Understanding ‘Ibadah’

THE CONCEPT OF RELIGION under discussion. “Your deities are merely names that you have devised” emphasizes that Ibadah (worship) here refers to an act associated with deities who, in reality, do not exist but are imaginary entities created by the worshipers themselves. Clearly, such a deity is an idol, not a political ruler. In other words, what is being rejected here is the act of calling upon and worshiping imaginary beings other than God, perceiving them as having the power to benefit or harm. Therefore, what is being demanded here is essentially the same: to worship Him alone and to recognize only Him as having the power to benefit or harm. The commentators have understood the meaning of this verse. Al-Qurtubi, explaining that the term “arbaab mutafarriqoon” (various lords) refers to “idols,” interprets the following phrases with these words: The phrase “You do not worship besides Allah except [mere] names” emphasizes the weakness and powerlessness of the idols, explaining that those you worship besides Allah are simply names with no true reality. You yourself have given them these names. Some scholars have said that “names” refer to the entities themselves, meaning that those you worship are just idols without any divine nature, as they are inanimate objects. (Tafsir al-Qurtubi, Vol. 9, p. 192)