Alhamdulilahi and may Allah blessingss and peace be upon prophet Muhammad.
In Islam, shirk is the sin of idolatry or polytheism. Islam teaches that Allah does not share His divine attributes with any partner. Associating partners with Allah is disallowed this is Islamic doctrine of Tawhid.
Shirk: It is taking a peer or partner with Allah Almighty in worship, in deism, or in attributes and names, and it must be pointed out that the peer is the equal and the counterpart, so Allah Almighty forbade the taking of equals, and criticized those who take them apart from Allah, so Allah said, Glory be to Him :-
(فَلا تَجْعَلُوا لِلَّهِ أَنْدَاداً وَأَنْتُمْ تَعْلَمُونَ) [البقرة: 22]
So, do not attribute to Allah equals while you know [that there is nothing similar to Him].[Surah Al baqara Ayah 22]
Note that many people are ignorant of what is polytheism with Allah, and this is what we will introduce you to in this article.
The Almighty Allah said :
وَلَوْ أَشْرَكُوا لَحَبِطَ عَنْهُمْ مَا كَانُوا يَعْمَلُونَ [الأنعام:٨٨]
But if they had associated others with Allah, then worthless for them would be whatever they were doing [Al An'am ayah 88]
وَلَقَدْ أُوحِيَ إِلَيْكَ وَإِلَى الَّذِينَ مِنْ قَبْلِكَ لَئِنْ أَشْرَكْتَ لَيَحْبَطَنََّ عَمَلُكَ وَلَتَكُونَنَّ مِنَ الْخَاسِرِينَ [الزمر:٦٥ ].
And it was already revealed to you and to those before you that if you should associate [anything] with Allah, your work would surely become worthless, and you would surely be among the losers [Surah Al- zumar Ayah 65].
TYPES OF POLYTHEISM.
GREATER POLYTHEISM. greater polytheism is defines as the exchange of what is right for Allah to others, such as his right to divinity, deity, attributes, and names, and this polytheism has several types, they are ---APPARENT POLYTHEISM: such as the polytheism of the worship of idols, idols, the dead, the graves, and the absentees with the worship of Allah the Almighty.
It is polytheism that worships other than Allah, is complete worship, for it is called polytheism and it is called disbelief, For whoever turns away from Allah entirely, and makes his worship to someone other than Allah, such as trees, stones, idols or jinn, or some of the dead from those who call them saints, he worships them or prays for them or fasts for them and forgets Absolutely Allah, Ask for help from them, and they call for help from them, this is the greatest of disbelief and the most severe polytheism, we ask Allah for good health.
But as for the means mentioned in the words of Allah :
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اتَّقُوا اللَّهَ وَابْتَغُوا إِلَيْهِ الْوَسِيلَةَ [المائدة:٣٥].
O you who have believed, fear Allah and seek the means [of nearness] to Him and strive in His cause that you may succeed.[ Surah Al maidah 35]
So what is meant by it is drawing closer to Him, "Allah the Almighty' glory be to Him, by obeying Him, I mean, seek affection for him by obeying him, and the meaning is to seek friendship with him by obeying him and ask for it wherever you are, from what Allah has prescribed for you, such as prayer, fasting, charity, and so on. and this is its meaning for all scholars, for prayer is a draw to Allah for it is a means, and slaughtering for Allah is a means like sacrifice and sacrifice, fasting is a means, alms are a means, remembrance of Allah and reading the Qur’an is a means, and this is the meaning of His words, the Most Exalted.
This is how it was said in the other verse :-
أُولَئِكَ الَّذِينَ يَدْعُونَ يَبْتَغُونَ إِلَى رَبِّهِمُ الْوَسِيلَةَ أَيُّهُمْ أَقْرَبُ وَيَرْجُونَ رَحْمَتَهُ وَيَخَافُونَ عَذَابَهُ [الإسراء:57]
Likewise the messengers and their followers approach Allah through the means that he prescribed, including jihad, fasting, prayer, remembrance, reading the Qur’an, and other aspects of the method. As for some people thinking that the means is attachment to the dead and seeking help from saints, this is a false assumption, and this is the belief of the polytheists whom Allah said about them.
وَيَعْبُدُونَ مِنْ دُونِ اللَّهِ مَا لا يَضُرُّهُمْ وَلا يَنْفَعُهُمْ وَيَقُولُونَ هؤلاء شفعاؤنا عند الله[يونس ١٨]
And they worship other than Allah that which neither harms them nor benefits them, and they say, "These are our intercessors with Allah. [Yunus Ayah 18]
He "Allah" answered them, Glory be to Him, by saying :
قُلْ أَتُنَبِّئُونََ اللَّهَ بِمَا لا يَعْلَمُ فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَلا فِي الْأَرْضِ سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى عَمَّا يُشْرِكُونَ [يونس:18]
" Say, to them Muhammad" "Do you inform Allah of something He does not know in the heavens or on the earth?" Exalted is He and high above what they associate with Him.
HIDDEN POLYTHEISM: such as the polytheism of those who depend on other than ALLAH from among the gods, or polytheism of the hypocrites, and this polytheism is hidden because its people reveal Islam and conceal polytheism and disbelief, and this type of polytheism lifts the person out of the right path and out of rightous people, leads him/her into Hellfire, and perpetuates him/her in it.
POLYTHEISM BELIEFS: it is the belief that there is someone to shares with Allah in his ability to create, revive people, and their death, and in knowing the unseen or possessing this universe, or the belief that there is someone to obeys in absolute obedience, or associates anyone with Allah In veneration and love, as if he loves someone as he loves Allah, and this type of polytheism is not forgiven by Almighty Allah.
THE SHIRK OF SAYINGS: It is seeking help, or supplication, or seeking assistance from someone other than ALLAH, whether he is a prophet or a king, or a guardian, or a genie, and other creatures that are not able to what Allah is capable of, or mockery of Islam religion, or verses of Qur'an,or hadith's of messanger of Allah, "may Allah blessingss and peace be upon him" and this polytheism is considered by Allah as a great sin that is not forgiven .
SHIRK ACTS: it is prayer, or prostration to someone other than Allah, or the enactment of laws that are equivalent to the rule of Allah, then obliging people to judge them, or support the infidels and their appearance on the believers.
LESSER POLYTHEISM : is defined as lesser polytheism as any means that leads to greater polytheism, or that it does not reach the level of greater polytheism as mentioned in the texts of the Holy Qur’an and the Sunnah of the Prophet.
THE SHIRK OF ATTACHMENT TO SOME CAUSES: It is the belief in the causes that Almighty Allah did not authorize, such as: hanging beads, warding off evil and envy.
SHIRK VENERATING SOME THINGS: It is the veneration of some things, and their delivery to the position of deism, such as swearing by something other than Allah, and the like.
And prophet Muhammad may Allah blessingss and peace be upon him warned about showing-off of good deeds, he said:-
إِنَّ أَخْوَفَ مَا أَخَافُ عَلَيْكُمْ الشِّرْكُ الأَصْغَرُ.
The thing I fear most for you is the lesser shirk (polytheism), showing-off (of good deeds).
The difference between greater and lesser polytheism is in ruling, the greater polytheism is considered a way out for a person from Islam, and it is judged that he/she has leave Islam and convert from it, and thus it is an infidel and apostate, as for the smaller polytheism, it is not considered a way out for a person from Islam, but rather places him/her in a great danger, and this kind of Polytheism is a great sin.