Shirk ar-Ruboobiyyah:Past and Present

OVERVIEW : Types of Shirk ar-Ruboobiyyah through the ages

Shirk ar-Ruboobiyyah is not something entirely new. Examples of Shirk ar-Ruboobiyyah found through the ages, recorded in the annals of history. In some cases of the past, people committed Shirk ar-Ruboobiyyah by joining partners with Allah ﷻ . Many of these people recognized that Allah created everything and provided for everything. However, at the same time, they believed that there were other gods who helped and advised Allah ﷻ .
The following are examples of Shirk ar-Ruboobiyyah that were committed prior to the period when the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ was sent to spread tawheed. Some these forms of Shirk are still present today. In some instances they may be practiced in the present in the exact same manner as that of the past, while sometimes they may differ in certain regards. They however still remain within the classification of Shirk ar-Ruboobiyyah.
A type of Shirk ar-Ruboobiyyah that took place in the past and is still committed today is where people believed that Allah ﷻ has helpers. These people say that Allah ﷻ created everything. They, however, add that there is another god who brings death to people, and a third god who sends the rain, Some of the people who hold this form of belief make statues and paint pictures of what they think their gods look like. Most of them then pray to these paintings or statues which they take as gods or representatives of their gods, and ask them for things such as protection, long lives and rain.
Another form of Shirk ar-Ruboobiyyah is to say that Allah ﷻ has children. Allah provides with examples of this where He tells us that the Christians took ‘Eesa as the son of Allah while the Jews took ‘Uzair as the son of Allah. Many of those that took these Messen- gers as the sons of Allah also attributed to the Messengers the concept of them being Allah’s partners in terms of running aspects of the affairs of the world. Allah ﷻ refutes this claim many times in the Qur’aan. The following is just one of these aayaat:

مَا كَانَ لِلَّهِ أَن يَتَّخِذَ مِن وَلَدٍۢ ۖ (سورة مريم : ٣٥)

It is not for Allah to take a son… [Soorat Maryam:35]

Another form of Shirk ar-Ruboobiyyah that was in vogue prior to the period of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ and can still be found now is the belief that one god created all that is good and another god created everything that is evil. People who hold such as belief say that they will only worship the god that they say created good. They also believe that the two gods are enemies to each.
A type of Shirk ar-Ruboobiyyah that is still common today is the belief in wearing amulets for protection against evil. People who engage in this practice do believe that Allah ﷻ created everything. However they wear amulets around their necks, wrists or other places on their bodies for protection. To hang amulets anywhere on the body is a form of greater Shirk when the people believe that the amulet itself can protect the person from anything bad happen- ing. There are many ahaadeeth where the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ warned against wearing amulets. The following is one hadeeth narrated by ‘Uqbah ibn Aamir

عن عقبة بن عامر الجهني أن رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم قال من علق تميمة فقد أشرك (رواه أحمد)

Whoever wears a tameemah (amulet) has committed Shirk. (Ahmad)

This means that whoever relies on other than Allah ﷻ and believes in it, this person is committing a type of Shirk. People should rely totally on Allah ﷻ and place their trust in Him alone. This is because only Allah ﷻ can provide for people and make things easy for them. Allah ﷻ says in the Qur’aan:

وَمَن يَتَوَكَّلْ عَلَى اللَّهِ فَهُوَ حَسْبُهُ (سورة الطلاق : ٣)

And whoever relies on Allah, then He is sufficient for him… (soorat at-Talaaq:3)

All these forms of Shirk were committed before the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ was sent to. It is also very clear that these forms of Shirk still happen, in some shape or form, in the present day.

Learning from the lesson