Stoning Satan: A Reminder To Break The Modern Idols
One of the rituals of Hajj is the throwing of pebbles at the three pillars of temptation that symbolize Satan when he tried to dissuade Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) from carrying out the command of Allah. The pile of broken umbrellas, huge rocks, and of course, rubber slip-ons of all hues piled around the pillars of temptation tell more than a story. The minor story, of course, is that some people come to Hajj unprepared and thus unaware of what to hurl at Satan. The major story is why only small pebbles are needed. Questions as to what to hurl and why only small pebbles are closely connected.
The completion of the rites of Hajj, as we know them, was executed by Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) after he removed all idols from the Ka’bah. The objects that needed major demolition equipment had been done away with and what now remain are fresh idols that keep cropping up at all times. The need for heavy demolition equipment does exist, but the heavy-duty stuff that needs to be removed are not big rocks of idols, but the rocks of corruption, greed, power, vanity, and self-indulgence. The equipment needed to remove these rocks are sincere doses of fear of Allah (Taqwa).
Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him), perhaps, the foremost idol-breaker, launched a mission against idolatry when it was the absolute norm – he stood firm against the tide of idol worship and challenged this deep-rooted social norm. Today, we live amidst a tide of idols.
However, these idols, although man-made like their predecessors, enjoy a form far more deceptive than the word idol usually conjures up for us. The modern-day idols of the love for power or recognition is taking many forms, and most often these idols in the guise of current-day social norms are not only hurtful to the individual but indeed to the community.
Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) was confronted with the same psychological and emotional challenges that confront us: making and worshipping idols was the norm, and in his case the family’s livelihood too.
This is where his greatness lies he was able to break from these barriers and demolish the idols. Yes, there was opposition, but none from within him. He felt no fear, no hesitancy in undoing his family’s source of income. He was driven by a desire to break the shackles of idolatry and establish the worship of One True God.
The jihad (struggle) of Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) is as relevant for us today as it was thousands of years ago.
Today, although it seems that no physical idols need to be broken, many idols confront us: there are still billions who are worshipping man-made idols, there are many who, drunk with power, are devastating human rights at will, and, above all, human beings live with false notions of wealth.
The popular ditty goes: “What a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive.” Humanity is held in deception and awaiting Muslims to break psychological and emotional idols and free themselves and the rest from this temporal world.