(Part 8)
The Continuation;
The Second Topic: History of Taqlid (Imitation)
The First Speech: Imitation Before Islam
This verse illustrates that their rejection was not due to language but rather due to blind imitation and obstinate pride in their polytheistic ways.
These ignorant Arabs even mocked the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him):
“وَ اِذَا رَاَوۡکَ اِنۡ یَّتَّخِذُوۡنَکَ اِلَّا ہُزُوًا ؕ اَہٰذَا الَّذِیۡ بَعَثَ اللّٰہُ رَسُوۡلًا ﴿۴۱﴾[25:41] Al-Furqān-الْفُرْقَان
“اِنۡ کَادَ لَیُضِلُّنَا عَنۡ اٰلِہَتِنَا لَوۡ لَاۤ اَنۡ صَبَرۡنَا عَلَیۡہَا ؕ ﴿۴۲﴾[25:42] Al-Furqān-الْفُرْقَان
“{And when they see you, [O Muhammad], they take you not except in ridicule, [saying], ‘Is this the one whom Allah has sent as a messenger? He almost would have misled us from our gods had we not been steadfast in [worship of] them!’}” [Al-Furqan: 41–42]
This shows the extent of their blind imitation of their ancestral religion, to the point where they mocked the Prophet and stubbornly adhered to their false beliefs.
[2:170] Al-Baqarah-الْبَقَرَة
“وَ اِذَا قِیۡلَ لَہُمُ اتَّبِعُوۡا مَاۤ اَنۡزَلَ اللّٰہُ قَالُوۡا بَلۡ نَتَّبِعُ مَاۤ اَلۡفَیۡنَا عَلَیۡہِ اٰبَآءَنَا ؕ اَوَ لَوۡ کَانَ اٰبَآؤُہُمۡ لَا یَعۡقِلُوۡنَ شَیۡئًا وَّ لَا یَہۡتَدُوۡنَ ﴿۱۷۰﴾
They followed the customs and traditions of their forefathers. Allah says:
“{And when it is said to them, ‘Follow what Allah has revealed,’ they say, ‘Rather, we will follow that which we found our fathers doing.’ Even though their fathers understood nothing, nor were they guided?}” [Al-Baqarah: 170]
Blind imitation of their forefathers, as pointed out in this verse, is a clear sign of their ignorance. They were so committed to following their ancestors that they would even commit immoral acts in their name:
[7:28] Al-A‘rāf-الْأَعْرَاف
“وَ اِذَا فَعَلُوۡا فَاحِشَۃً قَالُوۡا وَجَدۡنَا عَلَیۡہَاۤ اٰبَآءَنَا وَ اللّٰہُ اَمَرَنَا بِہَا ؕ قُلۡ اِنَّ اللّٰہَ لَا یَاۡمُرُ بِالۡفَحۡشَآءِ ؕ اَتَقُوۡلُوۡنَ عَلَی اللّٰہِ مَا لَا تَعۡلَمُوۡنَ ﴿۲۸﴾
“{And when they commit some indecency, they say: ‘We found our ancestors on the same (way) and Allah has enjoined the same upon us.’ Say: ‘Allah does not enjoin acts of indecency. Do you say about (the Essence of) Allah such things as you do not know (even) yourselves?’ .’}” [Al-A’raf: 28]
The Qur’an contains numerous verses condemning the imitation of ancestors, but for the sake of brevity, not all are mentioned here, since the Qur’an is continuously recited by believers.
The Arabs of the Age of Ignorance considered angels to be the daughters of God and worshipped them, even while burying their own daughters alive. They were plagued with numerous moral and social ills such as superstition, arrogance, wine drinking, consumption of carrion, usury, illicit relations, oppression of the weak, and more—all imitated from their ancestors. Imitation of forefathers is the final resort of every stubborn denier who, having run out of arguments, tries to evoke emotion by clinging to tradition. These are just a few glimpses of the blind imitation in pre-Islamic Arabia as revealed by the Qur’an.
History is full of the suffering and hardships of oppressed people due to blind imitation in the tyrannical empires of Rome, Persia, China, India, Egypt, etc. The Qur’an explicitly describes the imitation of Pharaoh’s people in this verse:
فَاسْتَخَفَّ قَوْمَهُ فَأَتَاعُوهُ (۵۴)
“{So he (Pharaoh) belittled his people, and they obeyed him}” [Az-Zukhruf: 54]
This verse clearly shows the blind imitation of Pharaoh’s people. Pharaoh claimed divinity and managed to subjugate his people through blind obedience. Obedience without knowledge or reasoning—blind, unconditional following—leads only to misery in this world and the next. The Qur’an, being a book of clear signs, also recounts Pharaoh’s oppression of the Children of Israel, the People of the Ditch, and the killing of prophets and reformers—all of which demonstrate how nations have committed atrocities against the oppressed by blindly following the leaders of disbelief.