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calling them to Allah alone, urging them to devote all worship exclusively to Him—just as they already acknowledged His sole lordship—and to refrain from invoking anyone alongside Him. The Exalted has said: “To Him belongs the true call, whereas those whom they invoke apart from Him never respond to them in any way” (Q 13:14). He further commanded His servants to say: “You alone we worship and from You alone we seek help” (Q 1:5). A person is truthful in uttering this only when he directs every act of worship to Allah; otherwise he is lying and is forbidden to pronounce these words, for their meaning is: we single You out for worship. The same sense occurs in His statements: “So worship Me alone” (Q 29:56) and “Fear Me alone” (Q 16:52). As is well known in balagha (rhetoric), moving what is normally postponed to the front conveys exclusivity: worship Allah and none besides Him, fear Him and none besides Him.
True tawhid al-‘ibada (oneness in worship) is realized only when all supplication is directed to Him, all cries for relief in hardship and ease are addressed to Him alone, reliance and seeking aid are placed in Him alone; vows, sacrifices, and every form of devotion—humility, standing, bowing, prostration, circumambulation, removing one’s garments, shaving or shortening the hair—are performed solely for Allah, Mighty and Majestic. Whoever performs any of these acts for a created being, whether living or dead, animate or inanimate, has fallen into shirk (association) in worship and divinity. Concerning this Allah revealed: “Say: I am only a human being like you; it is revealed to me that your god is One God. So whoever hopes to meet his Lord, let him do righteous deeds and not associate anyone in the worship of his Lord” (Q 18:110).
Whatever being receives such acts—be it an angel, a prophet, a saint, a grave, or anything else—becomes, by that very fact, a deity to its worshipper, and the person becomes a worshipper of that creature through the very act he has devoted to it, even if he acknowledges Allah’s existence and worships Him as well. The idolaters’ recognition of Allah and their offerings to Him did not absolve them of shirk. In the divine hadith Allah, Exalted is He, says: “I am the One who has least need of partners: whoever performs a deed in which he associates anyone with Me, I abandon him and his association.” Reported by Muslim and others.
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يدعوهم إلى الله وحده بأن يفردوه بالعبادة - كما أفردوه بالربوبية -، وأن لا يدعوا مع الله
أحداً؛ قال تعالى: ﴿لَهُ دَعْوَةُ الحَقِّ وَالَّذِينَ يَدْعُونَ مِن دُونِهِ لَا يَسْتَجِيبُونَ لَهُم بِشَيْءٍ﴾ .
وأمر عباده أن يقولوا: ﴿إِيَّاكَ نَعْبُدُ وإِيَّاكَ نَسْتَعِينُ﴾ . ولا يصدق قائل هذا إلا إذا أفرد
العبادة لله تعالى؛ وإلا كان كاذباً، منهياً عن أن يقول هذه الكلمة؛ إذ معناها: نخصك
بالعبادة ونفردك بها، وهو معنى قوله: ﴿فَإِيَّايَ فَاعْبُدُونِ﴾ . ﴿وَإِيَّايَ فَاتَّقُونِ﴾ . كما
عرف من علم البيان: أن تقديم ما حقه التأخير يفيد الحصر؛ أي: اعبدوا الله، ولا تعبدوا
غيره. واتقوه ولا تتقوا غيره.
فإفراد الله تعالى بتوحيد العبادة لا يتم إلا بأن يكون الدعاء كله له، والنداء في
الشدائد والرخاء لا يكون إلا لله وحده، والاستعانة بالله وحده، واللجوء إلى الله، والنذر
والنحر له تعالى، وجميع أنواع العبادات من الخضوع، والقيام لله تعالى، والركوع،
والسجود، والطواف، والتجرد عن الثياب، والحلق، والقصر كله لا يكون إلا لله عز
وجل، ومن فعل ذلك لمخلوق حي، أو ميت، أو جماد، أو غيره؛ فهذا شرك في العبادة
والألوهية، وفي النهي عن ذلك نزل قوله تعالى ﴿قُلْ إِنَّمَا أَنَا بَشَرٌ مِّثْلُكُمْ يُوحَى إِلَيَّ أَنَّمَا
إِلَهُكُمْ إِلَهٌ وَاحِدٌ فَمَن كَانَ يَرْجُو لِقَاءَ رَبِّهِ فَلْيَعْمَلْ عَمَلًا صَالِحًا وَلَا يُشْرِكْ بِعِبَادَةِ رَبِّهِ
أَحَدًا﴾ . وصار من يُفعل له هذه الأمور إلهاً لعابده سواء كان ملكاً، أو نبياً، أو ولياً، أو
قبراً، أو غير ذلك، وصار بهذه العبادة، أو بأي نوع منها عابداً لذلك المخلوق، وإن أقر بالله
وحده وعبده؛ فإن إقرار المشركين بالله، وتقربهم إليه؛ لم يخرجهم عن الشرك؛ قال الله
﷿ في الحديث القدسي:
" أنا أغنى الشركاء عن الشرك، من عمل عملاً، وأشرك فيه معي غيري؛ تركته
وشركه ".
أخرجه مسلم وغيره.