Exegesis of "La ilaha illa Allah" through the oneness of lordship
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
Question:
If the preacher explains "La ilaha illa Allah" by saying, "There is no creator but Allah, no provider, and no manager but Allah, and that creation and command belong to Allah," and concludes that therefore only Allah is to be worshipped, without addressing the negation of other deities, the negation of shirk (associating partners with Allah), or warning against it, is this sufficient? And what is the complete meaning, in brief?
Answer:
This is a partial explanation. "There is no creator but Allah" is a statement made by Abu Jahl and the early polytheists. They say, "There is no creator but Allah," and they are not among those who created the heavens or the earth to say, "Allah." They acknowledge this. However, when they are told to say "La ilaha illa Allah," they say no. When they are told to say "La ilaha illa Allah," they become arrogant and say,[Sad 38:5]. Therefore, it is necessary to clarify the meaning of "La ilaha illa Allah," which is that there is no true object of worship but Allah. It means that none is called upon but Allah, none is sought for aid but Allah, no vow is made but for Allah, and no sacrifice is offered but for Allah. One must explain the meaning of this, in addition to the fact that there is no creator but Allah and no provider but Allah. While this is necessary, it is not sufficient. The one who is truly worthy of worship, who must be worshipped through prayer, fasting, humility, slaughter, hope, fear, and other acts of worship, is Allah. Whoever attributes this to other than Allah, whether a star, an angel, a dead person, or an idol, becomes a worker for that thing and has thereby associated partners with Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He).
If the preacher explains "La ilaha illa Allah" by saying, "There is no creator but Allah, no provider, and no manager but Allah, and that creation and command belong to Allah," and concludes that therefore only Allah is to be worshipped, without addressing the negation of other deities, the negation of shirk (associating partners with Allah), or warning against it, is this sufficient? And what is the complete meaning, in brief?
Answer:
This is a partial explanation. "There is no creator but Allah" is a statement made by Abu Jahl and the early polytheists. They say, "There is no creator but Allah," and they are not among those who created the heavens or the earth to say, "Allah." They acknowledge this. However, when they are told to say "La ilaha illa Allah," they say no. When they are told to say "La ilaha illa Allah," they become arrogant and say,
Has he made the gods [only] one God? Indeed, this is a
أَجَعَلَ الْآلِهَةَ إِلَٰهًا وَاحِدًا إِنَّ هَٰذَا لَشَيْءٌ
Source
ندوات الجامع الكبير مع الأسئلة - 51 — archive.org (59:35)
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.
