Taqdeer: Are We Truly Bound by Divine Destiny?

Islam considers Taqdeer, or Divine Decree, a significant concept. However, society holds some prevalent misconceptions about Taqdeer. This article will discuss Taqdeer, human free will, the consequences of actions, and Allah’s wisdom in detail. It draws from the Quran and Sunnah (Prophetic traditions).

Taqdeer and the Consequences of Human Actions

Actions Determine Punishment and Reward: Allah does not punish His servants based merely on a prior determination. He also does not reward them solely based on Taqdeer. The Quran and Sunnah do not state this. Instead, He recompenses or punishes people according to their deeds. Thus, reward or punishment clearly results from human actions.

Taqdeer Does Not Mean Coercion into Sin: The idea that something written in Taqdeer forces a person to commit sin is incorrect. The same principle applies to good deeds. Taqdeer does not directly impose good or bad actions. It also does not solely determine whether a person will enter Paradise or Hell, especially where an individual’s free will and actions are involved.

Human Free Will and Freedom: Allah has given humans intellect (Aql). He has also granted them the freedom to act or not act, along with the capacity to do so. Since individuals use this intellect and choose between good and evil through their own will, they themselves become deserving of reward or punishment. For example, when a person performs prayers (Salat), they receive the reward. When a person recites the Quran, they earn ten rewards for each letter. Similarly, when a person refrains from immorality through their judgment and willpower, people praise them. If they engage in such acts, they alone bear the blame.

Human Accountability and Conscience

Choosing Good and Evil: Humans can discern right from wrong using their conscience. When someone with bad character tries to dishonor another’s family member, no sensible person says, “It’s okay; destiny has written this for my wife, so I won’t stop him.” Instead, that person becomes angry. They resist, even ready to risk their life to protect their honor. This is a natural reaction.

Real-Life Examples of Accountability: If a thief enters a house, the owner usually does not say, “Let the thief take whatever he wants; I will not stop him.” If authorities bring the thief before a judge and prove his theft, no court would accept the excuse: “Destiny wrote this, so I stole.” This holds true for any court, Muslim or non-Muslim.

Misinterpreting Taqdeer: Therefore, people should not say things like, “Prayer is not in my destiny, so I don’t pray.” They should not claim, “If Hell is my destiny, praying is useless. If Paradise is my destiny, I will go there without praying.” These are not rational statements. Only Shaytan instills such misconceptions.

The Companions’ Grasp of Taqdeer

The Sahaba’s Profound Understanding: The matter of Taqdeer is profound. The Companions of the Prophet (peace be upon him) possessed vast knowledge. This enabled them to understand this issue with relative ease.

Prophet Muhammad’s (PBUH) Clarifications: During the Companions’ era, a few questions about Taqdeer arose. However, their hearts found peace upon hearing Prophet Muhammad’s (peace be upon him) answers. After hearing his sacred words, none of them abandoned good deeds. Instead, they engaged in righteous acts with even greater enthusiasm, hoping for Paradise.

Allah’s Creation: Wisdom, Will, and Pleasure

This section explores the divine wisdom behind creation, particularly concerning aspects that test humanity.

The Divine Wisdom in Creating Disbelief and Sin: Allah created disbelief and sin, but He does not like them. He despises disbelief and forbids it. No contradiction exists between creating disbelief and sin and prohibiting involvement in them. Allah created these for a special purpose: to distinguish believers from others. It also serves to test who obeys Allah and who follows Shaytan. Therefore, testing His servants is the wisdom behind creating disbelief and sin. He did not create these things for their own sake but for this specific purpose. If Allah had not created disbelief, all people would be believers, negating His purpose of testing.

The Purpose of Trials: Allah also created Iblis (Shaytan), humankind’s enemy. This creation serves to test who follows Shaytan and who obeys Allah.

Manifesting Allah’s Attributes Through Repentance: Another wisdom behind creating sin is to allow the reflection of Allah’s beautiful names and lofty attributes upon His servants. His names include ‘Al-Ghaffar’ (The Ever-Forgiving) and ‘Al-Ghafoor’ (The All-Forgiving). Such attributes imply that some servants will commit sins, then repent. Allah will then accept their repentance and forgive them. This process itself is a form of realizing His worship.

The Significance of Repentance and Allah’s Joy:

Allah says in the Quran:

قُلْيَاعِبَادِيَالَّذِينَأَسْرَفُواعَلَىأَنْفُسِهِمْلَاتَقْنَطُوامِنْرَحْمَةِاللَّهِإِنَّاللَّهَيَغْفِرُالذُّنُوبَجَمِيعًاإِنَّهُهُوَالْغَفُورُالرَّحِيمُ “

Say, ‘O My servants who have transgressed against themselves [by sinning], do not despair of the mercy of Allah. Indeed, Allah forgives all sins. Indeed, it is He who is the Forgiving, the Merciful.'”

(Quran, Surah Az-Zumar: 53)

Narrated by Anas ibn Malik:

Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) illustrated Allah’s joy at a servant’s repentance. He said Allah is more pleased than a person who loses his mount in a desert (carrying all his food and drink), despairs, and then suddenly finds it standing before him. Out of extreme joy, the man exclaims mistakenly, ‘O Allah, You are my servant, and I am Your Lord!’ He errs due to his intense happiness.

(Sahih Muslim, Book 37 (The Book of Repentance), Hadith 2747)

The Prophet (peace be upon him) also narrated the story of a man who killed one hundred people. While journeying to a place of repentance, this man died. Allah accepted his repentance and forgave him because he was earnestly moving towards repentance.

(Summarized from Sahih al-Bukhari, Book 56 (Prophets), Hadith 347)

This illustrates the divine wisdom in allowing sin. People will call upon Allah using His names like ‘Al-Ghafoor,’ ‘Al-Ghaffar,’ and ‘At-Tawwab’ (The Acceptor of Repentance). He will hear His servants’ calls, and the effects of these names will manifest. If sin did not exist, how would these divine attributes be so clearly demonstrated? (Allah knows best.)

Polytheists’ Misconceptions about Taqdeer and Their Correction

This part addresses common misunderstandings about Divine Decree, particularly those used to justify wrongdoing.

The Argument of the Polytheists (Surah An-Nahl, Verse 35)

وَقَالَالَّذِينَأَشْرَكُوالَوْشَاءَاللَّهُمَاعَبَدْنَامِنْدُونِهِمِنْشَيْءٍنَحْنُوَلَاآبَاؤُنَاوَلَاحَرَّمْنَامِنْدُونِهِمِنْشَيْءٍكَذَلِكَفَعَلَالَّذِينَمِنْقَبْلِهِمْفَهَلْعَلَىالرُّسُلِإِلَّاالْبَلَاغُالْمُبِينُ

“Those who associate others with Allah say, ‘If Allah had willed, we would not have worshipped anything other than Him, neither we nor our fathers, nor would we have forbidden anything without His command.’ Thus did those before them. So, is there upon the messengers except [the duty of] clear notification?”

(Surah An-Nahl, verse 35)

Allah’s Response to Flawed Arguments: In this verse, Allah corrects a polytheistic misconception. They argued that if their polytheism or their act of declaring certain things unlawful displeased Allah, He would have prevented them. This implied their actions aligned with His will. Allah responds by clarifying that the Messengers’ duty was to convey His message, not to compel belief. Allah strongly condemned their polytheistic practices. He sent Messengers to every nation and revealed scriptures for this reason.

Distinguishing Allah’s Will from Allah’s Pleasure: The truth is Allah never likes polytheism (Shirk), disbelief (Kufr), or sin. If He approved of polytheism, why would He send Prophets to condemn it? Why would He punish people for rejecting them? Since they chose polytheism despite warnings, and Allah (by His creative will) did not forcibly stop them, it shows His wisdom. He granted servants freedom of choice, as testing is impossible without it.

Creative Will vs. Legislative Will: Allah’s Creative Will (Al-Iradah Al-Kawniyyah) differs from His Legislative Will or Pleasure (Al-Iradah Ash-Shar’iyyah). Good and evil occur under His creative will. However, He is pleased only with actions aligning with His commanded path (Shari’ah). The polytheists became confused because they equated these two. If Allah were pleased with polytheism, why would punishment follow? Punishment comes for acting against Allah’s pleasure, not merely because an action occurs under His creative will. (Allah Ta’ala knows best.)

The True Agent of Human Actions

This section clarifies who bears responsibility for human deeds.

Individuals Are Responsible for Their Actions: A person performs their own actions; someone else does not do them. Although Allah creates both the servant and their actions (as He is the sole Creator), the servant possesses their own will and accountability.

Differentiating Forced Actions from Voluntary Ones: No one blames a person forced to drink poison; people say he was murdered. However, one who willingly drinks poison and takes their own life is held accountable. Authentic Hadith describe such a person as destined for Hell. Similarly, if the wind throws someone from a roof, no one blames the victim. But when someone chooses to end their life by jumping, they are often met with less sympathy. If a man is forced to divorce his wife, people do not say he divorced her. But if a man consciously divorces his wife, everyone acknowledges he initiated it.

Thus, people call someone a ‘Musalli’ (one who prays) because they pray willingly. They call someone a ‘Mumin’ (believer) because they believe willingly. One who steals is a thief. But if someone plants money to frame another as a thief, no one calls the framed person a thief. One who commits adultery is an adulterer. But if a woman is raped, people call her a victim, not an adulteress.

Islamic Law Aligns with Human Understanding: People can discern voluntary actions from involuntary ones through their intellect. Judgments follow this understanding. Islamic Shari’ah has not imposed any belief or action that human reasoning cannot comprehend.

Conclusion: Correctly Understanding Taqdeer and Our Duty

People should not use Taqdeer as an excuse for sin or disobedience. It is wrong to transgress Shari’ah’s limits and say, “I do not abandon prayer or commit sins by my own will. Destiny dictates these things, so I am forced.” This is a false excuse. Taqdeer is one of Allah’s secrets; He alone knows its true nature. Our responsibility involves obeying Allah’s commands and refraining from His prohibitions. If we err, we must sincerely repent.

O Allah! Guide us to the straight path. Grant us the correct understanding of Taqdeer. Ameen.