Imagine walking up to an old tomb, seeing slot-like openings in the doors, and watching people push coins through while whispering prayers to the dead buried inside. This is not a scene from centuries ago — it is happening right now in parts of Bosnia, and it represents one of the most dangerous violations of Islamic monotheism known as shirk. During a visit to the famous “Seven Brothers” tomb in Sarajevo, The Deen Show captured real-life footage of Muslims and non-Muslims alike inserting money into slots at graves and making dua to the deceased, hoping these long-dead individuals would intercede for them with Allah. This practice, no matter how old or widespread it may be, stands in direct opposition to the core teaching of Islam: tawhid, the oneness of God.
What Is Shirk and Why Is It the Greatest Sin in Islam?
Shirk means associating partners with Allah — directing any act of worship, including prayer and dua, to anyone or anything other than the Creator. In Islam, this is not simply a minor mistake; it is the one sin that Allah has declared He will not forgive if a person dies upon it without repentance. The people observed at the Seven Brothers tomb believed they were asking the buried saints to relay their prayers to Allah, essentially using the dead as middlemen. But Islam teaches that Allah is All-Hearing, All-Seeing, and All-Knowing. He needs no intermediary. Every messenger sent by Allah — from Abraham to Moses to Jesus to Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon them all) — came with the same message: worship the Creator alone.
Every messenger that Allah sent came to call people away from this kind of thing. Human beings would deviate and start to put intermediaries between them and Allah. So Allah would send these messengers — Moses, Abraham, Jesus, David, Ishmael, Isaac, and the last and final messenger Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him — so that we don’t need middlemen. We don’t pray to anybody, no dead saint in the ground. We pray only to Allah.
The Three Categories of Tawhid Every Muslim Must Know
- Tawhid al-Rububiyyah (Lordship): Affirming that Allah alone is the Lord, Creator, Sustainer, and Controller of all that exists.
- Tawhid al-Asma wa al-Sifat (Names and Attributes): Affirming that Allah’s perfect names and attributes belong to Him alone — He is the All-Hearing, All-Seeing, and no created being shares in these divine qualities.
- Tawhid al-Uluhiyyah (Worship): Directing every act of worship — prayer, dua, sacrifice, reliance, hope, and fear — exclusively to Allah with no partners.
When these three categories are understood and practiced together, a Muslim’s faith is grounded in authentic monotheism. The problem arises when people skip studying tawhid and fall into cultural practices that contradict the Quran and Sunnah. As highlighted in the episode, when a visitor at the tomb was asked whether he had studied tawhid, he admitted he had not. This lack of knowledge is exactly what leads people into the trap of shirk. The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said that one knowledgeable person is harder on Shaytan than a thousand worshippers, because without knowledge, a person can be easily deceived into acts that nullify their faith.
Why “It Has Been Done for 500 Years” Is Not a Valid Argument
- Tradition does not equal truth: A practice being centuries old does not make it permissible in Islam. The standard is the Quran and the authentic Sunnah, not cultural customs.
- Superstition replaces sincere worship: People who stop at tombs to insert coins out of fear of “bad luck” but never attend prayer at the masjid have replaced genuine faith with superstition.
- There are no shortcuts in the Deen: Tossing a coin into a grave slot is not a substitute for making sincere dua directly to Allah, performing the five daily prayers, fasting, giving zakat, and living according to the Quran and Sunnah.
- The dead cannot help themselves, let alone help you: As one local scholar explained, the people buried in these tombs cannot benefit themselves in any way — so how could they possibly benefit the living?
The same man who would stop his car suddenly because he was afraid of bad luck if he did not put money at the tomb — that same man does not go to the masjid for prayer. He does not have the same fear of missing salah that he has about missing this superstitious ritual. This is how Shaytan deceives people.
Islam Calls You to a Direct Connection With Your Creator
The beauty of Islam is its simplicity and clarity on this matter. You do not need a priest, a saint, a shrine, a wishing well, a good luck charm, or a slot machine at a grave. You need only to raise your hands and call upon Allah directly with sincerity. This direct connection between the servant and the Creator is what attracts countless people to Islam from Christianity, Hinduism, and other religions where intermediaries have been placed between the worshipper and God. Islam came to rid humanity of all superstitions, strange incantations, and idol worship — and to restore the pure monotheism that every prophet taught from the beginning. Learn tawhid, study your Deen from the Quran and the authentic Sunnah, and make your dua to Allah alone. There are no shortcuts, no wishing wells, and no dead saints who can answer your prayer. Only Allah hears, only Allah answers, and only through sincere faith and righteous action will you find success in this life and the next.
