Glorifying Created Beings and Forgetting the Creator

Exalting created beings and turning hearts away from the Creator is one of the subtle deviations that crept into the meaning of “Lā ilāha illā Allāh” over the course of time.
We witness it daily on social media: people becoming preoccupied with glorifying men instead of glorifying the Lord of men. This obsession often reaches a level of fanaticism that elevates individuals above the truth, measuring right and wrong by human standards rather than by the standard of revelation.

Today, fame, reputation, visibility, and the number of followers are what people magnify. Even acts that should be obligations and duties for the sake of Allah are turned into favors, sources of pride, and displays of self-glorification — until the awe of Allah, Exalted be He, has all but vanished from hearts.

Pages now compete to share what men have said, what men have done, the images of men, and the details of those men — to such an extent that glorifying men has distracted people from glorifying the Lord of men. Meanwhile, disregard for the rights of Allah and His Messenger ﷺ has spread in reality and in the tests of sincerity, far from sermons and pulpits.

This fixation on exalting human beings has diverted hearts from their Creator, until sincerity has nearly faded, and tawḥīd (pure monotheism) is forgotten amidst the noise of names, banners, and rivalries fought in the name of personalities and loyalties. The remembrance of Allah no longer stirs hearts as does the mention of so-and-so! In fact, an offense against a man provokes more outrage than an offense against Allah and His Messenger ﷺ.

Whoever has not yet recognized this trial should beware, for it strikes at the very core of tawḥīd and sincerity.
When a servant magnifies Allah as He deserves to be magnified, every other great one becomes insignificant. But when he magnifies men, he forgets that all greatness belongs to Allah alone; corruption thus seeps into his reverence for Allah.

True faith is nothing but the magnification of Allah, the Almighty. Allah, Exalted be He, says:

“The believers are only those who, when Allah is mentioned, their hearts tremble, and when His verses are recited to them, it increases them in faith; and upon their Lord they rely.”
(Sūrat al-Anfāl 8:2)

And the one who reflects deeply will see, in every scene where people rush to glorify names and words of men more than they glorify Allah and His Magnificent Book, the truth of Allah’s saying:

“They have not estimated Allah with the estimation due to Him.”
(Sūrat al-Anʿām 6:91)

Had they truly recognized Allah’s greatness, they would not have been consumed by excessive admiration of individuals, devoting their time and pens to exalting them, defending their mistakes, and adorning their flaws — let alone their virtues.

Whoever examines the causes of this sanctification of figures — whereby every group rejoices in a particular name, follows the path of a particular man, and forms alliances and hostilities around a specific person — will find several underlying reasons, combined or separate, depending on each case.

The Causes Behind Glorifying Men

1. Spiritual Emptiness and Weak Attachment to God
The first and foremost cause of excessive glorification of men lies in spiritual emptiness and a weakened attachment to Allah.
When faith diminishes in the heart, a person begins to seek a “tangible role model” to fill his spiritual void. Thus, he transfers the feelings of reverence and submission — which were meant by nature to be directed toward God — to human beings, whether they are preachers, leaders, or celebrities.
He convinces himself that he honors so-and-so because that person reminds him of Allah, until his reverence for that individual makes him forget reverence for Allah Himself. Consequently, offending that person becomes more severe, in his eyes, than offending the right of Allah, the Almighty.

2. Influence of Modern Culture
Modern culture, which glorifies the individual, also contributes to this phenomenon. The modern age is built upon celebrating “personal achievement” and “individual genius,” until people came to believe that every act of change or success is tied to a particular person rather than to a sincere mission, collective effort, or divine providence.
The collective mind has thus transformed into a form of “worship of individuals” instead of “worship of the Lord of individuals.” Alongside this came injustice, manipulation, and the desire for exclusivity and fame.

3. The Media and the Manufacture of Icons
The influence of mass media and social networks has created towering “icons” out of people. Repetition of their names and images implants a sense of sanctification in hearts. An ordinary human being becomes, in the public consciousness, a “savior,” a “source of inspiration,” or a “reviving imam.”
Hopes and dreams are then built upon everything that person says or does, as though the very image of Islam and heroism were embodied in him. Every virtue is attributed to him; academic theft becomes permissible, and this revered man is regarded as the beginning of history — the first to be magnified after the Messenger of Allah ﷺ!
This is an extremely dangerous trend, for it reduces centuries of sacrifice to the legacy of one person, making him the sole possessor of virtue who cannot err, for he has become the standard of truth and the measure of the straight path.

4. Weak Religious Knowledge
Ignorance of the implications of “Lā ilāha illā Allāh” is among the most prominent causes of this tendency. People direct reverence to the servants rather than the Lord of the servants, forgetting that no matter how elevated a person may be, he remains prone to error.
They are not to be exalted to the ranks of blind veneration or fanatic loyalty — for such becomes a trial for them and for others when they err. Even the Companions, may Allah be pleased with them, did not treat their most eminent peers in such a way.
As the scholars said: “He who is ignorant of the fundamentals falls into imitation, and he who neglects monotheism exaggerates in veneration.” Thus, misguided fanaticism takes root.

Ibn Taymiyyah, may Allah have mercy on him, said in Majmū‘ al-Fatāwā:

“Whoever shows partisanship toward one particular imam over the others is like one who shows partisanship toward a particular Companion over the rest — like the Rāfiḍī who sides with ‘Alī over the three Caliphs and the majority of the Companions, or the Khārijī who criticizes ‘Uthmān and ‘Alī (may Allah be pleased with them both). These are the ways of the people of innovation and desire, whom the Qur’an, the Sunnah, and consensus have all condemned. Whoever exhibits partisanship toward any specific imam resembles them — whether toward Mālik, al-Shāfi‘ī, Abū Ḥanīfa, Aḥmad, or others.
The utmost degree of such a partisan is that he is ignorant of the imam’s true rank in knowledge and religion and ignorant of that of the others, thus becoming both ignorant and unjust. Yet Allah commands knowledge and justice and forbids ignorance and oppression. As He, the Exalted, said: ‘Indeed, he was unjust and ignorant’ (Al-Aḥzāb 33:72).”

5. The Psychological Tendency Toward Following Others
Human nature inclines toward submission to those perceived as powerful, knowledgeable, or influential. The heart finds comfort in following rather than in the burden of independent thought and discernment.
This is what Ibn Taymiyyah called “hidden servitude” — when a person unknowingly worships the opinion of his shaykh or leader, devoting his loyalty and obedience to him unconsciously.
Indeed, one of the most prevalent issues in our time is devoting one’s religion to individuals or groups instead of to Allah alone. This becomes evident when the shaykh or group contradicts the law of Allah or commits a clear mistake, and that error is then justified and beautified rather than corrected — all in an effort to defend and exalt the individual instead of adhering to the Prophetic guidance. Indeed, Allah’s decree manifests in wondrous ways among His creation.

6. Weakness and the Sense of Defeat
When the ummah grows weak or is beset by repeated defeats, people begin to seek a “hero” upon whom to hang their hopes. They attach themselves to names — especially famous, prominent ones that are easy to recall and follow.
The more intense the defeat, the greater the veneration, for people yearn for a human “symbol of salvation.”
In truth, fascination with personalities is not merely a social phenomenon; it is a theological and behavioral deviation resulting from weak connection with Allah, ignorance of the true meaning of servitude, and heedlessness of His greatness — the very essence of:

“They have not estimated Allah with the estimation due to Him.” (Al-An‘ām 6:91)

The Remedy for This Affliction

The remedy for this grave affliction lies in returning to pure monotheism (tawḥīd) — exalting the call to tawḥīd and uniting people upon it by freeing ourselves from the disease of glorifying names, symbols, and the excessive veneration of men. This was a danger that the great scholars of Islam often warned against, repeatedly reminding their followers not to exalt them or overpraise them, and not to forget that they are human beings who are liable to err and, at times, to retract their mistakes.

It is therefore essential to revive the principle: “Men are known by the truth, not the truth by men.”
Otherwise, who will bear the consequences of this deviant tendency that threatens the purity of monotheism and the sincerity of devotion among people?

Perhaps the earliest evidence of this deviation is what Allah told us in His Book about the people of Nūḥ (Noah):

“And they said, ‘Do not abandon your gods, and do not abandon Wadd, nor Suwāʿ, nor Yaghūth, and Yaʿūq, and Nasr.’”
(Sūrat Nūḥ, 71:23)

Ibn ʿAbbās (may Allah be pleased with them both) explained that these names belonged to righteous men from among the people of Nūḥ. When they died, the people honored them and erected images in their memory; then, as time passed, they began to worship them besides Allah.

Thus it began — with love and respect for righteous men, then attachment and veneration of their images and details, until it escalated into excess and idolatry.

This phenomenon grows whenever knowledge and faith in tawḥīd weaken. Exaggeration then appears toward imams and scholars, rulers, notables, and people of influence — until some begin to prefer the word of their revered shaykh over the text of divine revelation. This is the very root of all misguidance. As the scholars said:

“The origin of polytheism is exaggeration regarding the righteous.”

This phenomenon becomes even more dangerous when it turns into a trust passed among people — a pact that unites them. Then images, slogans, and blind loyalty circulate as if they were daily devotions or duties of an international campaign! Digital alliances arise to glorify and sanctify certain men, often trampling fairness and truth, while injustice and bias spread under the guise of loyalty.

If there is one sincere counsel with which I conclude this reflection, it is directed to preachers and those who hold the pulpit:
Beware of letting such veneration take root in the hearts of your followers.
Fill their hearts with the glorification of Allah, not of yourselves.
Free your words and your work from elevating personalities — whether intentionally or unintentionally — for exalting the self never brings victory.
It is only the glorification of Allah alone, with no partner, that brings divine aid, success, and all goodness.

We are in dire need of reviving the glorification of Allah Almighty — His remembrance within hearts, His nearness, His oneness, and the unification of people upon this reverence.

For no believing heart can hold both the glorification of the Creator and the glorification of creation at once. Either the heart is filled with the light of tawḥīd, or it is consumed by the darkness of human exaltation.

This does not mean denying people their due ranks of virtue or rights, but rather guarding against the paths of the innovators — those who exaggerate in honoring men to the point of deification and unjustified excess.

How desperately the ummah today needs to realign its compass toward its original axis: to glorify Allah alone with no partner, and to honor divine revelation above every name and banner.

“Alif Lām Mīm. Do the people think that they will be left to say, ‘We believe,’ and they will not be tested? And We certainly tested those before them, so Allah will surely make evident those who are truthful, and He will surely make evident the liars.”
(Sūrat al-ʿAnkabūt, 29:1–3)

And Allah is the One who grants success and guides to the straight path — exalted is He, the Most High.