A Figure in The Process from Tawhid to Shirk: Amr B. Luhay

Tawhid”, which means dedicating worship only to Almighty Allah and turning to Him, is the basis of Islamic belief. “Shirk”, which means associating partners with Allah (cc), has somehow existed in the life adventure of human beings since the first human and the Prophet Adam. Regardless of the society, geography, time and place, it is observed that shirk comes to life when belief in Allah (cc) is weakened. In the period when the Prophet Muhammad was sent, besides the belief in Allah among the Arabs, idolatry was one of the basic elements of religious life. In this study, the factors that led the Arab society, who were the first addressees of the Prophet’s message, to turn to idolatry, were revealed through a figure whose name is mentioned a lot in the sources. As the majority of Islamic sources point out, Amr b. Luhay from Huzaa tribe is the person who introduced idolatry into the life of the Hijaz society and the Arabs in general. In this study, his position and the process are clarified as much as possible. Ending the rule of the Curhum tribe over Mekka and seizing power with the support of his tribe, Huzaa, Amr b. Luhay undersigned some practices that would leave deep traces in later periods. The influence of the Prophet Abraham’s tradition of tawhid has been continuing especially in Mekka and the Hijaz region for a long time. According to narratives, Amr b. Luhay took some of the idolatry he saw during a trip to the north of Arabia and brought them to the Hijaz. Convincing the public that this idolatry has extraordinary qualities, he created new rituals and made an expansion in his own way. He encouraged the worship of idolatry such as visits, sacrifices, and circumambulation, inherited from the Prophet Abraham. Idolatry, which was respected and refrained by people when appropriate, increased numerically over time. The symbol of tawhid, the Kaaba, has turned into a pantheon of idolatry. Amr expanded the wave of idolatry in the peninsula by bringing the idolatry named Vedd, Yauk, Yegus, Nesr, Suva‘, which remained from the time of Prophet Noah and mentioned in the Qur’an, to different Arab tribes. Carrying out practices that were diametrically opposed to the understanding of tawhid and led the Arab society to the circle of shirk, Amr b. Luhay was not limited to bringing idolatry to the region The chief of the Huzaa tribe, Amr b. Lühay, draws attention as a pioneer and charismatic leader, influencing the masses by gathering power, material and spiritual forces in his hands in Mekka, the centre of the Arabian Peninsula. Due to his pioneering role in presenting Shirk to the Arab society, he marked a negative era. The statements in the narratives from the Messenger of Allah that he saw him in Hell should be a warning in the form of “indicating evil/a means of doing evil”.