Prostration for Other Than God

The prostration of the angels before Adam was an act of salutation, respect, and honor directed towards Adam, and it was an act of submission and worship directed towards God. This is because the angels, in compliance with God’s command, deemed such an honor appropriate for the perfect human being. A similar instance of prostration is seen in the story of Joseph, where his brothers, father, and mother prostrated before him: “And he raised his parents upon the throne, and they fell down in prostration to him” (12:100).

Many exegetes, including Allāmah Ṭabāṭabāʾī (may God have mercy on him),(5) have addressed the question of how prostration, if essentially an act of worship exclusive to God, could be permissible for other than God. They explain that prostration is not inherently worship; rather, it becomes an act of worship when performed with the intention of worship and adoration. In some contexts, prostration can even symbolize mockery or derision, rather than worship. Based on this reasoning, prostration to other than God is not intrinsically forbidden but becomes prohibited when there is a legal or rational injunction against it, such as when the intention is to express lordship or divinity towards the one being prostrated to. However, if the prostration is performed solely as a gesture of salutation and respect, there is no inherent evidence to prohibit it.

Despite this, the religious sentiments and understanding that have developed within the Islamic community emphasize the exclusivity of prostration to God Almighty, even when intended as mere salutation or honor. Importantly, the prohibition of prostration to other than God with the intention of reverence and honor in Islamic law does not necessarily imply its prohibition in previous religious laws.(6) As narrated from Qatāda regarding the verse “and they fell down in prostration to him” (12:100), it was customary during the time of Joseph for people to greet and salute each other through prostration. Thus, differences in customs and habits across various times and cultures are conceivable.(7)

In any case, there is no doubt that in this incident, firstly, Adam (a.s.) was the one prostrated to (masjūd bih), not merely the direction (qibla) towards which the prostration was directed (masjūd ilayh), as some have suggested by interpreting “li-Adam” to mean “to Adam.”(8) The essence of the prostration story is to honor Adam and manifest his superiority over the angels. It is clear that simply making something a direction of prostration does not imply its superiority over those performing the prostration.(9)

However, one could argue that the station of humanity, specifically the perfect human, was the actual object of the prostration, and the physical form of humanity, represented by Adam’s earthly body, was made the direction. Thus, Adam’s role as a divine vicegerent was what was truly honored in the act of prostration.

Secondly, the prostration to Adam was a greeting and act of respect, not an act of worship or obedience to Adam himself. This is explicitly stated in the narration of Tuḥaf al-ʿUqūl from Imam al-Ṣādiq (a.s.) and in al-Iḥtijāj from Mūsā b. Jaʿfar (a.s.).(10) In other words, the real object of worship in this prostration was God alone, and the angels prostrated to Adam in compliance with God’s command. They recognized Adam as a manifestation of God, but not as an object of worship. As eloquently expressed in the words of Ḥāfiẓ:

“The angel prostrated to Adam, kissing the ground before you,

For he found in your beauty something beyond human nature.”

If Iblīs was condemned and cursed, it was due to his failure to see the divine manifestation in Adam. In the words of the great mystic Qumshehʾī (may God have mercy on him):

“His crime was that he did not see your reflection in the mirror,

Otherwise, abandoning prostration to the father of mankind is not so significant.”

Thirdly, considering the religious temperament and understanding that prostration to other than God might have been permissible in previous laws, it cannot be assumed that such an act is allowed in Islamic law merely based on the instances of prostration to Adam or Joseph (a.s.). The permissibility of such acts depends solely on the explicit sanction of the Islamic Legislator. Thus, historical precedents from earlier scriptures do not suffice as evidence for allowing similar practices in Islamic jurisprudence without clear legislative endorsement.

Fourthly, all these considerations apply under the assumption that the angels’ prostration was a legislative command. However, if the prostration were a creational act—something inherent in the nature of the cosmos—then discussing its religious permissibility or prohibition becomes irrelevant. The matter of whether the prostration was a legislative act, a creational command, or a symbolic gesture representing obedience and servitude will be further explored in the upcoming section on subtleties and allusions.

Note: The apparent meaning of the verse under discussion suggests that Adam was directly the one prostrated to (masjūd bih), rather than simply being prostrated towards (masjūd ilayh). However, some scholars reject the idea of prostration being for Adam and instead interpret him as the masjūd ilayh. They liken this interpretation to the verse, “Establish prayer from the decline of the sun until the darkness of the night” (17:78), which means performing acts of worship directed towards God while in a specific context or domain. Thus, according to this view, the angels were commanded to prostrate to God while in Adam’s presence, just as prayers are performed to God at the time marked by the sun’s decline, emphasizing the act’s divine orientation rather than directing it towards Adam himself.