Tawhid

Tawhid (Arabic: توحيد‎ tawḥīd, meaning "oneness [of God]" also romanized as tawheed, touheed, or tevhid) is the indivisible oneness concept of monotheism in Islam. Tawhid is the religion's central and single-most important concept, upon which a Muslim's entire faith rests. It unequivocally holds that God is One (Al-ʾAḥad) and Single (Al-Wāḥid); therefore, the Islamic belief in God is considered Unitarian."Tawhid constitutes the foremost article of the Muslim profession of faith.

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Intention (Niyah) . Shirk . Sunni-Shi'a . Prostration (sujud) . Tawhid

I heard a Shia scholar say that when prostrating at the doorstep of the Prophet (saw), with the intention of piety and love of Allah, this action is not regarded as an act of Shirk. Can you explain the boundaries of Tawheed and Shirk in Shia Islam?

Sayyed Mohammad Al-Musawi, Sayyed Mohammad al-Musawi is originally from Iraq and heads up the World Ahlul Bayt Islamic League in London. Other than being involved in various humanitarian projects, he frequently responds to... Answered 2 years ago

Tawheed means not believing nor worshiping but only Allah (SWT). Shirk is believing or worshiping other than Allah with Allah (SWT). We believe that the Prophet and his Ahlul Bayt are the most humble servants of Allah.

Prostrating at the doorstep of the Prophet (SAWA) is in fact for thanking Allah for granting us the great bounty of visiting the shrine of the Prophet (SAWA) or his Ahlul Bayt (AS). Thanking Allah in the form of prostrating is a sincere worship to Allah and can never be Shirk. We never believe nor accept any claim suggesting worshiping the Prophet, his Ahlul Bayt or any one but only Allah (SWT). Respecting the Prophet and his Ahlul Bayt does not mean worshipping them at all. Respect is completely different from worshiping. Wahhabis mix wrongly between respect and worship. Even we prostrate at the doorstep of the holy shrines, we never do it as a sign of respect but we do it as an act of thanking Allah for His great bounties on us.

Wassalam.

Intention (Niyah) . Shirk . Sunni-Shi'a . Prostration (sujud) . Tawhid

Zoheir Ali Esmail, Shaykh Zoheir Ali Esmail has a Bsc in Accounting and Finance from the LSE in London, and an MA in Islamic Studies from Middlesex University. He studied Arabic at Damascus University and holds a PhD... Answered 2 years ago

Bismillah

Thank you for your question. Shirk is to limit Allah in any way such that even the conception of another god would be possible. Even to say He is a god is not satisfactory as that would entail a genus of gods under which God would be a species with only one referent. Numerical oneness is limited, as in numbering God as one a person gives the possibility of two gods. Numbers themselves are a factor of the material world. Rather, Allah is above being numbered as a number entails a limit and He is above all limitations.

As for prostration, it is clear that if a person prostrates to a being in worship then that is completely forbidden in Islam and Shiism as a sect within Islam. However, prostration does not only entail this meaning and is also a symbol of humbleness. For this reason God commanded the angels to prostrate to Adam (as), not in worship or out of polytheistic intent. So too Prophet Ya'qub (as) prostrated in front of Prophet Yusuf (as).

May you always be successful

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Polytheism . Heart . God (Allah) . Tawhid

When I was 11 or so I heard a family member say something that was clearly Shirk but I repeated the exact same words. Does that mean I have committed polytheism although I believe with all my heart in Allah and Tawheed?

If you repeated the wrong words of others with out intention of its meanings of Shirk, you are not a Mushrik. Your faith is what is in your heart. Still you need to repeat Estighfaar for saying something wrong.

Wassalam.

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God (Allah) . Envy (Hasad) . Tawhid

How can we answer a Hindu claim that if the single God is so confident that there are no other gods except Him, why does He show envy towards another god?

Abolfazl Sabouri, Abolfazl Sabouri is based in New Zealand and has an MA in Jurisprudence and Islamic Studies. He is a graduate of Elmiyeh seminary in Qom with more than 15 years of study and research where he has... Answered 3 years ago

There are no other gods to show envy towards them.! We know one God, if there is more than that they (Hindu) should prove it.