Quranic Dua

O my Lord! Open for me my chest And make my task easy for me. And loosen the knot from my tongue. That they may understand my speech.

(TAHA: 25-28)

O my Lord! Increase me in knowledge.(TAHA: 114)

Allah says in the Quran:

“And whoever associates anything with Allah, then surely he has fabricated a tremendous sin.”

Surah An-Nisa(4:48)

What is Shirk?• The opposite of Tawheed (belief in the Oneness of Allah( s.w.t.) / “MONOTHEISM”.

•To worship anything other than or along with Allah (s.w.t.)

•To believe that anything or anyone shares power with Allah( s.w.t.) or is equal to Him.

Allah says in the Quran

• He Who has made the earth a resting place for you, and the sky a canopy, and sent down rain from the sky, and brought forth therewith fruits as provision for you. So do not set up rivals to Allah while you know (the truth).

Surah Al-Baqarah (2:22)

Allah says in the Quran

• And they have attributed equals to Allah to mislead people from His path.

Surah Ibrahim (14:30)

Hadeeth: It is narrated that The Prophet (PBUH) said:“ Whoever dies claiming that Allah has a rival, will enter hell.”Narrated by Al-Bukhari - 4497, Muslim -92

Types of Shirk

• SHIRK AKBAR (MAJOR SHIRK)

• SHIRK AZGHAR (MINOR SHIRK)

Major Shirk:

•Act of associating a partner other than Allah either in

Lordship ( Rubbobiyyah) Worship ( Uloohiyyah) Attributes (Al-Asma-was’-siffat)

“And when Luqman said to his son while advsing him: O my son! Do not ascribe partners to Allah. Indeed Shirk is a great injustice.”

Surah Luqman (31:13)

Categories of Major Shirk

Associating in supplicationAssociating in intentionAssociating in loving AllahAssociating in obedience of Allah

Examples of Major Shirk Associating in supplication

Associating in intention

“Performing deeds that may be good in themselves but which are done for the sake of this wordly life and not for the sake of Allah.”

Associating in loving Allah

“To love someone or something else more than or as much as one loves Allah”

Allah says in the Quran:

“There are men who take others besides Allah as equal with Him . They love them as much as they should love Allah. But the believers have more love for Allah.”

Surah Al-Baqarah (2:165)

Examples of Major Shirk Associating in loving Allah

Hadeeth:The Prophet,(PBUH), said: “ He who became the slave of the Dinar or the Dirham will perish and be destroyed”.

“Slaves of Dirhams and Dinars”

In todays context:

“Slaves of Dollars”

Part of hadeeth related to Al-Bukhari

Associating in obedience to Allah

“To obey people when they make unlawful things lawful and to believe that it is permissible to follow those who make such legislations.“i.e. Obeying Scholars and Rulers even if they are wrong.

Allah says in the Quran:“They take their priests to be their lords besides Allah.”

Surah At-Tawba(9:31)

Minor Shirk: ( Hidden Shirk)

This type of shirk has been described by Prophet(s.a.w.):

“Ash-Shirk-al-Khafi in the Muslim nation is more inconspicuous than the creeping of the black ant on a black rock in the pitch darkness of the night”

• Forms of shirk which are more inconspicuous (not clearly visible) and unnoticeable when compared to others.

Examples of Minor Shirk

Examples of Minor Shirk To swear with names other than Allah

To adorn something that is believed to be a form of “protection from misfortune”

To believe in charms, amulets, talismans etc.

To believe in “Fortune -Telling “

To believe in Evil Omens

To have Riya

To have no Redha

To be excessive in one’s reverence, respect and “glorification of prophets, pious leaders, sheikhs or imaams

To use ambiguous words that might involve shirk

Examples of Minor Shirk To have Riya

To perform acts of show off in order to gain praise, fame , or for wordly purposes.

In Al Musnad (27742) it is narrated that the Prophet (s.a.w.) said:

“The thing I fear for you most is the minor shirk”. They said: “O Messenger of Allah, what is Minor Shirk?” He said: “Riya – Showing Off” for Allah will say on the Day when people are recompensed for their actions: ‘ Go to them for whom you were showing off their deeds in the world, and see what reward you find with them.’

Classed as saheeh by Al-Albaani in Al-Silsilah Al-Saheehah # 951

Dangers of Shirk Shirk is the only unforgivable sin in the sight of Allah (s.w.t.)

“Indeed Allah does not forgive joining other gods with Him but he forgives other sins than this of whom He pleases. And the one who joins other gods with Allah, indeed he has strayed very far away.”Surah An-Nisa (4: 116)

If a person dies practicing shirk, or not having repented from it, they will not be forgiven.

Dangers of Shirk Shirk prohibits a person from entering paradise

“Indeed he who associates partners with Allah then surely Allah has forbidden Paradise for him, and his abode will be the Fire. And there will be no helpers for the wrongdoers.”

Surah Al-Maida (5: 72)

Dangers of Shirk Shirk is so evil that it destroys all of a person’s good deeds

“And verily, it has been revealed to you and to those who were before you that if you associate (others with Allah) your deeds would surely be among the losers.”

All the actions of a Mushrik ( one who commits shirk or involves in the action of shirk ) will never be rewarded and his whole life would have been a waste.

Surah Az-Zumar (39: 65)

Conclusion

The Prophet (s.a.w.) said: “ Do not commit shirk with Allah, even if you are cut into pieces or burnt.”

Every Muslim should fear and avoid shirk in its major and minor form.

Major shirk puts a person beyond the pale of Islam in other words out of Islam so he becomes a Kufar.

Minor Shirk does not put a person beyond the pale of Islam rather it is done by a Muslim and he still remains in Islam; but one who does that is in great danger because he has committed a major sin.

Ibn Maajah