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In the name of Allah, and peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah.
This is an explanation of the indication of the true nature of disbelief in the Taaghoot and its takfeer, and the type of this indication.
It includes a response to those who claim that the first to say this was shaykhul-Islam ibn 'Abdul-Wahhab (may Allah have mercy on him) and that this statement is innovative due to the lack of explicit evidence for it in the Qur'an and Sunnah. Their criterion for explicitness is based on their knowledge of Arabic, ignoring thereby the fundamental implications of words and surpassing them. This indicates a great ignorance on the part of those who hold this view.
I will present an explanation of this matter with the help of Allah, first in general terms and then in detail.
As for the general explanation:
When the Salaf interpreted the Taaghoot by example in various Ayat, such as
{فَمَن يَكْفُرْ بِالطَّاغُوتِ}
"... Whoever disbelieves in Tâghût..." (Al-Baqarah 2:256),
they mentioned both rational beings and non-rational beings like idols. What concerns us here are the rational beings. In their interpretation, they mentioned: Shaytan, the priests of idols, soothsayers, Huyayy ibn Akhtab, Ka'b ibn al-Ashraf, and the magician. All these, according to those who interpreted the Taaghoot as one of them, are disbelievers. None of them interpreted the Taaghoot as a rational being whose transgression was due to disobedience. This is a clear indication that they did not see the Taaghoot except as a disbeliever.
This is supported by Almighty's statement
{أَنِ اعْبُدُوا اللَّهَ وَاجْتَنِبُوا الطَّاغُوتَ}
"Worship Allāh and avoid ṭāghūt." (An-Nahl 16:36) and
{وَالَّذِينَ اجْتَنَبُوا الطَّاغُوتَ أَن يَعْبُدُوهَا وَأَنَابُوا إِلَى اللَّهِ لَهُمُ الْبُشْرَىٰ}
"Those who avoid At-Tâghût (false deities) by not worshipping them and turn to Allâh (in repentance), for them are glad tidings" (Az-Zumar 39:17), and His statement
{أَلَمْ تَرَ إِلَى الَّذِينَ أُوتُوا نَصِيبًا مِّنَ الْكِتَابِ يُؤْمِنُونَ بِالْجِبْتِ وَالطَّاغُوتِ}
"Have you not seen those who were given a portion of the Scripture? They believe in Jibt and Tâghût" (An-Nisaa' 4:51).
Anyone who accepts this meaning for themselves is a disbeliever because acceptance of disbelief is disbelief.
This is also supported by Almighty's statement
{وَالَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا يُقَاتِلُونَ فِي سَبِيلِ الطَّاغُوتِ}
"and those who disbelieve fight in the cause of ṭāghūt." (An-Nisaa' 4:76)
If a person becomes a disbeliever by fighting for the cause of the Taaghoot, then it is even more so that the Taaghoot itself is a disbeliever.
And His statement
{وَالَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا أَوْلِيَاؤُهُمُ الطَّاغُوتُ}
"And those who disbelieve - their allies are ṭāghūt." (Al-Baqarah 2:257)
How can someone whose ally is the Taaghoot be a disbeliever, while the Taaghoot itself is not a disbeliever? This does not make sense.
The Qur'an explains itself.
Therefore, Almighty's statement
{فَمَن يَكْفُرْ بِالطَّاغُوتِ}
"... Whoever disbelieves in Tâghût..." (Al-Baqarah 2:256),
refers to the complete dissociation that applies to those who are the heads of disbelief. How then could the Taaghoot not be a disbeliever?
As for the Detailed Explanation:
Disbelief in the Taaghoot (الكفر بالطاغوت) means, as mentioned in the books of Tafseer, disavowal from it.
Declaring takfeer of the Taaghoot means removing it from the fold of faith.
Disbelief in the Taaghoot does not indicate declaring it takfeer by exact correspondence or by inclusion.
The evidence for this is the absence of this meaning in the books of Tafseer and language.
The absence of this meaning in the books of language implies the negation of this meaning in the linguistic reality.
The absence of this meaning in the books of Tafseer implies the negation of this meaning in the Shari'yyah reality.
The difference in meanings is also indicated by the difference between the two verbs: "كَفَرَ بِـ" is a trilateral verb and is inherent, and transitive with the preposition "بِـ," while "كَفَّرَ" is a trilateral augmented verb and is transitive; the increase in structure indicates an increase in meaning.
As for the indication of correlation, since it is a rational indication, not a verbal one (i.e., verbal from one perspective and rational from another, not purely rational because it relates to a meaning outside the word), it does not exist in linguistic dictionaries. However, the absence of it in the books of Tafseer does not mean its non-existence, as interpreting an Ayah by correlation is possible and indeed occurs. This is a well-known approach from the time of the Sahaabah and the Taabi'een, where later mufassireen took their words to mean an interpretation by correlation. A number of interpreters have followed this approach, but for interpreting some Ayat, not all.
This is unlike exact and inclusive indications, which are verbal indications. One of them must be present in the interpretation of an Ayah or what is in their meaning from the methods of Tafseer detailed by ibn Taymiyyah in the introduction to the principles of Tafseer (which is the reason for the diversity of opinions among the Salaf). Al-Ghazali pointed to this by saying: "Beware of using in rational consideration words that indicate by correlation, but restrict yourself to those that indicate by exactness and inclusion because indication by correlation is not limited."
It should be noted that the Usooliyyeen consider that the indication of correlation can be explicit or non-explicit, contrary to the logicians.
Following this introduction, I will explain the evidence for the relationship between declaring takfeer of disbelief in the Taaghoot from three perspectives:
First Perspective: Indication of Correlation:
The meaning of disbelief in the Taaghoot is disavowal from it, and this disavowal is complete, without any loyalty, unlike disavowal of a Muslim innovator or a major sinner, where there is a mixture of loyalty and disavowal.
The evidence that disbelief in the Taaghoot is achieved through complete disavowal includes:
Firstly: It opposes faith in Allah since it is the opposite of faith in Allah, it must be complete disavowal. This is similar to the statement of Ibraaheem (peace be upon him):
{إِنَّنِي بَرَاءٌ مِّمَّا تَعْبُدُونَ إِلَّا الَّذِي فَطَرَنِي}
"Indeed, I am disassociated from that which you worship except for He who created me" (Az-Zukhruf 43:26-27)
and Almighty's statement:
{أَنِ اعْبُدُوا اللَّهَ وَاجْتَنِبُوا الطَّاغُوتَ}
"Worship Allāh and avoid ṭāghūt." (An-Nahl 16:36)
Secondly: The Qur'an rulings are purposeful as ash-Shaatibi established in al-Muwaafaqaat. It is known in Shari'ah that complete disavowal can only apply to a kaafir. From these two pieces of evidence, we understand that the Taaghoot is a kaafir by implicit indication, which is a type of non-explicit spoken indication. Thus, the correlation between disbelief in the Taaghoot and its takfeer is established because implicit indication is one type of correlation indication.
From another perspective, the term Taaghoot itself inherently carries a meaning that necessitates declaring takfeer of a rational being that falls under its term.
To explain this, it is said that the word Taaghoot is derived from "طغى" (to transgress) and "طغيان" (transgression), which means exceeding the limits. This is its linguistic reality. In the Qur'an, transgression means exceeding the limits through disbelief or disobedience, which is the Shar'iyyah reality of the word transgression.
The term Taaghoot is in the pattern of "فعلوت" (Fa'loot), which implies exaggeration. When we look at how it is used in the Qur'an, we find that belief in the Taaghoot and its worship are mentioned in contrast to belief in Allah and His worship. This is evidenced by Almighty's statement:
{أَنِ اعْبُدُوا اللَّهَ وَاجْتَنِبُوا الطَّاغُوتَ}
"Worship Allāh and avoid ṭāghūt," (an-Nahl 16:36) and His statement:
{وَالَّذِينَ اجْتَنَبُوا الطَّاغُوتَ أَن يَعْبُدُوهَا وَأَنَابُوا إِلَى اللَّهِ لَهُمُ الْبُشْرَىٰ}
"Those who avoid At-Tâghût (false deities) by not worshipping them and turn to Allâh (in repentance), for them are glad tidings" (Az-Zumar 39:17), and His statement
{أَلَمْ تَرَ إِلَى الَّذِينَ أُوتُوا نَصِيبًا مِّنَ الْكِتَابِ يُؤْمِنُونَ بِالْجِبْتِ وَالطَّاغُوتِ}
"Have you not seen those who were given a portion of the Scripture? They believe in Jibt and Tâghût" (An-Nisaa' 4:51).
Anyone who is content with this cannot be anything but a kaafir, and indeed one of the heads of disbelief, necessitating its takfeer.
Second Perspective: Concept of Opposition with a Priority Analogy:
Almighty's statement:
{فَمَن يَكْفُرْ بِالطَّاغُوتِ وَيُؤْمِن بِاللَّهِ فَقَدِ اسْتَمْسَكَ بِالْعُرْوَةِ الْوُثْقَىٰ}
"Whoever disbelieves in Tâghût and believes in Allâh, then he has grasped the most trustworthy handhold," (Al-Baqarah 2:256)
implies by its meaning that whoever does not disbelieve in the Taaghoot has not grasped the most trustworthy handhold. The "most trustworthy handhold" has been interpreted as the testimony of Tawheed, Islam, and faith. This is an example of the diversity of Tafseer as explained by ibn Taymiyyah in his introduction to the principles of Tafseer. Therefore, whoever does not believe in Allah or does not disbelieve in the Taaghoot has not grasped the most trustworthy handhold and is thus a kaafir. If the ruling for someone who does not disbelieve in the Taaghoot is that they are a kaafir, due to not completely disavowing from it, then it is even more so that the Taaghoot itself is a kaafir. This is supported by Almighty's statement:
{الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا يُقَاتِلُونَ فِي سَبِيلِ الطَّاغُوتِ}
"And those who disbelieve - their allies are ṭāghūt," (al-Baqarah 2:257)
indicating that a fighter in the cause of the Taaghoot is a kaafir by the indication of emphasis and implication. Hence, it is even more so that the Taaghoot itself is a kaafir. Similarly, it can be said regarding Almighty's statement:
{وَالَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا أَوْلِيَاؤُهُمُ الطَّاغُوتُ}
"those who disbelieve fight in the cause of ṭāghūt." (An-Nisaa' 4:76)
If a kaafir's ally is the Taaghoot, how can the Taaghoot itself not be a disbeliever?
Third Perspective: Explicit Necessity of the Statements of the Salaf:
Every Salaf who interpreted the Taaghoot with examples of rational beings in various Ayat, such as Shaytan, the priests of idols, Huyayy ibn Akhtab, Ka'b ibn al-Ashraf, and magicians, provided examples considered by them to be disbelievers. This clearly indicates by explicit necessity that the Taaghoot, according to them, is a kaafir. This invalidates the claim that the Salaf denied any relationship between disbelief in the Taaghoot and its takfeer altogether. (Tafseer by example is a type of Tafseer by the Salaf, and the differences in it are differences in variety as mentioned by ibn Taymiyyah in his introduction).
These perspectives of reasoning – the priority analogy, the concept, and the correlation – have been established by the Salaf in several matters of belief, and denying this is ignorance.
As for declaring takfeer on those who do not disbelieve in the Taaghoot with the argument that they did not disbelieve in the Taaghoot:
Declaring takfeer of a specific Taaghoot is an issue that can be ambiguous from three perspectives:
From the evidence perspective: The relationship between disbelief in the Taaghoot and its takfeer is correlational, as previously explained.
From the perspective of determining the application of the ruling: Whether a particular individual falls under the definition of Taaghoot can sometimes be explicit and documented, and other times it can be a matter of ijtihaad, depending on the determination of the context.
From the knowledge perspective: People’s knowledge about this matter varies and differs from one person to another. The issue has also been subject to scholarly obscurity (ibn Taymiyyah mentioned that obscurity can affect both individuals and scholarly issues).
Thus, declaring takfeer on those who do not declare a specific Taaghoot is related to the fundamental reason for declaring takfeer on those who do not declare the original disbelievers. This is based on one of two reasons: either rejecting the revelation (as mentioned by al-Qaadhi 'Iyaadh in ash-Shifaa') or rejecting Allah’s command (like Iblees did), as mentioned by ibn Qudaamah in Rawdat an-Naadhir. Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal and Abu 'Ubayd al-Qaasim ibn Sallaam mentioned similar reasons in other contexts of declaring takfeer. This charge can only be applied to a specific individual with certainty.
Therefore, the obligation to declare takfeer a specific Taaghoot is based on two conditions: knowing Allah’s ruling about it and knowing that the ruling applies to it, which depends on understanding its reality. Whoever knows both conditions must declare it takfeer; otherwise, they are not obligated because responsibility does not arise without knowledge.
The primary misguidance of the contemporary Khawaarij in this matter is that they have made disbelief in the Taaghoot a single level, just as their predecessors made faith a single branch, requiring either complete adherence or complete nullification. Thus, they say you cannot disbelieve in the Taaghoot unless you declare takfeer of every specific one of them; otherwise, you are a kaafir. They ignore that disbelief in the Taaghoot has both a foundation and a branch; it can be undetailed and detailed, exactly as is said about faith.
Whoever achieves disavowal from the general category of Taaghoot, as well as from those among its specific instances known to them, and disavows what they have transgressed in, has achieved the essence of disbelief in the Taaghoot and has disbelieved in it in a general sense.
As for those who respond to the Khawaarij by completely denying any relationship between disbelief in the Taaghoot and its takfeer, they follow the path of the Murji'ah, who refuted falsehood with another falsehood by excluding actions from faith to escape the extremism of the Khawaarij. By doing so, they bear some resemblance to them, and Allah is the helper.
Written by:Walad al-Haaj Muhammad al-Ifreeqi
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