Decree

This statement is supported by many proofs from the Qur’an and the Sunnah; for instance, Allah, Glory be to Him, said: “And you will not, unless (it be) that Allah wills, the Lord of the 'Alamin (mankind, jinns and all that exists)” [Al-Takwir: 29], and what Allah willed will take place, and what He did not will does not happen, and Allah Almighty wills things, so they will exist as He wanted them to exist, and the will of every creature is not absolutely free from Allah’s Divine Will. Note that this is the universal Divine Will which is also known as Iraadah Kawniyyah (Arabic: الإرادة الكونية). The author is trying to respond and refute the claim of al-Qadariyyah, those who claim that Allah wanted the obedience of the obedient, the faith of the believer and the accounted person but the latter disbelieved and preferred disobedience, and consequently he opposed Allah’s Will!. They claim that Allah does not create such evil actions because Allah does not want disbelief nor He wants misguidance and disobedience to occur.

This is the statement of those who say that every person creates his own actions at his own will, as stated by the al-Mu’tazilah and other sects of al-Qadariyyah.

This statement is delusive since the latter Will is different from the former, i.e., there are two types of Will!.

Whatever falls under the meaning of Allah’s Will is associated with Iradah Kawniyyah (Arabic: إرادة كونية), i.e., Universal Will or Divine Will or predestination (as in the statement of the author) and whatever falls under the meaning of (His) Love (for something) is Iradah Shari’ah (Arabic: إرادة شرعية), i.e Legislative Will.

As for the Divine Will, it is abundant in the texts and is synonymous with the Divine Will.

The Legislative Will is described as a Iradah Shari’ah (Arabic: الإرادة الشرعية).

Another aspect of the Divine Will is that no one can escape from it contrary to the Legislative Will which only servants obey it as would everyone else obey the Divine Will. For instance, the two Wills would differ if we consider a situation where a sinner commits a sin. The latter occurs by the Divine Will of Allah but not by His Legislative will. Allah Almighty said: “And Allah wants no injustice for His servants.” [Ghafir: 31]. He also said: “Allah wants ease and not hardship for you” [Baqara: 185]. But in the context of Divine Will, for instance, He said: “Had Allah known any good in them, He would have made them hear. And if He had made them hear, they would [still] have turned away, while they were refusing”[al-Anfal:23], this is due to Allah’s knowledge about the impossible event and if it was possible what would be the outcome.

Also, the Divine Will is associated with His Knowledge and Wisdom and His Legislative Will is associated with order and commandments. He commanded this and forbade such-and-such, so what was commanded and what was forbidden became what was intended for him in Shariah law; and therefore, falls under Legislative Will. If this is clear to you, then his saying: “And it is only what He wills” refers to the Divine Will, and those who did not differentiate between the two Wills mixed up between the two; hence they fell into misconceptions about the problem of the sin that is committed by a sinner and Misguidance of the disbelievers!.

Although there seems to be a connection and coherence between Allah’s Divine Will and creature’s, specifically human’s Will, the two differ when it comes to Wisdom. Allah’s Divine Will is always a result of His Wisdom but human’s Will may or may not be according to wisdom.

Allah’s absolute Wisdom may manifest in the doer or can also manifest in another entity (known or unknown to us). In the former situation, Allah’s Divine Will and the person’s Will converge, in the latter situation; however, the person’s Will diverges from Allah’s Will but Allah’s Divine Will always occurs and englobes all Wills and personal interests. In other words, there is no absolutely free Will from any creatures.

This is why we say: anything that Allah, Glory be to Him, wants in his kingdom is subject to His Wisdom, and evil is not attributed to Allah, Glory be to Him, only good is attributed to Him.

On the contrary, a person (slave) may desire something harmful to himself; and therefore, his act is not subject to wisdom, i.e., the person’s wisdom and personal interest despite being subject to Allah’s overall Wisdom (i.e., by occurrence).

This statement by Imam aṭ-Ṭaḥāwī implicitly refutes many factions of innovators in respect of issues of Qadar (i.e., Divine Decree) that will be discussed in details later Inshaa Allah.

In other words, what Allah, Glory be to Him, wants to occur is subject to the absolute Wisdom whether it coincides with the particular slave’s personal desires or with the benefits of all creatures as a whole (holistic view).

Evil is not attributed to Allah, Glory be to Him, as mentioned in the Prophet’s supplication: “I am at Your service, all goodness is in Your hands, and evil is not attributed to You. I rely on You and turn to You, blessed and exalted are You, I seek Your forgiveness and repent to You”, Allah’s actions are absolutely good and wise but may allow some evil actions undertaken by his slaves and servants; therefore, evil is attributed to the latter. Allah, Glory be to Him, wants no harm for his creatures, the latter may choose harmful and evil actions but always under Allah’s permission which is always subject to the absolute Wisdom (a sinner cannot force Allah’s Divine Will but can oppose his Legislative Will).