When does fear of other than Allah become shirk (associating partners with Allah)?
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O Shaykh—may Allah forgive you—regarding the issue of fearing other than Allah, what is the criterion for it being a cause of exiting the religion?
If fear of other than Allah is necessitated by nature and innate disposition, then there is nothing on the person. However, if it is a fear of seeking nearness and glorification, then that is what constitutes shirk (associating partners with Allah). A person’s fear of a lion is permissible; his fear of fire, his fear of drowning, and his fear of an enemy are all permissible. But if the fear of the enemy, in a situation where jihad (struggle in the path of Allah) is obligatory, leads to abandoning the jihad, then that is haram (forbidden).because of His saying, the Exalted: [Al Imran: 15] Now, is your fear of Allah like your fear of a lion? No. Your fear of Allah is a fear of reverence, glorification, and awe. As for your fear of the lion, it is not like that; it is merely a fear of its harm, and you flee from it.
The questioner: What is the ruling on fearing the grave?The Shaykh: This is shirk akbar (major shirk); because the occupant of the grave is not to be feared. One does not fear his supplication, because his deeds have been cut off, and one does not fear his harm, because it has been cut off. This is from shirk akbar (major shirk); because it cannot be anything other than a fear of glorification, love, and the belief that he can benefit or harm, whereas he neither benefits nor harms.
The questioner: A person’s fear of a living person that he might harm him; what is the criterion in this issue?
The Shaykh: Correct, it is not possible for this to be shirk (associating partners with Allah). However, if it prevents him from an obligatory duty, it becomes haram (forbidden) because of that.
O Shaykh—may Allah forgive you—regarding the issue of fearing other than Allah, what is the criterion for it being a cause of exiting the religion?
If fear of other than Allah is necessitated by nature and innate disposition, then there is nothing on the person. However, if it is a fear of seeking nearness and glorification, then that is what constitutes shirk (associating partners with Allah). A person’s fear of a lion is permissible; his fear of fire, his fear of drowning, and his fear of an enemy are all permissible. But if the fear of the enemy, in a situation where jihad (struggle in the path of Allah) is obligatory, leads to abandoning the jihad, then that is haram (forbidden).because of His saying, the Exalted:
That is only Satan who frightens [you] of his supporters. So fear them not, but fear Me, if you are [indeed] believers.
إِنَّمَا ذَلِكُمُ الشَّيْطَانُ يُخَوِّفُ أَوْلِيَاءَهُ فَلا تَخَافُوهُمْ وَخَافُونِ إِنْ كُنْتُمْ مُؤْمِنِينَThe questioner: What is the ruling on fearing the grave?The Shaykh: This is shirk akbar (major shirk); because the occupant of the grave is not to be feared. One does not fear his supplication, because his deeds have been cut off, and one does not fear his harm, because it has been cut off. This is from shirk akbar (major shirk); because it cannot be anything other than a fear of glorification, love, and the belief that he can benefit or harm, whereas he neither benefits nor harms.
The questioner: A person’s fear of a living person that he might harm him; what is the criterion in this issue?
The Shaykh: Correct, it is not possible for this to be shirk (associating partners with Allah). However, if it prevents him from an obligatory duty, it becomes haram (forbidden) because of that.