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On Serving Others Besides Allah — The Hypocrisy and Blasphemy of Islam
On Serving Others Besides Allah
The Hypocrisy and Blasphemy of Islam
Sam Shamoun
Introduction
The Quran makes several assertions concerning the teachings of the prophets of the
Bible that do no square off with what the Bible teaches. The Quran further confuses the
meaning and implication of the instructions which God’s inspired emissaries gave to
the people. Moreover, both the Quran and Islamic tradition elevate Muhammad to divine
status, turning him into another Lord besides Allah.
The Data
The Muslim scripture claims that Allah did not inspire any prophet to command
the people to serve the latter besides God and to take the messenger as their Lord:
It belongs not to any mortal that God should give him the Book, the Judgment, the
Prophethood, then he should say to men, 'Be you servants to me (koonoo aibadan lee)
apart from God (min dooni Allahi).' Rather, 'Be you masters in that you know the
Book, and in that you study.' He would never order you to take the angels and the Prophets
as Lords; what, would He order you to disbelieve, after you have surrendered? S. 3:79-80
The Quran also slanders Jews and Christians for taking Jesus, rabbis and monks as Lords
apart from Allah:
They have taken their rabbis and their monks as lords apart from God (min dooni
Allahi), and the Messiah, Mary's son -- and they were commanded to serve but One
God; there is no god but He; glory be to Him, above that they associate -- S. 9:31
The expositors explain the way in which the Jews and Christians supposedly did this:
<They took their rabbis and their monks to be their lords besides Allah,
and the Messiah, son of Maryam> [9:31].
Imam Ahmad, At-Tirmidhi and Ibn Jarir At-Tabari recorded a Hadith via several
chains of narration, from 'Adi bin Hatim, may Allah be pleased with him, who became a
Christian during the time of Jahiliyyah. When the call of the Messenger of Allah
reached his area, 'Adi ran away to Ash-Sham, and his sister and several of his people were
captured. The Messenger of Allah freed his sister and gave her gifts. So she went to her
brother and encouraged him to become Muslim and to go to the Messenger of Allah. 'Adi,
who was one of the chiefs of his people (the tribe of Tai') and whose father, Hatim
At-Ta’i, was known for his generosity, went to Al-Madinah. When the people announced
his arrival, 'Adi went to the Messenger of Allah wearing a silver cross around his neck.
The Messenger of Allah recited this Ayah;
<They took their rabbis and their monks to be their lords besides Allah>.
'Adi commented, "I said, ‘They did not worship them.’" The Prophet
said,
((Yes they did. They (rabbis and monks) prohibited the allowed for them (Christians
and Jews) and allowed the prohibited, and they obeyed them. This is how they worshiped
them.)) …
<They took their rabbis and their monks to be their lords besides Allah…>
that the Christians and Jews obeyed their monks and rabbis in whatever they allowed
or prohibited for them…" (Tafsir Ibn Kathir (Abridged), Surat Al-A'raf
to the end of Surah Yunus, abridged by a group of scholars under the supervision of
Shaykh Safiur Rahman Al-Mubarakpuri [Darussalam Publishers & Distributors, Riyadh,
Houston, New York, London, Lahore; First Edition: May 2000], Volume 4, pp. 409-410;
source; bold emphasis ours)
And:
They have taken their rabbis, the scholars among the Jews, and their monks, the devout
among the Christians, as lords beside God — following them in making lawful what
God has made unlawful and making unlawful what He has made lawful — and the
Messiah, son of Mary, when they were not commanded, in the Torah and the Gospel, except to
worship One God: there is no god except Him; glory be to Him, as an affirmation of His
transcendence [high], above what they associate [with Him]. (Tafsir al-Jalalayn;
source;
underline emphasis ours)
The Quran further denies that Allah has taken or begotten a son or that he himself is
begotten:
And We sent never a Messenger before thee except that We revealed to him, saying,
'There is no god but I; so serve Me (fao abudooni).' They say: 'The
All-merciful has taken to Him a son.' Glory be to Him! Nay, but they are honoured
servants that outstrip Him not in speech, and perform as He commands. He knows what is
before them and behind them, and they intercede not save for him with whom He is well-pleased,
and they tremble in awe of Him. If any of them says, 'I am a god apart from Him', such
a one We recompense with Gehenna; even so We recompense the evildoers. S. 21:25-29
Say: 'He is God, One, God, the Everlasting Refuge, who has not begotten, and has not
been begotten (Lam yalid walam yooladu), and equal to Him is not any one.' S. 112:1-4
To summarize the Quranic teaching we learned that:
- Prophets do not command believers to serve them.
- Prophets do not command believers to take God’s emissaries as Lords besides Allah.
- Jews and Christians have taken their rabbis, monks and Jesus as Lords besides Allah by
obeying their instructions over against following the commands of Allah.(1)
- Allah doesn’t have a son, doesn’t beget and isn’t begotten.
With this in the background we can now proceed towards our analysis of the pertinent
Biblical and Islamic data. We will begin by seeing what Muslims have done with their
prophet.
Muhammad: Islam’s Other Lord
It is rather interesting to find that, according to certain Muslim expositors, the Jews
of Muhammad’s day accused him of commanding his followers to love and worship him as
the Christians love and worship the Lord Jesus:
(And he commanded you) O people of the Quraysh, Jews and Christians (not that ye should
take the angels) as daughters of Allah (and the Prophets for lords. Would he command you
to disbelieve) how could Abraham command you to follow disbelief (after ye had surrendered
(to Allah) after he commanded you to follow Islam (completely Surrendering to Allah),
saying to you: (Lo! Allah hath chosen for you the (true) Religion; therefore die not save
as men who have surrendered [2:132]). Allah says here: Allah has not sent a Messenger
except that He commanded him to follow Islam and not Judaism, Christianity or the worship
of idols, as these unbelievers claim. It is also said that this verse was revealed
about the claims of the Jews that Muhammad commanded them to love him and worship him as
the Christians worshipped Jesus. The Christians and idolaters also made the same claim.
(Tanwîr al-Miqbâs min Tafsîr Ibn ‘Abbâs;
source;
bold and underline emphasis ours)
As we shall now show, Muslims turned Muhammad into a Messiah-like figure in order to
usurp the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ. We will discover that what the followers of
Christ and the NT writers taught about the Lord Jesus Muslims ended up saying and
ascribing to their own prophet.
Muhammad – The Co-Occupant of the Divine throne
According to many Muslim expositors, the following verse:
And in some parts of the night (also) offer the Salat (prayer) with it (i.e.
recite the Qur'an in the prayer), as an additional prayer (Tahajjud optional prayer
Nawafil) for you (O Muhammad SAW). It may be that your Lord will raise you to
Maqaman Mahmuda (a station of praise and glory, i.e. the highest degree in Paradise!).
S. 17:79 Hilali-Khan
Refers to the time when Allah will cause Muhammad to sit on his own throne!
"And we preferred some of the Prophets above others" (17:55) then He said:
"It may be that thy Lord will raise thee to a praised estate" (17:79),
a Station which the Prophet (SAWS) said none but he would receive. and this is the Station
of Intercession at the right of the Glorious Throne as we described at length
in the posting "The Seating of the Prophet (SAWS) on the Throne."
(G.F. Haddad, The Prophetic Title "Best of Creation"; sources
1; 2,
3;
underline emphasis ours)
And:
An incident was related to have taken place between al-Tabari and some Hanbalis in
Baghdad over the explanation of the verse of the Exalted Station [17:79], whereby
al-Tabari reportedly to have recited:
subhana man laysa lahu anisun wa ma lahu fi `arshihi jalisu
Glory to Him Who has no comrade nor companion sitting with Him on His Throne!
Upon hearing this, the account goes, the irate Hanbalis pelted al-Tabari with their
inkwells and he sought shelter in his house.8
The report seems dubious in light of al-Tabari's lengthy defense, in his Tafsir, of
Mujahid's narration of the Prophet's -- Allah bless and greet him -- seating on the Throne
next to Allah. Al-Tabari went to great length to show that the report is authentic from
the perspectives both of transmission and reason as we mentioned in Part Four of this
book.(Haddad, AL-TABARI; source;
underline emphasis ours)
There is a lot more:
"Muhammad the Messenger of Allah (s) will be seated by His Lord on the Throne next
to Him." – Ibn Taymiyya. [1]…
However, several narrations are also adduced whereby the Exalted
Station is the seating of the Prophet (s) by Allah (swt) on the Throne. The school of Imam
Ahmad gave precedence to the latter view as the definitive explanation of the verse,
despite the overall weakness of the narrations supporting it…
Ibn al-Jawzi in the thirthy-ninth hadith of his Daf‘ Shubah
al-Tashbih mentions that ‘A’isha asked the Prophet (s) about the Exalted
Station and he replied: "My Lord promised to seat me on the Throne." Ibn
al-Jawzi said: "This narration is not authentic from the Prophet (s)." …
Ibn Abi ‘Asim said:
[34]… From ‘Abd Allah ibn Salam who said: "On the Day of Resurrection
your Prophet shall be brought and he shall be made to sit in front of Allah the Almighty,
on His Throne" (yuq‘adu bayna yaday Allâhi ‘alâ kursiyyihi). One
of the sub-narrators, Salm ibn Ja‘far, said to the one previous to him in the chain
of transmission, Abu Mas‘ud al-Jariri: "If he is on His kursî, then,
surely, he is with Him [rather than in front of Him]?" (idhâ kâna ‘alâ
kursiyyihi fa huwa ma‘ahu?). Abu Mas‘ud replied: "Woe to you all! This
is the dearest of all hadiths in my sight."…
Imam al-Tabari said in his Tafsir:
Others said [concerning the verse of the Exalted Station]: "Rather
[than meaning Intercession], that Praiseworthy Station to which Allah has promised to
raise His Prophet is the fact that He shall seat him with Him on His Throne!"
…"Concerning the saying of Allah: [ It may
be that you Lord will raise you to an Exalted Station] –
He shall make him sit with Him on His Throne (yujlisuhu ma‘ahu ‘alâ
‘arshihi)." …
[48]…
Even if [the meaning of Intercession] is the sound position (al-sahîh
min al-qawl) in the interpretation [of the Exalted Station] due to what we mentioned
from the Prophet (s), the Companions, and the Successors – nevertheless, what Mujahid
said to the effect that Allah shall seat Muhammad (s) on His Throne is a position that is
by no means unsound whether from the perspective of narration or from that of reason. For
there is no report from the Prophet (s) nor from any of the Companions nor Successors
precluding it… In conclusion, it is clear that, as we said before, what Mujahid said
is not impossible, according to all those who profess Islam, namely: that Allah (swt)
shall seat the Prophet (s) on His Throne…
[59]…
Imam al-Qurtubi commented thus on the verse of the
Exalted Station in his Tafsir:
The third explanation of this verse is what al-Tabari reported from a
party of scholars – among them Mujahid – whereby "the Exalted Station is
the seating by Allah (swt) of the Prophet (s) with Him on His Throne (kursiyyih)."
They narrated a hadith to that effect, and al-Tabari backed up the possibility (jawâz)
of such a thing with some extravagant statements (shatatin min al-qawl). However,
what he said cannot be inferred [from the verse] except with over-subtlety as to meaning (al-talattuf
bi al-ma‘nâ), and it is far-fetched (fîhi bu‘d). This is not to say
that there is no such narration; only that [one endowed with] knowledge interprets it
figuratively (al-‘ilmu yata’awwaluhu)… On that basis it is the same,
with respect to possibility, whether Allah seats the Prophet (s) on the Throne or on the
ground. For His elevation over the Throne is not in the sense of displacement (intiqâl),
removal (zawâl), nor change of position from standing to sitting, nor any state or
condition to which the Throne itself is subject. Rather, He is elevated over the Throne in
the way He has stated concerning Himself, without saying how. Nor does His seating of the
Prophet (s) on the Throne impose upon the Prophet (s) the attribute of Lordship or move
him out of that of servanthood. Rather, it consists in an elevation because of his status,
and an honor bestowed upon him because of his sublime character…
[76]…
Ibn Abi Ya‘la wrote the following in his chapter on Abu Bakr
al-Najjad in Tabaqat al-Hanabila … From Mujahid:
Concerning the verse: "It may be that thy Lord will raise you to an Exalted
Station": "He will seat him with Him on the Throne" (yujlisuhu
ma‘ahu ‘alâ al-‘arsh)…
"Therefore, what we declare and believe before Allah Almighty is what we have just
described and made clear concerning the meanings of the hadiths quoted from the Prophet
(s) with an uninterrupted chain (al-ahadith al-musnada ‘an rasul Allah), and
what was said by ‘Abd Allah ibn ‘Abbas and the scholars after him, which was
handed down from elder to elder and from age to age until our shaykhs’ time
concerning the saying of Allah: [ It may be that your
Lord will raise you to an Exalted Station] : the
Exalted Station consists in the seating of the Prophet (s) with his Lord on the Throne.
Whoever denies this or contradicts it is only attempting to promote the sayings of the
Jahmis. He should be avoided, exposed, and warned against.
[138]…
Ibn Batta stated in his book al-Sharh wa al-Ibana ‘ala Usul al-Sunna wa
al-Diyana ("Elaboration of the Principles of Sunni Doctrine"):
The Prophet (s) shall be seated on the Throne with his Lord (yujlas ma‘a
rabbihi ‘alâ al-‘arsh), and this privilege belongs to no-one else. Thus did
Nafi‘ narrate it from Ibn ‘Umar from the Prophet (s) concerning the verse:
"It may be that thy Lord will raise you to an Exalted Station" – he said
that He shall seat him with Him on the Throne. Thus also did Mujahid explain it, as
narrated by Muhammad ibn Fudayl, from al-Layth, from Mujahid.
[140]
Ibn Taymiyya wrote:
The scholars recognized by Allah and His accepted Friends have narrated that Muhammad
the Messenger of Allah (s) will be seated by His Lord on the Throne next to Him.
Muhammad ibn Fudayl narrated this from Layth from Mujahid in the commentary of the
verse: "It may be that your Lord will raise you to an Exalted Station." This was
also mentioned through other chains, some traced back to the Prophet (s) and some not.
Ibn Jarir [al-Tabari] said: "This does not contradict the nearly-mass-narrated
narrations (ma istafâdat bihi al-ahâdith) whereby the Exalted Station is the
Intercession as agreed upon by the Imams of all Muslims." He does not say that the
Prophet’s (s) seating on the Throne is denounced as false; only some Jahmis held it
so. Nor is it objectionable to mention it in the context of a commentary on the verse. [141]
[1] Ibn Taymiyya, Majmu‘ al-Fatawa (Mufassal
al-I‘tiqad - "Specifics of Belief" - 4:374)…
[34] In al-Sunna (p. 351 #786)…
[48] Al-Tabari, Jami‘ al-Bayan fi Tafsir al-Qur’an (Beirut: Dar
al-Ma‘arif, 1980, 8:98)…
[59] Al-Tabari, Tafsir (8:97-100)…
[76] Al-Qurtubi, al-Jami‘ li Ahkam al-Qur’an (verse 17:79)…
[138] Abu Bakr al-Najjad in Ibn Abi Ya‘la’s Tabaqat al-Hanabila
(2:9-12)…
[140] Ibn Batta, al-Sharh wa al-Ibana (p. 61)…
[141] Ibn Taymiyya, Majmu‘ al-Fatawa (Mufassal al-I‘tiqad -
"Specifics of Belief" - 4:374). (Haddad, The Prophet’s Seating on
the Throne (Iq‘âd al-Nabî (s) ‘alâ al-‘Arsh);
source)
It is obvious that when we examine such statements in light of the inspired Christian
Scriptures the Muslims have ascribed to Muhammad the rank and position which the followers
of Christ taught that God the Father granted to his beloved Son, the Lord Jesus:
"… Again the high priest asked him, ‘Are you the Christ, the Son of
the Blessed One?’ ‘I am,’ said Jesus. ‘And you will see the Son of Man
sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of
heaven.’" Mark 14:61b-62
"When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he
will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. All the nations will be gathered before
him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep
from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. Then the
King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father;
take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the
world.’" Matthew 25:31-34
"But he was a prophet and knew that God had promised him on oath that he would
place one of his descendants on his throne. Seeing what was ahead, he spoke of the
resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to the grave, nor did his body see
decay. God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of the fact. Exalted
to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit
and has poured out what you now see and hear. For David did not ascend to heaven, and yet
he said, ‘The Lord said to my Lord: "Sit at my right hand until I make your
enemies a footstool for your feet."’ Therefore let all Israel be assured of
this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ." Acts 2:30-36
"But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of
God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. ‘Look,’
he said, ‘I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right
hand of God.’" Acts 7:55-56
"and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the
working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the
dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and
authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present
age but also in the one to come. And God placed all things under his feet and
appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness
of him who fills everything in every way." Ephesians 1:19-23
"Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above,
where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things
above, not on earthly things." Colossians 3:1-2
"After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand
of the Majesty in heaven… To which of the angels did God ever say, ‘Sit
at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet’?"
Hebrews 1:3b, 13
"The point of what we are saying is this: We do have such a high priest, who
sat down at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven, and who serves
in the sanctuary, the true tabernacle set up by the Lord, not by man." Hebrews 8:1-2
"… It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who has gone into heaven
and is at God's right hand—with angels, authorities and powers in
submission to him." 1 Peter 3:21b-22
"To him who overcomes, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as
I overcame and sat down with my Father on his throne." Revelation 3:21
All of these examples prove beyond any reasonable doubt that Muslims have basically
transformed Muhammad into another Christ, in an obvious attempt of trying to rob Jesus of
the glory which he alone deserves seeing that he is the beloved, unique Son of God. As one
Muslim exegete named Al-Kawthari said in his Maqalat, p. 358:
"Whoever imagines that our Lord sits on the Throne and leaves space at His side
for His Prophet to sit, has followed the Christians who hold that ‘Isa was raised
to heaven and sat next to his Father – Allah (swt) is clear of the partnership
they ascribe to Him!" (Haddad, The Prophet’s Seating on the Throne;
source;
underline emphasis ours)
Yet by ascribing such a position to Muhammad Muslims pretty much turned their prophet
into another god besides Allah, just as al-Kawthari rightly noted.
Islam – the religion of submitting to Muhammad
As further evidence that Muhammad is Allah’s equal it is important to note
that Islam isn’t merely centered on submission to Allah… it also entails fully
submitting to Muhammad. In other words, a true Muslim isn’t one who merely surrenders
to Allah but also completely surrenders his/her entire will and decisions over to
Muhammad! Note, carefully, the following citation:
But no, by thy Lord! they will not believe till they make thee the judge regarding the
disagreement between them, then they shall find in themselves no impediment touching
THY verdict, but shall surrender in full submission. S. 4:65 Arberry
Here is another translation:
But no! by your Lord! they do not believe (in reality) until they make you a judge
of that which has become a matter of disagreement among them, and then do not find any
straitness in their hearts as to what YOU have decided and submit with entire
submission. Shakir
Muslims are clearly and plainly told here that they must fully submit to Muhammad with
perfect, complete submission! Now contrast this with what is said about submitting to Allah:
O ye who believe! Observe your duty to Allah with right observance, and die not save
as those who have surrendered (unto Him). S. 3:102 Pickthall
In case Muslims accuse of us distorting the meaning of the above citation we will quote
the commentary of some of Islam’s renowned expositors such as the two Jalals:
But no, (fa-la, the la is extra) by your Lord! They will not believe
until they make you judge over what has broken out, has become mixed up, between them
and find in themselves no inhibition, [no] constraint or doubt, regarding what you decide,
but submit, [but] comply with your ruling, in full submission, without objection.
(Tafsir al-Jalalayn;
source;
bold and underline emphasis ours)
And:
(But nay, by your lord) Allah swore by Himself and by the age of Muhammad, (they will
not believe) in secret nor deserve to be called believers when alone (until they make thee
judge of what is in dispute between them and find within themselves) in their hearts (no
dislike) no doubt (of that which thou decidest) between them, (and submit with full submission)
totally submit to you. (Tanwîr al-Miqbâs min Tafsîr Ibn ‘Abbâs;
source;
bold and underline emphasis ours)
Moreover, here are the comments of prolific Sufi writer Dr. Gibril Fouad Haddad
concerning the obligation of completely submitting to Muhammad’s orders:
When the best generation of humankind ever to walk the earth realized that the Lord of
the Heaven was addressing them directly with His timeless Speech in the language which
they had mastered better than any human nation ever mastered a language, they realized
that not only had Allah Almighty deputized the worthiest of them as the carrier of the
final Message to humanity, but He had also made belief in that most honorable, most
distinguished, and most accomplished Messenger - our liege-lord Muhammad - an integral
condition of belief in Allah Himself by saying repeatedly "Believe in Allah AND the
Messenger."
They also heard Allah again and again command them to "Obey Allah AND the
Messenger." They also realized that Allah Almighty stressed to them that this
Messenger was their paramount model of behavior and of belief in Allah and the Last Day.
They also heard and understood it meant they had to follow him and love him before they
could claim to follow and love Allah.
They further understood the required levels of following the Prophet properly and truly
on which one's actual belief in Allah Most High depended: {But nay, by your Lord! they
will not believe (in truth) until they make you judge of what is in dispute between them}.
But to make the Prophet judge is not enough, this must be done without any mental
reservation toward the Prophet and his decision: {and find within themselves no dislike of
that which you decide}. Even this unalloyed acceptance of the Prophet's judgment is
not enough, there must be full embrace of the heart, mind and soul for the Prophet: {and
submit with full submission} (4:65)! (Dr. Gibril Fouad Haddad, The Story of
Hadith - On Obeying, Following, Imitating, And Loving Prophet Muhammad;
source;
capital emphasis his, bold and underline emphasis ours)
Just in case the Muslim reader is still not persuaded by the above documentation notice
what Sunni exegete Ibn Kathir says happened to a Muslim who refused to fully submit to
Muhammad:
One Does not Become a Believer Unless He Refers to the Messenger for Judgment AND
SUBMITS TO HIS DECISIONS
Allah said…
<But no, by your Lord, they can have no faith, until they make you judge in all
disputes between them,> Allah swears by His Glorious, Most Honorable Self, that no
one shall attain faith until he refers to the Messenger for judgment IN ALL MATTERS.
Thereafter, whatever the Messenger commands, is the plain truth that must be submitted to
inwardly and outwardly. Allah said…
<and find in themselves no resistance against your decisions, and accept (them)
with full submission.> meaning: they adhere to your judgment, and thus do not feel
any hesitation over your decision, and they submit to it inwardly and outwardly. They
submit to the Prophet's decision with total submission without any rejection, denial or
dispute. Al-Bukhari recorded that `Urwah said, "Az-Zubayr quarreled with a man about
a stream which both of them used for irrigation. Allah's Messenger said to Az-Zubayr…
<<O Zubayr! Irrigate (your garden) first, and then let the water flow to your
neighbor.>> The Ansari became angry and said, `O Allah's Messenger! Is it
because he is your cousin?' On that, the face of Allah's Messenger changed color (because
of anger) and said…
<<Irrigate (your garden), O Zubayr, and then withhold the water until it
reaches the walls (surrounding the palms). Then, release the water to your
neighbor.>> So, Allah's Messenger gave Az-Zubayr his full right when the Ansari
made him angry. Before that, Allah's Messenger had given a generous judgment, beneficial
for Az-Zubayr and the Ansari. Az-Zubayr said, `I think the following verse was revealed
concerning that case…
<But no, by your Lord, they can have no faith, until they make you (O Muhammad)
judge in all disputes between them.>’" Another reason in his Tafsir,
Al-Hafiz Abu Ishaq Ibrahim bin `Abdur-Rahman bin Ibrahim bin Duhaym recorded that Damrah
narrated that two men took their dispute to the Prophet, and he gave a judgment to the
benefit of whoever among them had the right. The person who lost the dispute said, "I
do not agree." The other person asked him, "What do you want then?" He
said, "Let us go to Abu Bakr As-Siddiq." They went to Abu Bakr and the person
who won the dispute said, "We went to the Prophet with our dispute and he issued a
decision in my favor." Abu Bakr said, "Then the decision is that which the
Messenger of Allah issued." The person who lost the dispute still rejected the
decision and said, "Let us go to `Umar bin Al-Khattab." When they went to `Umar,
the person who won the dispute said, "We took our dispute to the Prophet and he
decided in my favor, but this man refused to submit to the decision." `Umar bin
Al-Khattab asked the second man and he concurred. `Umar went to his house and emerged from
it holding aloft his sword. He struck the head of the man who rejected the Prophet's
decision with the sword and killed him. Consequently, Allah revealed…
<But no, by your Lord, they can have no faith>. (Tafsir Ibn Kathir;
source;
capital and underline emphasis ours)
A companion of Muhammad is struck down in cold blood for simply refusing to fully accept
his prophet’s decision! Doesn’t this clearly prove that a Muslim must submit
to Muhammad in the same way and to the same degree that s/he submits to Allah?
Obedience to Muhammad takes precedence over the worship of Allah
If this weren’t shocking enough, the hadiths go so far as to claim that hearing
Muhammad’s call has greater importance and takes priority over praying to Allah!
Narrated Abu Said bin Al-Mu'alla:
While I was praying in the Mosque, Allah's Apostle called me but I did not respond to him.
Later I said, "O Allah's Apostle! I was praying." He said, "Didn't
Allah say—‘Give your response to Allah (by obeying Him) and to His Apostle when
he calls you?’" (8.24) … (Sahih al-Bukhari, Volume 6, Book 60,
Number 1)
CXLII: "O you who believe! Respond to Allah, AND to the Messenger, when He
calls you to what will bring you to life! Know that Allah intervenes between a man and his
heart and that you will be gathered to Him." (8:24)
4370. It is related that Sa'id b. al-Mu'alla said, "I was praying and the
Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, passed by called me, but I
did not answer until I had finished praying. Then I went to him and he said, 'What kept
you from coming to me? Does not Allah say, "Respond to Allah, AND to the
Messenger, when He calls you to what will bring you to life!" (8:24)?'
Then he said to me, 'I will teach you a sura which is the greatest of the suras
in the Qur'an before you leave.' The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, was
about to leave, so I reminded him."
This is related from Abu Sa'id, a man of the Companions of the Prophet, may Allah bless
him and grant him peace. He said "It is: 'Praise be to Allah, the Lords worlds,'
the Seven Oft-Repeated ones." (Aisha Bewley, The Sahih Collection of al-Bukhari,
Chapter 68. Book of Tafsir; source;
bold, capital and underline emphasis ours)
Muhammad sources Q. 8:24 to prove that the Quran itself testifies that responding
to his call immediately is more important than worshiping God! Talk about the height of
arrogance and blasphemy. Instead of commending his companion for praying to Allah Muhammad
has the audacity to chide him for not setting aside his prayers in order to beckon to his
prophet’s call.
Doesn’t this establish that a Muslim’s relationship to Muhammad takes
priority over his relationship to God? Which Muslim would dare say that Muhammad did
not understand the meaning of Q. 8:24? Which Muslim would want to claim that Muhammad
misused this verse and sinned against God by behaving in an arrogant and blasphemous way,
ascribing to himself a position that the Quran does not give to him? In any case,
if this incident doesn’t convince Muslims that Muhammad placed himself on the same
level as God, or even above him, then nothing will.
This concludes the first part of our analysis. Please continue with
Part 2.
Endnotes
(1) What makes this rather amusing is that the Arabic text of Q. 9:31 doesn’t
attack the Christians for taking Jesus as Lord, but rebukes them for taking their monks
as lords besides Allah AND JESUS. For more information on what this passage
actually says concerning Jesus being Lord we recommend the article
The Quran's many Gods and Lords.
The Deification of Muhammad
Articles by Sam Shamoun
Answering Islam Home Page