5 - Believing that any created being deserves worship alongside Allah. This is the belief that Allah has a partner in His divinity, even if it is not accompanied by worship of anyone other than Allah.

All five of these matters fall under “disbelief in matters of belief” or “shirk in matters of belief.”

6 - Worshipping anyone alongside Allah through any form of worship. This is “shirk in worship,” whether one believes that the object of worship brings benefit and causes harm, or claims that it is an intermediary that brings one nearer to Allah. This includes prostrating to an idol.

The difference between this and the preceding point is that this is shirk in action, which contradicts tawhīd in action—that is, devoting worship exclusively to Allah—whereas the preceding point is shirk in belief, which contradicts the belief that Allah alone possesses divinity and deserves worship.

Because belief and action are inseparably linked, this tawhīd is referred to as “tawhīd of divinity” and “tawhīd of worship,” and its opposite as “shirk in divinity” or “shirk in worship.”

7 - Denying Allah’s names and attributes, or any of them.