''Taghut'' (, ṭāġūt; pl. ''ṭawāġīt'' (); broadly: "to go beyond the measure") is
Islamic terminology
The following list consists of notable concepts that are derived from Islamic and associated cultural (Arab, Persian, Turkish) traditions, which are expressed as words in Arabic or Persian language. The main purpose of this list is to disambi ...
denoting the worship of another deity besides
God
In monotheistic belief systems, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. In polytheistic belief systems, a god is "a spirit or being believed to have created, or for controlling some part of the un ...
. In traditional
theology
Theology is the study of religious belief from a Religion, religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an Discipline (academia), academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itse ...
, the term often connotes
idols or
demon
A demon is a malevolent supernatural entity. Historically, belief in demons, or stories about demons, occurs in folklore, mythology, religion, occultism, and literature; these beliefs are reflected in Media (communication), media including
f ...
s drawn to blood of pagan sacrifices. The pre-Islamic deities
al-Lāt
Al-Lat (, ), also spelled Allat, Allatu, and Alilat, is a Religion in pre-Islamic Arabia, pre-Islamic Arabian List of pre-Islamic Arabian deities, goddess, at one time worshipped under various associations throughout the entire Arabian Peninsu ...
and
al-ʿUzzā, later also
Satan
Satan, also known as the Devil, is a devilish entity in Abrahamic religions who seduces humans into sin (or falsehood). In Judaism, Satan is seen as an agent subservient to God, typically regarded as a metaphor for the '' yetzer hara'', or ' ...
, are associated with that term. In modern times, the term is also applied to earthly tyrannical power.
[Momen, Moojan. (1995). "Țāghūt". In John L. Esposito. ''The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Modern Islamic World''. Oxford: Oxford University Press.]
The modern
Islamic philosopher Abul A'la Maududi
Abul A'la al-Maududi (; – ) was an Islamic scholar, Islamist ideologue, Muslim philosopher, jurist, historian, journalist, activist, and scholar active in British India and later, following the partition, in Pakistan. Described by Wilfred C ...
defines ''taghut'' in his
Quranic commentary as a creature who not only rebels against God but transgresses his will. Due to these associations, in contemporary political discourse, the term is used to refer to people considered anti-Islamic and agent of Western
cultural imperialism
Cultural imperialism (also cultural colonialism) comprises the culture, cultural dimensions of imperialism. The word "imperialism" describes practices in which a country engages culture (language, tradition, ritual, politics, economics) to creat ...
. The term was introduced to modern political discourse since the usage surrounding
Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini during the
1979 Iranian Revolution, through accusations made both by and against Khomeini.
Etymology
The Arabic word ' is commonly seen as derived from the
three-letter verbal root of , which means to "cross the limits, overstep boundaries," or "to rebel." From this, ''Taghut'' denotes one who exceeds their limits.
Taghut is used together with ''jibt'' in
surah al-Nisa 4:51). Wahib Atallah says that these words are of
Egyptian
''Egyptian'' describes something of, from, or related to Egypt.
Egyptian or Egyptians may refer to:
Nations and ethnic groups
* Egyptians, a national group in North Africa
** Egyptian culture, a complex and stable culture with thousands of year ...
origins and explains these words as
Hejaz
Hejaz is a Historical region, historical region of the Arabian Peninsula that includes the majority of the western region of Saudi Arabia, covering the cities of Mecca, Medina, Jeddah, Tabuk, Saudi Arabia, Tabuk, Yanbu, Taif and Al Bahah, Al-B ...
i pronunciations of
Copt and
Thoth
Thoth (from , borrowed from , , the reflex of " eis like the ibis") is an ancient Egyptian deity. In art, he was often depicted as a man with the head of an African sacred ibis, ibis or a baboon, animals sacred to him. His feminine count ...
.
In the Quran
The term ''taghut'' occurs eight times in the
Quran
The Quran, also Romanization, romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a Waḥy, revelation directly from God in Islam, God (''Allah, Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which ...
.
In
Pre-Islamic Arabia
Pre-Islamic Arabia is the Arabian Peninsula and its northern extension in the Syrian Desert before the rise of Islam. This is consistent with how contemporaries used the term ''Arabia'' or where they said Arabs lived, which was not limited to the ...
referring to pagan deities such as
Al-Lat
Al-Lat (, ), also spelled Allat, Allatu, and Alilat, is a pre-Islamic Arabian goddess, at one time worshipped under various associations throughout the entire Arabian Peninsula, including Mecca, where she was worshipped alongside Al-Uzza and ...
and
Al-Uzza
Al-ʻUzzá or al-ʻUzzā (, , ) was one of the three chief goddesses of Arabian religion in pre-Islamic times and she was worshipped by the pre-Islamic Arabs along with Al-Lat and Manāt. A stone cube at Nakhla (near Mecca) was held sacred a ...
.
This is taken to refer to an actual event in which a group of disbelieving Meccans went to two eminent Jewish figures for counsel on the truth of Muhammad's teachings and were told that the pagans were more rightly guided than Muslims.
The Arabic ''taghut'' is variously interpreted to refer to idols, a specific tyrant, an oracle, or an opponent of the Prophet.
Again, this term ''taghut'' has been used here to designate a demon worshipped by the Quraysh.
[Dr. Shmuel Bar ''Lebanese Hizballah – Political, Ideological and Organizational Highlights '' 29 October 2006 p. 6]
See also
References
{{Characters and names in the Quran
Arabic words and phrases in Sharia
Idolatry
Sharia legal terminology
Quranic words and phrases