اَلْحَمْدُ لِلّهِ بِجَمِیعِ مَحَامِدِه کُلِّهَا عَلَی جَمِیعِ نِعَمِهِ کُلِّهَا… اَلْحَمْدُ لِلّهِ مالِکِ الْمُلْکِ مُجْرِی الْفُلْکِ مُسَخِّرِ الرِّیاحِ فالِقِ الاْصْباحِ دَیّانِ الدّینِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمینَ اَلْحَمْدُ لِلّهِ عَلی حِلْمِهِ بَعْدَ عِلمِهِ وَالْحَمْدُ لِلّهِ عَلی عَفْوِهِ بَعْدَ قُدْرَتِهِ وَالْحَمْدُ لِلّهِ عَلی طُولِ اَناتِهِ فی غَضَبِهِ وَهُوَ قادِرٌ عَلی ما یُریدُ
Praise is to God with all his praises, for all his blessings. . . Praise is to God, the owner of the property, the operator of the orbit, the bender of the wind, the glory of the morning, the religion of the beliefs, lord of the worlds; praise is to God for his dream after his knowledge and thank God for forgiveness after his power, and praise be to God for his long patience in his wrath and he is capable to do what he wills
و نشهد أن لا اله الا الله وحده لا شریک له، و أَنَّ محمداً عبده و رسوله ارسله بالهدی و دین الحق لیظهره علی الدین کله و لو کره المشرکون اوصیکم عبادالله و نفسی بتقوی الله و اتباع امره و نهیه، و اخوفکم من عقابه
And we bear witness that there is no god but God alone, without partner, and that Muhammad is his servant and messenger, he sent him with guidance and the religion of truth, that he might proclaim it over all religion, even if the polytheists hated it.
Prophet Ibrahim’s theology was based on love
The path of guidance is different for everyone. It is famous that “ألطُّرُقُ إلیَ اللّهِ سُبحَانَهُ فَهُوَ بِعَدَدِ أنفُسِ الخَلَائِقِ؛ The way to reach God is in the number of people” and the way to guide everyone agrees with his nature.
The prophet Ibrahim Khalil came to worship God out of love. The holy Qur’an says that Ibrahim, after protesting against the worship of idols, revealed the secret of the kingdom of the heavens: وَكَذَلِكَ نُرِي إِبْرَاهِيمَ مَلَكُوتَ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ وَلِيَكُونَ مِنَ الْمُوقِنِينَ؛ Thus did We show Abraham the dominions of the heavens and the earth, that he might be of those who possess certitude (An’am: 75).
The prophet Ibrahim chose innovative methods to propagate his divine mission. He first associated with the polytheists of his people so that they could touch and understand the unacceptability of polytheism in person. Then he turned to worship stars:
فَلَمَّا جَنَّ عَلَيْهِ اللَّيْلُ رَأَى كَوْكَباً قَالَ هَذَا رَبِّي، فَلَمَّا أَفَلَ قَالَ لَا أُحِبُّ الْآفِلِينَ؛
When night darkened over him, he saw a star and said, ‘This is my Lord!’ But when it set, he said, ‘I do not like those who set.’ (An’am: 76)
The prophet Ibrahim, after watching the stars’ setting and declining, did not consider them worthy of love and worship. In the logic of Ibrahim Khalil, man must love his god. Worship in this logic is like accompanying with a loved one, not a compulsion.
In the second stage, Ibrahim inclined to worship the moon:
فَلَمَّا رَأَى الْقَمَرَ بَازِغاً قَالَ هَذَا رَبِّي، فَلَمَّا أَفَلَ قَالَ لَئِنْ لَمْ يَهْدِنِي رَبِّي لَأَكُونَنَّ مِنَ الْقَوْمِ الضَّالِّينَ؛
Then, when he saw the moon rising, he said, ‘This is my Lord!’ But when it set, he said, ‘Had my Lord not guided me, I would surely have been among the astray lot.’ (An’am: 77)
After observing the decline and setting of the moon, the prophet Ibrahim pointed out that the declining and perishing creature would not be able to guide humans. At this point, Ibrahim reminded his people that man needs God for guidance, and that a creature should be worshiped as a lord who can meet any need for human guidance.
In the third stage, Ibrahim began to worship the sun:
فَلَمَّا رَأَى الشَّمْسَ بَازِغَةً قَالَ هَذَا رَبِّي هَذَا أَكْبَرُ فَلَمَّا أَفَلَتْ قَالَ يَا قَوْمِ إِنِّي بَرِيءٌ مِمَّا تُشْرِكُونَ؛
Then, when he saw the sun rising, he said, ‘This is my Lord! This is bigger!’ But when it set, he said, ‘O my people, indeed I disown what you take as [His] partners.’ (An’am : 78)
The head of the line of monotheistic prophets, after observing the setting of the sun, sought innocence from polytheism and dualism, and the fact that the sun is mentioned as God, and called for monotheism:
إِنِّي وَجَّهْتُ وَجْهِيَ لِلَّذِي فَطَرَ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضَ حَنِيفًا وَمَا أَنَا مِنَ الْمُشْرِكِينَ؛
‘Indeed I have turned my face toward Him who originated the heavens and the earth, as a Hanif, and I am not one of the polytheists.’ (An’am: 79)
The soul, every day, suffers from dreams loss and from profit and fear of decline;
Neither joy, not kindness, neither to the sky, nor to the trip;
Do not go withour reason, be like Khalil and say you do not like those who set;
Ibrahim’s practical argument
Sometimes a rational argument must be made to prove the right, and sometimes a practical argument is necessary. And the difference in argument depends on the level of understanding of the other party. Rational reasons must be given to the intellectuals and the people of reason, and practical reasons must be given to the general public, for whom the senses are more comprehensible.
Ibrahim Khalil took practical action to prove the inability of idols and their ineffectiveness in people’s lives. The holy Qur’an quotes that Ibrahim, after saying to his people: مَا هَذِهِ التَّمَاثِيلُ الَّتِي أَنْتُمْ لَهَا عَاكِفُونَ؛ when he said to his father and his people, ‘What are these images to which you keep on clinging?’ (Anbiya: 52). And when the pagans emphasized the worship of idols as the tradition of their ancestors, Ibrahim said: تَاللَّهِ لَأَكِيدَنَّ أَصْنَامَكُمْ بَعْدَ أَنْ تُوَلُّوا مُدْبِرِينَ؛ By Allah, I will devise a stratagem against your idols after you have gone away.’ (Anbiya: 57). The following is the story of the Qur’an:
فَجَعَلَهُمْ جُذَاذاً إِلَّا كَبِيراً لَهُمْ لَعَلَّهُمْ إِلَيْهِ يَرْجِعُونَ؛ قَالُوا مَنْ فَعَلَ هَذَا بِآلِهَتِنَا إِنَّهُ لَمِنَ الظَّالِمِينَ؛ قَالُوا سَمِعْنَا فَتًى يَذْكُرُهُمْ يُقَالُ لَهُ إِبْرَاهِيمُ؛ قَالُوا فَأْتُوا بِهِ عَلَى أَعْيُنِ النَّاسِ لَعَلَّهُمْ يَشْهَدُونَ؛ قَالُوا أَأَنْتَ فَعَلْتَ هَذَا بِآلِهَتِنَا يَا إِبْرَاهِيمُ؛ قَالَ بَلْ فَعَلَهُ كَبِيرُهُمْ هَذَا فَاسْأَلُوهُمْ إِنْ كَانُوا يَنْطِقُونَ؛
So he broke them into pieces—all except the biggest of them—so that they might come back to it. They said, ‘Whoever has done this to Our gods?! He is indeed a wrongdoer!’ They said, ‘We heard a young man mentioning them. He is called ‘‘Abraham.’’ ’ They said, ‘Bring him before the people’s eyes so that they may bear witness [against him].’ They said, ‘Was it you who did this to our gods, O Abraham?’ He said, ‘No, it was this biggest one of them who did it! Ask them, if they can speak.’ (Anbiya: 58-63)