rijaal al-Ghayb” (“men of the unseen world”) chief of whom occupies the station called “Qutub” from which their affairs of this world is governed.

(II) Shirk by Negation This sub category represents the various philosophies and ideologies which deny the existence of God either explicitly or implicitly. In some cases, God’s non-existence is stated (Atheism), while in other cases His existence is claimed, but the way in which He is conceived actually denies His existence, He is found in everything (Pantheism). There are a few ancient religious “systems” in which God does not exist, such as in Buddhism and Jainism.

Buddhism – God’s existence is denied Buddhism – God’s existence is denied. Buddha is seen as one of the Avatars (incarnations of God). Jainism – God’s existence is also denied. Liberated souls achieve something of this status, having immorality and omniscience. Divine treatment is given to the liberated ones, building temples and venerating their images.

Another ancient example is pharaoh of Prophet Moses’ (as) time Another ancient example is pharaoh of Prophet Moses’ (as) time. Who claimed he was the only true lord of all creation. Allah quotes him in the Quran as saying to his people “He proclaimed, ‘I am your Lord, the Most High’.” (An Naaziaat 79:24). Many Sufis like Ibn Arabee claim that only Allah exists (All is Allah and Allah is all). They deny the separate existence of Allah and thereby in fact deny His existence. This idea was also expressed in the 17th century by the Dutch Jewish philosopher, Baruch Spinoza, who claimed that God is the total of all parts of the universe including man.

2. Shirk in al-Asmaa was-Sifaat This category of Shirk refers to: (I) Shirk by Humanisation (giving Allah the attributes of His creation (II) Shirk by Deification (giving created being Allah’s names and attributes)

(I) Shirk by Humanisation In this aspect, Allah is given the form and qualities of humans and animals. Due to man’s superiority over animals, the human form is more commonly used by idolaters to represent God in creation. Consequently, the image of the Creator is often painted, moulded or carved in the shape of human beings, possessing the physical features of those who worship them.

For example, some people worship countless idols in the likeness of Asian men and consider them manifestations of God in creation. Another example of this type of Shirk is the modern day Christian belief that Prophet Jesus (as) was God incarnate, that the Creator became His creation.

(II) Shirk by Deification This category relates to cases where created beings/things are given or claim Allah’s names or His attributes. For example, it was the practice of the ancient Arabs to worship idols whose names were derived from the names of Allah. Their main 3 idols were: al-Laat (taken from Allah’s name al-Elaah), al-Uzza (taken from al-Azzeez) and al-Manaat (taken from al-Mannan). During the Prophet Muhammed’s (pbuh) era there was a false prophet in a region of Arabia called Yamaaamah, who took the name Rahmaan which only belongs to Allah.

Among the Shi’ite sects is the Nusayreeyah of Syria, who believe that the Prophet Muhammed’s (pbuh) cousin and son-in-law Ali ibn Abee Talib, was a manifestation of Allah and gave him many of Allah’s qualities. Among them is also the Ismai’ilis also known as Agha Khanis who consider their leader Agha Khan to be God incarnate.

3. Shirk in al-Ebaadah In this category of Shirk, acts of worship are directed to other than God and the reward for worship is sought from the creation instead of the Creator. This category of Shirk refers to: Ash-Shirk Al-Akbar (Major Shirk) (II) Ash-Shrik Al-Asghar (Minor Shirk)

(I) Ash-Shirk Al-Akbar (Major Shirk) This form of Shirk occurs when any act of worship is directed to other than Allah. It represents the most obvious form of idolatry which the prophets were specifically sent by Allah to call the masses of mankind away from. Allah says: وَلَقَدۡ بَعَثۡنَا فِى ڪُلِّ أُمَّةٍ۬ رَّسُولاً أَنِ ٱعۡبُدُواْ ٱللَّهَ وَٱجۡتَنِبُواْ ٱلطَّـٰغُوتَ‌ۖ “Surely We have sent to every nation a messenger saying, worship Allah, and avoid Taaghoot (false gods) [Surah an-Nahl 16:36]

Taaghoot actually means anything which is worshipped along with Allah or instead of Allah. For example, love is a form of worship which, in its perfection, should only be directed to Allah. In Islam, the love of Allah is expressed by total obedience to Him. It is not the type of love which man naturally feels towards creation (i.e. parents, children, food etc). To direct that type of love towards Allah is to lower Him to the level of His Creation which is Shirk in al-Asmaa was-Sifaat. Love which is worship is total surrender of one’s will to God.

“Say: If you love Allah, follow me and Allah will love you” Allah told the Prophet (pbuh) to tell the believers: قُلۡ إِن كُنتُمۡ تُحِبُّونَ ٱللَّهَ فَٱتَّبِعُونِى يُحۡبِبۡكُمُ ٱللَّهُ “Say: If you love Allah, follow me and Allah will love you” [Surah al-Imran 3:31] The Prophet (pbuh) also said: “None of you is a true believer until I become more beloved to him then his child, his father and the whole of mankind” [Al-Bukhari & Muslim]

“Say: Obey Allah and obey the Prophet” Allah says: مَّن يُطِعِ ٱلرَّسُولَ فَقَدۡ أَطَاعَ ٱللَّهَ‌ۖ “Whoever obeys the Messenger has obeyed Allah” [Surah an-Nisaa 4:80] قُلۡ أَطِيعُواْ ٱللَّهَ وَٱلرَّسُولَ‌ۖ “Say: Obey Allah and obey the Prophet” [Surah al-Imran 3:32]

أَرَءَيۡتَ مَنِ ٱتَّخَذَ إِلَـٰهَهُ ۥ هَوَٮٰهُ If man allows love of anything or anyone to come between himself and Allah, then he has worshipped that thing. In this way, money/desires can become one’s god. Allah says: أَرَءَيۡتَ مَنِ ٱتَّخَذَ إِلَـٰهَهُ ۥ هَوَٮٰهُ “Have you not seen the one who takes his desires as his god?” [Surah al-Furqaan 25:43] Major Shirk represents the greatest act of rebellion against the Lord of the Universe, and is thus the ultimate sin. It is a sin so great that it virtually cancels out all good a person may do and guarantees its perpetrator eternal abode in Hell.

(II) Ash-Shrik Al-Asghar (Minor Shrik) Mahmood ibn Lubayd reported, “Allah’s messenger (pbuh) said: “The thing that I fear for you the most is ash-Shirk al-Asghar (minor shirk)”. The companions asked “Oh! Messenger of Allah, what is minor Shirk?” He replied “ar-Riyaa (showing off), for verily Allah will say on the Day of Resurrection when people are receiving their rewards, “Go to those for whom you were showing off in the material world and see if you can find any reward from them”. [Ahmad]

Ar-Riyaa Riyaa is the practice of performing any of the various forms of worship in order to be seen and praised by people. This sin destroys all the benefits that lie in righteous deeds and brings in the one who commits it a serious punishment. The chance of committing Riyaa is great because it is so hidden. It only involves the simple act of changing one’s intention. Thus, great care has to be taken to ensure that one’s intentions begin pure and remain pure whenever righteous deeds are being done. In order to ensure this, the saying of Allah’s name is enjoined in Islam before all acts of importance.

The Prophet (pbuh) also provided protection against the inevitable acts of Shirk by teaching certain specific prayers which may be said anytime. Abu Moosaa said, “One day Allah’s messenger delivered a sermon saying ‘O people, fear Shirk for it is more hidden than the creeping of an ant.’ Those whom Allah wished asked, ‘And how do we avoid it when it is more hidden than the creeping of an ant, O Messenger of Allah?’” He replied, ‘Say:

“Allahumma Innaa na’oodhu bika an nushrika bika shay ‘an na’lamuh, wa nastaghfiruka limaa laa na’ lamuh.” (“O Allah, we seek refuge in you from knowingly committing shirk with you and we ask your forgiveness for what we do not know about.” [Ahmad]