Pre-Destination and The Responsibility of Man (1/3)

In this article, we want to deal with an important matter that concerns all Muslims: decree and pre-destination by Allah (Qada and Qadar), a subject which has been a point of contention for scholars throughout the ages. It has been reported that the Messenger of Allah once found his Companions arguing about Qadar. He forbade them from indulging in such a debate and told them that communities before them had been destroyed for that reason.

However, by the grace of Allah, our pious ancestors were able to understand the issue and form a moderate view based on equity and justice. In their understanding, the issue of Qada and Qadar stems from the Unity of Allah’s attribute of Cherishing (Tawhid ar-Rububiyah). This is one of three kinds of Allah’s Unity:

1. Unity of Divinity (Tawhid Al-Uluhiyah), which is to direct all forms of worship to Allah Alone.

2. Unity in the matter of Cherishing the whole universe (Tawhid ar-Rububiyah), which means to believe that all creation, sovereignty and planning belong to Allah.

3. Unity in the matter of Allah’s names and attributes.

Faith in pre-estimation is implied by Allah’s attribute of nourishing and sustaining the whole universe. Ahmad has said:

“Qadar (pre-estimation) is the power of Allah. It is one of the secrets which no-one except Allah knows, as it has been recorded in the well-guarded tablet. We do not know what Allah has destined, either for or against us or concerning all his creation, except after the event has occurred or has been told by the Prophet himself.”

Regarding this issue, the people of the Muslim Ummah have divided into three factions:

1. The first group is so extreme in its attempts to prove pre-estimation that it has completely deprived man of any power and any ability to choose. For them, Man has no independence but is coerced into doing all that he does; he is a helpless being, at the mercy of Fate. There is no doubt that this group is wrong. By using our powers of reason and the tenets of our faith, we know that there is a difference between the things that happen without our will and those in which we play an active part.

2. The second group goes to the extreme of attributing complete power and freedom of choice to the individual, at the expense of denying Allah any role in process, by saying that the Almighty does not know of an action until after it has occurred! This view is also mistaken.

3. Allah has guided others to a more moderate and sensible view, and we, the people of the Sunnah and Jama’ah have adopted it because it is based on legal as well as rational evidence. We agree that everything that happens in this universe falls into one of these two categories:

a) The things that Allah does and in which no-one else has any power of intervention, e.g. the falling of rain, the growth of vegetation, life and death, illness and health.

b) The actions done by all the creatures that have the power of will. These actions are a consequence of their efforts and their choice, a power that has been given to them by Allah. He thus says in the Qur’ an:

 “To whomever among you wills to go straight.” (Surah At-Takwir, 81:28)

 “Among you are some that desire this world and some that desire the Hereafter.” (Surah Al-‘Imran, 3:152)

Man knows very well the difference between what he does from his own free will and what he does because of external force. The person who reaches safely the bottom of a flight of stairs knows that this is because he walked down carefully. However, if he is pushed down from the top, he has no power over how he lands at the bottom. The first instance is an example of choice; the second is clearly one of compulsion. Similarly, a person who suffers from incontinence of urine knows that the urine is passed without his will and that if he did not have this illness, he would be able to control the discharge. The difference between the two requires no further explanation.

It is a mercy of Allah that there are certain actions which are in the voluntary power of the individual but are recorded as if they are not, and so he is not held answerable for them, e.g. actions done out of forgetfulness or during sleep. Allah says in the story of the People of the Cave:

 “And We turned them on their right and on their left sides.” (Surah Al-Kahf, 18: 18)

The men themselves are turning over, but Allah Almighty attributes their movements to Himself, since a sleeping person has no control over his action. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said:

“The one who forgets while fasting and eats or drinks, he should complete his fast because Allah is the One who feeds him and gives him the drink.”

Thus, actions done in a state of forgetfulness are also treated as if the person is acting outside his own will and are attributed to Allah Himself.

(Continued)