The Ruling on Minor Shirk on the Day of Resurrection

Question:
The Shaykh told me, may Allah forgive me, what is the ruling on minor shirk (associating partners with Allah) on the Day of Resurrection? Does it fall under the saying of Allah the Exalted , or does it fall under His saying , with the permission of Allah?

Answer:
This is a matter of disagreement among the scholars. Some scholars hold that it falls under the saying , which means that one is certainly punished for it, but does not remain in the Fire forever. One is certainly punished for minor shirk, so neither forgiveness nor pardon enters it, but he does not remain in the Fire forever. He is considered among the people of major sins. The second opinion is that it falls under the general meaning of the saying of Allah the Exalted , so Allah pardons its owner, because what Allah does not forgive is major shirk, whereas minor shirk falls under the general scope of the will for forgiveness. The scholars who hold this view base it on the preponderance of good deeds and bad deeds. If a person’s good deeds outweigh his bad deeds, he is forgiven even if he has minor shirk. But if the opposite is the case, and his bad deeds outweigh his good deeds, then he is not forgiven.