The Causes of the Destruction of the Disbelievers from the People of Hud (peace be upon him);
Polytheism
Selections from the Book Prophet Hud (peace be upon him) And the Causes for the Demise of the Civilization of the People of Aad…
Written by Dr. Ali Muhammad al-Sallabi...
Episode (17)
It is well known that monotheism is the foundation of human life, and it is what gave rise to civilization from the beginning of Allah’s creation of our father Adam (peace be upon him). However, at the end of the first human civilization, during the time of the people of Noah, polytheism spread among them, leading to the causes of their destruction. The great flood occurred, and Noah (peace be upon him) and those who believed with him were saved. They went on to establish the second human civilization, based on monotheism and devotion to Allah alone in worship. The first deviation after Noah (peace be upon him) was the polytheism committed by the people of ‘Aad. In this book, we have discussed the dialogue of Hud (peace be upon him) with his people, and his use of all means of persuasion in his call for monotheism and the rejection of polytheism. He continued to call them to Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He), but they rejected him and became the first polytheists after the great flood. They were deeply entrenched in polytheism, firmly rooted in stubbornness. The Qur’an recorded their final stance on polytheism and idol worship after Hud’s (peace be upon him) profound admonitions and valuable advice, and they responded by saying: {They said, "O Hud, you have not brought us clear evidence, and we are not ones to leave our gods on your say-so. Nor are we believers in you.} [Hud: 53].
In a moment of trust in Allah and reliance upon Him, Hud (peace be upon him) made clear to them the weakness and inability of their idols when they said: {We only say that some of our gods have possessed you with evil [i.e., insanity]."} [Hud: 54]
He challenged them, along with their idols that they claimed could both harm and benefit, and dared them to plot against him and harm him if they could. He said that if those idols were truly gods, they would have taken revenge on him for his criticism and reproach of them. Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He) says: {He said, "Indeed, I call Allah to witness, and witness [yourselves] that I am free from whatever you associate with Allah (54) Other than Him. So plot against me all together; then do not give me respite. (55) Indeed, I have relied upon Allah, my Lord and your Lord. There is no creature but that He holds it by its forelock [i.e., controls it]. Indeed, my Lord is on a path [that is] straight. (56)} [Hud: 54-56].
Their idols did nothing, for how could they? They were mere lifeless objects, with no awareness, let alone the ability to bring benefit or avert harm. After these arguments and challenges, the people did not counter with reason or logic, nor with sound arguments. Instead, they renounced the logical, innate, and rational proofs brought by Hud (peace be upon him), closed the door to dialogue and debate, and called for the punishment to descend. Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He) says: {They said, "Have you come to us that we should worship Allah alone and leave what our fathers have worshipped? Then bring us what you promise us, if you should be of the truthful."} [Al-A'raf: 70].
And Allah Almighty also says: {They said, "Have you come to delude us away from our gods? Then bring us what you promise us, if you should be of the truthful."} [Al-Ahqaf: 22].
This is the utmost stubbornness—stubbornness for the sake of idols they had made with their own hands and called gods without any authority from Allah.
In the end, Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He) decreed the destruction of the polytheists, and it is a law for those who associate partners with Him and oppose His Messenger. The foundations of the polytheism of the people of ‘Aad collapsed with the screaming, violent wind.
- Ali Muhammad al-Sallabi, Prophet Hud (peace be upon him) And the Causes for the Demise of the Civilization of the People of Aad, pp. 500-502.
- Reasons for the Destruction of Previous Nations, Saeed Muhammad, p. 128.
For further information and review of the sources for the article, see:
The Book of Prophet Hud (peace be upon him) And the Causes for the Demise of the Civilization of the People of Aad on the official website of Sheikh Dr. Ali Muhammad al-Sallabi:
