The Meaning of the Word of Sincerity (La ilaha illa Allah) and an Explanation of Its Conditions and the Disagreement Among People in Understanding It
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The Shaykh : This is, for example, related to one of the pillars of faith. There is also something dangerous, and very dangerous, related to the first pillar of Islam, as he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Sahih al-Bukhari 8 to the end of the hadith. How do the masses of Muslims today understand the testimony of La ilaha illa Allah? They understand it in a general way, without digesting its reality or realizing its meanings within themselves. In fact, some of them understand this good word with a concept other than the correct concept understood by the first Arabs in the pre-Islamic age of ignorance, yet they disbelieved in it. [As-Saffat 37:35] Why? The disbelieving Arabs were arrogant and refused to say La ilaha illa Allah, even though Allah the Exalted related their words, saying: [Luqman 31:25] So, are they believers in Allah? Then why do they not believe in La ilaha illa Allah? Because they distinguished between the oneness of lordship and the oneness of worship. By this distinction, they believed in the oneness of lordship and disbelieved in the oneness of worship. So the Exalted says: [As-Saffat 37:35] Because they understand that the meaning of La ilaha illa Allah is "There is no deity worthy of worship in existence except Allah", and they took other deities alongside Allah, as our Lord also stated explicitly in the Noble Qur'an, saying: [Az-Zumar 39:3] So, they worship other gods alongside Allah, but they do not make these gods partners with Allah in lordship. They do not believe that these gods they worshipped besides Allah create with Allah or provide sustenance with Allah. Rather, they explicitly state in their answer when asked who created the heavens and the earth: .
So, the polytheists believed in one aspect and disbelieved in another. They believed in the oneness of lordship—there is no Lord except Allah—and disbelieved in the oneness of worship. So the Blessed and Exalted said:[As-Saffat 37:35] And they said: .
So, they do not understand from the meaning of La ilaha illa Allah that it means "there is no Lord except Allah" only. They do not understand that La ilaha illa Allah means "there is no deity worthy of worship except Allah," and they do not believe in this. From here arose the enmity between the Messenger (peace be upon him) and the polytheists. They believe that there is no Lord except Allah, but they do not believe that there is no deity worthy of worship except Allah.
So, they distinguish between the Lord and the deity. The deity is the one who is worshipped. So they worshipped others alongside Allah, and this is the shirk (associating partners with Allah) called shirk al-uluhiyyah (shirk in worship) by the scholars.
Many Muslims today, even some of the specialists, and I saw a treatise printed in our land in the Levant by one of the contemporaries, which interpreted La ilaha illa Allah as "there is no Lord except Allah." If a polytheist were to say this interpretation, he would not become a monotheist, because the polytheists used to say "there is no Lord except Allah," but they did not say "there is no deity worthy of worship except Allah," because by their Arabic instinct, they understood that the meaning of "deity" is the one who is worshipped, to whom the hearts submit alone, with no partner. And they used to associate other deities with Allah. So, among their misguidance was that they explicitly stated this in their circumambulation around the House of their Lord. Their reciter would say: "Here I am, O Allah, here I am. You have no partner except a partner that You own and that You control". They gave the Lord of the worlds lordship in its entirety, so there is no creator with Him and no provider with Him, but they worship other gods alongside Allah. They are like them, as the Exalted said: Your invocation [Fatir 35:14] [Al-A'raf 7:194] So they know this, and Allah reminds them of what they know to establish their misguidance against them. So what is the position of Muslims regarding the testimony of La ilaha illa Allah? They interpret it as "there is no Lord except Allah." So they have deviated in their understanding of this testimony. And I have heard one of the preachers in our land, and a discussion took place between us and him regarding the oneness of worship and the oneness of lordship. I said to him, "What do you say about one who calls upon other than Allah in times of distress? He calls for aid from al-Jilani, who is in our land, and al-Baaz, and the distance between him and the one being called is about two thousand kilometers. Even if he were alive, he would not hear him." He said, "This is a permissible matter and is called tawassul (seeking nearness to Allah through a means)." I said to him, "If the one who calls for aid from that righteous man believed that he does not hear him, would he call him? Would a sane person call out to this wall and say, 'O wall, help me, aid me'? Of course not."
So, these Muslims, who may be more devoted to Allah than I am, who stand in prayer at night and fast during the day, but Allah says explicitly in the Qur'an:[Az-Zumar 39:65].
What is the benefit of this worship if it is based on shirk (associating partners with Allah) for Allah the Exalted? These people call out to the distant one, from a far distance, as we said, even if he were alive, he would not be able to respond to them. If he did not believe that he hears his call, he would not call him. If he believed that he does not benefit or harm, he would not ask him for benefit or harm. He said, "No, he does not believe that he benefits and harms, and his belief is that the one who benefits and harms is Allah the Blessed and Exalted." So I formulated for him the following question, and here is the lesson, my brothers. I said to him, "So, if this one who calls for aid expressed what you say is in his heart—you say that he believes that he does not benefit or harm—if he called him saying, 'O so-and-so, O you who do not benefit or harm, help me,' is that permissible?" He said, "It is permissible." Is this person ignorant, uneducated, and common?
The questioner : ... .
The Shaykh : Yes?
It is the most extreme contradiction. But this contradiction is in what? In a branch or in a root? In the root of roots, in the testimony that there is no deity worthy of worship except Allah. And unfortunately, this dominates many...
The questioner : ...[Yusuf 12:106] .
The Shaykh : May Allah bless you. This is a text in the Noble Qur'an.
So, how do we seek salvation from this humiliation while we have not yet realized the first testimony? The first pillar of Islam and the first pillar of faith, La ilaha illa Allah. We understood it in a reversed way, so we took equals alongside Allah the Exalted. And this is a long and very long discussion.
So, O honorable Shaykh, we must agree on a common word. We must explain to Muslims their religion within the limits of the Book and the Sunnah. So when they agree on that intellectually and cooperate...
The questioner : ... .
The Shaykh : Yes?
The questioner : ... .
The Shaykh : I was in this research.
The questioner : ... the multiplicity in this topic. We explain the saying of Allah the Exalted:[Yunus 10:31-32] in the commentary on the hadith: Sunan an-Nasa'i 5001Sahih (Darussalam) May Allah bless you...
The Shaykh : Yes, may Allah preserve you. I believe that this is what the Islamic callers must work on, because this is the foundation of Islam, and what comes after it is easier. If faith and Islam are correct, then what comes after them is correct. Otherwise, as you heard the saying of the Exalted:[Az-Zumar 39:65], yes.
The questioner : Professor, one who believes that lordship... if you please, what is the meaning... its meaning... that is...
The Shaykh : ... that a person does not draw near to Allah except by what Allah has prescribed. And we interpret these two testimonies with other meanings, which may be the answer to what you are asking about. We have indicated that many Muslims do not realize the meaning of La ilaha illa Allah within themselves. So, if we assume that a Muslim understood the meaning of this testimony and this good word, and that it means "There is no deity worthy of worship in existence except Allah the Exalted", and he truly does not worship except Allah the Exalted, but he follows in the religion of Allah one who did not come with what he holds to as evidence from the Book and the Sunnah, and he takes him as a follower, and Allah the Exalted says regarding the Jews and Christians, or rather the Christians:[At-Tawbah 9:31] And the hadith of 'Adi ibn Hatim came, yes. He said, when the verse was revealed, "By Allah, O Messenger of Allah, in what we think, we did not take them as lords besides Allah." He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: He said, "Yes." He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: .
The questioner : .
The Shaykh : Yes?
'Aid 'Abassi:.
The Shaykh : Yes, so today, if I say to one of the Muslims—and I do not mean the common people, because the common people are not responsible; their responsibility is on the specialists—if I say to him, "Allah said, His Messenger said," he confronts you by saying, "The Imam said" or "The school of jurisprudence said." Is this not the case?
The questioner : Or he said... this...
The Shaykh : There is no problem with this.
The questioner : ... .
The Shaykh : No, this is clear, Professor, but the problem...
The questioner : ... the Shaykh.
The Shaykh : The problem lies in sanctifying our Imams beyond the sanctity that is due to them from us. As for Marx, Lenin, Stalin, and so on, the Imams of the tyrants and disbelief, this is open disbelief.
Therefore, realizing the meaning of *La ilaha illa Allah* is that one does not take the words of any of Allah's servants as a law for oneself, for Allah (Mighty and Majestic) says:[Ash-Shuraa 42:21] For this reason, Al-Fakhr al-Razi says in his exegesis of the previous verse that this verse applies to those who follow scholars blindly (*muqallids*) who take the school of jurisprudence (*madhhab*) as the primary source and the Qur'an as the secondary. So, whatever from the Book and the Sunnah agrees with the school, they adopt it, and whatever does not, they interpret it figuratively (*ta'wil*) as stated by one of the Imams of the principles of jurisprudence, who said: If there is a contradiction between a verse or a hadith and the school of jurisprudence,
The questioner : it is abrogated.
...
The Shaykh : Yes, in the text of his statement?
'Aid 'Abassi: Every verse that contradicts the opinion of our scholars is interpreted figuratively or abrogated, and every hadith is likewise interpreted figuratively or abrogated.
The Shaykh : They made the school of jurisprudence the primary source, and this Qur'an followed the primary source.
Islam is based on (the following) five (principles): 1. To testify that none has the right to be worshipped but Allah and Muhammad is Allah's Messenger (ﷺ).
بُني الإسلام على خمس شهادة أن لا إله إلا الله وأن محمدا رسول اللهwhen it was said to them, "There is no deity but Allah," were arrogant
إذا قيل لهم لا إله إلا الله يستكبرونAnd if you asked them, "Who created the heavens and earth?" they would surely say, "Allah."
ولئن سألتهم من خلق السماوات والأرض ليقولن اللهwhen it was said to them, "There is no deity but Allah," were arrogant
إذا قيل لهم لا إله إلا الله يستكبرونAnd those who take protectors besides Him [say], "We only worship them that they may bring us nearer to Allah in position."
والذين اتخذوا من دونه أولياء ما نعبدهم إلا ليقربونا إلى الله زلفىThey will say, "Allah"
ليقولن اللهSo, the polytheists believed in one aspect and disbelieved in another. They believed in the oneness of lordship—there is no Lord except Allah—and disbelieved in the oneness of worship. So the Blessed and Exalted said:
when it was said to them, "There is no deity but Allah," were arrogant
إذا قيل لهم لا إله إلا الله يستكبرونHave you made the gods one god? This is indeed something astonishing.
أجعل الألهة إله واحدا إن هذا لشيء عجابSo, they do not understand from the meaning of La ilaha illa Allah that it means "there is no Lord except Allah" only. They do not understand that La ilaha illa Allah means "there is no deity worthy of worship except Allah," and they do not believe in this. From here arose the enmity between the Messenger (peace be upon him) and the polytheists. They believe that there is no Lord except Allah, but they do not believe that there is no deity worthy of worship except Allah.
So, they distinguish between the Lord and the deity. The deity is the one who is worshipped. So they worshipped others alongside Allah, and this is the shirk (associating partners with Allah) called shirk al-uluhiyyah (shirk in worship) by the scholars.
Many Muslims today, even some of the specialists, and I saw a treatise printed in our land in the Levant by one of the contemporaries, which interpreted La ilaha illa Allah as "there is no Lord except Allah." If a polytheist were to say this interpretation, he would not become a monotheist, because the polytheists used to say "there is no Lord except Allah," but they did not say "there is no deity worthy of worship except Allah," because by their Arabic instinct, they understood that the meaning of "deity" is the one who is worshipped, to whom the hearts submit alone, with no partner. And they used to associate other deities with Allah. So, among their misguidance was that they explicitly stated this in their circumambulation around the House of their Lord. Their reciter would say: "Here I am, O Allah, here I am. You have no partner except a partner that You own and that You control". They gave the Lord of the worlds lordship in its entirety, so there is no creator with Him and no provider with Him, but they worship other gods alongside Allah. They are like them, as the Exalted said:
Indeed, those you call upon other than Allah are servants like you. If you call them, they will not hear your call, and even if they did hear
إن الذين تدعون من دون الله عباد أمثالكم إن تدعوهم لا يسمعوا دعاءكم ولو سمعواthey would not respond to you
ما استجابوا لكمIndeed, those you [polytheists] call upon besides Allah are servants like you
إن الذين تدعون من دون الله عباد أمثالكمSo, these Muslims, who may be more devoted to Allah than I am, who stand in prayer at night and fast during the day, but Allah says explicitly in the Qur'an:
that if you should associate [anything] with Allah, your work would surely become worthless, and you would surely be among the losers."
لئن أشركت ليحبطن عملك ولتكونن من الخاسرينWhat is the benefit of this worship if it is based on shirk (associating partners with Allah) for Allah the Exalted? These people call out to the distant one, from a far distance, as we said, even if he were alive, he would not be able to respond to them. If he did not believe that he hears his call, he would not call him. If he believed that he does not benefit or harm, he would not ask him for benefit or harm. He said, "No, he does not believe that he benefits and harms, and his belief is that the one who benefits and harms is Allah the Blessed and Exalted." So I formulated for him the following question, and here is the lesson, my brothers. I said to him, "So, if this one who calls for aid expressed what you say is in his heart—you say that he believes that he does not benefit or harm—if he called him saying, 'O so-and-so, O you who do not benefit or harm, help me,' is that permissible?" He said, "It is permissible." Is this person ignorant, uneducated, and common?
The questioner : ... .
The Shaykh : Yes?
It is the most extreme contradiction. But this contradiction is in what? In a branch or in a root? In the root of roots, in the testimony that there is no deity worthy of worship except Allah. And unfortunately, this dominates many...
The questioner : ...
And most of them believe not in Allah except while they associate others with Him.
وما يؤمن أكثرهم بالله إلا وهم مشركونThe Shaykh : May Allah bless you. This is a text in the Noble Qur'an.
So, how do we seek salvation from this humiliation while we have not yet realized the first testimony? The first pillar of Islam and the first pillar of faith, La ilaha illa Allah. We understood it in a reversed way, so we took equals alongside Allah the Exalted. And this is a long and very long discussion.
So, O honorable Shaykh, we must agree on a common word. We must explain to Muslims their religion within the limits of the Book and the Sunnah. So when they agree on that intellectually and cooperate...
The questioner : ... .
The Shaykh : Yes?
The questioner : ... .
The Shaykh : I was in this research.
The questioner : ... the multiplicity in this topic. We explain the saying of Allah the Exalted:
(31) Say, "Who provides for you from the heaven and the earth? Or who controls hearing and sight and who brings the living out of the dead and brings the dead out of the living and who arranges [every] matter?" They will say, "Allah," so say, "Then will you not fear Him?" (32) For that is Allah, your Lord, the Truth. And what can be beyond truth except error? So how are you averted?
قل من يرزقكم من السماء والأرض أم من يملك السمع والأبصار ومن يخرج الحي من الميت ويخرج الميت من الحي ومن يدبر الأمر فسيقولون الله فقل أفلا تتقون فذلكم الله ربكم الحق فماذا بعد الحق إلا الضلال فأنى تصرفونIslam is built on five (pillars): Testimony that there is none worthy of worship except Allah
بُنِي الإسلام على خمس شهادة أن لا إله إلا اللهThe Shaykh : Yes, may Allah preserve you. I believe that this is what the Islamic callers must work on, because this is the foundation of Islam, and what comes after it is easier. If faith and Islam are correct, then what comes after them is correct. Otherwise, as you heard the saying of the Exalted:
if you should associate [anything] with Allah, your work would surely become worthless
لئن أشركت ليحبطن عملكThe questioner : Professor, one who believes that lordship... if you please, what is the meaning... its meaning... that is...
The Shaykh : ... that a person does not draw near to Allah except by what Allah has prescribed. And we interpret these two testimonies with other meanings, which may be the answer to what you are asking about. We have indicated that many Muslims do not realize the meaning of La ilaha illa Allah within themselves. So, if we assume that a Muslim understood the meaning of this testimony and this good word, and that it means "There is no deity worthy of worship in existence except Allah the Exalted", and he truly does not worship except Allah the Exalted, but he follows in the religion of Allah one who did not come with what he holds to as evidence from the Book and the Sunnah, and he takes him as a follower, and Allah the Exalted says regarding the Jews and Christians, or rather the Christians:
They have taken their scholars and monks as lords besides Allah
اتخذوا أحبارهم ورهبانهم أربابا من دون اللهWere you not such that when they forbade you what was lawful, you forbade it, and when they made lawful for you what was forbidden, you made it lawful?
ألستم كنتم إذا حرّموا لكم حلالا حرّمتموه وإذا حلّلوا لكم حراما حلّلتموه؟That is your taking them as lords besides Allah.
فذاك اتخاذكم إياهم أربابا من دون اللهThe questioner :
That is their worship
تلك عبادتهمThe Shaykh : Yes?
'Aid 'Abassi:
That is their worship
تلك عبادتهمThe Shaykh : Yes, so today, if I say to one of the Muslims—and I do not mean the common people, because the common people are not responsible; their responsibility is on the specialists—if I say to him, "Allah said, His Messenger said," he confronts you by saying, "The Imam said" or "The school of jurisprudence said." Is this not the case?
The questioner : Or he said... this...
The Shaykh : There is no problem with this.
The questioner : ... .
The Shaykh : No, this is clear, Professor, but the problem...
The questioner : ... the Shaykh.
The Shaykh : The problem lies in sanctifying our Imams beyond the sanctity that is due to them from us. As for Marx, Lenin, Stalin, and so on, the Imams of the tyrants and disbelief, this is open disbelief.
Therefore, realizing the meaning of *La ilaha illa Allah* is that one does not take the words of any of Allah's servants as a law for oneself, for Allah (Mighty and Majestic) says:
Or have they other deities who have ordained for them a religion to which Allah has not consented?
أم لهم شركاء شرعوا لهم من الدين ما لم يأذن به اللهThe questioner : it is abrogated.
...
The Shaykh : Yes, in the text of his statement?
'Aid 'Abassi: Every verse that contradicts the opinion of our scholars is interpreted figuratively or abrogated, and every hadith is likewise interpreted figuratively or abrogated.
The Shaykh : They made the school of jurisprudence the primary source, and this Qur'an followed the primary source.