Shirk in the Necessity of Existence and the Kinds of Shirk

Question

What is called shirk in existence (shirk fi al-wujud) and shirk in worship (shirk fi al-‘ibada)? And how many kinds of shirk are there in all?

Answer

Just as the Exalted Creator is necessarily existent (wajib al-wujud), pre-eternal, everlasting and imperishable, so to hold any other thing to be likewise is shirk in the necessity of existence (shirk fi wujub al-wujud); and to worship, alongside God the One, any other thing as well is shirk in worship (shirk fi al-‘ibada).

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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