Qadari Contention: Many verses and hadiths state that humans are responsible and act according to what is inside of them, which means that human will is not predestined. An example:
Say: (It is) the truth is from your Lord. Then whomsoever will, let him believe, and whosoever will, let him disbelieve.” 18:29
Sunni Response: None of these statements conflict with the fact that Allah has created all acts and predestined them. None of them say that the will and action of creation is not created by Allah, and it is made even clearer as follows:
The statement “Then whomsoever will, let him believe, and whosoever will, let him disbelieve.” If this is indeed the meaning of the aayah, is a threat, and not an order or a permission. This is the saying of the linguist Az-Zajjaaj. Another interpretation is that the belief and blasphemy of creation does not benefit or harm Allah. Yet another saying of the scholars is that it means Then whomsoever Allah wills, let him believe, and whosoever Allah wills, let him disbelieve.” In any case, if the first interpretation is meant, then this simply means that the human being has the created ability to choose to commit the forbidden blasphemy, or the obligated belief. This presumed ability however is created by Allah and according to His Will, just as the actual choice made in the end. In this regard, it is mentioned in tafsiir books that when this was revealed:
إِنْ هُوَ إِلا ذِكْرٌ لِلْعَالَمِينَ * لِمَنْ شَاءَ مِنْكُمْ أَنْ يَسْتَقِيمَ
Meaning: “Verily this is a warning to the worlds, so the one who wills will take the path of fearing and obeying Aļļaah” (Al-Takwiir, 27-28).
…then the idolaters said, “so it is up to us, if we want, we will.” So Allah revealed:
وَمَا تَشَاءُونَ إِلا أَنْ يَشَاءَ اللَّهُ رَبُّ الْعَالَمِينَ
Meaning: “You do not will anything unless Allah has willed it.”
Note that you cannot separate between Allah’s Will and His Creating, because Allah said:
وَخَلَقَ كُلَّ شَيْءٍ فَقَدَّرَهُ تَقْدِيرًا
Meaning: “And He created everything and predestined it.” (Al-Furqaan, 2)
The conclusion is that humans have a choice and a will, but their choices and will are creations of Allah. The difference between this and being forced is the difference between what we feel are voluntary acts, such as standing up to walk into another room, and involuntary acts, such as sleepwalking. We are accountable for the former, but not the latter.
Authored by Shaykh Abu Adam al Naruiji
Sunni Answers 
assalaamu alaikum
Im confused. on the one hand you say ”The conclusion is that humans have a choice and a wil” and on the other hand you say ” but their choices and will are creations of Allah.”
– how are humans different from angels?
– I used to think that this world was a test. but if our will and choices are created by Allah then how are we being tested ?
– Is the statement that ” humans have free will to a certain degree but Allah knows what we will ”will ” ” correct?
We can all perceive that we have a choice in many things in this life, such as whether to have breakfast in the morning or not. This choice stems from the presumed ability (the feeling and perception of ability) to eat, or to avoid eating. The act that you actually commit is realized ability, as opposed to presumed ability. Both presumed muscular ability and the realized ability are creations of Aļļaah. These types of acts are the ones we have a choice in, and are accountable for, but we must believe that they are created and willed by Aļļaah.
Then there are other types of acts in which we have no presumed ability to perceive choice, such as if your body should take you for a sleepwalk to have some breakfast, or if your body was shivering uncontrollably from cold weather. These acts involve no choice, and you are not accountable for them.
The world is a test in the sense that it shows us humans who (including our selves) is good and who is not, who is patient and who is not, etc. Aļļaah, of course, already knows what we will do, as He is the creator of all human actions.
Aļļaah knows what we are to will in the future, yes, but that is not all. We must also believe that what we will is created and willed by Him.
It must be emphasized here that the basis for knowing what we have mentioned is the scriptures. It is the scriptures that tell us what our conclusions should be. The philosophers and the muˆtazilites went astray because they elevated opinion over the scriptures. Here are some aayahs one must stick to when understanding the issue of predestination:
Aļļaah said:
وَخَلَقَ كُلَّ شَيْءٍ فَقَدَّرَهُ تَقْدِيرًا
Meaning: “And He created everything and predestined it.” (Al-Furqaan, 2) No exceptions mentioned.
وَاللَّهُ خَلَقَكُمْ وَمَا تَعْمَلُونَ
Meaning: “Aļļaah created you and what you do.” (Aş-Şaaffaat. 96). No exceptions mentioned.
وما تشاءون إلا أن يشاء الله
Meaning: “You do not will anything unless Aļļaah has willed it.” (Al-Insaan, 30). No exceptions mentioned.
Also keep in mind the saying that all muslims have agreed upon as sound and correct:
ما شاء الله كان وما لم يشأ لم يكنً
What Aļļaah has willed will be and what He has not willed will not be.
Aţ-Ţaĥaawiyy said:
{Everything proceeds according to Aļļaah’s Will, Knowledge, Action, and Predestination. His Will controls the will of anything else. His Action overrules all tricks, strategies and plans. He does what He wills, and is never unjust. He Himself is absolutely clear of any kind of defect or ruin, and is free of any flaw or blemish.
لا يُسْأَلُ عَمَّا يَفْعَلُ وَهُمْ يُسْأَلُونَ
Meaning: “Aļļaah is not questioned about what He does, but the created beings are.” (Al-‘Anbiyaa’, 23)
He also said:
{The happy} in the Hereafter {are those that are made happy according to Aļļaah’s predestination. The miserable} in the Hereafter {are those that are made miserable according to Aļļaah’s predestination.}
Abu Adam
From the Tahawiyya:
The exact nature of the decree is Allah’s secret in His creation, and no angel near the Throne, nor Prophet sent with a message, has been given knowledge of it. Delving into it and reflecting too much about it only leads to destruction and loss, and results in rebelliousness. So be extremely careful about thinking and reflecting on this matter or letting doubts about it assail you, because Allah has kept knowledge of the decree away from human beings, and forbidden them to enquire about it, saying in His Book,
`He is not asked about what He does but they are asked’. (al-Anbiya’ 21:23)
Right, and it should be understood that this is in agreement, and not in contradiction, with Ţaĥaawiyy’s other words. The secret being referred to is the mystery of the choice that we perceive. As human beings we are able to build algorithms for robots, but we are not able to build a robot with a sense of self and a feeling of free choice.
In other words, there is no mystery in the fact that our will, choices and actions are created and predestined. These things are known. As Aţ-Ţaĥaawiyy said: {Everything proceeds according to Aļļaah’s Will, Knowledge, Action, and Predestination.} About ability he said {in brackets}: {And the ability which deeds occur by, is simultaneous with the deeds. This ability is the one depending on Aļļaah’s creation of the ability to do good, which is forbidden to ascribe to creation. As for the ability that is associated with health, capability, mastery} of knowledge or skill, {and defect free instruments; this} ability {is before the deed, and this is the ability that accountability relates to. This ability is as Aļļaah said (Al-Baqarah, 286):
“لا يُكَلِّفُ اللَّهُ نَفْسًا إِلاّ وُسْعَهَا”}
Meaning: “Aļļaah does not obligate someone to do something unless it is within his (physical and intellectual) ability.” I.e. the ability in the aayah is presumed ability, whereas the ability that occurs with human action is realized ability.
i understand that if i had to move my hand ,it will only happen if Allah wills.
Shaykh Abu Adam said: ” These types of acts are the ones we have a choice in, and are accountable for, but we must believe that they are created and willed by Aļļaah.”
now here is where i am confused. on one hand we have a choice on the other hand it is willed by Allah.
if i had to choose between A and B, it is Allah who makes me will so then how is it that i am accountable for.
how are we then different from angels?
is it something we cant understand and we should suppose that we somehow are responsible for our actions?
or
is it this way: Allah created many choices and i have the free will to choose from it, by the permission of Allah. but Allah taala knows what we will choose and how we can never understand?
It is a created choice that you are accountable for. The difference between this and being forced is the difference between shivering from cold and choosing to have some breakfast. All of this, however, is created by Allah, as explicitly stated in the Quran. Allah holds you accountable for the second kind of act.
Remember here the debate between Al-Qaađiy ˆAbdulJabbaar of the Muˆtazilite sect, and the great Imam of the Sunnis of the time, Abuu Isĥaaq Al-Isfaraayiiniy . When the two met, ˆAbdulJabbaar said, “Exalted is Aļļaah, who transcends the obscene.” (While this is a sound expression, what he meant to say was that Aļļaah does not create evil. This is blasphemous, because Muslims must believe that Aļļaah is the only creator, as it is stated in the Qur’aan that He created everything, and that no one wills anything except by His Will.)
Imam Al- Isfaraayiiniy (418 AH) realized what he had implied and responded, “Exalted is Aļļaah, who nothing happens in His dominion but by His Will.” The Muˆtazilite then made another attempt and said, “Does our Lord like to be disobeyed?” Al-Isfaraayiiniy quickly replied, “Could He be disobeyed against His Will?” Upon that ˆAbdulJabbaar tried again to defeat his adversary and said, “If God denied me guidance, then ruled that I be destroyed for it, has He treated me fairly?” Al-Isfaraayiiniy calmly answered, “If He denied you something that was yours, then He would have been unfair, but if it was not rightfully yours, then Aļļaah does with His creation what He wills.” ˆAbdulJabbaar fell silent, and could not argue further. After all, Aļļaah is the true owner of all creation. (V.4/ P. 261-262. Ţabaqaatu-sħ-Sħaafiˆiyyati-l-Kubraa).
Finally, before one delves more on this, one should remember that Aļļaah said:
لا يُسْأَلُ عَمَّا يَفْعَلُ وَهُمْ يُسْأَلُون
Meaning: “He is not asked about what He does to creation, but the creation is asked.” (Al-Anbiyaa’, 23).
yes i understand that i should not get into this.
Shaykh Abu Adam said:
It is a created choice that you are accountable for.
i say: did Allah give us the permission to choose freely from the created choices?
No. Some are them are haram.
this is the way i think :
“II our actions are willed by Cod,” someone might say, “then they are in fact His actions.” This objection is based on a confusion God wills what we will in the sense of granting us the will to choose and enabling us to execute that will i.e. He creates all that makes it possible for us to do it. He does not will it in the sense of doing it, otherwise it would be quite in order to say, when we drink or eat or sleep for instance that God performed these actions. God creates them, He does not do or perform them.
http://www.islaam.com/Article.aspx?id=54
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the above i guess means that we have the free will to choose from the created choices by the permission of Allah.is it right?
It is a bit vague. We commit our accountable acts, because we are not forced to do them. It is sound to say that we commit them for this reason. We chose to do them, but the choices we perceived and the choices we made were created by Allah. This is different from a leaf in the wind; it does not have a choice at all, so we don’t consider it as committing acts itself.
Shaykh Abu Adam said:
but the choices we perceived and the choices we made were created by Allah.
i say:
i agree that the choices are created by Allah.
the point is -has Allahu taala given us the permission to freely choose from the created choices?
If it is Allah who created the choices and Allah who is making us choose then ,it means that it is Allah who is making us do the action .
this is were im confused. it ends up to mean that we are not responsible for our actions because it is Allah who made us think.
eg: Allah created choices A and B. then Allah makes me to choose A. therefore it means Allah chose A.
is the quran and books of aqeeda opposed to thinking the way given in the site:
http://www.islaam.com/Article.aspx?id=54
let me put it this way:
Has Allahu taala given us the permission to some degree to choose from the created choices.
to some degree in the sense that ,Allah has the power to make me choose only a certain choice from the created choices if Allah wishes.
suppose Allah gave me the permission to freely choose from A and B.
but if Allah wills he can make us choose only A.
Like how he makes the hypocrites dumb,deaf and blind due their actions they chose before from the choices that Allah gave them to choose from.
Ofcourse believing that Allah in his Al mightyness knows before we make our choice what we will choose and how we dont know.
It is Aļļaah that creates in us and specifies the choices that we actually make. He is the only creator. Remember that everything that has a beginning needs a creator. The act of choosing is no exception. It has a beginning and needs a creator to specify it and bring it into existence. Only Aļļaah has this power. It is mentioned in tafsiir books that when this was revealed:
إِنْ هُوَ إِلا ذِكْرٌ لِلْعَالَمِينَ * لِمَنْ شَاءَ مِنْكُمْ أَنْ يَسْتَقِيمَ
Meaning: “Verily this is a warning to the worlds, so the one who wills will take the path of fearing and obeying Aļļaah” (Al-Takwiir, 27-28).
Then the idolaters said, “so it is up to us, if we want, we will.” So Aļļaah revealed:
وَمَا تَشَاءُونَ إِلا أَنْ يَشَاءَ اللَّهُ رَبُّ الْعَالَمِينَ
Meaning: “You do not will anything unless Aļļaah has willed it.” Note that you cannot separate between Aļļaah’s Will and His Creating:
وَخَلَقَ كُلَّ شَيْءٍ فَقَدَّرَهُ تَقْدِيرًا
Meaning: “And He created everything and predestined it.” (Al-Furqaan, 2)
Note also that you cannot separate between His knowledge and will, because Aļļaah knew all of our actions before we existed. This necessarily means that He created them and specified them. If they were not specified, then they could not have been known. This means He has specified them by His Will. After all, we did not yet exist to specify our own actions. You also cannot separate between will and creating, because what Aļļaah has willed will be, and no one can prevent it.
You said: it ends up to mean that we are not responsible for our actions because it is Allah who made us think.
Answer: Aļļaah made you responsible for the choices you make based on your presumed ability to choose different actions, unlike when you have no such ability. Aļļaah has the right to do that, because He is the Creator of everything. Read the discussion above between Al-Qaađiy ˆAbdulJabbaar and Abuu Isĥaaq Al-Isfaraayiiniy.
Aļļaah said:
لا يُسْأَلُ عَمَّا يَفْعَلُ وَهُمْ يُسْأَلُون
Meaning: “He is not asked about what He does to creation, but the creation is asked.” (Al-Anbiyaa’, 23).
Knowing that Aļļaah is the Creator of our actions (including those of the heart, such as choices and intentions,) presumed abilities and realized abilities is the strongest means of tawakkul and putting yourself in perspective. You realize that you are nothing, and that the good that you do is nothing but a grace from Aļļaah. You also realize that when you do something bad it is justice from Aļļaah, because He is under no obligation to create in you the ability to do good.
Al-Bukhaariyy narrated that the Prophet said:
إِنَّ أَحَدَكُمْ يُجْمَعُ فِي بَطْنِ أُمِّهِ أَرْبَعِينَ يَوْمًا ثُمَّ عَلَقَةً مِثْلَ ذَلِكَ ثُمَّ يَكُونُ مُضْغَةً مِثْلَ ذَلِكَ ثُمَّ يَبْعَثُ اللَّهُ مَلَكًا فَيُؤْمَرُ بِأَرْبَعٍ بِرِزْقِهِ وَأَجَلِهِ وَشَقِيٌّ أَوْ سَعِيدٌ فَوَاللَّهِ إِنَّ أَحَدَكُمْ أَوْ الرَّجُلَ يَعْمَلُ بِعَمَلِ أَهْلِ النَّارِ حَتَّى مَا يَكُونُ بَيْنَهُ وَبَيْنَهَا غَيْرُ بَاعٍ أَوْ ذِرَاعٍ فَيَسْبِقُ عَلَيْهِ الْكِتَابُ فَيَعْمَلُ بِعَمَلِ أَهْلِ الْجَنَّةِ فَيَدْخُلُهَا وَإِنَّ الرَّجُلَ لَيَعْمَلُ بِعَمَلِ أَهْلِ الْجَنَّةِ حَتَّى مَا يَكُونُ بَيْنَهُ وَبَيْنَهَا غَيْرُ ذِرَاعٍ أَوْ ذِرَاعَيْنِ فَيَسْبِقُ عَلَيْهِ الْكِتَابُ فَيَعْمَلُ بِعَمَلِ أَهْلِ النَّارِ فَيَدْخُلُهَا
“Verily one of you is gathered in his mothers stomach for forty days, then he is a blood-clot for forty days, then a piece of meat for forty days, then Aļļaah sends an angel ordered with four words: his provision, his end, happy or miserable(1). By Aļļaah, verily one of you may be committing the deeds of the people of Hell, until he is only an arm’s length away, when (it is as if) his destined end overwhelms him(2) and he starts to perform the works of the people of Paradise, and enters it. And verily one of you may be committing the deeds of the people of Paradise, until he is only an arm’s length away, when (it is as if) his destined end overwhelms him and he starts to perform the works of the people of Hell, and enters it.” Ed. This is why one should always ask Aļļaah to make one die as a Muslim.
{Notes on the ĥadiitħ: (1) Some said that it is four matters, and that the fourth matter is gender, but that it is well known from other narrations of the same ĥadiitħ, so it was left out in this one. Others said that the fourth matter is his actions, but that this is understood from the context. (ˆUmdatu-l-Qaariy). (2) Everything is always according to predestination, no one can ever do against it, so this is a figurative expression.}
Abu Adam
Meaning: “Verily this is a warning to the worlds, so the one who wills will take the path of fearing and obeying Aļļaah” (Al-Kawtħar, 27-28).
i say: sura al kawthar has only 3 verses?
does the arabic word which is translated as ”will” also mean permission?
Shaykh Abu Adam said: Aļļaah made you responsible for the choices you make based on your presumed ability to choose different actions, unlike when you have no such ability.
i say: i dont get the above. what do you actually mean by presumed ability?
does it mean that it is only a fake notion of having ability to choose and choosing and it is Allah who is choosing? if so then how am i responsible if it is Allah who has programmed me to choose so and so from so and so choices?
am i not like an angel with a fake notion that i can choose.
or does it mean that i have the ability to choose in my mind from the different choices Allah created but to bring it to action i need the will of Allah?
the hadith in bukhari quoted above says:
This is why one should always ask Aļļaah to make one die as a Muslim.
i say: do i have the free will to ask Allah?
because i can only ask Allah if Allah has programmed or predestined me to ask Allah.
i dont have any problem in believing i am predestined. but i find a contridiction when we say im responsible for the choices i make and on other hand when we say it is Allah who is making the choices.
It is suurah At-Takwiir. I have corrected it.
Presumed ability is as Aţ-Ţaĥaawiyy said {in brackets}: {And the ability which deeds occur by, is simultaneous with the deeds. This ability is the one depending on Aļļaah’s creation of the ability to do good, which is forbidden to ascribe to creation. As for the ability that is associated with health, capability, mastery} of knowledge or skill, {and defect-free instruments; this} ability {is before the deed, and this is the ability that accountability relates to. This ability is as Aļļaah said (Al-Baqarah, 286):
“لا يُكَلِّفُ اللَّهُ نَفْسًا إِلاّ وُسْعَهَا”}
Meaning: “Aļļaah does not obligate someone to do something unless it is within his (physical and intellectual) ability.” I.e. the ability in the aayah is presumed ability, whereas the ability that occurs with (at the moment of) human action is realized ability.
The statement “This is why one should always ask Aļļaah to make one die as a Muslim,” is not of the ĥadiith, that is why it is preceded with “Ed.”
Everything is predestined.
وَخَلَقَ كُلَّ شَيْءٍ فَقَدَّرَهُ تَقْدِيرًا
Meaning: “And He created everything and predestined it.” (Al-Furqaan, 2)
When the Prophet was asked about what belief is, as narrated by Muslim, he said:
أَنْ تُؤْمِنَ بِاللَّهِ وَمَلَائِكَتِهِ وَكُتُبِهِ وَرُسُلِهِ وَالْيَوْمِ الْآخِرِ وَتُؤْمِنَ بِالْقَدَرِ خَيْرِهِ وَشَرِّهِ
To believe in Aļļaah, His angels, His books, His messengers, the Last Day, and to believe in predestination, what is good of the predestined, and what is evil.
You make your choices, but Aļļaah creates them. When someone commits a sin it is because Aļļaah has willed it. Al-Bukhaariyy narrated that Prophet Muusaa blamed Prophet for the eating from the tree in Paradise, so Adam answered:
أَتَلُومُنِي عَلَى أَمْرٍ كَتَبَهُ اللَّهُ عَلَيَّ قَبْلَ أَنْ يَخْلُقَنِي أَوْ قَدَّرَهُ عَلَيَّ قَبْلَ أَنْ يَخْلُقَنِي
“Do you blame me for something that Aļļaah had written that I would do before He created me?” I.e. after I came out of the world of accountability (where such blame is prescribed) and had already made valid repentance (so it is as if never been)?
Aļļaah could have created us all in the Hellfire to begin with and tortured us forever. This, however, would not have been punishment, because the concept of punishment applies to when someone does something they were ordered not to do. When you have a created choice, and you choose to do against the orders of Aļļaah, then subsequent torture is punishment, because it follows disobedience, even if this disobedience is created.
The accountability that you have is an accountability that Aļļaah has decreed based on the choices you made and committed, but He created. You are not like a leaf in the wind, the leaf has no created choice. You have a created choice, and that is what makes you different from the leaf. Aļļaah said:
لا يُسْأَلُ عَمَّا يَفْعَلُ وَهُمْ يُسْأَلُون
Meaning: “He is not asked about what He does to creation, but the creation is asked.” (Al-Anbiyaa’, 23).
what at tahawiyya said is difficult for me to grasp. could you explain in simpler way? the difference between presumed ability and realized ability?
because on the one hand we say it us who is responsible for the choices we make and then we say it is predestined that i make this choice which i find to be a contridiction.
Shaykh Abu Adam said: You make your choices, but Aļļaah creates them.
i say: here what i understand is that i have free will to make choice but Allah creates them. i.e i have free will to choose from created choices.
then Shaykh Abu Adam said:
When someone commits a sin it is because Aļļaah has willed it.
i say: here what i understand is that ,i sin beacuse Allah has predestined that i would sin.
so for example if i do sucide ,it is Allah who predestined me to do sucide.
i.e i do not have a choice.
From the story of Adam Alaihi Salaam i understand that for example if i do sucide i can say what Adam alaihi salaam said ”“Do you blame me for something that Aļļaah had written that I would do before He created me?”
Shaykh Abu Adam said :The accountability that you have is an accountability that Aļļaah has decreed based on the choices you made and committed, but He created.
i say: now Adam alaihi salaam had the choice to whether to eat from the tree or not. so it must be accountable.
but Adam alaihi salaam says -””“Do you blame me for something that Aļļaah had written that I would do before He created me?”
i would be glad if you could explain in a simple way what exactly is the ability to choose that i have.
u say i have ability to choose whether to do break fast or not. u called it presumed ability. and that i am accountable for it.
but then you said: ”but we must believe that they are created and willed by Aļļaah.”
i.e i would eat breakfast only if Allah predestined it.
then how is it that i become accountable. because it is Allah taala who predestined whether i would eat breakfast or not.so if Allah predestined that i would eat breakfast then it would happen so and if Allah predestined that i would not eat breakfast then it would not happen so. and the choice which i suppose that i have is only a fake choice.
Are my words clear? i guess the discussion is going in circles?
or is it that we have to believe in the contridiction?
There is no contradiction. You are accountable for committing acts, not for creating them. Your acts are committed by you, but created by Him. You should understand that accountability is something decreed by Aļļaah, without this decree there is no accountability. Aļļaah has decreed that a person who commits acts which involve created choice will be held accountable, unlike those that involved no choice, such as shivering. Where is the contradiction? Aļļaah does what He wills.
Presumed ability is the muscular ability that you have before the act has occurred. It is presumed until action has occurred. The ability of action that occurs at the moment of action is realized ability. The realized ability is only one, because it is a single event (it did not existed, and then it existed) and must be created by Aļļaah.
yes clear at last!
thanks!
walaikum assalaam
assalaamu alaikum
back again!
–if our will is created by Allah then isnt Allah Performing Allahs will through us?
–Shaykh Abu Adam Says: You are accountable for committing acts, not for creating them.
but if i have to commit a act , i have to will it. And Allah is Creating the will . so isnt Allahu Taala commiting it through us?
–if our will is created by Allah ,then isnt the differnce between shivering,heart beating,etc and eating, moving hands,etc that while moving hands we have a fake notion of choice and when heart is beating we know ,we have no choice ?
Irfan asked: If our will is created by Allah then isn’t Allah Performing Allah’s will through us?
Answer: Your question implies a need for an intermediary. Allaah does not need anything. Whatever Allaah has willed will be, with or without our will.
-Shaykh Abu Adam Says: “You are accountable for committing acts, not for creating them.” but if I have to commit a act, I have to will it. And Allah is Creating the will, so isn’t Allahu Taala committing it through us?
Answer: The act that you commit is committed by you through the ability that Allaah creates in you to commit it. If you are doing something willingly, then you have committed that deed, because it is according to your will and ability, as created by Allaah.
Irfan asked: If our will is created by Allah, then isn’t the difference between shivering, heart beating, etc. and eating, moving hands, etc. that while moving hands we have a fake notion of choice and when heart is beating we know, we have no choice ?
Answer: The notion of choice is really there, it is not fake. All of us can sense it. If someone murdered an innocent baby on purpose, then everybody would blame him. At the same time, however, we must believe that all of our actions are created and predestined by Allaah. It might seem as if our choice is completely free, but in reality it is predestined and created by Allaah. Predestination is not something we can sense directly, it belongs to the unseen things that we must believe in. We can also know that we are predestined through rational proofs.
Dwelling on these issues has no practical benefit at all, and Al-Imam Malik used to hate questions that have no consequence for our actions. As far as your act of belief is concerned you must believe that everything is created and predestined by Allaah. This is unquestionable, and the way to know it is as follows: Do you believe that Allaah knows everything that people will do in the future before they existed? If you say no, then this is plain kufr. If you say yes, then you must also believe that these actions were already specified before they existed, otherwise they would not be knowable. Allaah must be the one that specified their actions before they existed, not them, because they did not yet exist to be able to specify them. Ash-Shaafiˆiyy said that if the qadariyy is argued against based on Allaah’s attribute of knowledge, then he is silenced.
That was the belief part. As far as your other acts are concerned you must concern yourself with obeying Allaah in everything you do. Believing in predestination will provide no excuse for having fallen short of that. So get to work….
shaykh Abu Adam says : The act that you commit is committed by you through the ability that Allaah creates in you to commit it. If you are doing something willingly, then you have committed that deed, because it is according to your will and ability, as created by Allaah.
i say: yes Allah created the ability to commit it ,so did Allah create the will.
if Allah didnt create the will ,then i wouldnt will it.
if Allah created a will that i should commit a sin , then i will “will ” that i should commit a sin. then Allah will create the ability to commit the sin.
if Allah created a will that i should commit a sin , then how can i become unwilling to the will creted by Allah?
i want to learn about this because i wanted to learn about the karaamat and mujiza . whether Prophets and awliya Allah can perform miracles independently. there are people who say they cannot perform them independtly whenever they want. rather it islike beateing of heart and prophets and Awliya have no control on it.
Yes, if Allah did not create in you a will, then you would not will it. If you will to commit a sin, then this is according to the will Allah created in you. That does not necessarily mean, however, that He will create in you the ability to actually commit it. For example, you might fall ill.
Irfan asks: if Allah created a will that i should commit a sin , then how can i become unwilling to the will created by Allah?
Answer: only if Allah created in you unwillingness after willingness.
Irfan says: there are people who say they cannot perform them independently whenever they want.
Answer: Nothing happens except by the will of Allah. No one is independent of Allaah. As for the claim that a miracle is like the beating of the heart; the burden of proof is on the claimer, not on you.
assalaamu alaikum
now the subject is clear.
—–
regarding the miracles of Prophets , they site the incident of Musa Alaihi Salaam where Allah tells Musa AS to put down the staff. then the staff becomes a snake.
they site this and explain that here Musa AS never knew that if the stick is put on the ground, it will become a snake. and it was Allah who was performing the miracles through them.
they say it was Allah who told Musa AS to hit the staff on the ground when the reached the sea and the sea split open. Musa AS never knew that it would happen. so they say that miracles cannot be performed whenever they like.
Salamu Alaikum Shaykh Abu Adam,
I dont really grasp the concept of Free Will could you clarify it for me because based on my limited understanding/thoughts:
1.We obviously can’t create our own actions (because this would mean that we can do things independently from Allah) wich is impossible because Allah controls and maintains everything.
2.Our thoughts,considerations,actions,feelings,impulses must be created by Allah because if you say no you would say that we can do things independently from Allah wich is again impossible.
Now i am far from being knowledgeable so could you respond to my shubuhaat.
Waˆalaykumussalaam,
What you are saying in both points is correct.
Predestination
Everything proceeds according to Allah’s Will, Knowledge, Creating, and Predestination. His Will controls the will of anything else, and He is the Creator of everything. He has predestined everything that shall be in the future. Muslims must believe that all things, both good and evil, happen according to God’s will.
Allah said in the Quran,
وَمَا تَشَاءُونَ إِلاَّ أَنْ يَشَاءَ اللَّهُ
Meaning: “You do not will anything unless Allah has willed it.” (Al-Insaan, 30) This is clear, because Allah knows everything, and no one is more powerful than Him. Therefore, whatever happens is by His Knowledge and Power. Otherwise one would end up saying either that Allah did not know something, or could not prevent it, and this is clearly not true of the Creator of this universe.
It is important to understand the difference between Allah’s orders and His Will. His orders are what He has obligated and prohibited for creation. His orders are not always obeyed, whereas His Will always happens. That is, Allah has willed for some of creation to disobey Him. He has willed for some of them to be punished, while others will be forgiven.
The acts of creation in themselves and in reality, and with regards to the Creator, are all according to Allah’s decree. With respect to what is apparent to us, however, all of us feel and know and sense in ourselves that we have a choice. We are not forced or threatened in the acts we do that are chosen. So the Muslim Believer that believes in predestination, and the unbelieving denier of predestination, both feel and sense that they are not forced in their chosen acts to do what they do. There is no disagreement between the two on this issue, for it appears to both of them from their situation in their lives, and the ability to choose that they feel in themselves, that they are independent in their chosen acts, as if there is no predestination. Moreover, both the Muslim and the non-Muslim do not know the details of what they will do in the future, because they do not know the unseen.
For this reason, the person should, while believing that everything happens according to Allah’s predestination, do the best he can to bound himself with the rules of the religion. One should not ponder the hidden aspect and its reality; namely that he will do nothing except what Allah has predestined, in order to use it as an excuse not to work hard on being obedient to Allah in the future. There is no excuse in this, because this is not something that falls under his senses. Rather, what appears to a person of his real situation, and what he knows from himself, is the power to choose with freedom and independence, without any compulsion.
Accordingly, just as a rational person does not stop necessary eating and drinking because he believes in predestination, he does not stop complying to Allah’s orders. Rather, he always directs his aim and choice towards obedience to Allah, and he strives to apply the rules of Allah’s religion. He is not distracted from this aim by the firm belief in his heart that he will not commit any act except that which Allah has predestined, a fact that has been proven with unequivocal proofs. On the contrary, he realizes how weak and powerless he actually is, and increases his efforts to make sure that he does good and avoids evil, to feel more hopeful of a good ending.
The fact that Allah creates all of the actions of His creation does not make Him unjust. This is true, because injustice is to deal in someone else’s property without a right, and this cannot be true of the Creator. After all, He is the true owner of everything.
Moreover, He has no judge to impose rules upon Him. That is, when something is said to be good or bad it is a judgment, and there is no judgment without a judge.
Clearly then, it is His right to create whatever He wills. That is why Allah is just no matter what He wills and creates.
لا يُسْأَلُ عَمَّا يَفْعَلُ وَهُمْ يُسْأَلُونَ
English interpretation: “Allah is not questioned about what He does, but the created beings are.” (Al-‘Anbiyaa’, 23)
You may want to go through the table of contents on the blog also, as it has a section called “On the Issue of Predestination and Justice”.
AAA