It follows, then, that every pursuit is vain unless it attains an end sought for its own sake. If that end is not Allah, it too is vain, for what is sought for its own sake is what is worshipped. When someone worships anything other than Allah, it is vain, and his worship is vain, because there is no benefit in it or in worshipping it; rather, that is pure harm.

Allah Most High says:

“He invokes one whose harm is closer than his benefit.”

This applies to every object of worship other than Allah. This is the very essence of religion. Allah created His creatures only to worship Him alone, without any partner, and subjected to them whatever is in the heavens and whatever is on earth so that they might use it to help them worship Him. Whoever does not use these things to help him worship Allah—all his work and his purpose are vain and yield no benefit; rather, they cause harm. Thus, every pursuit and every object sought other than Allah is vain, whether it is sought for its own sake or for the sake of something other than Allah. What is true is to seek Allah, or to seek what helps one seek Allah.

This establishes the meaning of the saying:

“Indeed, everything apart from Allah is vain,”

in one of the two senses of what is true and what is vain: namely, with regard to what is intended and sought. This is the more apparent of the two senses.

The second:

Everything apart from Allah is nonexistent in itself. Of itself, it has no existence, movement, action, or benefit to offer another, for all of that is Allah’s creation, origination, bringing into being, and fashioning. Thus, if Allah leaves things to themselves, they are vain. Nothing more is needed for their nonexistence and nullity than His leaving them to themselves and not sustaining them through His creation and provision. Since they are vain in themselves—while what is real belongs to Allah alone, is through Allah, and comes from Allah—the saying:

“Indeed, everything apart from Allah is vain,”

is true in two respects: