Al-Shawkānī (may Allah have mercy on him) said in a treatise on the obligation to affirm the oneness of Allah, Glorious and Exalted is He, after citing some of these texts: “These clear verses demonstrate that Allah, Glorious and Exalted is He, requires His servants to call upon Him. This alone is sufficient to establish that supplication is an act of worship. How much clearer is this when coupled with the prohibition against invoking anyone besides Allah, Glorified is He? Allah, Glorious and Exalted is He, says: ‘So do not invoke anyone along with Allah.’1 He, Exalted is He, also says: ‘To Him alone belongs the true invocation. Those whom they invoke besides Him do not respond to them in any way.’2 Glorified is He, censuring those who invoke another besides Him and setting forth a comparison for them, says: ‘Indeed, those whom you invoke besides Allah are servants like yourselves.’3 He, Exalted is He, also says: ‘Say, “Invoke those whom you claim besides Allah. They do not possess even an atom’s weight in the heavens or on earth.”’4

“How much more decisive, then, when the Noble Quran expressly declares supplication to be worship, so plainly that no doubter can retain any doubt? Allah, Exalted is He, says: ‘Call upon Me, and I will answer you. Indeed, those who are too proud to worship Me will enter Hell utterly humbled.’5 In this verse, Allah, Glorified is He, commanded His servants to call upon Him and made His response the reward for their calling upon Him, saying: ‘I will answer you.’ The verb is therefore in the jussive because it is the response to the imperative. He then threatened them for being too proud to perform this act of worship