قُلْ هُوَ اللَّهُ أَحَدٌ
اللَّهُ الصَّمَدُ
لَمْ يَلِدْ وَلَمْ يُولَدْ
وَلَمْ يَكُن لَّهُ كُفُوًا أَحَدٌ
Say, "He (is) Allah, the One.
Allah, the Eternal, the Absolute.
Not He begets and not He is begotten.
And not is for Him equivalent any [one]."
مَّا يَفْتَحِ اللَّهُ لِلنَّاسِ مِن رَّحْمَةٍ فَلَا مُمْسِكَ لَهَا وَمَا يُمْسِكْ فَلَا مُرْسِلَ لَهُ مِن بَعْدِهِ وَهُوَ الْعَزِيزُ الْحَكِيم
Whatever mercy God grants to people, no one can prevent, whatever He withholds, no one can release, for He is the Almighty, the Wise.
[Al-Quran
35:2, Translation: Safi Kaskas]
Worship: The Purpose of Creation
Worship is defined as reverence for a deity or deities. It is an act of religious devotion, of loving service, and may or may not involve immediate spiritual and/or material benefits for the worshipper. It is a means of connection to the divine. The Quran states that the purpose of creation of humans and jinns is to worship Allah ﷻ :
وَمَا خَلَقْتُ الْجِنَّ وَالْإِنسَ إِلَّا لِيَعْبُدُون
مَا أُرِيدُ مِنْهُم مِّن رِّزْقٍ وَمَا أُرِيدُ أَن يُطْعِمُون
إِنَّ اللَّهَ هُوَ الرَّزَّاقُ ذُو الْقُوَّةِ الْمَتِين
فَإِنَّ لِلَّذِينَ ظَلَمُوا ذَنُوبًا مِّثْلَ ذَنُوبِ أَصْحَابِهِمْ فَلَا يَسْتَعْجِلُون
فَوَيْلٌ لِّلَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا مِن يَوْمِهِمُ الَّذِي يُوعَدُون
And I created not jinn and humankind but that they worship Me.
I want no provision from them nor want I that they feed Me.
Truly, God, He is The Provider, The Possessor of Strength, The Sure.
And, truly, the impiety of those who did wrong is like the impiety of their companions. So let them not seek to hasten the Judgment.
Then, woe to those who disbelieved in that Day of theirs that they are promised.
No Image, No Idol, No other gods
وَإِذْ قَالَ إِبْرَاهِيمُ رَبِّ اجْعَلْ هَٰذَا الْبَلَدَ آمِنًا وَاجْنُبْنِي وَبَنِيَّ أَن نَّعْبُدَ الْأَصْنَام
رَبِّ إِنَّهُنَّ أَضْلَلْنَ كَثِيرًا مِّنَ النَّاسِ فَمَن تَبِعَنِي فَإِنَّهُ مِنِّي وَمَنْ عَصَانِي فَإِنَّكَ غَفُورٌ رَّحِيم
And when Abraham said: My Lord! Make this land that which is safe and cause me and my children to turn away from worshipping idols.
My Lord! Truly, they caused to go astray many among humanity; so whoever heeded me, truly, he is of me. And whoever rebelled against me, then Thou art, truly, Forgiving, Compassionate.
As nobody has seen Allah ﷻ, there is no image, no drawing, no sculpture, no figure that can represent Him. The Ten Commandments given through Moses (Musa عليه السلام) begin as:
And God spoke all these words:
2 “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.
3 “You shall have no other gods before[a] me.
4 “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. 5 You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, 6 but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.
Association of Partners
Allah ﷻ has no consort, no offspring, and neither is Allah ﷻ the offspring of anyone else. Association of any person with Allah ﷻ as a deity is an unforgivable sin. A person who dies a polytheist is promised eternal punishment.
إِنَّ اللَّهَ لَا يَغْفِرُ أَن يُشْرَكَ بِهِ وَيَغْفِرُ مَا دُونَ ذَٰلِكَ لِمَن يَشَاءُ وَمَن يُشْرِكْ بِاللَّهِ فَقَدِ افْتَرَىٰ إِثْمًا عَظِيمً
Indeed, Allah (does) not forgive that partners be associated with Him, but He forgives from other than that for whom He wills. And whoever associates partners with Allah, then surely he has fabricated a sin - tremendous.
[Al-Quran
4:48, Translation: Sheikh, Katri, and more]
Duality
وَقَالَ اللَّهُ لَا تَتَّخِذُوا إِلَٰهَيْنِ اثْنَيْنِ إِنَّمَا هُوَ إِلَٰهٌ وَاحِدٌ فَإِيَّايَ فَارْهَبُون
وَلَهُ مَا فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ وَلَهُ الدِّينُ وَاصِبًا أَفَغَيْرَ اللَّهِ تَتَّقُون
And Allah has said, “Do not take two gods, He is only One God, so fear Me alone.”
And whatever is in the skies and the earth is His and His is the law (that prevails) forever. Will you then fear (someone) other than Allah?
Ascribing partners to Allah ﷻ, worshipping someone other than Allah ﷻ, is a sin as ancient as humans themselves:
- In the creation of the human nafs, her mate, and then their mating and conceiving, we learn that when Allah ﷻ granted them a healthy baby, they immediately started ascribing partners to Allah ﷻ (Q7:189-191). More on this at Polytheism: The Sin committed by The First Human Couple.
- In the story of Adam عليه السلام, whom Allah ﷻ created with His Own Hands, to appoint as Khalifa of Earth, and taught him all the names, made the angels prostrate to Adam عليه السلام; yet we see Adam عليه السلام taking the council of his arch-enemy Iblis, and obeying Iblis in disobedience to Allah ﷻ. More on this at Adam's Attempt to Improve upon Allah's Creation.
Iblis, the devil/satan, is the sworn enemy of Adam عليه السلام and his progeny. Allah ﷻ demonstrated that to Adam عليه السلام, and has continuously warned the children of Adam عليه السلام since then:
أَلَمْ أَعْهَدْ إِلَيْكُمْ يَا بَنِي آدَمَ أَن لَّا تَعْبُدُوا الشَّيْطَانَ إِنَّهُ لَكُمْ عَدُوٌّ مُّبِين
وَأَنِ اعْبُدُونِي هَٰذَا صِرَاطٌ مُّسْتَقِيم
وَلَقَدْ أَضَلَّ مِنكُمْ جِبِلًّا كَثِيرًا أَفَلَمْ تَكُونُوا تَعْقِلُون
Had I not enjoined on you, O children of Adam! that you should not serve the devil, (as) he is your open enemy,
and that you should serve Me, this is the straight path?
And he had indeed led astray a large group of people from among you, then were you not having sense?
Trinity
لَّقَدْ كَفَرَ الَّذِينَ قَالُوا إِنَّ اللَّهَ ثَالِثُ ثَلَاثَةٍ
وَمَا مِنْ إِلَٰهٍ إِلَّا إِلَٰهٌ وَاحِدٌ
وَإِن لَّمْ يَنتَهُوا عَمَّا يَقُولُونَ لَيَمَسَّنَّ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا مِنْهُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيم
Certainly, ungrateful were those who said: Truly, God is the third of three.•
There is no god but One God.
And if they refrain not themselves from what they say, there will afflict those who were ungrateful among them a painful punishment.
Reading in context, Q5:73 is a direct objection to the mainstream Christian belief of Jesus (Isa عليه السلام) being a god (Q5:72 & Q5:17). It is also part of a larger set of ayaat objecting to the People of The Book (Jews and Christians) not adhering to The Book (the scripture revealed to them), and taking liberties with beliefs, and subsequent sinful actions they indulged in.
All across the world, ancient and modern, polytheistic religions have a triune belief system, as opposed to the strictly monotheistic belief in Allah ﷻ as the only deity, as repeated across The Quran, and prior revealed scriptures. The Quran specifically mentions three names that the Arabs worshipped:
أَفَرَأَيْتُمُ اللَّاتَ وَالْعُزَّى
وَمَنَاةَ الثَّالِثَةَ الْأُخْرَى
أَلَكُمُ الذَّكَرُ وَلَهُ الْأُنثَى
تِلْكَ إِذًا قِسْمَةٌ ضِيزَى
إِنْ هِيَ إِلَّا أَسْمَاءٌ سَمَّيْتُمُوهَا أَنتُمْ وَآبَاؤُكُم مَّا أَنزَلَ اللَّهُ بِهَا مِن سُلْطَانٍ إِن يَتَّبِعُونَ إِلَّا الظَّنَّ وَمَا تَهْوَى الْأَنفُسُ وَلَقَدْ جَاءَهُم مِّن رَّبِّهِمُ الْهُدَى
أَمْ لِلْإِنسَانِ مَا تَمَنَّى
Saw you, then, al-Lat and al-Uzza
and Manat, the third, the other?
Have you males and has He, females?
That, then, is an unfair division.
They are but names that you named, you and your fathers, for which God caused not to descend any authority. They follow nothing but opinion and that for which their souls yearn. And, certainly, drew near them the guidance from their Lord.
Or will the human being have what he coveted?
Divine Family
37:149 فَاسْتَفْتِهِمْ أَلِرَبِّكَ الْبَنَاتُ وَلَهُمُ الْبَنُون
37:150 أَمْ خَلَقْنَا الْمَلَائِكَةَ إِنَاثًا وَهُمْ شَاهِدُون
37:151 أَلَا إِنَّهُم مِّنْ إِفْكِهِمْ لَيَقُولُون
37:152 وَلَدَ اللَّهُ وَإِنَّهُمْ لَكَاذِبُون
37:153 أَصْطَفَى الْبَنَاتِ عَلَى الْبَنِين
37:154 مَا لَكُمْ كَيْفَ تَحْكُمُون
37:155 أَفَلَا تَذَكَّرُون
37:156 أَمْ لَكُمْ سُلْطَانٌ مُّبِين
37:157 فَأْتُوا بِكِتَابِكُمْ إِن كُنتُمْ صَادِقِين
37:158 وَجَعَلُوا بَيْنَهُ وَبَيْنَ الْجِنَّةِ نَسَبًا وَلَقَدْ عَلِمَتِ الْجِنَّةُ إِنَّهُمْ لَمُحْضَرُون
37:159 سُبْحَانَ اللَّهِ عَمَّا يَصِفُون
37:160 إِلَّا عِبَادَ اللَّهِ الْمُخْلَصِين
37:161 فَإِنَّكُمْ وَمَا تَعْبُدُون
37:162 مَا أَنتُمْ عَلَيْهِ بِفَاتِنِين
37:163 إِلَّا مَنْ هُوَ صَالِ الْجَحِيم
37:149 So [Prophet] inquire [of the idolaters], "Why do they think their Lord has daughters while they have sons"?
37:150 Or, maybe they witnessed the creation of the angels as females?"
37:151 No indeed, It is out of their [invented] falsehood that they say,
37:152 "God has begotten," and they are liars.
37:153 Has He chosen daughters over sons?
37:154 What is [wrong] with you? How do you reach your judgments?
37:155 Will you not be reminded [of the warning against such thinking]?
37:156 Or do you have a clear authority [for what you allege]?
37:157 Then, produce your Book, if you are truthful.
37:158 They also claimed a lineage between Him and the jinn, but the jinn know that they will be brought before Him for [judgment].
37:159 May God be exalted in His glory above all they describe,
37:160 except for God's devout worshipers [who don't make such claims].
37:161 So you [who deny the truth] and whatever you worship,
37:162 cannot tempt [anyone] away from Him
37:163 except for him who will burn in Hell.
The Quran clearly refutes all claims of any divine family. Allah ﷻ is One and He ﷻ is the Only Deity, the Only God. There exists no pantheon of divine beings!
The Quran also clearly warns of the eternal consequence of association of partners with Allah ﷻ.
Desires
25:41 وَإِذَا رَأَوْكَ إِن يَتَّخِذُونَكَ إِلَّا هُزُوًا أَهَٰذَا الَّذِي بَعَثَ اللَّهُ رَسُولً
25:42 إِن كَادَ لَيُضِلُّنَا عَنْ آلِهَتِنَا لَوْلَا أَن صَبَرْنَا عَلَيْهَا وَسَوْفَ يَعْلَمُونَ حِينَ يَرَوْنَ الْعَذَابَ مَنْ أَضَلُّ سَبِيلً
25:43 أَرَأَيْتَ مَنِ اتَّخَذَ إِلَٰهَهُ هَوَاهُ أَفَأَنتَ تَكُونُ عَلَيْهِ وَكِيلً
25:44 أَمْ تَحْسَبُ أَنَّ أَكْثَرَهُمْ يَسْمَعُونَ أَوْ يَعْقِلُونَ إِنْ هُمْ إِلَّا كَالْأَنْعَامِ بَلْ هُمْ أَضَلُّ سَبِيلً
25:41 And whenever they see you [Prophet] they ridicule you, [saying], "Is this the one God sent as a messenger?
25:42 He would almost have misled us from our gods had we not stood firmly by them." But soon, when they see the punishment, they will know who is the most misguided.
25:43 Have you seen the one who has taken his own whims as his god? Are you responsible for him?
25:44 And do you think that most of them hear or understand? They are just like cattle; indeed, they are [even] more lost.
...
Fate & Destiny: Eternal Consequences
وَكُلَّ إِنسَانٍ أَلْزَمْنَاهُ طَائِرَهُ فِي عُنُقِهِ وَنُخْرِجُ لَهُ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ كِتَابًا يَلْقَاهُ مَنشُورًا
اقْرَأْ كِتَابَكَ كَفَىٰ بِنَفْسِكَ الْيَوْمَ عَلَيْكَ حَسِيبًا
And [for] every person We have imposed his fate upon his neck, and We will produce for him on the Day of Resurrection a record which he will encounter spread open.
[It will be said], "Read your record. Sufficient is your nafs against you this Day as accountant."
[Al-Quran 17:13-14, Translator: Sahih International (edited to retain word nafs in italics)]
Everything a person says or does, is exactly being recorded in real time. An eternal compensation depends upon it. In the mortal life of this world, the children of Adam عليه السلام are already experiencing the temporary consequence of Adam عليه السلام's breaking of his covenant. Its a memory, and a physical reality, that should serve to make us wiser.
Fate of The World
مَا أَصَابَ مِن مُّصِيبَةٍ فِي الْأَرْضِ وَلَا فِي أَنفُسِكُمْ إِلَّا فِي كِتَابٍ مِّن قَبْلِ أَن نَّبْرَأَهَا إِنَّ ذَٰلِكَ عَلَى اللَّهِ يَسِير
No disaster befalls in the earth nor among yourselves, but it is (recorded) in a book before We bring it into existence, that is certainly easy for Allah.
The Quran is also very clear that everything that happens to a person, his or her fate, is already written beforehand by Allah ﷻ, and is fastened to the neck of the person. No good or harm can happen to a person except that Allah ﷻ has already decreed it, or allowed it to happen. So, the worship of anyone other than Allah ﷻ is a falsehood, a going astray!
We cannot change Allah ﷻ 's Plan. The fate of this world is also already decreed. That humans have not believed in the truth, an evil trial awaits. A moving creature is going to emerge from the Earth. Many people will believe in the Beast, as it will be of immediate, worldly benefit to worship the falsehood, even though it will be at the cost of the Hereafter! Very few will be able to hold on to faith in Allah ﷻ, The One True God.
Like the mighty ancients of long ago, our technologically advanced civilisation is also expected to meet its demise at The Promised Hour. And then The Judgement, the eternal recompense.
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Last updated on: November 17, 2022
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