Shirk (Islam)

Shirk (Arabic: ‫ ;ِش رْك‬širk, lit. "association") in Islam is the sin of idolatry or polytheism (i.e., the deification or
worship of anyone or anything besides God).[1][2] Islam teaches that God does not share his divine attributes
with anyone.[3] Associating partners with God is disallowed according to the Islamic doctrine of Tawhid[4]
(oneness). Mušrikūn ‫( مشركون‬pl. of mušrik ‫ )مشرك‬are those who practice shirk, which literally means "association"
and refers to accepting other gods and divinities alongside God (as God’s "associates").[5][6] The Qur'an
considers shirk as a sin that will not be forgiven if a person dies without repenting of it.[7][4][8]

Etymology
The word širk comes from the Arabic root Š-R-K (‫)ش ر ك‬, with the general meaning of "to share".[9] In the
context of the Quran, the particular sense of "sharing as an equal partner" is usually understood, so that
polytheism means "attributing a partner to Allah". In the Quran, shirk and the related word mušrikūn (‫—)مشركون‬
those who commit shirk and plot against Islam—often refer to the enemies of Islam (as in At-Tawbah verses 9:1–
15).[10]: 9:1–15

Quran

Worship of anything but God

According to the Encyclopedia of Islam, the Quran states "twice", in surah an-Nisa, verses 48 and 116, "that God
can pardon all sins save one", that of shirk ("associationism").[11]

Indeed, Allah does not forgive associating others with Him ˹in worship˺, but forgives anything else of
whoever He wills. And whoever associates others with Allah has indeed committed a grave sin. —
4:48[12]

Islamic commentators on the Quran have emphasized that pre-Islamic Arabic idolatry invented a number of
deities, most notable the three goddesses Manāt, Al-Lāt and Al-‘Uzzá, equal associates of God (as the Quran
discusses in the 53rd surat) and the word mushrikūn (singular: mushrik) is often translated into English as
"polytheists".

Entities worshipped besides God are called shuraka.[13]: 41 .[14]: 77 After Judgement Day, they will be cast into hell
along with shayatin (satans) and evil jinn,[13]: 41 to whom the pagans are also said to sacrifice in order to gain
protection.

Obey or heed people rather than God

Another form of shirk mentioned in the Quran At-Tawbah is to take rabbis, monks, prophets, priests,
theologians, scholars of religion, religious lawyers, or shayatin as Lord(s) in practice by following their
doctrines, and/or by following their rulings on what is lawful when it is at variance to the law or doctrines
prescribed by God's revelation: [15][16]
 They have taken their rabbis and monks as well as the Messiah, son of Mary, as lords besides Allah,
even though they were commanded to worship none but One God. There is no god ˹worthy of
worship˺ except Him. Glorified is He above what they associate ˹with Him˺! ---9:31[17]

Theological interpretation
Medieval Muslim and Jewish philosophers identified belief in the Trinity with the heresy of shirk in Arabic
(shituf in Hebrew), meaning "associationism", in limiting the infinity of God by associating his divinity with
physical existence.[18]

In a theological context, one commits shirk by associating some lesser being with Allah. The sin is committed if
one imagines that there is a partner with Allah whom it is suitable to worship. It is stated in the Quran: "Allah
forgives not that partners should be set up with Him, but He forgives anything else, to whom He pleases, to set
up partners with Allah is to devise a sin most heinous indeed" (Quran An-Nisa 4:48).[19]: 4:48

Some followers of a Sufistic interpretation of Islam tend to regard the belief in any power other than God as a
type of polytheism (shirk). That includes false gods but also the belief in other sources of existence. Beliefs
usually accepted by monotheism, such as a devil as a source of evil or free will as source for God's creation's own
responsibilities, are equated with beliefs in other powers than God[20] and therefore denounced.

Charles Adams writes that the Quran reproaches the People of the Book with kufr for rejecting Muhammad's
message when they should have been the first to accept it as possessors of earlier revelations, and he singles out
Christians for disregarding the evidence of God's unity.[21] The Quranic verse Al-Ma'idah 5:73[22]: 5:73 ("Certainly
they disbelieve [kafara] who say: God is the third of three"), among other verses, has been traditionally
understood in Islam as rejection of the Christian Trinity doctrine,[23] but modern scholarship has suggested
alternative interpretations.[note 1] Other Quranic verses strongly deny the deity of Jesus Christ, the son of Mary,
and reproach the people who treat Jesus as equal with God as disbelievers, who will be doomed to eternal
punishment in Hell.[24][25] The Quran also does not recognise the attribute of Jesus as the Son of God or God
himself but respects Jesus as a prophet and messenger of God, who was sent to children of Israel.[26] Some
Muslim thinkers such as Mohamed Talbi have viewed the most extreme Qur'anic presentations of the dogmas of
the Trinity and divinity of Jesus (Al-Ma'idah 5:19, 5:75-76, 5:119)[22] as non-Christian formulas, which were
rejected by the Church.[27]

Cyril Glasse criticises the use of kafirun [pl. of kafir] to describe Christians as a "loose usage".[28] According to
the Encyclopaedia of Islam, traditional Islamic jurisprudence has ahl al-kitab being "usually regarded more
leniently than other kuffar [pl. of kafir]," and "in theory," a Muslim commits a punishable offense if he says to a
Jew or a Christian, "Thou unbeliever."[29]

Historically, People of the Book permanently residing under Islamic rule were entitled to a special status known
as dhimmi, and those who were visiting Muslim lands received a different status known as musta'min.[29]

Greater and lesser shirk

The term shirk is used in two senses: to mean both polytheism and something that is not polytheism but a
certain form of sin. Shirk has been classified into two categories[4] according to Islam:

Greater shirk (Shirk-al-Akbar): open and apparent

Lesser shirk (Shirk-al-Asghar): concealed or hidden

Greater shirk

Greater shirk or Shirk-al-Akbar means open polytheism and has been described in two forms:[4]
 To associate anyone with Allah as his partner (to believe in more than one god)
To associate Allah's attributes with someone else (to believe anything or anyone other than God has divine
attributes)

Ibn Taymiyyh and Salafis

Other interpretations divide greater shirk into three main categories. According to Salafis Shirk can be
committed by acting against the three different categories. Ibn Taymiyyah seems to have been the first to
introduce this distinction.[18][30]

Rubūbīyah (Lordship)

This category of shirk refers to either the belief that others share Allah's lordship over creation as his equal or
near equal or to the belief that there is no lord over creation at all.

Shirk by association: the shirk concerned with associating "others" with Allah
Shirk by negation: shirk in rubūbīyah (lordship)

Al-Asma wa's-Sifat (names and attributes)

This category of shirk includes both the non-believer practices of giving Allah the attributes of his creation and
the act of giving Allah's names and attributes to created beings.

Shirk by humanization: in this aspect of shirk, Allah is given the form and qualities of human beings and
animals. Man's superiority over animals causes the human form to be more commonly used by idolaters to
represent Allah in creation. Consequently, the image of the creator is often painted, molded, or carved in the
shape of human beings possessing the physical features of those who worship them.
Shirk by deification: this form of shirk relates to cases of created beings or things being given or claiming
Allah's names or his attributes. For example, the ancient Arabs had the practice of worshiping idols whose
names were derived from the names of Allah. The three main deities were Al-lāt (taken from Allah's name al-
Elah), al-'Uzza (taken from al-'Aziz), and al-Manat (taken from al-Mannan). During the era of Muhammad,
there was also a man in a region of Arabia called Yamamah, who claimed to be a prophet and took the name
Rahman, which in Islam belongs only to Allah.

Al-'Ibadah (worship)

In this category of shirk, acts of worship are directed to others besides Allah, and the reward for worship is
sought from the creation, instead of the creator. As in the case of the previous categories, shirk in al-'Ibadah has
two main aspects.

This form of shirk occurs when any act of worship is directed to someone else besides Allah. It represents the
most obvious form of idolatry against which the prophets were specifically sent by Allah and called the masses of
mankind to give it up. Examples of this shirk are asking for forgiveness and admittance to paradise, which only
Allah can provide, from others besides Allah.

Lesser shirk

Lesser shirk, or Shirke-e-Asghar. A person commits it by professing tawhid (there is no god except Allah) but
having thoughts and actions that do not reflect that belief:[4]
 One who offers the ritual prayers in an ostentatious way is a polytheist. One who keeps the fast, or
gives alms, or performs the hajj to show the public his righteousness or to earn good name is a
polytheist.

— Sayyed Qasim Mujtaba Moosavi Kamoonpuri [4]

Mahmud ibn Lubayd reported,

Allah's messenger said: "The thing I fear for you the most is ash-Shirk al-Asghar."

The companions asked, "O messenger of Allah, what is that?"

He replied, "Ar-Riya (showing off), for verily Allah will say on the Day of Resurrection when people
are receiving their rewards, 'Go to those for whom you were showing off in the material world and see
if you can find any reward from them."

Mahmud ibn Lubayd also said,

The Prophet came out and announced, "O people, beware of secret Shirk!"

The people asked, "O messenger of Allah, what is secret Shirk?"

He replied, "When a man gets up to pray and strives to beautify his prayer because people are looking
at him; that is secret Shirk."

Umar ibn al-Khattab narrated that the Messenger of Allah said: "Whoever swears by other than Allah has
committed an act of kufr or shirk." (graded hasan by Al-Tirmidhi and saheeh by Al-Hakim)

According to Ibn Mas’ood, one of Muhammad's companions said: "That I should swear by Allah upon a lie is
more preferable to me than that I should swear by another upon the truth."[31]

See also
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Black Stone
Haram
Henotheism
Islam and blasphemy
Islamic schools and branches
Islamic view of the Trinity
Islamic views on Jesus' death
Paganism
Pre-Islamic Arabia
Shahada (confession)