Sh.Ammar Alshukry

The Danger of Shirk and the Language Around Us

The Prophet ﷺ was approached by some of the new Muslims who accepted Islam after the conquest of Mecca. On the way to Hunayn, an interesting incident happened. Those new Muslims who had accepted Islam after the conquest of Mecca came to the Prophet ﷺ and said, "O Messenger of Allah, make for us a tree that we would hang our swords on for barakah." They used to consider that as something that would bless them, bless their armor, bless their swords.

And so these new Muslims came to Rasulullah ﷺ and they said, "Can you make for us a tree that we can hang our swords on, like they have a tree?" And so the Prophet ﷺ responded with a statement of amazement: "These are the sunan." Then he said, "You will follow the paths of those before you." And he said, "You said exactly like the children of Israel said to Musa ﷺ." The Bani Israel said to Musa ﷺ, "O Musa, make for us a god like they have gods — make for us an idol like they have idols." And he said, "You are a people who are tajhaloon — you are a people who are ignorant."

And so the question is: how is the Prophet ﷺ able to draw a parallel between the companions innocently, seemingly innocently, wanting simply a tree that they can hang their swords on, and Bani Israel coming to Musa ﷺ and saying, "Can you make for us an idol like they have idols?" And the Prophet ﷺ said, "You will follow the path of those who came before you." We are going to follow that path.

And so the question becomes: how exactly do we end up mistakenly following the paths of those who came before us?

The Message of Every Prophet: Worship Allah Alone

Allah says: We have sent in every community, every nation, a messenger. And that messenger — every single one of them — came with the same message: Worship Allah and shun false idols. We know that the purpose of our existence is to worship Allah. And the Prophets were sent with that message. And the greatest crime that a person can commit in this life is that they forego the very reason why they have been created, and they worship other than Allah.

The Prophet ﷺ was sent to call people to the worship of God. And Allah in this revelation that Rasulullah ﷺ was given tells us that shirk is dhulmun azeem.

Allah says in Surah Luqman: And when Luqman said to his son while advising him:

"O my dear son, never associate anything with Allah in worship. For associating others with Him is truly the worst of all things." It is the greatest oppression. It is the misplacing of rights. That Allah — who is the one deserving of our worship, our love, our fear, and our hope — that that fear, love, hope, and worship becomes directed to anyone other than Allah. That is the greatest oppression. And it is shirk. It is dhulmun azeem — it is great, great oppression.

The One Sin Allah Will Not Forgive

It is the greatest sin that Allah does not forgive on the Day of Judgment. Allah mentions this verse twice in Surah An-Nisa:

Allah will never forgive that shirk be done with Him — meaning on the Day of Judgment. In this life, if a person repents from shirk, i.e., accepts Islam, it is forgiven. But on the Day of Judgment, if a person comes having not repented from shirk, Allah says: this is the one sin that I am never going to forgive. وَيَغْفِرُ مَا دُونَ ذَٰلِكَ لِمَن يَشَاءُ — And He forgives whatever is less than that to whoever He wills.

Unknowingly Falling Into Shirk

The Prophet ﷺ is bringing us to an awareness that people might unknowingly fall into a type of shirk. And in fact, the Prophet ﷺ used to teach us to make a du'a:

"O Allah, I seek refuge in You from committing shirk with You while I know, and I seek Your forgiveness for what I am not aware of."

But we live in a time and place. And every time and every place has its challenges, its language, and its... But the time and place that you and I live in now, this لا إله إلا الله that we have been commanded to believe in and to understand — we have language around us that diminishes the reality of this لا إله إلا الله.

لا إله إلا الله meaning that there is no one who creates other than Allah. لا إله إلا الله meaning there is no one who is worthy of worship other than Allah. There is no one to be hoped in other than Allah. There is no one who has the power to benefit me other than Allah. No one has the power to harm me other than Allah.

And yet we see prevalent in modern American language the idea of good luck charms and superstition — having a special ring that I wear, or having a gemstone that will protect me. All of this is ascribing power to help, or preserve, or protect, or cure, other than Allah. We don't believe in any of these rituals, and all of them take away from لا إله إلا الله. They diminish لا إله إلا الله.

The 70,000 Who Enter Jannah Without Account

The Prophet ﷺ said that there are going to be 70,000 of his ummah who will enter Jannah on the Day of Judgment without any account. And when he was asked who they are, he said:

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 5705; Sahih Muslim, Hadith 218)

They are the ones who do not believe in superstition (la yatatayyaroon), who do not seek ruqya to be done on them (la yastarqoon), who do not cauterize themselves with fire (la yaktawoon), and who rely completely on their Lord (wa ala rabbihim yatawakkaloon). Meaning they perfect tawhid. They have complete and utter reliance — their heart does not waver from the station of reliance on Allah, no matter the means that are in front of them. And they do take the means, because you are supposed to take the means. But as far as their heart goes, their heart does not waver from recognizing what the Prophet ﷺ said:

(Sunan al-Tirmidhi, Hadith 2516 — graded Sahih)

"Know that if the entire world were to gather to benefit you, they would not be able to benefit you except with something that Allah has already written for you. And if the entire world were to gather to harm you, they would not be able to harm you except with something that Allah has written for you."

Allah says:

Who is the one who removes harm from the one who is in distress when they call upon Him? Who is the one who does that? And removes that harm? And makes you successors, replacing each other in this land? Is there a god other than Allah?

The Language Around Us Diminishes Tawhid

We should reflect on why we currently live in a society where things are ascribed to everything other than Allah. You can ascribe things to "mother nature," you can speak out and "the universe will respond," you can talk about vibes, you can talk about energy, you can talk about "I'm sending positive energy your way" and "I'm receiving positive energy." The only thing that is awkward to mention is God. The only thing that is awkward to mention is Allah.

We see this pattern with all sorts of mantras. We see this with regards to influencers. We see this with regards to politicians sending "thoughts" — not even "thoughts and prayers" anymore. And so the importance of always reminding ourselves of the effect that language has on belief, and the effect of the words that we choose — "This is Capricorn energy," "Sagittarius energy." Allah is the one who creates your character.

And so when the Prophet ﷺ praised a companion for his character, the companion did not say, "Ya Rasulullah, is this because I'm a Virgo?" He said, "Ya Rasulullah, is this a characteristic that Allah gave me? Or is it a characteristic that I naturally have?" And he said, "No, it is a characteristic that Allah gave you. It's not because of your zodiac sign — it's because Allah gave it to you." And he said, الحمد لله الذي جبلني على ما يحب — "All praise is due to Allah who created me in a way that He loves."

And so a person ascribing the characteristics that they have to Allah — and not to anyone else — it is important. We are constantly swimming against the current, and alhamdulillah, Islam is powerful enough for us to swim against the current all of our lives. But we do need to continue to remind each other of the importance of language, its effect on our psychology, and its effect on our belief — because we have been commanded to believe in لا إله إلا الله and we have been commanded to worship Him.

I say what you have heard, and I ask Allah's forgiveness for me and for you, so ask forgiveness from Him — He is the Forgiving, the Merciful.

Alhamdulillah wa salatu salamu ala Rasulillah wa ala alihi wa sahbihi wa sallim tasliman kathiran.

We Do Not Get to Choose What Is and Isn't a Big Deal

A person may be saying: what you're talking about is not a big deal. You're talking about a person saying "knock on wood" three times, or a person saying "lucky charm," or "thank your lucky stars," or what have you. The reality is that we don't get to choose what is and what isn't a big deal. We don't get to play God with regards to the limits that Allah and His Messenger ﷺ have drawn.

"By your Lord, they do not believe until they make you — you, Muhammad — the judge between what they differ on, and then they do not find in their hearts any discomfort from what you have judged, and they submit a complete submission." We don't get to choose. We don't get to play God with regards to the limits that Allah and His Messenger ﷺ have drawn.

The Warning About Astrologers and Horoscopes

The Messenger ﷺ said: Whoever goes to an 'arraf — whoever goes to an astrologer, whoever goes and checks their zodiac sign, whoever goes and sees their horoscope or these types of things — whoever does that and does not believe in them, their salah is not accepted for 40 days. And if they do believe in them, then they have disbelieved in what has been revealed to Muhammad ﷺ.

(Sahih Muslim, Hadith 2230)

And so these are limits that Allah has drawn. It is important that with regards to our children, our siblings, our friends, our families, and our community, that we are vigilant with regards to the language that creeps in — as well as the beliefs that may creep in as a result of it.

Let the Supernatural Lead You to the Creator

It is impossible to live life and not notice that there are elements of the supernatural around us. But the drive to understand the supernatural around us should lead us to the Creator — it shouldn't lead us to the creation. Allah is the one who controls good and harm. Allah is the one we should call to. He is the one we should pray to. He is the one we should love. He is the one we should fear. And He is the one in whom we should believe.

We ask Allah for iman al-rasikh — a firm and deep faith.