Refuting Sam Shamoun's Arguments Against the Monotheism of Islam: Part 5
Rebuttal to Sam Shamoun's Article "Stone Kissing and Idolatry"
[Introduction, Sami Zaatari's Rebuttals to Shamoun, Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10, Part 11, Part 12, Tawassul in Christianity]
by
Bassam Zawadi
This is in response to Shamoun's article over here.
Just because the Prophet (peace be upon him) kissed the Black Stone, does not necessarily imply that he worshipped it.
Let's look at what Umar ibn Al Khattab said after he kissed the black stone:
Saheeh Bukhari
Volume 2, Book 26, Number 667:
Narrated 'Abis bin Rabia:
'Umar came near the Black Stone and kissed it and said "No doubt, I know that you are a stone and can neither benefit anyone nor harm anyone. Had I not seen Allah's Apostle kissing you I would not have kissed you."
Volume 2, Book 26, Number 675:
Narrated Zaid bin Aslam from his father who said:
"Umar bin Al-Khattab addressed the Corner (Black Stone) saying, 'By Allah! I know that you are a stone and can neither benefit nor harm. Had I not seen the Prophet touching (and kissing) you, I would never have touched (and kissed) you.' Then he kissed it and said, 'There is no reason for us to do Ramal (in Tawaf) except that we wanted to show off before the pagans, and now Allah has destroyed them.' 'Umar added, '(Nevertheless), the Prophet did that and we do not want to leave it (i.e. Ramal).'
We can see that Umar even acknowledged that this stone had no power to do anything. So, if the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) truly worshipped this stone, then he should have at least informed his companions that this stone was an idol and that they should pray to it. However, the companions did not do such a thing because the Prophet (peace be upon him) did not promote or believe in such a concept.
Abdus-Samad Sharafuddin said:
DOES KISSING MEAN WORSHIPPING?
Kissing a stone is not a sign of its worship at all. Kissing the Black Stone cannot be twisted into an idol worship, for the stone is no image, just as mere kissing is not worshipping by a mere imagination. Anyone might allege that Muslims do worship a certain 'idol'. But the fact remains that they do not worship anything save God, the One. The idol and its worship simply do not exist. The Bible is kissed in lawcourts; does that mean then that it is worshipped? Moreover, parents kiss their children lovingly, without any trace of worship in it at all. A big question-mark that should come to one's mind are the pre-Islamic Arab idolaters who had held the Ka'bah. With all their polytheism and idolatry, they too used to circle the Ka'bah and kiss the Black Stone. Had their kissing been an act of idol- worship, why then was there still a need for them-despite the presence of the "almighty" Black Stone-to install three hundred and sixty idols therein? This proves beyond a shadow of doubt that it is one thing to kiss the Black Stone under Divine Orders, and quite another to worship a stone or an idol. Most notable, perhaps, is the fact that One-God worshippers do nothing beyond simply kissing the Black Stone. They neither venerate it with folded hands, nor kneel down, nor prostrate themselves, nor squat before it. For all these is done only by idol-worshippers before their idols. (Abdus-Samad Sharafuddin, Is the Black Stone an Idol? & Is Pilgrimage a Pagan Rite?, Source)
Again, Shamoun fails to point out any promotion of idol worship in Islam.
Recommended Reading
http://www.answering-christianity.com/abdullah_smith/stone_kissing.htm
http://bayanelislam.net/Suspicion.aspx?id=01-03-0047&value=&type
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