All praise and thanks are to Allah SWT. May the peace and blessings of Allah SWT be upon the Prophet Muhammad PBUH, his family, companions and followers.
The concept of Qadar denotes that Allah SWT has decreed everything that happens in the universe according to His prior knowledge and the dictates of His wisdom. The word Qadar is linguistically defined as to measure, assess and determine, and has been used in the Qur’an frequently. More commonly, Qadar refers to the pre-measurement of things, or pre-destination. It is an obligation in Islam to have faith in Qadar. A person who claims to be a Muslim—one who submits to Allah’s will, guidance and order—but does not believe in Qadar, cannot truly submit to Allah SWT.
As stated in the Hadith of Jabir RA: “No slave of Allah will truly believe until he believes in Al-Qadar, its good and bad from Allah, until he knows that what has befallen him was not going to miss him and that what missed him was not going to befallen him.” [Tirmidhi]
For example, at war, people may win a victory or lose despite having taken precautions. It can be said that it is the destiny, or Qadar, of war that one will either end up a martyr or a veteran. Heavy rain may lead to flooding in the lowest-lying areas, even if precautions have been taken, if that is the area’s Qadar. A violent earthquake may level many buildings, even if they were well-built. A professional swimmer may be drowned in the sea. If that is its Qadar, it will happen.
Characteristics of Qadar
Belief in Qadar consists of four things:
1. Allah’s knowledge: the belief that Allah SWT knows all things in general and in detail, from eternity to eternity, whether that has to do with His actions or the actions of His slaves.
Allah SWT knows what was, what is, what will be, what is not, and how it would have been if it were to be.
“But do they not know that Allah knows what they conceal and what they declare?” [Qur’an 2:77]
2. Allah’s will: the belief that whatever happens only happens by the will of Allah SWT—whether that has to do with His actions or the actions of created beings.
We might sometimes want things and at the same time, Allah SWT wants something else; the result will be whatever Allah wants and He will do. A specific example is the birth of Prophet ‘Isa AS without a father.
“…exalted is He! When He decrees an affair, He only says to it, “Be,” and it is.” [Qur’an 19:35]
3. Allah’s creation: the belief that all things that happen are created by Allah SWT in their essence, their attributes, and their movements.
Physical things (such as solid bodies, gases, liquids, light, darkness, etc.), emotions, intentions, thoughts (such as mental decisions, love, hate, positive and negative suspicions, imaan, kufr, etc.) and actions (such as moving your body parts, speaking, breathing, etc.) are all part of the creation of Allah SWT.
“Indeed, all things We created with predestination.” [Qur’an 54:49]
4. Allah’s recording of all things: the belief that Allah SWT has written all happenings in Al-Lawh Al-Mahfoodh (the Book of Decrees).
The past, present and future of the universe—of the things to exist (who will be born, the earth’s population, what will be created, etc.); of what will happen each year; and of what will happen each day—is recorded by Allah SWT.
“And there is no creature on earth but that upon Allah is its provision, and He knows its place of dwelling and place of storage. All is in a clear register [Al-Lawh al-Mahfoodh].” [Qur’an 11:6]
Changing Qadar
Du’aa is the weapon of the believer and the only thing that can change one’s Qadar. Allah SWT says, “And your Lord says, ‘Call upon Me; I will respond to you.’ Indeed, those who disdain My worship will enter Hell [rendered] contemptible.” [Qur’an 40:60]
In another verse, Allah SWT says, “And when My servants ask you, [O Muḥammad], concerning Me – indeed I am near. I respond to the invocation of the supplicant when he calls upon Me.” [Qur’an 2:186]
It is important to note, however, that du’aa is beneficial with regard to what has been decreed and what has not been decreed.
The Prophet Muhammad PBUH said, “Nothing can change the Divine decree except du’aa.” [Ahmad, Ibn Maajah, Tirmidhi]
It was narrated from Ibn ‘Umar RA that the Prophet PBUH said, “Du’aa may be of benefit with regard to what has already happened or what has not yet happened, so adhere to du’aa, O slaves of Allah.” [Tirmidhi]
If a person chooses not to make du’aa because he relies on the divine decree, he is mistaken as Allah SWT has made du’aa as a means of attaining His forgiveness, mercy, guidance, support and provision. If good is decreed for a person, he will attain by means of du’aa what he cannot attain without it.
The Prophet PBUH said, “No precaution can protect against the decree of Allah. Du’aa is beneficial with regard to what has been decreed and what has not been decreed. The du’aa meets the calamity that has been decreed and wrestles with it, until the Day of Resurrection.” [Tabaraani, Al-Albaani]
Du’aa is one of the most beneficial of remedies. It is the enemy of calamity; it wards it off, remedies it, prevents it befalling, alleviates it or reduces it if it befalls. In the case of a calamity, one of three scenarios will apply:
- If the du’aa is stronger than the calamity, it wards it off.
- If the du’aa is weaker than the calamity, the calamity overpowers it and befalls the person, but it may reduce it even if it is weak.
- Du’aa and the calamity resist one another and each impedes the other.
Du’aa is one of the means by which what is asked for is attained. It is the only thing that wards off the divine decree. For example, a person may pray to Allah SWT to achieve a certain thing and he achieves it with the help of his du’aa. From this, we can understand that Allah SWT decreed that the person would attain the achievement by means of his du’aa, which was also decreed. The person may think that were it not for his du’aa, he would have been deprived of it—but in fact, he did not ward off his Qadar. The basic principle is that making du’aa was decreed for the person to attain his achievement, and this is his original fate decreed from eternity.
The same applies to everything that is decreed to happen through any means. Allah SWT has made this means the cause for something to happen, and that was written from eternity, well before it even happened.
Qadariyyah and Jabariyyah
Jabariyyah is a term that refers to a group of early Muslim scholars who claim that Allah SWT has given man no freedom of choice whatsoever. Jabariyyah is of the opinion that we, as Allah’s slaves, are deprived of all will, choice and ability.
On the other hand, Qadariyyah is used to refer to those people who assert that all deeds whether good or bad, come from man and not from Allah SWT. Qadariyyah makes the slave a rival to Allah SWT—meaning he does as he wants without the will of Allah and without His aid.
The two concepts are thus polar opposites; one is too extreme, and the other is negligent and wasted. These two sects of Islam both suggest that Allah SWT has faults, which He does not have.
A Muslim’s purpose
What does the Creator tell us about our purpose in life? Allah SWT states in the Qur’an that He created man to be His Khalifah, His trustees on earth [Qur’an 2:30]. Mankind’s basic trust and responsibility is to believe in and worship Allah SWT. Allah says, “And I did not create the jinn and mankind except to worship Me.” [Qur’an 51:56]
Allah SWT further states that He made this life to test man so that every person may be recompensed after death for what he has earned. “[He] who created death and life to test you [as to] which of you is best in deed – and He is the Exalted in Might, the Forgiving.” [Qur’an 67:2]
Suffering in Islam
Suffering in Islam should be seen as a test and trial given to us by Allah SWT in order to test our patience and steadfastness. Even Allah’s Prophets and Messengers were made to endure hardships. Prophet Ayyub AS, in particular, is mentioned in the Qur’an as a Prophet who was extraordinarily patient through the trials he faced. Good people are sometimes made to suffer, but their sufferings heal others and bring goodness to their communities. Martyrs die for their faith and soldiers give their lives for their nations to bring liberation and freedom for their people.
At times, Allah SWT causes us to suffer to test us with how we react to our difficulties. When you deal with a person who is sick, poor or needy, your faith and charity are being tested by Allah. He SWT says, “Indeed, We created man from a sperm-drop mixture that We may try him; and We made him hearing and seeing. Indeed, We guided him to the way, be he grateful or be he ungrateful.” [Qur’an 76:2-3]
Many religions teach its followers how to avoid suffering or how to combat it. Islam, on the other hand, teaches us to embrace it and love it for the fact that patience while suffering is Allah’s means for us to receive the highest of His rewards.
Hardships are bestowed on us in order to teach us to adhere to Allah’s natural and moral laws. Sometimes it is to punish those who violate these laws, but mostly it is to test our faith in Allah SWT and our commitment to human values and charity. Whenever we encounter suffering, we should ask ourselves if our struggling could be a punishment. If so, we repent, ask forgiveness and make the intention to reform our ways. If not, we should accept that our difficulties are a test from Allah SWT and work hard to pass the trial.
“Verily, We shall put you to test with some fear, and hunger, and with some loss of wealth, lives, and offspring, And (O Muhammad) convey good tidings to those who are patient, and to say, when inflicted by hardship, ‘Verily we are of God and verily to Him shall we return’; upon them is the blessings of Allah and His Mercy.” [Qur’an 2:155]
There are innumerable miseries, accidents, floods, earthquakes, fires, robbery, war, riot, famine, epidemics – all such things have effect upon our lives, and Allah tells us in this ayah that we are being tested as how we react to them. Does our faith remain unshaken? If so, Allah SWT tells us that we will be rewarded for it.
Free will in Islam
We humans are automatically aware that we possess freedom in our actions; we can decide as we wish and fashion our own fate in accordance with our own will and inclinations. The existence that decrees responsibility for us, the regret we feel for certain acts we commit, the punishments the law provides for criminals, the deeds we accomplish in order to change the course of history, the foundation of science and technology—all of these prove mankind to be free in our actions. Likewise, the question of our religious accountability, the sending of the Prophets, the proclamation of divine messages, and the principle of resurrection and judgment—all these rest on our free will and the choice in the acts we perform.
It would be completely meaningless if Allah SWT, on the one hand, was to compel us to do certain things and, on the other, reward or punish us. It would surely be unjust if the Creator of the world set us on whatever path He chose, by means of His power and His will, and then to punish us for actions we have committed without any choice on our part. If there were no free choice for mankind, the whole concept of religious accountability would be unjust. The oppressive tyrant would deserve no blame and those who are just would merit no praise, because responsibility would only have meaning within the sphere of what is possible and attainable for man. Humans deserve blame or praise when they are able to decide and act freely; otherwise, there can be no question of blame or praise.
By having freewill, we can struggle against the temptations of this world. By turning to Allah SWT for help and surrendering to Him, we can overcome many of our weaknesses. In our own human societies, who do we admire more—the average person who has learned to walk, or someone who has learned to walk after overcoming a birth defect or accident? If we were never tempted, or never even had the possibility of being tempted because we did not have freewill, would we deserve as much reward as we do for overcoming temptations?
In saying this, it is important to remember that we still only have the freedom to do as we like within the limitations Allah SWT has set for us. You are able to move your leg because Allah has given you the power to do so. However, you cannot control the muscles of your heart and lungs. We cannot change the features on our faces, for example, or alter our height. Such aspects of our life are pre-determined. Nevertheless, our free-will is not affected by the fact that certain aspects of our life have been pre-determined.
How a person is held responsible for certain behaviours depends on how he exercises his free-will. Punishment and reward are therefore results of the course of action we choose to follow using our own free-will. We are held accountable for what we have consciously chosen to do—good things we do will stand in our favour and the mistakes we make will stand against us. Everyone will be judged according to the choices they make.
Allah SWT says in the Qur’an, “The truth [has come] from your Sustainer: let, then, him who wills, believe in it, and let him who wills, reject it.” [Qur’an 18:29]
In this ayah, Allah SWT explains that man is free from compulsion when he is not restrained or coerced by forces or persons outside of himself. He is free when he can follow his own desires and will. According to this ayah, as well as many others, man is born free to choose between alternatives, free to choose good from evil and free to act in accordance with his will. Allah SWT also says, “Would you compel people to believe?” [Qur’an 10:99], signifying that people are under no compulsion by Allah to believe or disbelieve and that they should not be compelled in this regard by other people.
Allah SWT is the best of planners
“And [remember, O Muhammad], when those who disbelieved plotted against you to restrain you or kill you or evict you [from Makkah]. But they plan, and Allah plans. And Allah is the best of planners.” [Qur’an 8:30]
In this ayah, Allah SWT tells us that He is the best of planners. In this instance, Allah is relating to the time when the disbelievers wanted to kill Muhammed PBUH. Allah SWT explains that whatever difficulty He had put the Prophet PBUH through, He had a plan that would bring out the best.
It is important to always remember to trust in Allah SWT’s Qadar as He always has a plan and He SWT is the best of planners. We humans often try to control every aspect of our lives, needing to set everything out in the way we think is best for us. Often when our plans don’t go accordingly, we tend to get frustrated and impatient. What we should do is to believe that Allah SWT had a different, better plan for us for He knows everything and we do not. In that moment, while we may feel disappointed and upset, we may have been spared of a terrible calamity that Allah had the foresight of and we did not.
As a reminder to myself first, let us always place our trust in Allah SWT’s plan and in our Qadar, while exercising our free will as human beings to consciously make the right decisions to remain on the straight path.
Indeed, Allah has the best of plans and He knows best.
