وَأَنْ أَقِمْ وَجْهَكَ لِلدِّينِ حَنِيفًا وَلَا تَكُونَنَّ مِنَ الْمُشْرِكِينَ (105)
(10:105) and to adhere exclusively and sincerely to the true faith, *108 and not to be one of those who associate others with Allah in His divinity. *109
*108). The emphatic form in which people have been urged to adhere to true faith is noteworthy. Here people are not simply being asked to 'embrace the faith', or to 'follow the faith', or to 'become adherents of the faith'. Apparently such expressions were too weak and feeble to convey the idea of a total, firm, and steady adherence to faith as required of man. The actual words of the verse, ***** suggest that one should focus one's attention on the true faith, that one ought not to waver and let one's attention wander, that one ought to refrain from, occasionally moving a step forward and another step backward, or turning alternately left and right. What one is rather required to do is to keep moving straight ahead on the path to which one has been directed. This is clear and forceful enough in itself. However, the Qur'an does not stop at that. It adds the condition that the attention should be *****, that is, one characterized by exclusive and sincere devotion. What is thus being demanded is that one should adhere to this religion, this way of serving God, this way of life comprising worship, service, servitude, and obedience and in such a way that man's devotion and service to God are total. Once the true faith has been adopted, there should remain no trace of any liking for the false ways which have been forsaken.
*109). The Prophet (peace be on him) is asked not to be one of those who associate others with God in His being, His attributes, His claims against His creatures, and His authority over those who set up others than God as partners to God. These others could be either one's own self, or some other person, or a group of persons; a spirit, a jinn, an angel, or any tangible or imagined being. Thus, the demand is not just a positive one to follow the path of serving the One True God with total devotion and steadfastness - there is also a negative aspect of the demand - that one ought to detach oneself from those who associate others with God in His divinity in whatever form. Moreover, one is required to be exclusively devoted to God not only in the realm of belief but also in the realm of conduct; not only in the individual but also in the collective sphere of life; not only when one is in a mosque, but also when one is in an educational institution, or in a court of law, or a legislative body, or in stately palaces where political decisions are made, or in market places bristling with trade and commerce. In short, one should adhere wherever one might be, to the doctrine of exclusive devotion to God. This is a way that should be quite distinct from the way of those who have developed in their lives a hodgepodge of two opposites: devotion to God and devotion to others than God. In short, one who believes in worshipping the One True God alone can never go hand-in-hand with those who believe in polytheism. For how could a Muslim conceivably be satisfied to go step-by-step with, let alone follow the way of those who associate others with God in His divinity? For in the latter eventuality the believer will be unable to fulfil the basic requisite of his faith, viz. the doctrine of monotheism.
Moreover, the Qur'an asks the believer not only to shun overt but also covert and subtle forms of polytheism. One should be especially cautious about the latter since the consequences of any kind of polytheism are dreadful. Some people, out of their naivety, however, are inclined to take a light view of covert polytheism, considering it to be of less consequence than the open variety. One should be wary of such complaisance for covert polytheism may, in fact, be even more serious than the open variety. For an enemy out in the open can be more effectively countered than the one who is hidden from sight, or one who masquerades as a friend. One may well ask: which disease is more fatal, the one with the obvious symptoms, or the insidious one which develops within, eating at the vital organs, and yet which shows no external symptoms?
This analogy holds true for the subtle form of polytheism. For the danger of open polytheism, of one that can be easily identified, is obvious to all and sundry. However, it is the subtle form of polytheism whose diagnosis calls for unusual insight and a mature grasp of the requisites of monotheism. For polytheism in its subtle form goes about striking its roots imperceptibly. The result is that in the course of time the roots of the true faith are eaten away even before anyone is alerted to such a dangerous development.