or the graves of the prophets and the righteous, or from the angels and prophets whom they take as lords, or anything else that is worshiped besides Allāh. And if he is a servant to other than Allāh, he is a polytheist, and every arrogant person is a polytheist. For this reason, Pharaoh was among the most arrogant of creation in refusing to worship Allāh and was a polytheist. Allāh, the Exalted, said (Sūrah Ghāfir, 23-35): “And We certainly sent Moses with Our signs and a clear authority * to Pharaoh, Hāmān, and Qārūn, but they said, ‘A magician, a liar.’” up to His saying: “And Moses said, ‘Indeed, I have sought refuge in my Lord and your Lord from every arrogant one who does not believe in the Day of Reckoning.’” up to His saying: “Thus does Allāh seal over every heart [belonging to] an arrogant tyrant.” And He, the Exalted, said (Sūrah al-ʿAnkabūt, 39): “And Qārūn and Pharaoh and Hāmān, and Moses had certainly come to them with clear proofs, but they were arrogant in the land, and they were not outrunners [of Our punishment].” And He, the Exalted, said (Sūrah al-Qaṣaṣ, 4): “Indeed, Pharaoh exalted himself in the land and made its people into factions, oppressing a group among them, slaughtering their sons and keeping their women alive.” And He said (Sūrah al-Naml, 14): “And they rejected them, while their [inner] selves were convinced thereof, out of injustice and haughtiness. So see how was the end of the corrupters.” And there is much like this in the Quran. Pharaoh is described with polytheism in His saying (Sūrah al-Aʿrāf, 127): “And the eminent among the people of Pharaoh said, ‘Will you leave Moses and his people to cause corruption in the land and abandon you and your gods?’” Rather, examination indicates that the greater a person’s arrogance in refusing to worship Allāh, the greater his polytheism with Allāh, because the more he is arrogant in refusing to worship Allāh, the more he increases in poverty and need for the desired beloved