Can one True God Have associated Gods

There has always been a concept of One Supreme Being in all religions of the world. Hinduism which is said to be the oldest religion also has a concept of one God. Hindus recognize one God, Brahman, the eternal origin who is the cause and foundation of all existence. as for the Divine Religions, all prophets from Adam through Noah, Abraham, Moses and even Christ profess to worship One True God. And this goes on to Islam, the last of the Divine Religions as well.

But perhaps man could not comprehend with the idea of One God managing the entire universe. So Hindus came up with sub gods to address matters related to every walk of life, like health, fires, rains, and so on. So from here on the division commences of having Associated Gods to one True God.

After revelation of the Psalms and Torah, revealed on Prophets Dawood (David) and Musa (Moses, may peace be upon them) came the Bible which is attributed to the Prophet Eesa (Jesus Christ, peace be upon him). Jesus proclaimed that there was one God, the God he worshipped and asked his followers to worship his God alone:

The Bible clearly tells us there is only one God. “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one” (Deuteronomy 6:4).

A similar verse appears in the 72nd verse of Surah 5. Al-Maida which shuns any idea of any worldly or even heavenly being to be at par with Allah and He alone wields His power over all His creations: 

لَقَدۡ كَفَرَ الَّذِيۡنَ قَالُوۡۤا اِنَّ اللّٰهَ هُوَ الۡمَسِيۡحُ ابۡنُ مَرۡيَمَ​ ؕ وَقَالَ الۡمَسِيۡحُ يٰبَنِىۡۤ اِسۡرَآءِيۡلَ اعۡبُدُوا اللّٰهَ رَبِّىۡ وَرَبَّكُمۡ​ ؕ اِنَّهٗ مَنۡ يُّشۡرِكۡ بِاللّٰهِ فَقَدۡ حَرَّمَ اللّٰهُ عَلَيۡهِ الۡجَـنَّةَ وَمَاۡوٰٮهُ النَّارُ​ ؕ وَمَا لِلظّٰلِمِيۡنَ مِنۡ اَنۡصَارٍ‏ 

(5:72) And surely they disbelieved when they said: 'Christ, the son of Mary, is indeed God'; whereas Christ had said: 'Children of Israel! Serve Allah, Who is your Lord and my Lord.' Allah has forbidden Paradise to those who associate anything with Him in His divinity and their refuge shall be the Fire. No one will be able to help such wrong-doers.

Now coming back to associates of God (may God forbid):

The Hindus while believing in one God, found it strange that one God would manage the countless affairs of the universe and mankind. So they made mini Gods responsible for affairs like health, rain, children, wealth, wind, fire, water etcetera. [1]

Likewise, Christians too taking the advantage of extra ordinary birth of the Christ, call God as Father. The Bible clearly tells us there is only one God. “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one” (Deuteronomy 6:4). At the same time, we encounter multiple passages in the Bible that show that the one God consists of more persons. While they believe that The term Trinity is not used in the Bible. Yet they drive implied meaning of verses to stress that one God in three persons is very true. [2]

So while Hindus have specified charter of duties of their associated deities, Christians take all three, that is the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, at par with each other.  This thus is tantamount to "Shirk" as far teachings of Islam or even that of Torah and Psalms are concerned where there is associate(s) of God, for the God is alone, omnipotent and wield His powers all by Himself. He does not need no one else to run the affairs of the world but He. And if at all Concept of Trinity was true, then why didn't Christ spelt it so in clear and unambiguous words or why the concept of Trinity does not form part of Bible?

Verse 255 (also called "Ayat-al-Kursi") of Surah 2. Al Baqarah (The Cow) explains the many attributes of Allah:

( 255 )   Allah - there is no deity except Him, the Ever-Living, the Sustainer of [all] existence. Neither drowsiness overtakes Him nor sleep. To Him belongs whatever is in the heavens and whatever is on the earth. Who is it that can intercede with Him except by His permission? He knows what is [presently] before them and what will be after them, and they encompass not a thing of His knowledge except for what He wills. His Kursi extends over the heavens and the earth, and their preservation tires Him not. And He is the Most High, the Most Great.

In the above quoted verse from Qur'an, God clearly tells mankind that there is no deity except Him and  Neither drowsiness overtakes Him nor sleep. That He is awake to watch over whatever happens in His domain, which is the entire Universe, and yet He does not need anyone to administer His domain or "Help Him in doing so."

It may be added here that one of the major causes of Christians reverting to Islam is their doubts over the concept of Trinity for they feel that no one else can be at par or be an associate of One True God.  So now we have to decide what logic says and how we decide to accept One True God as all by Himself.

This is a big point to ponder upon without being prejudiced.

Disclaimer: The post is based on the concept of One True God as it appears in Qur'an and all other Divine Scriptures without inclusions of additions which even many people believe that those are based on implied meanings, whereas the Divine Commandments are very concise, clear and direct and these do not leave any ambiguity as to their meaning. The purpose is not to undermine any religion or ideas or concepts but to put across view point based on Divine Commandments as contained in Qur'an and interpretation of Godly concepts of other religions.

For more posts, please refer to our reference page: Islam and the rest of the World. You may also refer to our Reference Pages for knowing more about Islam and Qur'ān.

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Reading the Qur'ān should be a daily obligation of a Muslim - Reading it with translation will make it meaningful. But reading its Exegesis / Tafsir will make you understand it fully. It will also help the Muslims to have grasp over social issues and their answers discussed in the Qur'an and other matter related to inter faith so  that they are able to discuss issues with Non Muslims with authority based on refences from Qur'an.

May Allāh (سبحانه و تعالى‎) help us understand Qur'ān and help us to act upon the commandments of Allah contained therein. May Allah help us to be like the ones He loves and let our lives be lived helping others and not making others life miserable or unlivable. May all our wrong doings, whether intentional or unintentional, be forgiven before the angel of death knocks on our door. 

May Allah forgive me if my posts ever imply a piety far greater than I possess. I am most in need of guidance.

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