Allah Ta‘ala mentions in the Qur’aan Majeed:

وَ اِذۡ قُلۡنَا لِلۡمَلٰٓئِکَۃِ اسۡجُدُوۡا لِاٰدَمَ فَسَجَدُوۡۤا اِلَّاۤ اِبۡلِیۡسَ ؕ اَبٰی وَ اسۡتَکۡبَرَ ٭۫ وَ کَانَ مِنَ الۡکٰفِرِیۡنَ ﴿۳۴﴾

And (remember the time) when We said to the angels, “Make sajdah before Aadam (‘alaihis salaam)!” So, they made sajdah, except for Iblees. He refused and was arrogant and became of the disbelievers. (Surah Baqarah v. 34)

As far as Iblees is concerned, then he was not one of the angels. Rather, he was from the species of jinn. Hence, in Surah Kahf, Allah Ta‘ala says, “And (remember) when We said to the angels, ‘Make sajdah before Aadam (‘alaihis salaam)!’ So, they made sajdah, except for Iblees. He was from the jinn, so he rebelled against the command of His Rabb.” (Surah Kahf v. 50)

The Mufassireen explain that though the Qur’aan Majeed makes special mention of Allah Ta‘ala commanding the angels to make sajdah before Nabi Aadam (‘alaihis salaam), in reality the command to make sajdah applied to the other intelligent creations as well. Hence, this command to perform sajdah also applied to Iblees. (Ma’aarif-ul-Qur’aan 1/188)

The Reasoning of Shaitaan in Opposition to the Command of Allah Ta‘ala

In another verse, Allah Ta‘ala addresses Iblees and clearly mentions that he was also commanded to make sajdah. Allah Ta‘ala says:

قَالَ مَا مَنَعَکَ اَلَّا تَسۡجُدَ اِذۡ اَمَرۡتُکَ

“(O Iblees!) What prevented you from making sajdah when I commanded you?” (Surah A’raaf 12)

In reply, Iblees said:

اَنَا خَیۡرٌ مِّنۡہُ ۚ خَلَقۡتَنِیۡ مِنۡ نَّارٍ وَّ خَلَقۡتَہٗ مِنۡ طِیۡنٍ ﴿۱۲﴾

I am superior to him (Nabi Aadam (‘alaihis salaam)). You created me from fire and You created him from sand. (Surah A’raaf v. 12)

The Ulama explain that on account of his arrogance and pride, shaitaan had utilized his intellect and reasoning against the command of Allah Ta‘ala.

Hazrat Hasan Basri (rahimahullah) said, “Iblees employed his reasoning and intellect (in opposition to the command of Allah Ta‘ala), and he was the first from the creation to do so.” (Al-Bidaayah wan-Nihaayah 1/66)

Hence, when Allah Ta‘ala asked him why he defied the command to perform sajdah, then instead of acknowledging his mistake and begging for forgiveness, his pride caused him to justify his action.

Allaamah Ibnu Katheer (rahimahullah) has mentioned that this justification of Iblees was even worse than the actual sin he committed (as he expressed before Allah Ta‘ala that Allah Ta‘ala had made a mistake, and that he knew better than Allah Ta‘ala). (Al-Bidaayah wan-Nihaayah 1/66)

Shaitaan’s reasoning failed him on account of him being rejected from the divine mercy of Allah Ta‘ala. He should have understood that when Allah Ta‘ala is the Creator, then it is the Creator who will afford positions of honour, virtue and importance to His creations and decide which creation is superior to the other. It is not the place of the creation to assume the responsibility of the Creator and decide who is greater. (Qasas-ul-Qur’aan 1/22)

In regard to the reasoning of shaitaan, Haafiz Ibnu Katheer (rahimahullah) says:

Shaitaan compared himself with Nabi Aadam (‘alaihis salaam), and saw himself to be superior to Nabi Aadam. Hence, he desisted from making sajdah to him – even though he, and all the angels, had been commanded by Allah Ta‘ala to do so, and when one’s reasoning is in conflict with a clear command of Allah Ta‘ala, then one’s reasoning should be ignored and must not be considered. Furthermore, even the reasoning of shaitaan was incorrect, as sand is superior and more beneficial than fire. The reason is that sand possesses the qualities of being calm and composed, tolerant, patient and causing things to grow. In comparison, fire possesses the qualities of recklessness, inconsistency, hastiness and burning. (Al-Bidaayah wan-Nihaayah 1/66)

The Mas’alah of Making Sajdah to People

The Ulama explain that the sajdah which the angels made before Nabi Aadam (‘alaihis salaam) was a sajdah of honor and respect, not a sajdah of worship. This type of sajdah was permissible in the previous ummats, and hence, in the Qur’aan Majeed, it is mentioned that the brothers of Nabi Yusuf (‘alaihis salaam) had prostrated and made sajdah before him.

As far as our ummah is concerned, then in our Shari‘ah, it is impermissible and a major sin to make sajdah before people, even if it is done with the intention of honouring the person. As for making sajdah before a person with the intention of ibaadah, then this is haraam and will take a person out of the fold of Islam. (Ma’aarif-ul-Qur’aan 1/188)