and to bring about—and as a consequence, one slips into shirk in worship by slaughtering animals for them, praying to them, and drawing near to them through every kind of devotional offering.

The second nullifier cited by the Shaykh—“whoever sets up intermediaries between himself and Allah,” and so on—is of the very same kind practiced by the first idolaters. Yet this form is admittedly lighter than that of someone who worships an object while believing it can benefit or harm, for such a person combines the two kinds of shirk. Allah, exalted is He, has appointed no intermediary between Himself and His servants in the realm of worship; rather, He has commanded them to turn to Him alone, without partner. What He has established is an intermediary in the conveyance of His law: the messengers. The messengers are intermediaries between Allah and His slaves, and there is no path for people to know their Lord, to learn His religion, and to understand His sacred law except through the messengers, peace and blessings be upon them. They are the intermediaries for transmitting Allah’s revelation, and this mediation is legitimate. Whoever claims to be independent of the messengers’ mediation in knowing Allah, in learning His religion, or in discovering what draws one near to Him is an unbeliever. Allah knows best.