Did the prohibition of shirk (associating partners with Allah) come in stages?

Question:
He says: Honorable Shaykh, may Allah grant you success. Regarding his statement (peace and blessings be upon him), “Such and such prevented me from forbidding you from it,” you mentioned, may Allah preserve you, that what prevented him (peace and blessings be upon him) was the absence of revelation on that matter. Did the revelation regarding shirk (associating partners with Allah) come in stages, as it did for some rulings? I ask for clarification, may Allah preserve you?

Answer:
Major shirk (associating partners with Allah) is not something whose prohibition came in stages. However, this matter is among the terms people use, and it is not major shirk (associating partners with Allah). As for major shirk (associating partners with Allah), there is no gradualism in it; it is absolutely prohibited, and one must hasten to prohibit it, deny it, and fight against it if they do not comply.