Why was shirk (associating partners with Allah) the greatest of sins?
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner : Why was shirk (associating partners with Allah) the greatest of sins?
The Shaykh : Because He is the one who has the greatest right over you?
The questioner : ...
The Shaykh : If you say "people," the intended meaning is: Who has the greatest right over you out of everything in the universe? It is Allah (Mighty and Majestic), because He is the One who created you, provided for you, and prepared for you. He bestowed His blessings upon you. So if you make a rival for Him, that is the most disbelieving of responses to His blessings. But if you disobeyed your parents or placed someone among the people in their position, that would be less than shirk (associating partners with Allah).
The Shaykh : Because He is the one who has the greatest right over you?
The questioner : ...
The Shaykh : If you say "people," the intended meaning is: Who has the greatest right over you out of everything in the universe? It is Allah (Mighty and Majestic), because He is the One who created you, provided for you, and prepared for you. He bestowed His blessings upon you. So if you make a rival for Him, that is the most disbelieving of responses to His blessings. But if you disobeyed your parents or placed someone among the people in their position, that would be less than shirk (associating partners with Allah).