Symposium 9
Demonstration of Other Types of Monotheism
Hasan:I have some questions on monotheism.
Anwar:Please!
Hasan:Are there other types of monotheism?
Anwar:Religious scholars and experts have mentioned that there are other types of monotheism part from ‘essential monotheism’, ‘quality monotheism’ and ‘deeds monotheism’; they are ‘legislation monotheism’, ‘obedience monotheism’, ‘resorting monotheism’ and ‘love monotheism’.
Hasan:God bless you! This is very beautiful! Will you explain these types?
Anwar:Yes. They have mentioned that legislation monotheism is to know that law making is Allah’s; He is the creator and He knows His creatures and what is good for them. No legislators or lawmakers can be aware of the intrinsic nature of human being or his outward appearance better than the Glorious Allah, not to mention the hidden reasons that only the Almighty Allah knows and no one else; that is why man-made laws and constitutions are insufficient and narrow.
Hasan:But we know that Prophets (PBUT) have the right legislate. How come?
Anwar:Yes, they do have this right but with permission and authorization from the almighty Allah. This is backed by evidence from the Hadith and the Quran, especially when we all know that the Prophets speak what the Glorious Allah reveals to them.
Hasan:All right. Please, explain the other types.
Anwar:I’m at your service, Anwar! I am pleased to see your insistence for learning. It exemplifies this Hadith of
the Prophet Mohammed (PBUH):(Seek knowledge from cradle to grave).
Now, the second type is obedience monotheism and it simply refers to the fact that worship is only for the Almighty Allah; obeying any one part from Allah or beside Allah might be considered polytheism (Shirk).
Hasan:How do you say that? We obey the Prophet Mohammed (PBUH), the Imams (PBUT), our parents and teachers. Is this polytheism?
Anwar:Not at all. Do not let this sort of ambiguity confuse your reason. The whole point is that our obedience to the Prophet Mohammed (PBUH), the Imams (PBUT) and our parents must not be against our obedience to the Glorious Allah; our obedience to them has to be part of our obedience to the Almighty Allah. That is what I meant by ‘might be considered polytheism’.
Hasan:So, how should we put it then?
Anwar:We have to say the absolute obedience is for the Almighty Allah, and our obedience to the Prophet Mohammed (PBUH) and the Ahl Al-Bait (PBUT) has to be
part and parcel of our obedience to the Almighty Allah as He put it in the Noble Quran:(Oh ye who believe! Obey Allah, and obey the messenger and those of you who are in the authority…)4;59.
So, we obey them because the Almighty Allah ordered us to do so; this also makes our obedience to the Prophet Mohammed (PBUH) and- his householders- the Ahl Al-Bait (PBUT) part of and actually an extension to our obedience to Allah, Praised Be His Name.
Hasan:And how possibly can we obey someone else alongside the Glorious Allah that it would be considered polytheism or Shirk?
Anwar:We can find out that it is possible with a bit of reasoning!
Hasan:How is that, if you please?
Anwar:Allah, Praised Be His Name, permits some doings and prohibits some other ones; so, he orders us to worship Him and to not disobey Him. Yet, we see people following the Devil who orders them commit wrongdoings. They obey the Devil and not the Almighty Allah, and this way they are worshipping the Devil which
is again a form of polytheism (Shirk)?
This next Verse from the Noble Quran illustrates that:(Hast thou seen him who chooseth for his god his own lust?...)25;43.
It shows us that some people worship their desires; they are actually excluding the Almighty Allah by obeying and following the Devil and their lustful desires.
This is enough for today. We’ll continue next time, Inshallah.
Symposium 10
Seeking for Assistance from Other than Allah
is not Polytheistic
Anwar:We were talking about types of monotheism last time and you explained the ‘obedience monotheism’; I would like to hear about ‘resorting monotheism’, please.
Hasan:It means to seek help only from the Almighty Allah and no one else. This is perfectly embodied in the words of God: (Thee do we serve and Thee do we beseech for help.)1;5. So, we ask Him and only Him for help.
Anwar:But I sometimes hear Shi’a people say ‘Ya Ali’
when they need to do something that takes physical effort. Is it against what you just said?
Hasan:Unfortunately, many of those with some ideological knowledge mock people who say this, not knowing that these people do not mean to manage without Allah, Praised Be His Name, nor do they mean that Imam Ali (PBUH) is able to manage their needs. Not at all! Imam Ali (PBUH) is one of the creatures of the Glorious Allah; Imam Ali (PBUH) and his sons spent all their lives following and worshipping the Almighty Allah asking only Him for assistance.
So, we believe that Imam Ali (PBUH) is a creature of the Almighty Allah as he is totally in need for Him and he cannot manage without Him. At the same time, we believe that Imam Ali (PBUH) is the successor and the guardian of the Prophet of the Allah; he is also of a very high status to the Glorious Allah as he is a person of distinction. That is why we beseech to him for the status and the distinction he has to the Almighty Allah so our God help us with our needs.
That is what Prophet Suleiman (PBUH) did when he asked for help from Asif Bin Barkhiya to move – God
willing – the throne of Balqis with twinkle of an eye. This help is not Shirk or polytheism; it would be polytheism if we would have looked at Imam Ali (PBUH) as the person who answers our calls and helps us with our needs away from the will and permission of the Almighty Allah. This needs a lot of elaboration that we have to leave for later.
Anwar:Yes, very good! Now, what is ‘love monotheism’?
Hasan:It is to focus our love for the Glorious Allah because He is the absolute gracefulness and perfection and everything else gets its beauty and quality from Him. So, how can we possibly leave the original for the copy? That is why we cannot combine our love for Allah, Praised Be his Name, together with another love in one heart; it is even against honesty.
Anwar:Again I feel I have a problem here.
Hasan:Oh, my Lord! What is the problem?!
Anwar:How can we focus our love only for the Glorious Allah and ignore our love for the Prophet and his family, our parents, relatives and friends? How is it possible?!