Explanation of the Author's Statement: The Chapter on the Interpretation of Tawhid (the oneness of Allah) and the Testimony that There is No Deity but Allah, and the Statement of Allah the Exalted

The Shaykh : Then he said "The Chapter on the Interpretation of Tawhid (the oneness of Allah) and the Testimony that There is No Deity but Allah". The word "interpretation" (tafsir) means uncovering and clarification. It is derived from the phrase "I peeled the fruit of its skin" and from the statement "I peeled off my clothes, so what was behind them became clear." The interpretation of a thing means uncovering it and clarifying it. From this comes the interpretation of the Noble Qur'an. And regarding the word "Tawhid" (the oneness of Allah), what is Tawhid? Do we say it is making a thing one, or believing that a thing is one?
The student: Believing.

The Shaykh : In this context, it is believing... We made Allah one because He is one and has no partner. But the intended meaning of Tawhid (the oneness of Allah) is believing that Allah is one. Yes, that a person believes that. And his statement "and the Testimony that There is No Deity but Allah" is conjoined to "Tawhid", meaning the interpretation of the Testimony that There is No Deity but Allah. Its conjunction to Tawhid is from the category of conjoining synonyms, because Tawhid in reality is the Testimony that There is No Deity but Allah. This is Tawhid. So its conjunction to it is from the category of conjoining synonyms. Yes. And it has been mentioned to us previously that words are divided into four categories: distinct, synonymous, and shared. Yes. And there is something that is distinct but has a unified word and meaning, but they do not lack the four categories of words with their meanings. Either the word and meaning are unified, or the meaning is multiple and the word is unified, or the meaning is unified and the word is multiple, or the meaning and word are unified. If the word has only... one, like this hadith, its word and meaning are unified. If a word has multiple meanings, it is called a shared word. If the meaning is one and has multiple words, it is called a synonym. It is called a synonym. Yes. For example, "bar" (wheat) and "qamh" (wheat) are two things, and "insan" (human) and "ashya'" (things) are many. Here, "interpretation" and "Testimony that There is No Deity but Allah" are from the category of conjoining synonyms because the meaning is one and the word is multiple.
And the statement of Allah the Exalted. So this chapter is important because, since the discussion on Tawhid (the oneness of Allah) and the call to Tawhid has preceded, the soul now stretches out: What is this Tawhid for which you have made these chapters? Yes, its obligation, its virtue, and the call to it. What is this? It needs interpretation. Is that so, Ya Salih?
He says: "And the statement of Allah the Exalted:

Those whom they invoke seek means of access to their Lord, [striving as to] which of them would be nearest

أولئك الذين يدعون يبتغون إلى ربهم الوسيلة أيهم أقرب

[Al-Isra 17:57]

" Allah the Exalted said: "Those": This is the subject (mubtada'). "Whom they invoke": This is the relative clause (salah al-mawsul). The sentence "They seek": This is the predicate (khabar) of the subject. The sentence "They seek" is the predicate of the subject. Meaning, these are the ones whom they invoke. These invoked ones themselves seek to their Lord the means of approach. They seek to their Lord the means of approach. Which of them is nearest? Give us your understanding, everyone. So, "Those" is the subject, and "whom" is a substitute (badal) for it. "They invoke" is the relative clause. "They seek" is the predicate of the subject, the predicate of "Those." Meaning, those who are invoked themselves seek the means of approach to Allah. Which of them is nearest? Yes. How is it that you invoke them while they are in need and lacking? This is truly foolishness. This applies to everyone who is invoked while he is an invoker, like 'Isa ibn Maryam (peace be upon him) and like the angels who are worshipped besides Allah. Yes, and 'Uzayr, if he was worshipped, because the "ya" in the Qur'an indicates that he is the son of Allah. In any case, it includes everyone who is invoked while he is an invoker. As for the stone and the tree, this does not fall under the verse. This does not fall under the verse. What is before this verse? Say: "Invoke those you claim besides Him. They cannot remove any harm from you nor change it."
The student: They cannot remove any harm from you nor change it.

The Shaykh : These are the ones you claim besides Allah to be awliya (close friends of Allah). They cannot remove harm nor transfer it, nor remove it, nor transfer it from one place to another, nor move it away from you. Where did you get this from? Why? Because they themselves are seeking. And his statement "they seek" and his statement "they invoke." What does "they invoke" mean? They worship. They worship. And it may be a call for a request (du'a' mas'alah), because these invoked ones are invoked in both types. They are invoked with a call for a request, like those who invoke 'Ali ibn Abi Talib when they fall into hardship, saying, "O 'Ali, save us." Yes. And like those who invoke the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). They invoke the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him): "O most noble of creation, I have no one to take refuge in but You when the general calamity befalls."
The student: ...

The Shaykh : It is not possible that these people invoke them with a call for a request. It is a call of worship (du'a' 'ibadah), that they humble themselves to them by drawing near and making vows. They make vows to them, prostrate to them, and bow to them. And his statement "they seek" means they ask. It means they ask. And his statement: "The means of approach" is the thing that leads them to Allah. Meaning, they ask for what will be a means of approach to Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He. To whom? To Allah. And also What is the connection of this to this chapter? Because the author says Tawhid (the oneness of Allah) and the interpretation of the Testimony that There is No Deity but Allah. Yes.

The questioner : Whether it is the invalidity of those who invoke the righteous and the angels and invoke Allah, Mighty and Majestic. And as for the fact that all creation needs Allah, it is not permissible to invoke them or worship them.

The Shaykh : Meaning, the point of connection is that this is contrary to Tawhid (the oneness of Allah). It is contrary to Tawhid because these people invoke other than Allah. And whoever invokes other than Allah, even if he invokes Allah, is not a monotheist. He is not a monotheist. Yes. Because the monotheist is the one who makes a thing one, meaning he takes it as one and believes it is one. He believes it and takes it, and he does not make another with it. The reality is that there is some obscurity in the connection of this chapter. There is some obscurity because the connection we mentioned has some clarity, in that it does not give the noble verse. It gives the interpretation of Tawhid exactly. But we might say that the point of that is that these people who invoke these, and they themselves seek to Allah the means of approach, did not make Allah, Mighty and Majestic, one. They invoked those who do not benefit them.
The student: ...

The Shaykh : Yes
The student: Its opposite...

The Shaykh : Yes
The student: ...

The Shaykh : In any case, the intended meaning is the interpretation of Tawhid (the oneness of Allah). Second: "And his statement:

And [mention, O Muhammad], when Abraham said to his father and his people, "Indeed, I am

وإذ قال إبراهيم لأبيه وقومه إنني

[Az-Zukhruf 43:26]

" Yes.
The student: ...

The Shaykh : Yes
The student: ...

The Shaykh : No, the author did not intend it. It appears from that that there is not... because the point of the evidence is his statement: