The basic message of Islam is the same as the message of all the previous prophets: worship Allah alone and avoid worshipping anything besides Him, whether it is a person, place or thing: directly or indirectly, secretly or openly. This basic principle of monotheism is contained in the fifth verse of the opening chapter of the Qur'an, known as 'The Opening':
إِيَّاكَ نَعْبُدُ وَإِيَّاكَ نَسْتَعِينُ ٥
{It is You we worship and You we ask for help. }
(Surah Al Fatihah : Ayat 5)
Allah has also said:
{Worship Allah and associate nothing with Him...}
(Qur'an 4: 36)
لَآ إِكْرَاهَ فِى ٱلدِّينِ ۖ قَد تَّبَيَّنَ ٱلرُّشْدُ مِنَ ٱلْغَىِّ ۚ فَمَن يَكْفُرْ بِٱلطَّـٰغُوتِ
وَيُؤْمِنۢ بِٱللَّهِ فَقَدِ ٱسْتَمْسَكَ بِٱلْعُرْوَةِ ٱلْوُثْقَىٰ لَا ٱنفِصَامَ لَهَا ۗ وَٱللَّهُ سَمِيعٌ
عَلِيمٌ ٢٥٦
{. . .So whoever disbelieves in taghoot and believes in Allah has grasped the most trustworthy handhold with no break in it...}
(Surah Al Baqarah: Ayat 256)
Muhammad (blessings and peace be upon him), the last prophet, is reported to have said: «Anyone who says: There is none worthy of worship other than Allah, and dies holding that belief, will be granted paradise.»
(Bukhari and Muslim) 9
Saheeh al-Bukhari and Saheeh Muslim are two collections of the authentic, documented traditions and sayings of Prophet Muhammad (blessings and peace be upon him). Other collections have also been used as references in this book.
Proofs that Only Allah Deserves to be Worshipped. Here is an obvious fact: Allah is the sole Creator and Sustainer of everything. This makes Him the only one deserving of your worship. It's really that simple. Supplication, for example, is an act of worship, where the individual directs his or her heart to Allah and specifies to Him his or her needs. Allah has instructed in the Qur'an to call upon Him,
{And your Lord says: Call upon Me; I will respond to you...}
(Surah Ghafir: 60)
Prophet Muhammad (blessings and peace be upon him), are not answered by them; instead, they are answered by Allah. Consequently, prayer directed to anyone or anything other than Allah is of no avail. The same applies to all acts of worship, like prayers, charity and fasting. All have to be directed to Allah alone.
The prophets were very explicit in their teachings that only Allah should be worshipped; they themselves were sent to teach this very message. They claimed neither fame nor status, and never once did they instruct the people to direct acts of worship to them. Instead, they warned their people against doing just that.
For example, Islam teaches that Prophet Jesus (peace be upon him) was a human being who was created by Allah in a miraculous way. He was born of a mother, Mary, without a father and he worshipped Allah. He was neither a God (Allah) nor the son of God. He was neither one of three manifestations of God, as Christians claim, nor was he the son of a prostitute, as some Jews have alleged. He told his people (the tribes of Israel) to worship Allah alone. He did not tell people to worship either himself or his mother. Furthermore, Prophet Jesus (peace be upon him) did not worship himself when he worshipped; he worshipped Allah alone.
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