When is a Muslim excused for committing shirk?

Q: Is a Muslim excused if he does something of shirk, such as slaughtering or making a vow for other than Allah, while ignorant?

A: Matters are of two categories: There is a category in which one is excused by ignorance, and a category in which one is not excused by ignorance. If the one who does that is among the Muslims, and he commits shirk with Allah and worships other than Allah, then he is not excused; because he is negligent, having not asked, and not looked into his religion. Thus, he is not excused in his worship of other than Allah, whether dead people, trees, stones, or idols; due to his turning away and heedlessness regarding his religion. As Allah the Exalted said: [Al-Ahqaf: 3]. And because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), when he sought permission from his Lord to seek forgiveness for his mother, because she died in the pre-Islamic age of ignorance, was not permitted to seek forgiveness for her; because she died upon the religion of her people, the worshippers of idols. And because he (peace and blessings be upon him) said to a person who asked him about his father: , and when he saw what was on his face, he said: , because he died upon shirk with Allah and the worship of other than Him (Glorified and Exalted is He). So what about the one who is among the Muslims and worships al-Badawi? Or worships al-Husayn? Or worships Shaykh Abdul Qadir al-Jilani? Or worships the Messenger Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him)? Or worships Ali? Or worships others? These and their like are not excused, a fortiori; because they committed major shirk while they are among the Muslims, and the Qur'an is in their hands. And so is the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) present among them, but they are turning away from it.

And the second category: Those who are excused by ignorance are like the one who grows up in lands far from Islam, at the edges of the world, or for other reasons, such as the people of the period of interruption (al-fatra) and their like, those to whom the message did not reach. These are excused by their ignorance, and their affair is left to Allah (Mighty and Majestic). The correct view is that they will be tested on the Day of Resurrection, and they will be commanded. If they respond, they will enter Paradise, and if they disobey, they will enter the Fire. This is due to the saying of the Exalted and Majestic: [Al-Isra: 15], and due to authentic hadiths that have come regarding this. The scholar Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allah have mercy on him) elaborated on this issue at the end of his book: (Tariq al-Hijratayn), when he mentioned the categories of those obligated. So refer to it there, for its great benefit.