Question: in Islamic beliefs, is there a place for human accountability? If so, what does human accountability mean or entail in light of the doctrine of predestination?
Answer: Accountability is connected to the voluntary acts that one performs every day. These acts, however, while performed by us with our bodies and minds, are predestined and created by Allah.
It must be kept in mind that Allah could have created me and you in the Hellfire to begin with, without any actions from our side. This would be mere torture, and not punishment. As a grace to us, He did not do that, but created us in this world and gave us rules to follow. He has willed for some of us to follow and some of us not, as you can observe. Those that follow are rewarded with pleasure in Paradise, while those who do not will be tortured, unless they are forgiven. Being forgiven happens only if one believed prior to death that there is only one god and that Muhammad is his Prophet and Messenger.
Torture in the next life correlating with voluntary acts of disobedience to Allah in this life is called punishment, unlike the imaginary case of someone being created in the Hellfire to begin with, which is just torture, and not punishment. There are many articles on predestination and justice that you can peruse, and I won’t repeat it all here. One article is this one.
Authored by Shaykh Abu Adam al Naruiji
“Accountability is connected to the voluntary acts that one performs every day.”
What does it mean to say that an act is “voluntary”? If you eat an apple, is it the result of your will? Or is it the result of God’s will? Do you have a will? If you don’t, then in what sense can any action of yours be considered “voluntary”?
What does it mean to say that an act is “voluntary”?
Voluntary in the sense that you do not feel forced, not that it is created by you. Like when you get up in the morning and have cereal, you do it according to your own will. This is as opposed to a leaf flying in the wind, were there is no will involved on part of the leaf.
If you eat an apple, is it the result of your will? Or is it the result of God’s will?
It is by the will of God, but if you did it willingly, then it was voluntary on your part. Our will is not the same as Aļļaah’s will, it is according to Aļļaah’s will. Our will is a created will, a will that exists, because it is created. It is that will that you perceive in yourself, “I want this I don’t want that” and so on.
So, if our “will” is itself willed, then it what sense can the former be called a “will”? To define the former as perception or desire only begs the question: where did this perception or desire originate? In what sense is my perception or desire mine? Do I create my own desires or are they created for me? If they are created for me, then in what sense can I be said to be responsible or accountable for them?
Also, if human will is defined as synonymous as desire created someone else, then doesn’t the very concept of human will become entirely superfluous? It seems misleading to say that human beings have a will, since the very concept of will implies autonomy.
Saturn says: So, if our “will” is itself willed, then it what sense can the former be called a “will”?
Answer: I answered this already above.
Saturn says: To define the former as perception or desire only begs the question: where did this perception or desire originate?
Answer: It was brought into existence by Aļļaah.
Saturn says: In what sense is my perception or desire mine?
Answer: It is yours in the sense that it exists in you.
Saturn says: Do I create my own desires or are they created for me?
Answer: They were brought into existence by Aļļaah.
Saturn says: If they are created for me, then in what sense can I be said to be responsible or accountable for them?
Answer: In the sense that you committed them with the willingness that you sense in your voluntary acts, not in the sense that you created your own actions or intentions. Take a look at the original entry.
Saturn says: Also, if human will is defined as synonymous as desire created someone else, then doesn’t the very concept of human will become entirely superfluous? It seems misleading to say that human beings have a will, since the very concept of will implies autonomy.
Answer: If you want to call it something else, what would you call it? We call it will because this is how we refer to it in our daily lives.
Assalam u Alaikum,
Ya Sayyidi,
If someone has not been reached by the message of Islam or been presented Deen in distorted manner, will he be held responsible for not believing in Islam in the Hereafter? Kindly elaborate or refer.
Wa-Salam,
Rashid
See page 7 and onwards of my Sanuusiyyah commentary: http://www.marifah.net/articles/sanusicreed-abuadam.pdf
Assalamu alaikum,
Two things that Sheikh Hamza Karamali mentioned which helped me understand this issue:
1. Allah’s prior knowledge of what we will do, doesnt mean he has forced us to do it.
e.g If you leave all these clues around your house or tell me that you’re going to rob a bank and later you get caught by the police, you cannot blame me because I knew you were going to do it – It was your choice and your choice alone (regardless of mine or Allah’s prior knowledge) that makes you responsible for your action.
2. We choose, but Allah also chooses.
I.e Allah predestines our existance and the events therein on lauh al mafoodh in pre-eternity (i.e he chooses) but when we come across these events we – of our own free will – choose to do an action, either one way or the other or for or against us. Allah ta’ala creates our actions and their consequences.
There are two types of actions – voluntary and involuntary actions. Allah creates both of these actions by us humans.
Voluntary actions – like jumping or moving ones arm, or speaking – are ones which we have “ability” to choose to do and through choosing these actions which Allah creates for us, we acquire responsibility for them. In the case of Voluntary actions Allah creates both the “ability” and the action.
Involuntary actions – like hearts beating are actions which we still do, actions which Allah ta’ala still creates, yet for which we are not held accountable.
By necessity, we know that we are not coerced in the voluntary actions we do and the decisions we make.
If I go to raise my arm and scratch my head – this is a a choice that I freely choose to do and everyone knows I wasnt forced to do so. That Allah knew i would do this in pre-eternity, He destined it, and he chooses to create the movement of my arm for me to do so, doesnt mean he forced me to do it and thus whilest Allah created the movement of my arm, I acquired the responsibility and the action of moving it.
Thus there is no incongruency between Allah’s (swt) pre-eternal knowledge and his predestination of our actions and our free will as humans.
jazakallahu khairan
Wassalam
Waˆalaykumussalaam, OK, as long as it is understood that the act of choosing is created by Allaah. That is, if you have a choice between, for example, remaining sitting or standing up, and you stand up, then it is Allaah that created your act of choosing to stand up. The overall principle is this: absolutely nothing can happen in this world without Allaah having specified it and brought it into existence. This includes thoughts, movements, and any other event or occurrence or change.
Agreed. alhamdulilah,
Do you know of a simple way of explaining (or a good analogy to use in explaining etc) this to one who suggests that we have no will – claiming that since Allah has predestined and Allah creates our thoughts our actions and their consequences?
Kind regards,
Salmaan
Wassalam
When you shiver, you have not choice, so you have no will in the matter. When you choose from the menu in a restaurant, are you choosing what to eat or not? Choosing. So here your will is involved. This is the meaning of created will.
Salam Alaikum
Possible typo in the last comment Sheikh… 2nd line 6th word: *IN* – BY?
Waˆalaykumussalaam,YES! That was a bad typo. I have corrected it.