This Seerah lecture delivers a profound lesson on the nature of shirk (polytheism) by examining how the pre-Islamic Arabs — despite believing in Allah as the Creator, Sustainer, and Lord of the heavens and earth — still fell into idol worship. Their story carries an urgent warning for Muslims today, because the mechanism that led them to worship idols is eerily similar to practices found in some Muslim communities around the world.
They Believed in Allah — So Why Were They Not Muslim?
The pre-Islamic Arabs never made an idol of Allah. They knew Allah was their Creator, their Sustainer, the one who sent rain and provided their sustenance. The Quran confirms this repeatedly: “If you were to ask them who created you, they would say Allah.” Yet despite this belief, they were still polytheists. The reason is found in Surah Az-Zumar, verse 3: when asked why they worshipped idols, they said, “We only worship them so they can bring us closer to Allah.” Their shirk was not in rejecting Allah — it was in using intermediaries to reach Him.
“Their paganism was not like the paganism of modern religions. They did not say Krishna or Buddha was their God. They said Allah is our God, Allah is our Creator — and yet they were not Muslim. Why? Because they worshipped intermediaries, saying: ‘We are too sinful to approach Allah directly, so we go through these holy beings to reach Him.'”
The Warning for Muslims Today
- The idols of the Quraysh were originally righteous people — Allat, for example, was a man who used to serve soup to the pilgrims, and after his death, people began visiting his grave, then venerating it, and eventually worshipping him
- The exact same reasoning used by the pagan Arabs — “we are too sinful, we need a holy intermediary” — is unfortunately found in some Muslim communities where people invoke saints, visit shrines for intercession, and make sacrifices to the deceased
- The Quran makes it clear that no intermediary is needed between a servant and Allah: “And when My servants ask you about Me, indeed I am near. I respond to the invocation of the supplicant when he calls upon Me” (2:186)
- Understanding how idolatry originated among the Arabs helps Muslims recognize and avoid the same gradual slide from honoring the righteous to ultimately worshipping them alongside Allah
“Change the names and you get the exact same concept: ‘We are too sinful to approach God directly, so we go through a saint or a prophet as an intermediary.’ This mentality is exactly the mentality of the pre-Islamic Arabs — word for word, letter for letter.”
This lecture is a vital reminder that the greatest sin in Islam — associating partners with Allah — does not always begin with obvious idol worship. It begins subtly, with the seemingly innocent veneration of righteous people, and gradually escalates until the creation is given rights that belong only to the Creator. Protecting one’s tawheed (pure monotheism) is the foundation upon which everything else in Islam is built.
