Wahdat ul-Wujud (Oneness of Existence) Refuted

بسم الله الرحمٰن الرحيم

والصلاة والسلام على رسوله الكريم

وعلى اهل بيته الطيبين الطاهرين المظلومين

والعاقبة للمتقين

The false doctrine of wahdat ul-wujud was formulated by Ibn Arabi. Although I have declared this doctrine as false, it is incorrect to equate it with pantheism, as many novices lazily do. According to the doctrine of wahdat ul-wujud, all created things have an imaginary existence and only the existence of Allah is real and true. Hence why it is called “wahdat ul-wujud”, oneness of existence, as only Allah is existent according to this doctrine. Contrary to this, the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ said:

مَنْ شَهِدَ أَنْ لاَ إِلَهَ إِلاَّ اللَّهُ وَحْدَهُ لاَ شَرِيكَ لَهُ، وَأَنَّ مُحَمَّدًا عَبْدُهُ وَرَسُولُهُ، وَأَنَّ عِيسَى عَبْدُ اللَّهِ وَرَسُولُهُ وَكَلِمَتُهُ، أَلْقَاهَا إِلَى مَرْيَمَ، وَرُوحٌ مِنْهُ، وَالْجَنَّةُ حَقٌّ وَالنَّارُ حَقٌّ، أَدْخَلَهُ اللَّهُ الْجَنَّةَ عَلَى مَا كَانَ مِنَ الْعَمَلِ

“Whoever testifies that there is none worthy of worship except Allah, alone, having no partner, and that Muhammad is His slave and apostle, and that Jesus is the slave of Allah, His apostle, His word bestowed upon Mary, and a spirit from Him, and that Paradise is real and the Hellfire is real, Allah shall admit him into Paradise upon whatever he did of good deeds.”

(al-Bukhari & Muslim)

Paradise and Gehinnom are created things, yet it is an article of faith for us to believe that they are real places, having a true, real existence and not imaginary. According to the doctrine of wahdat ul-wujud, Paradise and Gehinnom have an imaginary existence as only Allah is Haq (true, real) having a real existence.

The Prophet ﷺ would also supplicate to Allah in these words:

أَنْتَ الْحَقُّ وَوَعْدُكَ حَقٌّ، وَقَوْلُكَ حَقٌّ، وَلِقَاؤُكَ حَقٌّ، وَالْجَنَّةُ حَقٌّ، وَالنَّارُ حَقٌّ، وَالسَّاعَةُ حَقٌّ، وَالنَّبِيُّونَ حَقٌّ، وَمُحَمَّدٌ حَقٌّ

“You are the Truth, Your promise is true, Your saying is true, Your meeting is true, Paradise is true, Hellfire is true, the Hour is true, the Prophets are true, and Muhammad is true”

(al-Bukhari)

The Tawhid brought by the ancient Prophets of Allah is not the so-called tawhid of wujud, meaning negating the existence of everything besides Allah. True Tawhid of the Prophets is to negate the right of worship of anything besides Allah. The Wujudis quote the Hadith in which the Prophet ﷺ confirmed the words of the poet Labid:

أَلاَ كُلُّ شَىْءٍ مَا خَلاَ اللَّهَ بَاطِلٌ

“Alas! Everything besides Allah is false”

(al-Bukhari & Muslim)

The reader should keep in mind that these words are poetic and not meant to be read literally. Do the Wujudis have the audacity to openly say that the Angels, Scriptures and Prophets of Allah are batil (false), thereby repudiating their faith and becoming apostates and disbelievers of Islam? The fact of the matter is that the Prophet confirmed these poetic words upon the meaning with which their author, Labid, intended them, namely, that the worship of anything besides Allah is false. This beautiful couplet of the poet is concerning the Tawhid of ibada (worship) brought by the Prophets, and not the false tawhid of wujud (negating real existence for the creation) brought by the deluded “mystic” Ibn Arabi.