"No calamity befalls on the earth or in yourselves
but is inscribed in the Book of Decrees -- (Al-Lauh Al-Mahfuz),
before We bring it into existence. Verily, that is easy for Allah"

The Noble Qur'an Al-Hadid 57:22

The Noble Qur'an - At-Tauba 9:51

Say: "Nothing shall ever happen to us except what Allah has ordained for us.  He is our Maula (Lord, Helper and Protector)."  And in Allah let the believers put their trust.

The Noble Qur'an - Al-Qamar 54:53

And everything, small and big is written (in Al-Lauh Al-Mahfûz already beforehand i.e. before it befalls, or is done by its doer).

The Noble Qur'an - At-Takwir 81:28-29

To whomsoever among you who wills to walk straight, And you will not, unless (it be) that Allâh wills, the Lord of the 'Alamîn (mankind, jinns and all that exists).

Hadith - Sahih Bukhari 4:621, Narrated Abu Huraira

Allah's Apostle said, "Adam and Moses argued with each other. Moses said to Adam, 'You are Adam whose mistake expelled you from Paradise.' Adam said to him, 'You are Moses whom Allah selected as His Messenger and as the one to whom He spoke directly; yet you blame me for a thing which had already been written in my fate before my creation?' " Allah's Apostle said twice, "So, Adam overpowered Moses."

Hadith - Sahih Bukhari 6:469, Narrated 'Ali

We were in the company of the Prophet in a funeral procession at Baqi Al-Gharqad. He said, "There is none of you but has his place written for him in Paradise or in the Hell- Fire." They said, "O Allah's Apostle! Shall we depend (on this fact and give up work)?" He said, "Carry on doing (good deeds), for everybody will find it easy to do (what will lead him to his destined place)." Then he recited "As for him who gives (in charity) and keeps his duty to Allah, and believes in the Best reward from Allah (i.e. Allah will compensate him for what he will spend in Allah's way). So, We will make smooth for him the path of ease. But he who is a greedy miser...for him, the path for evil." (92.5-10)

Hadith - Bukhari, Narrated Anas bin Malik

The Prophet said, "Allah has appointed an angel in the womb, and the angel says, 'O Lord! A drop of discharge (i.e. of semen), O Lord! a clot, O Lord! a piece of flesh.' And then, if Allah wishes to complete the child's creation, the angel will say. 'O Lord! A male or a female? O Lord! wretched or blessed (in religion)? What will his livelihood be? What will his age be?' The angel writes all this while the child is in the womb of its mother."

Hadith - Tirmidhi and Ahmad, Narrated Matar ibn Ukamis

Allah's Messenger said: When Allah decrees that a person is to die in a certain land, He creates a need for him to go there.

Hadith - Tirmidhi and Ahmad, Narrated AbudDarda'

Allah's Messenger said: Allah, the Exalted and Glorious, has ordained for every servant amongst His creation five things: his death, his action, his abode, the places of his moving about and his means of sustenance.

Hadith - Al-Tirmidhi #5758, Narrated AbuHurayrah

When Allah's Messenger was asked when the office of Prophet had been established for him, he replied, "When Adam had not yet had his spirit joined to his body.

[Tirmidhi transmitted it]

Hadith - Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah, Narrated 'Aisha

I heard Allah's Messenger saying: He who discusses about the Divine Decree (al-Qadr) will be answerable for it on the Day of Resurrection and he who observes silence about it, will not be answerable for it.

The Noble Qur'an - Ya-Sin 36:67

And if it had been Our Will, We could have transformed them (into animals or lifeless objects) in their places. Then they should have been unable to go forward (move about) nor they could have turned back.

Hadith - Al-Tirmidhi, Narrated Thawban   [Transmitted by Ibn Majah.]

Allah's Messenger said: "Only supplication averts the decree, only kindness prolongs life, and a man is deprived of provision for a fault he commits."

Hadith - Al-Muwatta 46.4

Yahya related to me from Malik from Ziyad ibn Sad from Amr ibn Muslim that Tawus al-Yamani said, "I found some of the companions of the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, saying 'Everything is by decree.' " Tawus added, "I heard Abdullah ibn Umar say that The Messenger of Allah  said, 'Everything is by decree - even incapacity and ability,' (or 'ability and incapacity')."

Happiness Depends on Contentment with Qadar

Hadith - al-Tirmidhi # 2151. [Classed as saheeh by al-Haakim, 1/699, and al-Dhahabi agreed with him. It was classed as hasan by al-Haafiz ibn Hajar in Fath al-Baari, 11/184]

The happiness of the son of Adam depends on his being content with what Allah has decreed for him, and the misery of the son of Adam results from his failure to pray istikhaarah, and the misery of the son of Adam results from in his discontent with what Allah has decreed for him.

Basics of Belief

A Muslim believes in Allah's predestination of all things and events (Qadhaa), His decree (Qadar), His wisdom in His actions, and His will. Nothing in the universe can occur, even the voluntary actions of His slaves, except after Allah's knowledge, and His decree of that event. A Muslim further believes that Allah is Just in His predestination and His decree, Wise in all of His actions. His wisdom follows His will: Whatever He wills is, and whatever He does not will is not. There is no power nor any movement except by Allah. This is substantiated by the textual and logical proofs which follow:

TEXTUAL EVIDENCE

1. Allah (glory and praise to Allah) informed us of this in the Qur'an:

   • Verily, We have created all things with Qadar (Divine Preordainments of all things before their creation, as written in the Book of Decrees Al-Lauh Al-Mahfûz). [Qur'an 54/49]

   • And there is not a thing, but with Us are the stores thereof. And We send it not down except in a known measure. [Qur'an 15/21]

   • No calamity befalls on the earth or in yourselves but is inscribed in the Book of Decrees (Al-Lauh Al-Mahfûz), before We bring it into existence. Verily, that is easy for Allâh. [Qur'an 57/22]

   • No calamity befalls, but with the Leave [i.e. decision and Qadar (Divine Preordainments)] of Allâh, and whosoever believes in Allâh, He guides his heart [to the true Faith with certainty, i.e. what has befallen him was already written for him by Allâh from the Qadar (Divine Preordainments)], and Allâh is the All-Knower of everything. [Qur'an 64/11]

   • And with Him are the keys of the Ghaib (all that is hidden), none knows them but He. And He knows whatever there is in (or on) the earth and in the sea; not a leaf falls, but he knows it. There is not a grain in the darkness of the earth nor anything fresh or dry, but is written in a Clear Record. [Qur'an 6/59]

   • Evidence also in: Quran 9/51, 7/43, 21/101, 18/39, 81/27-29

2. The Prophet (saws) has informed us about the reality of Allah's predestination and decree in many hadith:

   • "Verily, each one of you is formed in his mother's womb forty days as a drop, then he is something suspended for a similar period, then he is a piece of flesh like a chewed piece of meat for another period of forty days, then the angel is sent to insert the soul. This angel is ordered to record four things: the sustenance which he will receive during his lifetime, the length of his life, all actions that he will do, and whether he will end up miserable (in hell) or joyous (in paradise). I swear by the One other than whom there is no deity, one of you may do the works of the people of paradise right up until there is only an arm's length between him and paradise, but his destiny overtakes him, so he does the actions of the poeple of the fire and enters it. And, verily, one of you may do the works of the people of hell until there is nothing between them and hell except for one arm's length, but his destiny overtakes him, and so he does the works of the people of paradise, and enters it." [Muslim]

   • "Young man, I will teach you some words: Preserve (your obligations toward) Allah and He will preserve you. Guard (your obligations toward) Allah, and you will find Him on your side. When you ask, ask Allah. When you seek aid and succour, seek it from Allah. And know, that if the entire nation got together to benefit you in some way, they could never benefit you at all except for that which Allah had already decreed for you. And, if they all got together to harm you in some way, they could do you no harm except for that which Allah had already decreed for you. The pens have been lifted, and the tablets have dried." [At-Tirmidhi, and he rated it Sahih]

   • "The first thing which Allah created was the pen. Then, He said to it: Write. It asked: My Lord, what should I write? He said: Write the proportions of all things up until the Hour." [Ahmad, At-Tirmidhi, and it is hassan]

   • "Adam disputed with Musa. Musa said to Adam: "O, Adam, you are the father of the human race, Allah created you with His hand, and blew into you of His spirit, and made His angels prostrate to you, why did you expel yourself and us from the garden?" Adam said to him: "You are Musa whom Allah favored with His speech, and wrote for you the Taurah with His hand, so (tell me) by how many years before my creation did you find it written about me: [... then Adam disobeyed his Lord and got lost.] (Qur'an 20:121)? Musa said: "By forty years." Then, Adam said: "So how do you blame me for something which Allah had decreed for me before my creation by forty years?" The Prophet said: "And so, Adam defeated Musa in the dispute."

   • "Act, for each of you will find easy that for which he was created." (Muslim)

   • "O, Abdullah ibn Qais, should I not teach you a word which is one of the treasures of paradise? (It is to say): There is no movement nor any power except from Allah."

   • "Someone said: That which Allah wants and you want. To which the Prophet (saws) replied: That which Allah alone wants." [An-Nasaa'i, and he rated it sahih]

EVIDENCE OF REASON

1. Reason does not reject the idea of predestination and decree and of Allah's wisdom and His will. Just the opposite, reason demands that this is the case without doubt because of the clear evidences of it in the universe around us.

2. Belief in Allah and in his perfect might and power demands the belief in His predestination and His decree, His wisdom and His will.

Related Links: Free Will  |  Suicide

Action Items for the uttaqun:

• Fear Allah, azza wa-jall (may Allah be hollowed and glorified) and know that it is Allah, subhana watala, who decides your fate.  

• Do not question what is already written, for it was written by Allah to happen.

  • Example: Saying, "That shouldn't have happened!" is a statement against the Qadar.

• Do not use the Qadar as an excuse for your actions. You do not know the future, even though it was already written. So you are responsible for your action or inaction.

  • Hadith Narrated by Jabir Ibn Jarir recorded from Jabir bin `Abdullah that he said, "O Messenger of Allah! Are we performing deeds for something that has already been predetermined or is the matter based upon what we are just doing (now)'' The Prophet replied, (It is a matter that has been predetermined.) Then Suraqah said, "Then what is the purpose of deeds'' The Messenger of Allah then said, (Everyone who does deeds will have his deeds made easy for him.) Muslim also recorded this Hadith.

• Call upon Allah, subhana watala, for your strength, support and sustenance.

Remember... Allah, subhana watala, sees everything we do!