وَأَنِ اعبُدوني ۚ هٰذا صِراطٌ مُستَقيمٌ

And worship Me. That is a straight path”?

EXPOSITION

And worship Me. Not only does Allah not allow us to worship Satan, He does not want us to worship anything other than Him.

We are worshipping creatures, even if the object of our worship is ourselves. But Allah is not pleased with us worshipping worthless and transitory things. What Allah has destined for us is nothing less than the highest excellence: worshipping Him and nothing less than Him, I did not create the jinn and the humans except that they may worship Me. I desire no provision from them, nor do I desire that they should feed Me (51:56-57).

That is a straight path. The very concept of a path indicates a journey and a destination. It implies that this life is not a resting place but a journey towards somewhere else and a path to something higher. The path which takes us directly to that destination is the worship of God, a worship not mixed with any obedience of Satan, which is tantamount to disobedience of God. The verse implies that apart from this straight path, there are other paths which may lead to a destination, but they are not straight. The straight path is the shortest path between two points. The paths that are not straight may also take us to Him but with a longer distance and much more difficulty. This is the path of those who mix the worship of God with sins and disobedience. 

INSIGHTS FROM HADITH

1. The Messenger of God said: ‘The best of people is the one who has an affection for worship, hence, embraces it and loves it with his heart, engages with it with his body, and devotes himself to it. Therefore, he does not care how he lives in this world, whether in hardship or ease.’^{‎[1]Kafi, 2/83.}
2. When Imam al-Riḍā (a) was asked about the reason for worshipping God, he said: ‘So that they may not forget His remembrance, nor shun His ethical instructions, nor neglect His commands and prohibitions, because their reform and strength are in it. Their hearts would harden if they were left without worship for a long period.’^{‎[2]Uyun, 1/110.}
3. When Prophet Muhammad (s) ascended to the heavens, God asked: ‘O Aḥmad! Do you know when a person would be My worshipper?’ He replied: ‘No, O Lord.’ He said: ‘Whenever seven qualities are combined in him: piety that keeps him away from forbidden things, silence that restrains him from what does not concern him, fear that increases his crying every day, modesty that makes him shy from Me in private, eating what is necessary, he dislikes the world for My dislike for it, and he loves the virtuous people because of My love for them.’^{‎[3]Bihar, 74/30.}
4. Imam al-Riḍā (a) said: ‘Worship is not abundance of fasting and prayer, but it is abundance in contemplation about God.’^{‎[4]Bihar, 68/322.}
5. Imam al-Ṣādiq (a) said: ‘It is written in the Torah: “O son of Adam, dedicate yourself to My worship, I will fill your heart with needlessness, and I will not forsake you in your needs, and it would be upon Me to remove your destitution and fill your heart with awe in Me. And if you do not dedicate yourself to my worship, I will fill your heart with the world’s obsession; after that, I will not remove your destitution and [I will] forsake you in your needs.”’^{‎[5]Kafi, 2/83.}
6. Imam al-Ṣādiq (a) said: ‘God, the blessed and exalted, said: “O my virtuous servants, enjoy my worship in this world, for you will enjoy [the fruits of] it in the hereafter.”’^{‎[6]Kafi, 2/83.}

REVIEW OF TAFSĪR LITERATURE

Rāzī mentions that after prohibiting the worship of Satan in the previous verse, this verse commands worshipping God, and that is in line with avoiding the harmful before performing the beneficial. One of the interesting points is that when God prohibited worshipping Satan, He emphasised the reason for it, that he is a manifest enemy for humans. On the other hand, in this verse, God did not mention the reason for worshipping Him, such as because He loves humankind; instead, He mentioned a strong and sufficient reason which is the rewardable straight path. Since this world is a path towards the final destination, the hereafter and the eternal abode, a human needs a straight and safe path towards it. That is the path of monotheism which is only worshipping God with total humbleness and humility away from any type of ego and arrogance.^{‎[7]Razi, 26/99-100.}

INSIGHTS FROM OTHER TRADITIONS

1. Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendour. “All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.” Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’” Then, the devil left him, and angels came and attended him.^{‎[8]Matthew 4:8-11.}
2. Then I saw another angel … He said in a loud voice, “Fear God and give Him glory because the hour of his judgment has come. Worship him who made the heavens, the earth, the sea and the springs of water.”^{‎[9]Revelation 14:6-7.}

[1] Kafi, 2/83.
[2] Uyun, 1/110.
[3] Bihar, 74/30.
[4] Bihar, 68/322.
[5] Kafi, 2/83.
[6] Kafi, 2/83.
[7] Razi, 26/99-100.
[8] Matthew 4:8-11.
[9] Revelation 14:6-7.