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J (.. ,... / ..-'. ..!.,,, ,,,. ,,. J ু _.;:,7 ; 8I 9I : I;') Hadith #2: The Hadith of Jibreel they were commanded to worship none but One God. There is no God but He. Praise and glory be to Him, from having the partners they associate [with Him]" ( al-Tauba 3 1 ). The manner in which they took their rabbis and monks as lords besides Allah is that they would allow them to decree for them what was permissible and what was forbidden instead of relying only on what Allah had revealed for such laws. Ibn Taimiya once wrote, Islam requires complete submission to Allah alone. Whoever submits to Him and someone else has associated a partner with Allah (shirk). Whoever does not submit to Him has haughtily refused to worship Him. The one who commits shirk as well as the one who haughtily refuses to worship Him is a disbeliever. Submission to Him alone encompasses worshipping Him alone and obeying Him alone. 1 In his commentary on the Quran, al-Shanqeeti wrote, "Associating partners with Allah with respect to His rule and associating partners with Him in worship are one and the same thing. There is no difference between them whatsoever. Whoever follows a system or way of life other than Allah's or a legal system other than Allah's ... is like one who worships an idol or prostrates to a false god. There is no difference between the two of them in any respect whatsoever. They are one and the same thing. They are both associating partners with Allah."2 Al-Abdul-Lateef demonstrates that refusal to rule according to what Allah revealed violates every aspect of tauheed.3 As was just mentioned, tauheed al-ibaada implies that Allah alone is obeyed and has absolute authority in one's life. If one follows or obeys anything else, despite what Allah has revealed, he is giving a share of his servitude to that other source of law rather than to Allah alone. Refusing to submit to and implement Allah's shareeah also violates tauheed al-ruboobiyah. Tauheed al-ruboobiyah implies that Allah is the Complete Owner and Master of the Universe. He is in charge and has the right to control and direct everything in the Universe. Everything in this Universe either must or should take place according to His Command and Decree.4 This is why Allah has used the word arbab (plural of rabb or Lord) in the verse just quoted, 1 Ibn Taimiya, Majmoo, vol. 3, p. 9 1 . 2 Quoted in Abdul Rahmaan al-Sudais, al-Haakimiyah fl Ta/seer Adhwa al-Bayaan (Riyadh: Daar Taiba, 1412 A.H.) p. 53. 3 Abdul Azeez al-Abdul-Lateef, Nawaaqidh al-Imaan al-Qauliyah wa al-Amaliyah (Riyadh: Daar al-Watn, 1414 A.H.), pp. 296. 4 Natural phenomena must and does act according to Allah's law. However, if Allah has given man "free choice" concerning a matter, then man should act in accordance with what Allah has commanded. Commentary on the Forty Hadith of al-Nawawi "They [the Jews and Christians] took their rabbis and their monks to be their lords besides Allah and [they also took] Messiah, son of Mary [as Lord], while they were commanded to worship none but One God. There is no God but He. Praise and glory be to Him, from having the partners they associate [with Him]" (al-Tauba 3 1). Furthermore, µ1 (al-Hakam, "the Judge and the Decider"') is considered one of the names of Allah. Belief in this name of Allah requires that one take all matters to Allah's revelation and ruling. As Allah says, ; B J. 15;.i " * !Jԭ j "And He shares not His Rule and Legislation with anyone" (al-Kah/26). Al-Abdul-Lateef also talks about another aspect of tauheed, which is called tauheed al-itibaa' (tauheed concerning following). This aspect of tauheed means that the only one who is to be followed and completely obeyed is the one whom Allah sent for that purpose, the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him). Hence, not following his way and, instead, choosing to follow another's way or law violates this aspect of tauheed.2 Muhammad ibn Ibrahim wrote, "Anyone who rules in accord with something other than what the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) brought is ruling by a taaghoot (false god) and taking it as the decider of his affairs."3 1 Allah is the One who judges between His servants with justice, fairness and equity. He wrongs no soul even the slightest amount. Similarly, His decrees and laws are the most just. For a complete discussion of the meaning of this name, see Muhammad al-Hamood, Al-Nahaj al-Asma fl Sharh Asma Allah al-Husna (Kuwait: Maktaba al-Imaam al-Dhahabi, 1992), vol. 1, pp. 225240. 2 Cf., Al-Abdul-Lateef, pp. 296-302. 3 Muhammad ibn Ibrahim Ali-Shaikh, Tahkeem al-Qawaaneen (no city or publisher given, 141 1 A.H.), p. 9. This brings up another very important point. What about the rulers who do not apply the guidance of Allah in their lands? Are they all considered unbelievers because of this act? Many people, on both sides of this question, have made mistakes concerning this point.