fourbasicterms.pdf

FourBasicTerms

ABULA’LAMAWDUDI

ThoseofuswhohavebeenfamiliarwithMaulana

Maududi’swritingsfromthebeginningareawarethat,atthe

start,heconﬁnedhimselfmainlytothefundamentals,tryingto

scrubawaythecenturiesoldcrustswhichhaddimmedthetrue

Islamicconceptsandtoremovethemisunderstandingsthathad

spreadgraduallyregardingthebasicprinciplesandpurposeof

Islam.Hisbook,Qur’anKiCharBunyadiIstilahen,whichorig-

inallyappearedinhismonthlyUrdumagazine,Tarjuman-ul-

Qur’an,wasonesuche®ort,theintentionbeingtoremovethe

misunderstandingswhichhadcometoprevailwidelyconcern-

ingfourbasicQur’anicterms,Ilah,Rabb,Deenand’Ibadah,

andtobringouttheirtrueconnotationsbyreferencedirectto

theQur’anitself.

Althoughittookussometimetogetroundtothejob,weon

ourpartwereabletostartbringingoutanEnglishtranslation

ofthebookintheAcademy’smonthlyjournal,TheCriterion.

Wearegladthatithassincebeenpossibleforustobringout

thewholetranslationinbookform,afteranextensiverevision

whichwehopewouldhavehelpedinimprovingthesenseand

makingitclearer.

Ifeelsurethatthisbookwillhelpallthosewhowishto

acquaintthemselveswithQur’anicteachingsastothesensein

whichMuslimsshouldregardAllahAlmightyastheIlahand

theRabb,HisDeenasthewayoflifemeantbyHimforman,

and’IbadahastheprimarypurposeofHiscreationofman.

BrotherAbuAsad,aresearchfellowintheAcademyhas

doneanicejob-andquitepainstakingtooinrenderingthebook

intoEnglish.MayAllahacceptandrewardhise®orts.

A.H.SyedManawarHasan

C.E.SecretaryGeneral

IslamicResearchAcademy

Karachi

3RABB 9

3.1TheGeneralMeanings............ 9

3.2FalseNotionsaboutRububiyyah...... 10

3.2.1HazratNuh’sPeople......... 10

3.2.2The’AadPeople........... 11

3.2.3TheThamud............. 11

3.2.4ThePeopleofHazratIbrahimand

Namrud................ 11

3.2.5Lot’sPeople.............. 13

3.2.6Shu’aib’sPeople........... 14

3.2.7ThePharaohandhisPeople .... 14

3.2.8TheJewsandChristians....... 17

3.2.9TheMeccanPagans......... 19

3.2.10TheMessageoftheQur’an..... 20

4IBADAH 22

5DEEN 26

5.1UsageandMeaning.............. 26

5.2FirstandSecondSense............ 27

5.3TheThirdSense............... 27

5.4TheFourthSense............... 28

5.5AsaComprehensiveTerm.......... 28

1. INTRODUCTION

1.1.FourBasicTerms

Ilah,Rabb,Deenand’Ibadah,arefourtermsbasicto

thewholeteachingoftheQur’an.Through-outitspages,

itstressesagainandagainthatAllahAlmightyistheRabb

andtheIlah;thatthereisnoilahbutHe,noristhereany

otherrabb,nordoesHesharewithanyoneelsethequal-

itiesandattributesimpliedbytheseterms.He,andHe

aloneshouldthereforebeacceptedasone’sIlahandRabb,

andno-oneelseshouldintheleastbebelievedtopossess

theattributeswhichthesewordsimply.Italsodemands

thatweshouldgiveouribadahtoHimandHimalone,and

nottoanyoneelse,andmakeourdeenexclusivetoHim

andrejectallotherdeens!

AndtoeveryMessengerWeordainedbeforeyou(O

Prophet),themessagewhichWegaveforhimselfandfor

others)wasnoneotherthanthat”ThereisnoIlahbut

Myself,andthereforegiveyour’ibadahtoMsalone.”

(Quran21:31)

....,And(they)werenotOrderedexcepttogivetheir

’ibadahtooneIlah,only;thereisnoilahexceptHe,(end)

Contents

1Introduction 1

1.1FourBasicTerms............... 1

1.2Importance.................. 2

1.3WhytheMisapprehensions ......... 2

1.4TheConsequences.............. 3

2ILAH 3

2.1DictionaryMeanings............. 3

2.2ThePre-IslamicConcept........... 4

2.3TheCriterionforGodhood......... 6

2.4TheQur’anicApproach........... 6

Heisfreeof(thetaintof)whattheyattributetoHimby

theirshirk(thatis,byassociatingotherswithHiminHis

exclusivequalitiesandattributes).(Quran9:31)

VerilythisBrotherhoodoftheProphetsissingleBroth-

erhood,andIamtheRabbofyouall,whereforegiveyour

’ibadahtoMealone.(Quran21:92)

Say’tothem(0Prophet):Wouldyouhavemeseek-for

rabbanyotherthenAllah,andHetheRabbofeverything

thereis!(Quran6:164)

So,whosoeveryearnstomeethisRabb,lethimdogood

deeds,andlethimnotmixuphisibadahofHimwiththat

ofanyother(s).(Quran18:110)

AndindeedweraisedaMessengerineverypeople

thattheyshouldgivetheir’ibadahtoAllah,andabstain

severelyfromgivingittotaghoot. [Literally,thisword

canapplytoapersonwhocommitsanykindoftransgres-

sion. InthesenseinwhichitisusedintheQur’anit

denotesapersonwhotransgressesthelimitsprescribedby

hisstatusasacreationofGod,whosetshimselfupasa

godandmakesthepeopletreathimassuch.Thereare

threedegreesoftransgressionorrebellionofahumanbe-

ingvis-a-visGod.Theﬁrstisthat,sofarastheprinciple

ofthethingisconcerned,apersonbelievesinobedience

toGodtobetherightcourse,butwhenitcomestodeeds,

hedisobeys.Thisisknownasﬁsq...Thesecondisthat

heshouldgiveupobediencetoGodasamatterofprin-

cipleandeitherdoashepleasesorobeysomeoneelse(in

thesenseinwhichoneowesobediencetoGod).Thisis

Kufr.Thethirdisthatnotonlydoesherebelagainst

God,denyingHimandHisrighttolaydownthelawfor

manbutalsobeginstomakehisownlawprevailinthe

land.Itisthepersonwhoreachesthisthirdstagewho

isaTaghootandnopersoncanbeaMu’minofAllah

intherealsenseunlessherepudiatesTaghoot.Maududi

(NotebytheTranslator:Fromthepointofviewaslast

explainedallthose”Muslim”headsofstatewhodeliber-

atelysubstitutedanyportionofIslamicbynon-Islamiclaw

fallnaturallytothecategoryofTaghoots,nomatterhow

muchtheymightprotesttheirdevotiontoIslamandtheir

professeddesireforthegloryofMuslims,thoughinthelat-

tercasetheglory,actuallysoughtisonlythatoftheirown

notionandthemeansadvocatedareofteneitherareturn

totheirpre-Islamiccultureortheadoptionofthepresent

daydecadentWesternculture.AbuAsad)](Quran16:30)

Doyouwishforsomedeenotherthan’Allah’s,(and

thisdespitethefactthattoHimsubmitsallthereisinthe

HeavensandinorupontheEarth,willinglyorunwilling,

andallaretoreturnuntoHim?(Quran3:83)

Say(OProphet):TheInjunctionlaiduponmeisto

givemy’ibadahtoAllah,andreservemydeenexclusively

forHim.(Quran38:11)

VerilyAllahismyRabb,andisyourstoo;therefore,

giveyourworshiptoHimalone-that(trulyistheonlyreal)

straightpath.(Quran3:61)

Theversesquotedabovearejustbywayofexample,

andnottheonlyonesoftheirkind.Whosoevermakes

morethanacursorystudyoftheQur’anwillsoonreal-

izethattheentirecontentsrevolveroundthesefourterms

only,andthatthecentralideaofthewholebookisthat:

AllahistheRabb,andtheIlah;No-oneelsepossessesthe

qualitiesandattributesimpliedbytheseterms;Wherefore

menshouldgivetheir’ibadahtoHimandHimalone;and

one’sdeenshouldbeexclusivelyforHimwithnoshareof

itforanyother.

1.2. Importance

Itshouldhoweverbeobviousevenfromthequotations

giventhatitisessentialforpropercomprehensionofthe

teachingsoftheQur’anfullytounderstandtheimplica-

tionsofthesefourterms.TheQur’anwillinfactlose

itswholemeaningforanyonewhodoesnotknowwhatis

meantbyilahorrabb,whatconstitutes’ibadah,andwhat

theQur’anmeanswhenitusestheworddeen.Hewillfail

tolearnwhatTawhid(beliefintheOne-nessofAllahinthe

fullestsense)is,orwhatconstitutesitsanti-thesis,thatis,

shirk(theattributiontoothers,eitherwhollyorpartially,

ofanyofAllah’sexclusivequalitiesorattributes).

Itwillnotbepossibleforhimtomakehis’ibadah,or

hisdeen,exclusiveforAllahalone.Andlittlebetterthan

suchacompletelyignorantmanwouldbetheonewhohas

onlyavagueideaofwhatthetermsimply,becauseinthat

casethewholeteachingoftheQur’anwillremainvague

andincompleteforhim,andbothhisbeliefandhiscon-

ductwillfatallyleavemuchtobedesired.Hewillnodoubt

keeponrecitingthewordsofthekalimah,andevenexplain

thatitmeansthatthereisnoilahbutAllah,andyet,in

practice,hewillkeeptreatingmanyanothertobeanilah

too.Hewillgothroughlifeproclaimingthatthereisno

rabbbutAllah,andyetforallthattherewillbemany

whomhewillbetreatingasrabbs.Hewillprotest,and

a±rm,withallseriousnessandsincerity,thathedoesnot

givehis’ibadahtoanybutAllah,andwillyetkeepgiving

toothersunknowingly,Ifanyoneevensomuchashints

thathehasanyotherdeen,hewouldfeelo®endedenough

tocometoblowswiththeaccuser,andyetinpractice.he

willunwittinglybegivinghisallegiancetomanyanother

deen.No-onewilleverhearhimactuallyusethewords

Allahorrabbinrespectofanybutinthespeciﬁcsensein

whichthewordshavebeenemployedintheQur’an,but

hewillbeconductinghimselfasifhehadmanyanilah

andmanyarabbthoughwithoutrealizingthisjustlike

thepersonwhoneverrealizeduntilhewasspeciﬁcallyfold

thathehadbeenutteringproseallhislife;Ifsomeonewere

totellhiminsomanywordsthathewasgivinghis’ibadah

toothers,andthuscommittingshirk,hemightresentthis

stronglyandevenquarrelviolently,butaccordingtothe

criteriaapplicablehewillunconsciouslyhavebeenliving

asaworshiperofothersasanadherentofthedeensof

others,withouteversuspectingthatinfactwasthecase.

Theresultobviouslywasthatitbecamedi±cultfor

peopletogetattherealmessageoftheQur’an.The

Qur’anaskspeoplenottoregardanyotherthanAllahas

anilah.Peoplethoughtthatsincetheyhadactuallygiven

uptheworshipofidolsorofothersregardedasgods,they

hadfulﬁlledtherequirements,althoughinpracticethey

haveinfactgoneontreatingothersasgods,butwithout

theleastsuspicioncrossingtheirmindsthattheywereac-

tuallydoingso.TheQur’anhadaskedthatmenshould

notacknowledgeanyotherthanGodasrabb.Thepeo-

plethoughtthatsincetheydidnotprofessanyoneelseto

bearabb,theyhadcompliedwiththefullrequirements

oftheconceptofTawhid.Trueenough,theiroralpro-

fessionsoreventheirownunderstandingoftheirbeliefs

andactions,denotedthatforthemAllahwastheoneand

onlyRabb,buttheylittlerealizedthatbytheiractions

theywereinsteadaccordingtomanyanothertoothesta-

tusofrabb.Theyprotestedthattheynolongerworshiped

theidols,thattheyutteredcursesontheDevil,andpros-

tratedthemselvesbeforeAllahonly,andsoheretoothey

weredoingallthattheQur’anrequiredofthem.Andyet,

howfartheywerefromthat!Alltheydidwastogiveup

theidolsshapedbythehandsofmen,butnotanyofthe

othertaghoots,andasfor’ibadah,heretoo,exceptforthe

formalitiesgenerallyassociatedwithworship,theycontin-

uedgivingittomanyothersbesidesAllah.Thesamehas

beenthecasewithdeen.ToreserveitexclusivelyforAl-

lah-cametomeantoprofessonlythe”religionofIslam,”

andnotanyoftheotherreligionsknownassuch,andthis

wasallthatwasrequiredandwhosoeverdidthishadsatis-

ﬁedthecriterionofexclusiveness,althoughwhenlookedat

fromthewiderconnotationoftheworddeenthemajority

fallfar,farshortofthecriterion.

1.3.WhytheMisapprehensions

Thereasonwhythemisapprehensionshintedatabove

havecomeintoexistenceisahistoricalone.Whenthe

Qur’anwasﬁrstpresentedtotheArabstheyallknewwhat

wasmeantbyilahorrabbasboththewordswerealready

currentintheirlanguage.Theywerenotnewterms,nor

wereanynewmeaningsputuponthem.Theyknewfully

wellwhattheconnotationswereandso,whenitwassaid

thatAllahaloneistheIlah,andtheRabbandthatno-one

hastheleastshareinthequalitiesandattributeswhichthe

wordsdenote,theyatoncecomprehendedthefullimport,

understoodcompletelywithoutanydoubtoruncertainty

astowhatspeciﬁcallywasbeingdeclaredtoPertaintoAl-

lahexclusivelyandwhatwasbeinghencedeniedtoothers.

Thosewhoopposedthepreceptwere.veryclearintheir

mindsastotheimplicationsofdenyingothersthanAllah

tobeilahsorrabbs,inanysense,whilethosewhoaccepted

itknewequallywellwhattheywouldhavetogiveupby

theiracceptanceandwhattheywouldforgo.

Similarly,thewords’ibadahanddeenwereincommon

use,andthepeopleknewwhatwasmeantby’abd,what

statewasimpliedby’uboodiyyah(thestateofbeingan

’abd)whatkindofconductwasreferredtowhentheword

’ibadahwasused,andwhatwasthesenseofthetermdeen.

So,whentheyweretoldtogiveupthe’ibadahofallothers

andreserveitexclusivelyforAllah,andgiveupallother

deensandenterintotheDeenofAllahonly,theyfeltno

di±cultyinconcludingwhattheQur’anicd’awah(mes-

sage)impliedandthedrasticrevolutionintheirwayoflife

itsoughttobringabout.

Butascenturiespassed,therealmeaningsofthese

termsgraduallyunderwentsubtlechangessothat,in

courseoftime,insteadofthefullconnotations,theycame

tostandforonlyverylimitedmeaningsorrestrictedand

rathervagueconcepts.Onereasonwasthegradualdecline

ofinterestintheArabiclanguageandtheotherthatthe

wordsceasedtohavethesamemeaningsforthelatergen-

erationsofMuslimsthattheyhadfortheoriginalArabs

towhomtheQur’anhadbeenrevealed.Itisforthesetwo

reasonsthatinthemorerecentlexiconsandcommentaries

manyoftheQur’anicwordsbegantobeexplainednotby

theiroriginalsensebutbywhattheyhadbythencometo

standfor,e.g.,Thewordilah,asusedinrespectofothers

thanGod,cametobesynonymouswithidolsorgods;The

wordrabbcametomeanonlysomeonewhobringsupor

rearsorfeedsanotherorprovidesforhisworldlyneeds;

’Ibadahbegantobeunderstoodastheperformanceofa

setofritualsof”worship”;Deenbegantomeanareligion,

orbeliefinsomeprecepts;andThewordTaghootbegan

tobetranslatedtomeananidolortheDevil.

1.4.TheConsequences

Thisbeingthecase,isitanywonderthat,through

themistthathascometosurroundtheprecisesenseof

thefourtermsinquestion,morethanthree-fourthsofthe

teachingsoftheQur’an,orrather,therealspiritthereof,

havebecomeobscured,andthisisthemaincauseofthe

shortcomingsthataretobeseeninpeoples’beliefsand

actsdespitethefactthattheyhavenotformallygivenup

thefaithofIslambutarestillinitsfold.Itisthereforeof

utmostimportancethatinordertohaveafullandcom-

pleteunderstandingoftheQur’anicteachingsandoftheir

centralidea,oneshouldknow,asafundamentaltobeing

agoodMuslim,whatthesetermsreallymean.

AlthoughIhavegivenexplanationsofthesetermsin

manyearlierwritings,theyarenotenoughtoremoveall

themisconceptionsinpeoples’minds,noraretheylikelyto

satisfyeverybodybecause,intheabsenceoffullsemantic

explanationsbasedonrecognizedArabicusage,andquota-

tionsfromtheQur’anitself,Imightbetakenasexpressing

myownopiniononly,anopinionwhichinanycasewillnot

appealtothosewhodi®erwithmeonotherissues.Ishall

thereforeendeavor,intheforthcomingdiscussions,toex-

tensivelyquotethedictionarysenseofthewords,andnot

sayanythingwhichIcannotbaseeitheronrecognizedus-

age,ortheQur’an.TheorderIshallfollowwillbeIlah,

Rabb,Ibadah,andDeen.

thatifonebelievesanothertobeinapositiontofulﬁll

one’sneeds,toprovideshelterandprotection,tosoothea

disturbedheartandﬁllitwithpeaceandcalm,oneturns

eagerlytothatpersonasamatterofcourse.Wemay

thereforesafelyconcludefromtheabovethattheconno-

tationofthewordilahincludesthecapacitiestofulﬁlthe

needsofothers,togivethemshelterandprotection,to

relievetheirmindsofdistressandagitation,superiority,

andtherequisiteauthorityandpowertodoallthese,to

bemysteriousinsomewayorhiddenfrommen’seyes,and

theturningofmeneagerlytohim.

2. ILAH

2.1.DictionaryMeanings

Therootofthiswordconsistsofthethreeletters,alif,

lam,andhaandtheconnotationsofvariousderivations,

asoneﬁndsinlexiconsareasfollows:

Becameconfusedorperplexed.Achievedpeaceand

mentalcalmbyseekingrefugewithsomeoneorestablishing

relationswithhim.Becamefrightenedofsomeimpending

mishapordisaster,andsomeonegavehimthenecessary

shelter.Turnedtoanothereagerly,duetotheintensityof

hisfeelingsforhim.Thelosto®springoftheshe-camel

rushedtosnuggleuptoitsmotheronﬁndingit.Became

hidden,orconcealed.Also,gotelevated.Adored,o®ered

worshipto.Ifwereﬂectupontheseoriginalmeanings,we

cangainthenecessaryideaofhowtheverbcametomean

theactofworshipandthenountodenotetheobjectof

worship.Therearefourconsiderationstobearinmindin

thisconnection:

Foremostamongthefactorswhichengenderasenti-

mentofsomedegreeofadorationforsomeoneisaper-

son’sownstateofbeingindistressorneed.Hecannot

evenconceiveofworshipingsomeoneunlesshehasreason

tobelievethatsomeonetobeinapositiontoremovehis

distress,tofulﬁlhisneeds,togivehimshelterandprotect

himintimeofdanger,andsoothehistroubledheart.

Itgoeswithoutsayingthattheabovebeliefisaccom-

paniedbyabeliefalsointhesuperiorityoftheotherin

status,power,andstrength.Itisalsoamatteroffact

thatwhereanyoftheneedsofahumanbeingaremetun-

dertheordinaryprocessofgiveandtake,whichtakesplace

perceptiblybeforeone’sowneyes,itleadstonosenseof

reverence,muchlessofadoration,fortheother.Forexam-

ple,ifIshouldbeinneedofmoneyand,havingappliedfor,

andbeengivenajob,ampaidforit,sincethewholetrans-

actionwouldtakeplacewithinthefullkenofmysenses,

andIwouldbefullyawareofthecircumstancesortherea-

sonforgivingmethemoney,Iwouldexperiencenotthe

slightestdesiretoo®ermyemployeranyadoration.That

sentimentarisesonlywhenthereissomeelementofmys-

terysurroundingthepersonality,thepower,ortheability

oftheothertofulﬁlpeoples’needsortoinﬂuenceevents.

Thatiswhythewordchosentodenoteanobjectofworship

includesinitsmeaningsthesensesofmystery,perplexity,

andsuperiorityinstatus,etc.Lastly,itisonlynatural

2.2.ThePre-IslamicConcept

Havingdiscussedthevariousliteralsensesoftheword,

letusnowseewhatthepre-Islamicconceptsofilahwere,

andwhichofthesetheQur’anstrovetoreject:

AndtheyhavetakenfortheirilahsothersthanAllah,

thattheymayaccordingtotheirreckoningbeasourceof

strengthtothem(orthatcomingundertheirprotection

mayconfersecurity).(Quran19:81)

AndtheyhavetakenothersthanAllahastheirilahs

hopingthattheymightbehelpedwhenneeded.(Quran

36:74)

FromthesetwoverseswelearnthattheArabsofthe

Jahiliyyah(thepre-IslamicperiodofIgnorance)believed

thatthosewhomtheyregardedasilahsweretheirpatrons,

wouldcometotheirrescueintimeofdangerordi±culty,

andthatbyplacingthemselvesundertheirprotectionthey

renderedthemselvessafefromfear,molestationorharm.

AndwhentheDecreeofyourLordhadgoneforth(and

thetimecameforitsexecution),theilahstheyusedto

invokeinsteadofAllahprovedofnoavailtothemand

contributedonlytotheirdoom.(Quran11:101)

AndthosewhomthepeoplecalltoinsteadofAl-

lahhavenotcreatedaught,butarethemselvescreatures.

Deadtheyare,andnotalive,andtheyknownotwhen

theywouldberaisedfromtheirstate,therealilahisthe

OneandOnlyIlah.(Quran18:20-21)

Invokenot;orprayto,anyilahalongwithAllah.There

isnoilahbutHe.[Itshouldbeborneinmindthattheword

IlahisusedintheQur’anintwodi®erentsenses,namely,

theobjectorbeing,etc.,towhomworshipisactuallybeing

given,irrespectiveofwhetherrightlyorwrongly,andthe

Beingwhoisreallyworthyofworship.Inthisverse,the

wordisusedintheﬁrstsenseontheﬁrstoccasionandin

theothersenseonthesecond.-.Maududi](Quran28:88)

....Andthosewho,insteadofprayingtoAllah,prayto

Hissupposedassociatesdobutfollowsuppositionsandidle

guesses.(Quran10:66)

Theseversespointtothreeaspects.Theﬁrstisthat

theArabsusedtoaddresstheirprayerstothosewhom

theyregardedastheirilahsandinvokethemintimesof

distressorforfulﬁllmentofanyoftheirneeds.Thesec-

ondisthattheseilahsincludednotonlyJinns,angels,and

gods,butdeadhumanstoo,asonecanseefromthesec-

ondoftheaboveverses.Thethirdisthattheybelieved

thattheseilahscouldheartheirprayersandcouldcome

totheirrescue.

Itseemsdesirabletoclearuponepoint,atthisstage,

aboutthenatureoftheprayermadetotheilahorilahs

andthehelporsuccorsoughtofthem.IfIfeelthirsty,

andcalltomyservanttogivemesomewater,oramun-

wellandcallforadoctorfortreatment,mysummonsto

themdoesnotconstitutedu’a,thatis,ithasnosimilarity

toaprayersentuptoadeity,nordoesthismakeeither

theservantorthedoctorintoanilah.Boththeseare

common,ineverydayhappenings,withnothingofthesu-

pernaturalaboutthem.However,ifIshould,whilefeeling

thirstyorunwell,calltosomesaintorgodinsteadofthe

servantoradoctor,thatobviouslywouldamounttotreat-

ingthesaintorgodasanilahandtomyaddressinga

du’atohim.Addressingaprayertoasaintconﬁnedtohis

gravehundredsoreventhousandsofmilesaway[Inpoint

ofprinciple,itmakesnodi®erenceifthedistancewereof

afewfeetonly,thesigniﬁcantpointbeingtheactofad-

dressingaprayertosomeonewhoisdeadandisbelieved

topossess,evenin,orperhapsbecauseofthatstate,some

extraordinarypowersnotonlyofhearingtheprayerbut

alsoofgrantingitifhesochooses.Itisalsobelievedthat

thesaintmay,ifhecannothimselfgranttheprayer,pass

ituptoGodwitharecommendation..Maududi]clearly

indicatesthatIbelievehim–thoughdead–tobepossessed

ofthepowertolistentoaprayeratsuchadistanceor

tootherwisebeingawareofthingssofaro®or,ifone

mayusetheappropriateArabicwords,tobebothsamee

andbaseer[Literally,thesewords,whichareactuallytwo

ofAllah’spersonalattributes,mean,theAll-Hearingthe

A11-Seeing,respectively.God’sknowledgetranscendsev-

erything,andHeisawareofeverythingthatishappening

anywhere.ThisisnotthecasewithHiscreatures,whose

capacitiesintheserespectsareseverelylimited.Tobelieve

someoneotherthanGodtohavepowertophysicallyhear

prayero®eredoutofhishearingortoseethingshappen-

ingoutofhissightamountstoattributingtohimpowers

whichareGod’sonly,andwhichHehasnevergivento

anyofHiscreatures.Maududi.].Myactionwouldclearly

implybeliefintheirexercisingsuchawayovertherealm

ofcreationastobeabletohavewaterreachmeortomake

merecoverfrommyillness.Inthecaseofagod,myprayer

wouldmeanthatIbelievehimtopossesspoweroverwater

andoverhealthandsickness,andtothereforearrange,by

supernaturalmeans,tofulﬁllmyneeds.Thus,thebasison

whichaprayerisaddressedtosomeoneincludesnecessar-

ilyaconceptofhisbeingpossessedofsomesupernatural

authorityandpower.

And,verily,Wediddestroytheplacesofwhichyou

seeruinsaboutyou,andWeshowedthemOursignsin

diversewaysthattheymightturn(awayfromtheirwrong

waystoUs).Sowhydidnotthosewhomtheyhadmade

theirilahs,andpresumedtohaveaccesstoUs,helpthem

intheirhourofdoom?Farfromhelping,theyabandoned

themandmadethemselvesscarce,exposingthehollow-

nessoftheirfalsehoodsandfabrications.[Thereference

hereobviouslyisnottomythologicalorinanimategods,

buttopriestsandotherswhoexactedpeoples’worshipand

thussetthemselvesupasIlahsinoppositiontotheTrue

Ilah.A.A.Maududi](Quran46:27,28)

AndwhereforeshouldInotgivemyworshiptoHim

whocreatedmeandtoWhomallofyouwillreturn?

ShouldItakeformyselfilahotherthanAllahWho,should

HeWhoisalsoAr-Rahmanwishmeanyharm,willavail

menaughtbytheirintercession,norwilltheybeableto

cometomyrescue?(Quran36:22-23)

AndthosewhohavetakenothersthanAllahaspro-

tectorsorhelperssay,”Wedonotworshipthemexcept

thattheymaybringusclosertoHim.”Allahwilldecide

forthemontheDayofJudgementregardingthatinwhich

theydi®er.(Quran39:3)

AndtheyworshipotherthanAllahthosewhohave

powerneithertoharmnorbeneﬁtthem,andtheysaythat

theyaretheirintercessorswithHim.(Quran10:18)

Whatwelearnfromtheseversesis,ﬁrstly,thatitwas

notthattheArabsbelievedtheirilahstoaccountforthe

wholeofdivinityamongthemselvesorthattherewasno

SupremeBeingoverandabovethem.Theyquiteclearly

believedintheexistenceofsuchaBeingforwhomthey

employedthespecialPropernameof”Allah.”Asfortheir

ilahs,theirbeliefconsistedessentiallyoftheconceptthat

theyenjoyedsomeshareinthedivinityoftheSupreme

God,thattheirwordcarriedsomeweightwithHim,and

thattheirintercessioncouldresultinsomegainsorward

o®someharmorloss.Itwasonthesegroundsthattheyre-

gardedthemasilahsbesidesAllahand,consideringtheir

preceptandpractice,wemaysaythatitwasthebelief

aboutsomeonetohavepowertointercedewithGod,the

actofaddressingofprayerstohimforhelp,theperforming

ofcertaindevotionsindicativeofrespectandreverenceand

adoration,andthemakingofo®erings,thatconstitutedin

theirterminology,thetreatingofHimasilah.AndGod

said:”Donotmaketwoilahs;thereisbutoneilah;So,

fearMealone.”(Quran16:51)

And(Ibrahimsaidtothem):Ifearnotthoseyouas-

sociatewithGod.AnyharmcancometomeonlyifHe

shouldwillit,andnototherwise(throughanyorallof

yoursupposedgods).(Quran6:81)

(AndsaidHud’speopletohim:)Allwethinkofyou

isthatyouareunderthecurseofsomeoneorotherofour

ilahs.(Quran11:54)

Accordingtotheseverses,theArabbeliefabouttheir

ilahswasthatiftheyshouldgivethemanycauseforof-

fenceorshouldotherwisebedeprivedoftheirfavorsand

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