Portraying Prophets or Imams as gods.

All Muslim scholars, Shia and Sunni, without any difference of opinion, consider it a major Shirk [Shirk-e -Akber].

A Muslim becomes Mushrik if he portrays any of the Prophet or Imam in any way or in any form as God or like God or part of God.

In the articles of Islamic acts, Ayatullah al-Uzma As-Sayyid Abul Qasim al - Khui, (and all other marja as well) describes Ghulat as a kind of Shirk and Kufr, and writes;
“Those who believe one of the holy twelve Imams to be God or say that God has penetrated into him are Kafirs.”(article 107)

Imams have cursed those people who give them Divine attributes and call them in a way as some body is calling God.

During the time of Hazrat Imam Jafer Sadiq (as), some one attributed some false hadith to his father, Hazrat Imam Muhammad Baqir (as), in which various aspects of divinity were attached to the Imams, notably Amir ul- Muminine Hazrat Ali(as). The people who were spreading these fabricated ahadith were the followers of Mughir bin Said and those of Abi
Khattab Muhammad bin al-Assadi.

When Imam Jafar Sadiq (as) heard about this, he said;

“May Allah curse Mughira bin Said as he used to tell lies against my father, May Allah make him taste the heat of burning iron, May Allah curse those who say about us what we do not say ourselves, May Allah curse those who try to make us away from the servitude of Allah, Who created us, and to Him is our return and in His hand is our control”. Rijal al-Kishi.

Precisely, according to the teaching of the Holy Prophet (sws) and his Ahlal Bayit (as), if anyone knowingly or ignorantly commits any of the following act, then he has committed a major Shirk.

• To consider any Prophet, or Imam, or a leader as an Independent Power.
• To portray the Prophet, or any Imam as god or like a God.
• To give the Prophet, Imam, or anyone, attributes of Allah or Divine titles which make them to look like a God.
• To associate anyone of them with God in His Power of Execution.

All of the above mentioned acts are just the same but different kinds of major Shirk. Muslims must abstain from all such acts with full determination as the Shirk is an un-forgivable crime.

The Holy Prophet of Islam and his Ahlal-bayit have taught us to believe that Allah has created everything when nothing existed. Thus, creating, giving sustenance, granting bounties, death, life, health, wealth, sickness, all in all are under His control.

Amirul Mu’mineen Ali ibn Abi Talib(as) wrote a lengthy letter to his son Imam Hassan(as) advising him to ask Allah alone in all desperate situations.

Imam Ali (as) writes:
“ .... In all your affairs resign yourself to your Allah, because you will thus be resigning yourself to a secure shelter and a strong protector. You should ask (dua) only from your Lord because in His hand is all the giving and depriving. Seek good (from Allah) as much as you can....” Letter no 31 Nahjul Balagha.

Muslims should take extreme caution while praising the Prophets and Imams. The magnitude of their greatness is certainly unimaginable and their status is beyond our praise, but they all were human beings and we mustn’t depict them as God or like a God or give Allah’s attributes to any one of them.

Quran Reflects

“They (Christians) have taken their rabbis and monks as Lords besides Allah, and also al- Masih, son of Maryam, though they were ordered to serve one God only. There is no god but He, Exalted be He above those whom they associate with Him.” (9:31)

The teaching of monotheism is that their is no god but Allah, Who has no par tner. There is none like Him. It is basically impossible that there could be anyone like Him. If anyone is like Him then it means that there are two gods which is impossible.