Predestination in Islam
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Part of a series on the Islamic creed:  |
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| Five Pillars of Islam | |
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Shahādah - Profession of faith |
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| Sunni Six articles of belief | |
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Tawhīd - Oneness |
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| Shi'a Twelver Principles of the Religion (Usul al-Din) |
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Tawhīd - Oneness |
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| Shi'a Twelver Practices of the Religion (Furu al-Din) |
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Salah - Prayer |
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| Shi'a Ismaili 7 pillars | |
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Walayah - Guardianship |
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| Others | |
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Kharijite Sixth Pillar of Islam. |
- This is a sub-article of Sunni Islam, Aqidah and Predestination.
| Arabic |
| قدر |
| Transliteration |
| Qadr |
| Translation |
| measure/fate |
Qadr is divine destiny in Islam[1].
Contents |
[edit] Etymology
In Islam, "predestination" is the usual English language rendering of a belief that Muslims call al-qada wa al-qadr in Arabic. The phrase means "the divine decree and the predestination"; al-qadr derives from a root that means to measure out[2]. It should be noted that nothing could be taken into Aqidah if its source is not definite and its meaning unambiguous.
[edit] Concept
The phrase reflects a Muslim doctrine that God has measured out the span of every person's life, their lot of good or ill fortune, and the fruits of their efforts[4]. When referring to the future, Muslims frequently qualify any predictions of what will come to pass with the phrase Insha'Allah, Arabic for "if God willed [it]." The phrase recognises that human knowledge of the future is limited, and that all that may or may not come to pass is under the control of God.
Qadar is one of the aspects of aqidah. Muslims believe that the divine destiny is when God wrote down in the Preserved Tablet ("al-Lawhu 'l-Mahfuz") all that has happened and will happen, which will come to pass as written[citation needed].
According to this belief, a person's action is not caused by what is written in the Preserved Tablet but, rather, the action is written in the Preserved Tablet because God already knows all occurrences without the restrictions of time[3].
Another perspective asserts that God is omniscient and therefore has foreknowledge of all possible futures. With divine power, God then also deems which futures will be allowed, and man's choice is between those possibilities approved by God[citation needed].
[edit] Problems with Qadr as Aquidah
The Problem of such terms like predestination or (al-qada wa al qadr) is that they have elements which are not from a definitely sound source and have ambiguous meanings. In most cases interpretations of such subjects are presented which cannot be taken as aqidah but as a possible interpretation of it. For a layman it is very difficult to know what are interpretations and what are directly deduced from definite texts of Islam. In other words, no muslim is allowed to take anything into aqidah without clear proof. So no one should be surprised if Muslims have different opinions concerning the same subject. One must discern between different opinions out of ignorance or apostasy or because Islam itself has left space for different interpretations.
Islam does not consider any opinion as part of its aqidah, where Islam itself has left space for interpretations. Al Qada wa al qadr in its detail is not part of the aqidah but only that which is definitely mentioned in the Quran and in the sound Ahadith. It has to be noted that these details of different opinions concerning Taqdir have no direct base in the Quran or Sunna. They are the interpretations of those who believe to have understood the context of the Quran and Sunna concerning this subject. Hence this part of catagorizing Taqdir is not part of the Sunni Islamic Aqida, but the interpretation of certain Sunni Mutakallimun Scholars.
Interpretations never belong to Aqida according to the majority Sunni Muslims Scholars like Abu Hanifa or Imam Malik or As Shafii. Nevertheless, interpretations are encouraged in Fiqhi matters (islamic verdicts concerning deeds) if Islam itself has left space for interpretations. It would be necessary not to treat anything to be of Islamic Aqida just because a Sunni scholar or a Shia'a scholar has expressed his opinion concerning it, or just because it has become a dominant idea amongst certain groups of Muslims who are by birth Shias or Sunnis.
From a pure textual view, these catagorizations are works of later Sunni and Shia'a Mutakallimun. Hence, in no way could they be a part of the Islamic Aqida; neither for the Sunnis nor for the Shias (except if the Shia'a could prove that it was thought so by their Imams.) For the Sunnis, the works of the Mutakallimun are only opinions or attempts to clarify certain points of Aqida. According to Sunni Scholars, nothing can be added, invented, or discovered in Aqida matters after the death of the Prophet Muhammad. For example, one cannot say that certain ideas are from the Islamic Aqida simpley because the majority of Egyptians or Pakistanis believe it to be so nowadays. In fact, according to many Sunni Scholars, aqida matters haven't changed since the first Prophet, Adam. It is important to note however, that a certain matter of Aqida can be found in Islamic texts, but are forgotten or misunderstood by the majority through the ages.
While Aquida is generally considered to be immutable, what has changed are Fiqhi Matters. One of the most important conditions for something to be held as a part of the Aqida is that it should not be ambiguous and that the text which expresses something about it should be mutawatir (mutawatir means that the tradition is passed down directly by so many people that there is no doubt about its origin). According to Sunni Scholars, there are only a few mutawatir Ahadith and the whole Quran is mutawatir. As a conclusion, you could say that most of that which is said about the subject of Al Qada wal Qadar is nothing but interpretations.
[edit] History
Among the historical proponents were:
Those who criticized the Sunni view of the doctrine were:
- Ma'bad al-Juhani, the first man who discussed Qadr in Basra
[edit] Sunni view
Sunni enumerate Qadar as one aspect of their creed (Arabic: aqidah) They believe that the divine destiny is when God wrote down in the Preserved Tablet ("al-Lawhu 'l-Mahfuz") all that has happened and will happen, which will come to pass as written.
According to this belief, a person's action is not caused by what is written in the Preserved Tablet but, rather, the action is written in the Preserved Tablet because God already knows all occurrences without the restrictions of time[5].
Another perspective asserts that God is omniscient and therefore has foreknowledge of all possible futures. With divine power, God then also deems which futures will be allowed, and man's choice is between those possibilities approved by God[citation needed].
[edit] Types Of Taqdeer (Fate)
1.Muallaq (revocable) This destiny is written on ‘The Preserved Tablet’ (al Lawh al Mahfoodh), and is subject to change and alteration through the omission or commission of certain deeds. For example: the lifespan of a person is originally 50 years, but may increase to 60 years if he performs the ritual of Hajj, or a certain calamity is to befall him unless he averts it by spending in charity. This is the destiny refereed to in the aforementioned narration.
2. Mu'allaq shabie-e-Mubram This destiny can be changed if the most pious personalities (like prophets and saints ) pray to Allah almighty.[6]
3.Mubram (irrevocable) This destiny denotes the eternal knowledge of Allah. It encompasses the final result of the Muallaq destiny i.e. our choice of actions, their consequences and every precise detail of our lives. This definite knowledge of Allah is not subject to change or alter even slightly and is exclusive to Allah only.
In the light of the above the following may be derived:
- Our supplications do change destiny and are of much avail.
- Good deeds are a source of increase in ones sustenance, and avert calamities.
- Sins result in a decrease in ones sustenance, and invite calamities.[7]
[edit] Shi'a view
Shi'a also believe in predetemined fate but not predestination in the sense defined by the Sunnis. The Shi'ah believe that an individual is responsible for his action and that he or she has 'free will' to carry out his or her actions. But this free will is not something that excludes God's authority like the view of the Mu'tazila. Rather the free will itself is created by God.
A Murtada Mutahhari, a Shi'a scholar, explains:[8]
| “ | The Beginnings of Kalam:
Though nothing definite can be said about the beginnings of 'ilm al-kalam among Muslims, what is certain is that discussion of some of the problems of kalam, such as the issue of predestination (jabr) and free will (ikhtiyar), and that of Divine Justice, became current among Muslims during the first half of the second century of Hijrah. Perhaps the first formal centre of such discussions was the circle of al-Hasan al-Basri (d. 110/728-29). Among the Muslim personalities of the latter half of the first century, the names of Ma'bad al-Juhani (d. 80/ 699) and Ghaylan ibn Muslim al-Dimashqi (d. 105/723) have been mentioned, who adamantly defended the ideas of free will (ikhtiyar) and man's freedom. There were others who opposed them and supported predestination (jabr). The believers in free will were called "qadariyyah" and their opponents were known as "jabriyyah". Gradually the points of difference between the two groups extended to a series of other issues in theology, physics, sociology and other problems relating to man and the Resurrection, of which the problem of jabr and ikhtiyar was only one. During this period, the "qadariyyah" came to be called "Mu'tazilah" and the "jabriyyah" became known as "Asha'irah". The Orientalists and their followers insist on considering the beginnings of discursive discussions in the Islamic world from this point or its like. However, the truth is that rational argumentation about Islamic doctrines starts with the Holy Qur'an itself, and has been followed up in the utterances of the Holy Prophet (S) and especially in the sermons of Amir al-Mu'minin 'Ali (A). This despite the fact that their style and approach are different from those of the Muslim mutakallimun[9] |
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[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ http://www.missionislam.com/knowledge/Qadar.htm
- ^ http://www.freeweb.hu/etymological/AEDweb.htm
- ^ Moral Responsibility and Divine Will. Re: Blaming Destiny?
- ^ 431 hadith found in 'The Book of Faith (Kitab Al-Iman)' of Sahih Muslim. [1]
- ^ Moral Responsibility and Divine Will. Re: Blaming Destiny?
- ^ Taqdeer-Ask The Imamdawateislami.net
- ^ Faith & Taqdeer
- ^ [2] [3]
- ^ See Murtada Mutahhari, Sayri dar Nahj al-balaghah, pp.69-76, where the author has discussed the difference between the approach of the Nahj al-balaghah to the problems of theology and metaphysics and the approach of Muslim mutakallimun and philosophers to such problems. (Translator)
[edit] External links
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