The ruling on prostrating to other than Allah, as occurs among the Baha'irah sect
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
Fatwa number ( 2289 ):
Q1: The chief scholar of Buhara insists that his followers must prostrate to him whenever they visit him. Did this practice exist in the time of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) or the Rightly Guided Caliphs? Recently, a picture was published of a Buhari man prostrating to the chief scholar of Buhara in a well-known Pakistani newspaper dated 6/10/1977 CE. We are attaching that picture for your review.
A1: Prostration is a type of worship that Allah commanded for Himself alone, and a form of nearness that a servant must direct to Allah alone. This is based on the generality of His saying:[An-Nahl 16:36], and His saying: [Al-Anbya 21:25], and His saying: [Fussilat 41:37]. Thus, the Exalted prohibited His servants from prostrating to the sun and the moon, because they are two signs
created by Allah, so they do not deserve prostration or any other type of worship. The Exalted commanded that He alone be singled out for prostration because He is the Creator of them and of all other existing things. Therefore, it is not valid to prostrate to any of the created things other than Him, the Exalted. And based on His saying:[An-Najm 53:59-62], He commanded prostration to Him alone, then He generalized by commanding His servants to direct all types of worship to Him alone, and to none other of the created things. If the state of the Buhara is as mentioned in the question, then their prostration to their chief is worship of him and deifying him, and taking him as a partner with Allah or a god other than Allah. His commanding them to do so, or his being pleased with it, makes him a taghut who calls to the worship of himself. Thus, both the follower and the one followed are disbelievers in Allah, and by this they have exited the religion of Islam, and refuge is sought in Allah.
Q1: The chief scholar of Buhara insists that his followers must prostrate to him whenever they visit him. Did this practice exist in the time of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) or the Rightly Guided Caliphs? Recently, a picture was published of a Buhari man prostrating to the chief scholar of Buhara in a well-known Pakistani newspaper dated 6/10/1977 CE. We are attaching that picture for your review.
A1: Prostration is a type of worship that Allah commanded for Himself alone, and a form of nearness that a servant must direct to Allah alone. This is based on the generality of His saying:
And We certainly sent into every nation a messenger, [saying], "Worship Allah and avoid Taghut."
وَلَقَدْ بَعَثْنَا فِي كُلِّ أُمَّةٍ رَسُولا أَنِ اُعْبُدُوا اللَّهَ وَاجْتَنِبُوا الطَّاغُوتَAnd We sent not before you any messenger except that We revealed to him that, "There is no deity except Me, so worship Me."
وَمَا أَرْسَلْنَا مِنْ قَبْلِكَ مِنْ رَسُولٍ إِلا نُوحِي إِلَيْهِ أَنَّهُ لاَ إِلَهَ إِلا أَنَا فَاعْبُدُونِAnd of His signs are the night and day and the sun and moon. Do not prostrate to the sun or to the moon, but prostate to Allah, who created them, if it should be Him that you worship.
وَمِنْ آيَاتِهِ اللَّيْلُ وَالنَّهَارُ وَالشَّمْسُ وَالْقَمَرُ لاَ تَسْجُدُوا لِلشَّمْسِ وَلاَ لِلْقَمَرِ وَاسْجُدُوا لِلَّهِ الَّذِي خَلَقَهُنَّ إِنْ كُنْتُمْ إِيَّاهُ تَعْبُدُونَcreated by Allah, so they do not deserve prostration or any other type of worship. The Exalted commanded that He alone be singled out for prostration because He is the Creator of them and of all other existing things. Therefore, it is not valid to prostrate to any of the created things other than Him, the Exalted. And based on His saying:
(59) Then at this statement do you wonder? (60) And you laugh and do not weep (61) While you are proudly sporting? (62) So prostrate to Allah and worship [Him].
أَفَمِنْ هَذَا الْحَدِيثِ تَعْجَبُونَ (59) وَتَضْحَكُونَ وَلاَ تَبْكُونَ (60) وَأَنْتُمْ سَامِدُونَ (61) فَاسْجُدُوا لِلَّهِ وَاعْبُدُوا
Source
www.alifta.gov.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.