Tawheed
Contributed by Hazrat Mirza Bashir-ud-Din Mahmud Ahmad, Al-Islam.
The Fountain of God’s Unity is an address delivered by Hazrat Mirza Bashir-ud-Din Mahmud Ahmad ra on the occasion of Jalsa Salana Qadian in 1906.This essay expounds on shirk, or associating partners with Allah the Almighty, which has plagued humanity since ancient times.Allah sent prophets to eliminate shirk and affirm His Oneness, yet many have resisted this call.God’s decree is that shirk will ultimately be eradicated and His truth will prevail, exposing shirk as the source of all evil.Al-Haaj Munir-ud-Din Shams Additional Wakilut-Tasnif, U.K January 2025
1 In the name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful.We praise Allah, the Exalted, the Greatest, and we invoke His blessings on His Holy Messengers. 2 I seek refuge with Allah from Satan the accursed. In the name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful.
3 GOD SENDS HIS MESSENGERS TO ERADICATE SHIRK
[After the recitation of these verses from the Holy Quran, Huzoor said]: As of now, I wish to speak before you about shirk’. Shirk is an evil that has afflicted humanity since the beginning of time and still persists today.Neither has it let go of man, nor has man let go of it.In each era, God sent prophets to eradicate shirk and establish the Oneness of God throughout the world.or in the heavens, or in the earth, Allah will surely bring it out; verily Allah is the Knower of all subtleties, All-Aware.’O my dear son! Observe Prayer, and enjoin good, and forbid evil, and endure patiently whatever may befall thee.Surely this is of those matters which require firm resolve.‘And turn not thy cheek away from men in pride nor walk in the earth haughtily; Surely, Allah loves not any arrogant boaster.And walk thou at a moderate pace, and lower thy voice; verily, the most disagreeable of voices is the voice of the ass.’ Surah Luqman, 31:13-20
Shirk means to associate partners with God. However, man, to whom God Almighty has given a certain degree of freedom has
always harboured this malady in his heart.Even though many people received guidance and achieved the ranks of the shuhada and
siddiqeen¹, however, there were still a large number of people in the world who did not let go of shirk.
SHIRK: THE PRIMARY REASON FOR REJECTING PROPHETS
Furthermore, when God Almighty sends a prophet for the reformation of people, and, after some time, those people attribute the
divine blessings which had occasionally been bestowed on them to their own personal efforts and hard work, they then turn away
from God Almighty.So at that moment, the first [seed of] evil that is planted in their hearts.
1 Shuhada refers to Martyrs and Siddiqeen means the Truthful.
Therefore, any prophet who is sent for the reformation of the world must first compete against shirk and this is Satan’s greatest weapon against man.
THE SIN OF SHIRK WILL NEVER BE FORGIVEN
It is evident in the Holy Quran-the noble book of God that He will forgive other sins if He wishes to but He will not forgive shirk.In truth, how weak and wicked is it for man to turn away from God, who has created various means of comforts for us, such as the earth upon which we walk, work and strive in order to attain great status.
DIVINE FAVOURS OF GOD ALMIGHTY
Moreover, the soil in the earth contains various [inherent] qualities.It is in this soil that one places a grain of wheat, and after being submerged for a few days, it begins to sprout a little.Having weathered various seasons and tempered by relentless winds, the seed] over the period of time ultimately becomes capable of yielding hundreds of similar grains which become a means of sustenance for man.And in that same soil one is able to place a maize seed, which owed to the earth’s [inherent] qualities, [draws nutrients from it] and in accordance with its own needs, is able to grow and thus become nourishment for man. Furthermore, there are various other benefits found within the soil that ascertain the safety of our lives, well-being and comfort.In addition to this, [God] has created the birds and other creatures as well as the four [classical] elements¹ from which we derive hundreds of benefits. Thus, harbouring even an iota of shirk in one’s heart is such a horrific and indecent act that 1 Four elements are earth, air, fire and water.
Were God Almighty not Merciful (25) and Benevolent (5), it was quite possible that man would be crushed to pieces and given a punishment from which there could be no redemption.Yet, it is His mercy that has spared humanity thus far.God Almighty has stated that those who commit shirk are the followers of Satan the accursed; the very Satan who said [to God] that he would influence a group from among His people, that is, reserve them for himself, who would become heedless of God and use the ploy of shirk against them.[Satan added that] he would attack them from front and behind, even from the right and the left and he would strike them from beneath their feet with this stratagem; he would mislead them, entice them with greed and order them to cut off the ears of the animals, reserving the creatures of God [in order to offer them] to others.So, whoever befriends Satan—that is, commits shirk, since that is his [weapon of] attack—they will be counted among those who are in great loss and ruin.Furthermore, God Almighty says that the promises of Satan are just a heap of deceptions.For those who have reached this stage and commit shirk, God Almighty has decreed that they will not be forgiven, as they are obedient to Satan and will never prosper.
THE ONE WHO COMMITS SHIRK WILL NEVER SUCCEED
The aforementioned two matters are such that a polytheists can challenge us and say 1 In pre-Islamic days, it was customary to mark or mutilate certain animals and dedicate them to specific gods.For instance, animals were sometimes branded or had parts of their ears cut off as a sign that they were reserved for gods.These marked animals, known as Bahirah or Sa’ibah, were considered sacred and could not be used for ordinary purposes.
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