, the most abundant share. It likewise received the greatest portion of the Messenger’s ﷺ preaching and concern; for he spent thirteen years in Mecca calling to tawḥīd (pure monotheism) and rectifying belief. When Allah granted him the conquest of Mecca, the very first thing he did was demolish the idols and eradicate them, commanding that worship be devoted exclusively to Allah alone, without partner.
The scholars of this ummah also devoted a considerable part of their efforts, striving, teaching, and writing to this subject, so much so that works on creed now occupy a vast space in the Islamic library and hold pride of place among its contents.
I therefore wished to contribute—though but a modest effort—to this noble endeavor, and so I penned these pages for the reader. They do not present anything new; rather, they bring certain information closer at hand, and perhaps connect that information to the realities and practices of people today so that the ruling on such practices becomes clear, the error of those who engage in them is made manifest—so they may repent—and as advice to others that they may beware.
I have drawn these pages from the books of the leading imams of the religion and scholars of the Muslims: the writings of Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah, his student Ibn al-Qayyim, his student the ḥadith master Ibn Kathir, and the works of Shaykh al-Islam Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd al-Wahhāb and his students, the imams of the reformist daʿwah—especially the book Fath al-Majīd.
I make no claim to originality; I merely hope to have made some points more accessible and linked them to people’s present reality whenever a suitable occasion arose.
The origin of this book was a series of episodes broadcast on Qur’an Radio in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. I had no intention of publishing them in book form, were it not for Allah’s decree—Exalted is He—and then the suggestion of some noble brothers to gather, organize, and publish them so that their benefit might, by Allah’s will, endure. I hope that there is good in this, and that it be