In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.
All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.
Idol/object worship and Polytheism were rampant in Arabia before the advent of the last and final Messenger of Allah, Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him). The Kaaba was a well known sanctuary dedicated to pagan deities wherein there were more than 360 idols placed. However, after the message of oneness of God was revived through the last and final testament of God- The Qur'an, idolatry was abolished from the land of Arabia.
Idol worship- Is submitting to something other than Allah, and turning to something other than Allah. It can be a rock, stone, an idol of a saintly person etc. People submit, glorify, prostrate to these idols as a part and parcel of their devotion and worship to God (believing that they would be their intercessors or forms of God ). This is termed as 'Shirk ' in Arabic which when loosely translated in English means- Associating partners/rivals with the One true God. Shirk is indeed the most heinous and monstrous crime.
As we have been discussing the Message of all the Messengers of God in my previous articles, we must be aware by now that all of them preached the same basic message of worshipping the One and Only God. Our Lord, is the True and Only Creator that deserves to be worshipped. A stone, a statue, a cross, Mahatma Gandhi, Sai Baba or Marylin Monroe; Sun, Moon, Shri Krishna, Buddha, Joseph Stalin, Light, Fire, rivers, cows, Shri Rama, Prophets, Messengers (Including Prophet Muhammad-peace be upon them all), Sheiks and Shaks etc are not worthy of worship in the least bit. All of them are the CREATION of Allah. Whereas Adam, Moses, Jesus, Muhammad (peace be upon them all) taught us to worship the CREATOR alone.
In Islam – Worship, prostration, submission is only for Allah, may He be glorified and exalted. Any sane person would admit that Idol worship is a gross injustice and violation of the very first commandment in all the scriptures, and is an unforgivable sin if maintained until death.
Sadly, the majority of people who believe in God commit this gross offense without even realizing it.
We read in the Qur'an how Prophet Abraham(peace be upon him) reasons with his father & people-
And recite to them the story of Ibrahim.
When he said to his father and his people "What do you worship?" They said: "We worship idols and to them we are ever devoted" He said: " Do they hear you, when you call on (them)? Or do they benefit you or do they harm (you)?" They said: "(Nay) But we found our fathers doing so" [Al-Qur'an 26:69-74]
And mention in the Book [the story of] Ibrahim. Indeed, he was a man of truth and a prophet.
When he(Ibrahim) said to his father: 'O my father! Why do you worship that which hears not, sees not and cannot avail you in anything? [Al-Qur'an 19:41,42]
In this article i would like to highlight some excerpts from the book 'Truth of Light' authored by Swami Dayanand, the founder of the Arya Samaj. It is said that "It is perfectly certain that India never saw a more learned Sanskrit scholar, a deeper metaphysician, a more wonderful orator, and a more fearless denunciator of any evil, than Dayanand, since the time of Sankarcharya." Though some of his writings (on other religions apart from his studies of vedas) can be effectively refuted.
As a child, Dayanand was brought up under the strictest Brahmin rule. When he was fourteen his father took him to the temple on the occasion of Shivaratri. Dayanand was asked to fast and keep awake the whole night in obedience to Lord Shiva. In the night he saw a rat nibbling the offerings to the God and running over Shiva's body. He tried to find out from elders why this "God Almighty" could not defend himself against the menace of a petty mice, for which he was rebuked. This incident shattered Daya Nand Saraswati's faith in the idol worship and thereafter he refused to participate in the religious rites for the rest of his life.
After completing his studies, Swami Dayanand started preaching against negative social customs such as casteism, blind idol worship. He believed in a formless God, and was against polytheism.
I ask you O open minded reader and seeker of truth to give due consideration to the following arguements and texts from the scriptures (Vedas) and ask yourself whether you follow the first commandment commonly laid down in all the scriptures. My aim is to point out the commonalities so that we may unite under the same umbrella by recognizing the One who created us all. Below are the excerpts from his book-
1. There are more Gods than one mentioned in the Vedas. Do you believe this or not?
- No, we do not; as nowhere in all the four Vedas there is written anything that could go to show that there are more gods than one. On the other hand, it is clearly said in many places that there is only one God. [PAGE 203]
2. What is meant by the mention of various devatas (Gods) in the Vedas then?
- Whatsoever or whosoever possesses useful and brilliant qualities is called a devata, as the earth for instance; but it is nowhere said that it is God or is the object of our adoration. Even in the above mantra it is said that He, who is the sustainer of all devatas, is the adorable God, and is worthy of of being sought after, They are greatly mistaken who take the word "devata" to mean God. [PAGE 203]
3. Has God a form or is He formless?
- He is formless, because if He possesses a form He could never be Omnipresent, nor, therefore Omniscient, since a finite substance can possess only finite attributes, actions and nature. Besides, He could never be free from hunger and thirst, heat and cold, disease, imperfections and injuries. This proves, therefore, that God is formless, If He were to possess a body, another person would be required to make the different organs of His body, such as eyes, ears and the like, for He, who is the product of the combination of the different parts, must have an intelligent formless maker. Here if it be urged that God Himself made His own body simply by willing it, this too goes to prove that He was formless before He made His body. It is clear, therefore, that God is never embodied. Being without a body He is able to make the visible universe out of invisible causes. [PAGE 208]
Kindly, read the answer carefully for the following question. I trust misconceptions and wrong notions like these would be cleared after reading this.
4. Does God incarnate or not?
- No; because it is said in the Yajur Veda. 'अज एकपात्', 'स पर्य्यगाच्छुक्रमकायम्' "He is unborn." Again "He overspreads all." He is pure, is never born and never takes on a human form." It is clear from these quotations that God is never born.
5. But Krishna says in the Gita, "Whenever there is decay of virtue, I take on a human form." (Bhagvad Gita 4:7) What is your answer to this?
- Being opposed to the Veda, it cannot be held to be an authority. Though it is possible that Krishna, being very virtuous and being extremely anxious to further the cause of righteousness, might have wished that he would like to be born again and again at different times to protect the good and punish the wicked. if such was the case, there is no harm in it; because 'whatever the good and the great possess - their wealth, their bodies, aye eve their hearts - is at the service of humanity? In spite of all this Krishna could never be God. [PAGE 219]
5.How could such wicked men as Raavana and Kansa be destroyed if God did not incarnate?
- Firstly, whosoever is born, is sure to die. Secondly, what are Kansa and Raavana, when compared with the Almighty God, who without being incarnated has created this world, is sustaining it and can resolve it into its component elements? He being Omnipresent also pervaded the bodies of Kansa and Raavana and could at His will cut their vitals and instantaneously kill them. What shall we then call such a man but a fool who says that the Supreme Spirit possessed of Infinite Power, attributes and activity takes on a human form and becomes subject to births and deaths in order to kill an insignificant creature.
Were anyone to say that God incarnates for the salvation of his devotees, then too it could not be true, for, if the devotees conduct themselves according to the Will of God, He is powerful enough to save them. What! Is the destruction of a Kansa or a Raavana or the lifting of a mountain, such as Govardhan, even more difficult than the creation, sustenance and dissolution of the sun, the moon and the earth and other planets? Whosoever ponders over the great things that God has done in this universe, cannot but come to the conclusion that "There is no one like Him, nor shall ever be."
Nor can the incarnation of God be demonstrated by reason, just as as the saying of a man, that space entered a womb or was put in a closed hand, can never be true, for space being Infinite and Omnipresent can neither go in, nor come out; similarly, God, being Infinite and All-pervading, it can never be predicated of him that He can go in or come out. Coming and going can be possible only if it be believed that there are places where He is not. Then was not God already present in the womb and was not He already present outside that He is said to have gone into and come out of it? Who but men devoid of intelligence, can believe in and say such things about God? Therefore, it should be understood that Christ and other were also not incarnations of the Deity, fear and grief, births and deaths, they were all men.
6. Do you believe God to be Formless or embodied?
- Formless.
These are the answers given by a Hindu scholar (Not a Muslim or Christian scholar) based on his study of the Vedas which still contain the basic message of One God, though the Vedas present today may not be in their original form. Yes, There are portions which cannot be attributed to God and are the handiwork of men of the past. There are also portions which contain gross errors and go against the established science. These, therefore cannot be from God almighty. Nevertheless, I do not wish to highlight that which will bear no fruit to our purpose of following atleast that which is common between us i.e.
Recognize and Worship One God who has created me and you. The Only true God who revealed unto us the compelete way of life through the last and final revelaton (The Qur'an) to the last and final Messenger, Prophet Muhammad(peace and blessings be upon Him).
Men in the past, attributed images, forms and ideas to God which are sadly being followed blindly today. Would you blindly follow the same without knowing the truth? It is important to note that -- that nothing in creation is like unto Allah. Rather He is One, Unique, Self Sustaining. He has no spouse or child; He has no peer or equal. Also note that- The moment we can compare anything to Allah, He ceases to be Allah. One must also register that it is absolutely wrong to belitlle God and attribute to Him forms which He forbade us from doing.
We are told in the Qur'an-
Say, He is God, the One and Only!
God, the absolute the eternal!
He neither begets nor is He begotten.
And there none like unto Him. [Al-Qur’an 112]
The Islamic verdict is absolutely clear- Allah sent His Messengers throughout the ages with clear instructions for mankind. However with passage of time, people changed the message for their convenience and forsook the path of righteousness. As the chain of Messengers and Prophets would come to an end after the death of Prophet Muhammad(peace and blessings be upon him), Allah revealed the Qur'an as a mercy and guidance for the whole of humanity which is still preserved in it's original form. On the day of judgement, none of us can present an excuse before Allah saying 'we didnt know which path was the right path' when we all will be called for account for our deeds. He has bestowed us with intelligence to decide right from wrong, truth from error.
I ask Allah to open your heart to the truth and decree good for you, and to guide you to the eternal path of success prescribed by Him- Submission to the will of God almighty.
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