What Worship Really Means

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فَإِذَا عُرِفَ الْعَبْدُ أَنَّ اللَّهَ رَبُّهُ وَخَالِقُهُ

So when the servant recognizes that God is his Lord and his Creator.

وَأَنه مُفْتَقِرٌ إِلَيْهِ مُحْتَاج إِلَيْهِ

And that he is in need of Him and dependent on Him.

عَرْفُ الْعُبُودِيَّةِ الْمُتَعَلِّقَةِ بِرُبُوبِيَّةِ اللَّهِ

He recognizes the servitude related to the Lordship of God.

وَهَذَا الْعَبْدُ يَسْأَلُ رَبَّهُ وَيَتَضَرَّعُ إِلَيْهِ وَيَتَوَكَّلُ عَلَيْهِ

And this servant asks his Lord, implores Him, and trusts in Him.

لَكِنَّ قَدْ يَطِيعُ أَمْرَهُ وَقَدْ يَعْصِيهُ وَقَدْ يَعْبُدُهُ مَعَ ذَلِكَ

But he may obey His command, disobey Him, and yet worship Him.

وَقَدْ يَعْبُدُ الشَّيْطَانَ وَالْأَصْنَامَ

And he may worship Satan and the idols.

وَمَثَلُ هَذِهِ الْعُبُودِيَّةِ لَا تَفْرِقُ بَيْنَ أَهْلِ الْجَنَّةِ وَأَهْلِ النَّارِ

And the example of this servitude does not distinguish between the people of Paradise and the people of Hell.

وَلَا يَصِيرُ بِهَا الرَّجُلُ مُؤْمِنًا كَمَا قَالَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى

And by that a man does not become a believer, as God the Exalted said:

وَمَا يُؤْمِنُ أَكْثَرُهُمْ بِاللَّهِ إِلَّا وَهُمْ مُشْرِكُونَ

Most of them do not believe in Allah; they are polytheists.

فَإِنَّ الْمُشْرِكِينَ كَانُوا يَقُرُّونَ أَنَّ اللَّهَ خَالِقُهُمْ وَرَازِقُهُمْ وَهُمْ يَعْبُدُونَ غَيْرَهُ

The polytheists acknowledged that God was their Creator and Provider, yet they worshipped others besides Him.

وَكَثِيرٌ مِمَّنْ يَتَكَلَّمُ فِي الحَقِيقَةِ فَيَشْهَدُهَا

And many of those who speak about the truth testify to it.

لَا يشْهد إِلَّا هَذِه الْحَقِيقَة

No one testifies except this reality.

وَهِيَ الْحَقِيقَةُ الْكَوْنِيَّةُ الَّتِي يَشْتَرِكُ فِيهَا

And it is the universal reality in which all participate.

وَفِي أَشْهَادِهَا وَفِي مَعْرِفَتِهَا الْمُؤْمِنُ وَالْكَافِرُ وَالْبَرُّ وَالْفَاجِرُ

And in its witnesses and in its knowledge are the believer and the disbeliever, the righteous and the wicked.

بَلَّ وَإِبْلِيسُ مُعْتَرِفٌ بِهَذِهِ الْحَقِيقَة وَأَهْلُ النَّار

Rather, Iblis and the people of the Fire acknowledge this reality.

قَالَ إِبْلِيسُ رَبِّ فَأَنظِرْنِي إِلَى يَوْمِ يُبْعَثُونَ

Iblis said, "My Lord, then show me the Day when they will be resurrected."

و قَالَ رَبَّ بِمَا أَغْوَيْتَنِي لَأُزَيِّنَنَّ لَهُمْ فِي الْأَرْضِ وَلَأُغْوِيَنَّهُمْ أَجْمَعِينَ

And he said, My Lord, because You have led me astray, I will surely make what is on the earth appear attractive to them, and I will lead them all astray.

وَقَالَ فَبِعِزَّتِكَ لَأُغْوِيَنَّهُمْ أَجْمَعِينَ

And he said: By Your might, I will surely lead them all astray.

فَمَنْ وَقْفٌ عِنْدَ هَذِهِ الْحَقِيقَةِ وَعِنْدَ أَشْهَادِهَا

So whoever pauses at this truth and at its witnesses.

وَلَمْ يَقُمْ بِمَا أَمَرَّ اللَّهُ بِهِ مِنَ الْحَقِيقَةِ الدِّينِيَّةِ

And he did not fulfill what God commanded regarding the religious reality.

الَّتِي هِيَ عِبَادَتُهُ الْمُتَعَلِّقَةُ بِإِلَاهِيَّتِهِ وَطَاعَةً أَمْرُهُ وَأَمْرُ رَسُولِهِ

which is His worship related to His divinity, and obedience to His command and to the command of His Messenger.

كَانَ مِنْ جِنْسِ إِبْلِيسِ وَ أَهْلِ النَّارِ

He was of the same kind as Iblis and the people of the Fire.

فَإِنْ ظَنَّ مَعَ ذُلِّكَ أَنَّهُ مِنْ خَوَاصِّ أَوْلِيَاءِ اللَّهِ وَأَهْلِ المَعْرِفَةِ وَالتَّحْقِيقِ

If, even so, he believes that he is among the select friends of God and among the people of knowledge and realization.

الَّذِينَ سُقِطَ عَنْهُمْ الأَمْرُ وَالنَّهْيُ الشَّرْعِيَّانِ كَانَ مِنْ أَشِرَ أَهْلَ الكُفْرِ وَالإِلْحَادِ

Those for whom the religious command and prohibition had ceased to apply were among the most wicked of the people of disbelief and denial.

وَمَنْ ظَنَّ أَنَّ الْخَضِرَ وَغَيْرَهُ سُقْطُ عَنْهُمْ الْأَمْرِ لِمُشَاهَدَةِ الإِرَادَةِ وَنَحْوِ ذَلِكَ

And whoever believes that the Green One and others besides him were exempted from the command in order to behold the Divine Will and the like.

كَانَ قَوْلُهُ هَذَا مِنْ شَرِّ أَقْوَالِ الْكَافِرِينَ بِاللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِ

This statement of his was among the worst sayings of the disbelievers concerning Allah and His Messenger.

حَتَّى يَدْخُلُ فِي النَّوْعِ الثَّانِيِّ مِنْ مَعْنَى الْعَبْدِ وَهُوَ الْعَبْدُ بِمَعْنَى الْعَابِدِ

until it enters the second sense of the word "slave", which is the sense of "worshipper".

فَيَكُونُ عَابِدًا لِلَّهِ لَا يَعْبُدُ إِلَّا إِيَّاهُ فَيُطِيعُ أَمْرَهُ وَأَمْرَ رُسُلِهِ

So he becomes a worshipper of God who worships none but Him, and he obeys His command and the command of His messengers.

وَيُوَالِي أَوْلِيَاءَهُ الْمُؤمنِينَ الْمُتَّقِينَ وَيُعَادِي أعداءه

He befriends his allies, the believers and the God-fearing, and he is hostile to his enemies.

وَهَذِهِ الْعِبَادَةُ مُتَعَلِّقَةٌ بِالإِلَاهِيَّةِ لِلَّهِ تَعَالَى

And this worship pertains to the divinity of God, the Exalted.

وَلِهَذَا كَانَ عُنْوَانُ التَّوْحِيدِ لَا إِلٰهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ بِخِلَافِ مَنْ يُقِرُّ بِرُبُوبِيَّتِهِ

For this reason, the title of monotheism is "There is no god but Allah", in contrast to one who merely acknowledges His lordship.

وَلَا يَعْبُدُهُ أَوْ يَعْبُدُ مَعَهُ إِلٰهًا آخَرَ

and does not worship Him or associate any other god with Him.

فَالإِلٰهُ هُوَ الَّذِي يُؤَلِّـّهُ الْقَلْبُ بِكَمالِ الْحُبِّ وَالتَّعْظِيمِ وَالإِجْلَالِ وَالإِكْرَامِ وَالْخَوْفِ وَالرَّجَاءِ وَنَحْوِ ذَلِكَ

God is the One whom the heart deifies with the perfection of love, exaltation, reverence, honor, fear, hope, and the like.

وَهَذِه الْعِبَادَة هِيَ الَّتِي يُحِبهَا اللَّهُ وَيَرْضَاهَا

And this worship is what God loves and is pleased with.

وَبِهَا وَصْفُ الْمُصْطَفِينَ مِنْ عِبَادِهِ وَبِهَا بَعْثُ رُسُلِهِ

And by it is the description of those chosen from among His servants, and by it is the sending of His messengers.