The Fourth Evidence

Allāh's statement: ﴿وَإِنَّ الشَّيَاطِينَ لَيُوحُونَ إِلَى أَوْلِيائهِمْ لِيُجادلُوكُمْ وَإِن أَطَعْتُمُوهُمْ إِنَّكُمْ لمشركونَ﴾ "Indeed, the devils inspire their allies to dispute with you. And if you obey them, indeed, you would be polytheists" [Al-An’ām 121] If someone says: Whoever obeys anyone other than Allāh in matters that contradict His command has committed shirk. The response to this is twofold: 1. The apparent meaning of the Āyah suggests that all types of obedience amount to shirk. However, this is not the intended meaning, nor has anyone made such a claim. Rather: 2. The type of obedience intended here refers specifically to obedience in declaring things lawful or unlawful, where one agrees with them, believing in the permissibility of what [Allāh has] forbidden and the prohibition of what He has permitted. ’Abdul-Laṭīf ibn ’Abdur-Raḥmān ibn Ḥasan, may Allāh have mercy on him, said: «وتأمل قوله تعالى: ﴿وَإِنَّ الشَّياطِينَ لَيُوحُونَ إِلَى أَوْلِيَائهِمْ ليُجادِلُوكُمْ وَإِن أَطَعْتُمُوهُمْ إلَكُمْ لمشركونَ﴾ [الأنعام ۱۲۱]؛ كيف حكم على أن من أطاع أولياء الشيطان في تحليل ما حرم الله؛ أنه مشرك» [عيون الرسائل (٢٥١/١)] "Reflect on Allāh’s words: 'Indeed, the devils inspire their allies to dispute with you. And if you obey them, you would indeed be polytheists' (Al-An'am 6:121); notice how Allāh declares that anyone who follows the allies of Shayṭān in making permissible what Allāh has forbidden is considered a polytheist." [’Uyūn Ar-Rasā'il (1/251)]