Tuesday, 10 December 2013

Idolatry and Superstitious Beliefs

Assalamu'alaikum wa rahmatullah

Meaning of Idol


The word idol in English as a noun refers to an image or representation of a deity used as an object of worship. It also refers to a person or a thing that is greatly admired, loved or revered. The word originated from the Middle English through Old French idole and it was derived from Latin, idolum which means image or form in the sense of idol. The cognate word in Greek was eidōlon from eidos which means form or shape.

South Asia

When I informally studied Buddhism, I had come across with the words such as vigraha, o rupa, pratima or murti. I did not follow Chinese Buddhism but I followed Theravada Buddhism which is the school of Buddhism adopted in Thailand and Sri Lanka. The working language for the school is Pali and Sanskrit which represent previous Brahmin traditions and commoners speech since Siddartha Gautama has many Brahmin disciples while he is a Kshatriya. The cultural background of the school is Indian in its spirit. The word murti generally means an image of deity which itself is considered divine once it is consecrated through special ceremony and it literally means embodiment.

The word murti refers to an image which expresses a murta or a divine spirit. It is a representation of a divinity, made usually of stone, wood, or metal, which serves as a means through which a divinity may be worshiped (Klaus, 1989). Hindus consider a murti worthy of serving as a focus of divine worship only after the divinity is invoked to embody the subject matter for the purpose of offering worship (Singh Nagendra, 1997). The depiction of the divinity must reflect the gestures and proportions outlined in their religious tradition. It is a means of communication with Brahman or the Highest Self.  

The term murti in Sanskrit is meant to point to the transcendent "otherness" of the divine when substituted with statue or idol and the inherent meaning is lost since neither is a correct translation of the word murti (Britannica, 2011). The worship of murtis is recommended for the Hindus, especially for Dvapara Yuga as described in Pāñcarātra texts (Garua Purāṇa; 1.223.37, 1.228.18). Indian stonemasons only producing images of the deities within orthodox Hindu religion after there were remarkable expertise in the portrayal of Buddha figures and of animal and human (John, 2011).

There is also a note made by scholar such as Steven Rosen that the term murti as an equivalent to the word "idol" in European languages is a misconception. Early European missionaries were largely responsible for conflating the two terms by informing the local Hindus that "idol" was the correct translation of their word, "murti" (Rosen, 2006).  Scholar such as Diana Eck explains that the term murti is define in Sanskrit as "anything which has definite shape and limits; a form, body, figure; an embodiment, incarnation or manifestation". Then, the murti is more than a likeness; it is the deity itself taken the "form". The uses of the word murti in the Upanishads and the Bhagavadgita suggests that the form is its essence (Eck, 1981). As such, a murti is considered to be more than a mere likeness of a deity, but rather a manifestation of the deity itself. The murti is like a way to communicate with the abstract unimaginable God known as the Brahman which creates, sustains and dissolves creations.

South East Asia

Basically the indigenous and natives here are closely related to ancient Indians and ancient Southern Chinese. The word for idol in Malay is berhala which literally means something to focus. The Dewan Bahasa and Pustaka which is the Malay language council stated that it means "statues of deities worshiped by some groups of non-Muslims". The meaning in Indonesian language which also uses the same word as according to the Great Indonesian Dictionary stated that, berhala is a noun which means, "statues of deities, and it in broader sense refers to any creatures such as the Sun, the Moon, angels, animals or things other than the God the Highest" (Surah al-Zumar 39:38). 

When the word is articulated as a verb such as to idolize or to deify could also have a slightly different meaning where it does not mean that the person who idolizes something or someone is saying that the person he idolizes is a god worth to be worshiped. It does nit means that the person who idolizes something or someone is prostrating before it or him. It might also means to admire but in a stronger sense. It could also means to admire or to love something more than the admiration or the love toward the God the Highest. For example to fear something or to love something more than the fear and love toward the God the Highest. 

In Thai language which is used across the Siam Empire in South East Asia, the word idol is translated into Thao Rūp which means the "image of an elder". It is closely related to the ancient Indian thought regarding the religious symbol.   


The word idol as according to the Quranic Arabic could be referred to different things. They would be used differently as according to context of the sentences where the word is being used. 
  • al-Anām which refers to anything made from wood, rock, gold, silver, copper and everything from the earth which is later molded to form living creatures such as human, animals or any large sized plant which becomes an object of worship. The meaning of the word is broaden to refer to idol.  
  • al-Awān are anything made of things mentioned in the previous but it is more general from the previous since it could take the form of anything which is formless or formed in different sizes from the smallest to the biggest ones. So, the previous word becomes the sub-category of this word.
  • al-Anab is a kind of stone which has no specific form which is used as a place to slaughter cattle and being used as an altar for heathen gods. It is also referring to a kind of stone which is not formed but worshiped as a symbol for something. I understood this word as a kind of statue which is erected or installed in a closed place, cave like holes or in open surroundings.          
Most Arabic dictionary equates these words into only one meaning in other languages and people could not recognize the terminological meanings as it becomes ambiguous.  

Idolatry in Arabian Peninsula

In the history of paganism, a tribe would never do anything in a blink of eyes but in few stages. Human-being in a certain region would certainly be influenced by others from the neighboring regions. Arabia in the Age of Ignorance had adapted idolatry from neighboring nations such as the Assyrians and Phoenicians. 

Among the apprentice of the idolatry in Mecca was 'Amr bin Luay and he was a chief of the Khuza'a clan of the larger Azd tribe from Southern Arabia. He and his tribe entered Holy Mecca and fought with the Jurhumites and the Ishmaelites who lived side by side there around 4th century. Later, he ruled Mecca and the Ishmaelites had to move to sub-urban area. 
When the pilgrimage season comes, the Arabian tribes from around Arabia would come to Mecca and they would also receive the idols which would be brought back to their hometown. Each tribe had erected the temples at the outskirt of their villages. 

The historians who analyzed the development of paganism in Arabia around the 2nd H said that before prophet Muhammad s.a.w was born, there were many forms of paganism practiced by the Arabs. Most of the Arabs approached the deities in the form of idols and slaughtered their camels for the deities. Sometimes, they would slaughter human as according to superstitions such as in the case of Abd al-Motallib, the grandfather of prophet Muhammad s.a.w who almost close to slaughter his own son for deities, Abdullah who is the father of Muhammad s.a.w.

Slaughtering Human

The mention about Abd al-Motallib was trying to slaughter his son is quite ambiguous since Abd al-Motallib is also mentioned as a Hanif who follows the traditions of Abraham a.s, which is his ancestor. The narration is that Abd al-Motallib has made a vow to the God the Highest may He bestow him with 10 sons and one of them would be sacrificed.   

This incident happened after Abd al-Motallib repairing the Zamzam well. Most of Quraish in Mecca trying to stop him from digging the well. Only his son, Harit defended him. Later on, the Quraish approved that Abd al-Motallib has the authority over the supervision of the well and his dream of having 10 sons comes true. 

Abdullah was the most beloved son of Abd al-Motallib. Abd al-Motallib would be escorted by his sons when he perform the circumambulation at the Cubicle Shrine and he would have to fulfill his vow. So, he met the priest at the Cubicle Shrine. The priest conducted a superstitious election before his deities and the election falls for Abdullah. As to stay true to his promise, he decided to slaughter Abdullah though he loves him so much. The Quraish had tried to stop him where he brought his son to be slaughtered before a deity known as Isaph. He was so stubborn that he did not listen to his tribes word until they fought each other and the head of Abdullah accidentally being injured.
The reason why the Quraish tried to stop him was that, he was a respected noble man in Mecca and people would follow his example as a custom. They afraid that everyone would have to sacrifice their 10th sons. However, Abd al-Motallib had vowed and he must fulfill his promise. So, he went to a priest from the Sa'ad clan. The priest asked on how much would be paid for an independent man who is killed among the Quraish? They said, 10 female camels. So, he advised Abd al-Motallib to do the election again on 10 camels but they could only check the sex of the camel after the election is made. If the camel is male then he has to release another 10 camels for election until he reached the female one. He did that for three times and altogether there are 100 male camels. So, the priest told him to slaughter the camels as the ransom for his son life and releasing him from the vow. 
And prophet Muhammad s.a.w said that, "I am a son of two men who were almost slaughtered". The first one was Ishmael a.s and the second one was his father, Abdullah.

Superstitious Beliefs

In Hejaz such as in Yatrib and Taif besides practicing paganism, they were also familiar with other kinds of beliefs from the closer regions. Some opinions stated that there were animism and dynamism among rural Arabs. These kind of beliefs were portrayed in ancient poems about various aspects of social life for e.g politics, thoughts, economy, culture, religions and beliefs in Arabia.

They believed in omens and superstitious and were largely bounded by those silly practices...


Some of them believed that the soul of a man who was killed by another takes the form of a bird known as hamah and cries over the grave saying, "Give me drink (of blood)". The bird remains crying days and nights until the man of his family and tribe avenge the blood of the dead man.

They believed that after the month of afar, calamities and disasters befall on men. Some stated that, those pagans believed that there are worms in bellies which bite men and produce jaundice.

In case of a child died during infancy, they believed that the children would live again if the mother walked seven times over the slain body of a distinguished person.

When a person of distinction died, a camel would be confined in a pit near his grave and was not given any water or fodder so that it might die and the dead person might be riding on it on the Resurrection and might not rise on foot. Keeping in view the fact that a person while alive used to slaughter camels to entertain his kinsmen and guests and as a mark of respect and recompense to him; his successors would also cut off the feet of a camel near his grave in a painful manner to the animal.


They believed that rain falls down as according to the change of stars or the moon. Since many areas of Arabian Peninsula experienced drought. To ensure coming of the rains the people of such places used to procure the branches of trees known as Sala' and 'Ushr which catch fire easily. They tied these branches at the tail of a cow and drove it to the top of a mountain. Later, they set fire to these branches. On account of the presence of inflammable material in the branches of 'Ushr flames rose up from the fire and burnt the body of the cow. Owing to the pain and suffering caused by burning, the cow began running and crying. These people committed this foul act treating it as a token of resemblance with the thunder and lightening. They treated the flames of fire and the cries of the cow as representing lightning and thunder respectively and considered this act as effective in calling the rain to fall.  

Arrow and Omen

A superstitious Arab desired to make a journey or to take a wife, or to join a warfare or undertake other important tasks would draw out "divine" arrows at temples, on one of which was written, "My Lord has commanded me", on another, "My Lord had forbidden me", while the third arrow remained blank.

Some would send birds to fly before starting their work. If it flew by the right side, then it was a good omen. If it flew the left side, it was bad omen. 

If a person who has an intention to get something and was unable to get it so he would not enter his house by the front door but by the back door and continue doing so for a year.

While traveling they feared immorality on the part of their women. To gain assurance in this behalf they tied a thread to the stalk or branches of a tree. If the thread was intact at the time of their return they were satisfied that their women had not been guilty of immorality. If however, they found the thread untied or missing they slandered their women and punish her.   

Honoring Gods

They would set free certain animals in honor of their tribal gods believing that they would get prosperity by such an act. They would set free Bahirah or female camel with slit ear, Saibah or any female animal which having brought forth females at 10 successive births and Hami or stallion camel that was considered unlawful for riding or being used as a beast of burden. All of them were set free to graze anywhere they like and the female milk is forbidden to be taken.

They used to attribute particular supernatural powers to their respective idols, which were stationed within the Cubicle Shrine. They thought that the God the Highest entrusted the discharge of the various functions of the universe to different gods and goddesses which were invoked to reside within the idols. Therefore they prayed for blessings from the idols especially of those stationed in the Shrine in Mecca. There were about 360 idols within this ancient shrine belonging to different tribes before the opening of Mecca to the light of Revelation.

Submission to Evil Spirits

There was the belief about evil spirits whom they would conjure up in solitary places. They attributed various kinds of diseases to them. They said the the mother of Queen Sheba was a female genie and the father of Alexander was a male genie. Those who believed in a life after death would tie a camel at a tomb and starve it to death, thinking that the deceased would mount on its back on the Resurrection.

When they reached certain places without any human there, they would seek refuge to the genie who guarded the area with words such as, 'I seek refuge with the genie of this area". This is a kind of polytheism within Islamic faith because the genie was positioned as a partner besides the God the Highest.

When they arrived in a village and were afraid of some contagious disease or evil spirits, they would bray 10 times like a donkey at the gate of the village. At times they also hanged bones of a fox round their necks. If they lost their way while traveling in the desert, they wore their shirt turning it inside out.

Diseases and Evil Spirits

If a person was bitten by a snake or scorpion, gold ornaments were put around the neck of the victim. They believed that if such a person carried copper or tin on his body and he would die.

As regard for rabies due to being bitten by a dog, they treated it by rubbing a small quantity of blood of the chief of their tribe on the wound. And in case sign of madness appeared in anyone, he would took refuge in dirt, dirty rags and bones of the dead being hung around his neck as to drive away evil spirit.

To ensure that their child should not sustain injury from evil spirits, they tied the teeth of a fox and cat to a thread and put it around his neck. As and when a child developed boils or pimples on his body, his mother would put a sieve on her head and went around the houses of the tribe to collect bread and dates which she gave to dogs so that boils and pimples of her child might be healed. Other women of the tribe took care that their own children did not eat those dates and bread least they too should contract the same ailment.

If a person contracted a skin disease for e.g a disease which had a rasping effect on the body, he would treat it by rubbing his saliva on the spot. If the illness prolonged, they imagine the patient had killed a snake or some other animal which has connections with evil spirits. In order to beg forgiveness of the evil spirits therefore they prepared clay images of camels and loaded them with barley, wheat and dates. They left all these things in opposite to a hole in a mountain and visited that place on the following day. If they found that the said things had been consumed by something, they considered it a sign of acceptance of their offerings by the evil spirits and concluded that the patient would be cured. If however the position was otherwise, they thought that it is not accepted by the spirit. 

This is some brief account of the innumerable superstitions which had darkened the lives of the Arabs during the Age of Ignorance and had restrained their intellects. They are not the teachings of noble sages and prophets of the God the Highest but comes from ignorance on the surroundings. These still happen in most of the nations around the world even until today. It was not easy to be uprooted in a day. It took hundreds thousands of years to enlighten everyone. 

Sealed with prayers for mercy, peace and love, amin!

No comments:

Post a Comment

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...