“You cannot will, unless Allah wills.”[1]

“…While it is Allah who created you and all your doings.”[2] (Quran 37:96)

“No calamity befalls you on earth (on your physical body and outer world) or among yourselves (your inner world) that has not already been recorded in a book (formed in the dimension of knowledge) before We bring it into being! Indeed for Allah, this is easy.

“We inform you of this in order that you don’t despair over your losses or exult (in pride) over what We have given you, for Allah does not like the boastful and the arrogant!”[3]

“There is no living creature which He does not hold by its forehead (brain; the programming of the brain by the name Al-Fatir).”[4]

“Say: Everyone acts according to his creation program (fitrah). This is why your Rabb (who is the Fatir) knows best who is on the right path!”[5]

Say: ‘Allah’ and let them amuse themselves in their empty discourse (their illusory world) in which they are absorbed.”[6]

“The doer of what He wills!”[7]

“He is not questioned (called to account) for what He does! But they will be questioned (they will live the consequences of their actions)!”[8]

“Indeed, We have created everything with its program (qadar – fate).”[9]

There are many more verses in the Quran regarding fate, so I will suffice with this much for now and share some hadith regarding fate from both the Sahih Muslim and Tirmidhi collections…

 

Abu al-Aswad reported that Imran ibn Husain asked him: 

“What is your view on what the people do today in the world and strive for, is it something decreed and preordained for them or will their fate in the Hereafter be determined by the fact that their Rasul and Nabi brought them teachings which they did not act upon?” 

I said: “Of course, it is something which is predetermined for them and preordained for them.” 

He then said: “Then, would it not be an injustice (to punish them)?” 

I felt greatly disturbed and said: “He is not questioned for what He does! But they will be questioned” (Quran 21:23); thereupon he said to me: “May Allah have mercy upon you, I did not mean to ask you but for testing your intelligence.”

 

Two men of the tribe of Muzaina came to Allah's Rasul (saw) and said: 

“O Allah's Rasul, what is your opinion on what the people do in the world and strive for, is it something decreed for them; something preordained for them and will their fate in the Hereafter be determined by the fact that their Rasul brought them teachings which they did not act upon and thus they became deserving of punishment?”

Thereupon, he said: 

“Of course, it happens as it is decreed by fate and preordained for them, and this view is confirmed by this verse of the Book of Allah: 

By the self (the individual consciousness; identity) and the One who proportioned it (formed the brain); then inspired it as to what will lead it astray from the Truth and the system, and how to protect itself... (Quran91:7-8)”

***

Jabir reported that Suriqa b. Malik b. Ju'shuin came and said:

“Allah's Rasul, explain our religion to us (in a way) as if we have been created just now. Whatever deeds we do today, is it because of the fact they have been predetermined and written, or is it our doing that determines them?”

Thereupon he said:

“Everything has been predetermined and written. The pens have dried and destinies have begun to operate.”

(Suraqa b. Malik) said: “If it is so, then what is the use of doing good deeds?”

Rasulullah said:

“Act, for everyone is facilitated for what he intends to do. He who does good will be facilitated towards the good.”(Muslim, Tirmidhi)

***

Abdullah Ibn Masud (r.a.) narrates:

Rasulullah (saw) to whom the truth is revealed and who always speaks the truth, told me:

“Substance from your parents are gathered in the mother’s womb for forty days, then in another forty-day period it becomes a clot of blood, then in another forty-day period it becomes a small flesh. (After the 120^th day) Allah sends an angel and asks it to record four things: Its livelihood, its sustenance, its death, and whether he will be of the fortunate or the unfortunate ones.”

Ibn Masud continues;

“I swear to Allah in whose hands of power the life of Abdullah lies, after the angel records these, the spirit is blown into it (the fetus comes to life).

One may do so many good deeds such that between him and Paradise will remain only an arm length yet at this point the record (written by the angel in the mother’s womb) will come into effect and obstruct the person. After this, he will begin to do the deeds of the people of hell (and be cast to hell).

One may do such bad deeds that between him and hell will remain only one step distance, yet at this point the record (written by the angel) will come into effect and obstruct the person. Then he will begin to do the deeds of the people of heaven (and go to Paradise).” (Bukhari, Tajrid 1324)

***

Anas Ibn Maliq (r.a.) narrates:

Rasulullah (saw) said:

“Allah appoints an angel to every womb, and the angel says, ‘O Rabb! A drop of discharge (i.e. of semen), O Rabb! A clot, O Rabb! A piece of flesh.’ And then, if Allah wishes to complete the child's creation, the angel will say. ‘O Rabb! A male or a female? O Rabb! 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.” (Bukhari, Muslim)

***

Ali (r.a.) reported that one day Rasulullah (saw) was sitting with a twig in his hand and he was scratching the ground. Suddenly he raised his head and said:

“There is not one amongst you who has not been allotted his seat in Paradise or Hell.”

They said: “O Rasul of Allah, then why struggle, why not let everything go and submit?” Thereupon he said:

“No, do perform good deeds, for everyone is facilitated in that for which he has been created. The fortunate will be facilitated in doing the deeds of the fortunate ones and unfortunate will be facilitated in doing the deeds of the unfortunate ones!”

Then he recited this verse:

“As for he who gives to the needy and seeks refuge in Allah and confirms the Word of Unity, We will facilitate him toward Paradise. But as for he who withholds and considers himself free of need and denies the Word of Unity, We will facilitate him toward Hell (Quran 92:5-10).” (Bukhari, Muslim, Abu Dawud, Tirmidhi)

***

Imran bin Husain (r.a.) narrates:

“Once I asked Rasulullah (saw): “O Rasulullah, have the people of paradise been distinguished from the people of hell (with Allah’s preordainment)?”

Upon which Rasulullah (saw) said; 

“Yes, they have been distinguished.”

“If the people of heaven and hell have already been predetermined then why should those who do good deeds and engage in prayers continue to do so?” 

“Everyone will do what he has been created for, whatever has been predestined for him, he will carry that out” he answered. (Bukhari, Tajrid 2062)

*** 

Abu Huraira reported Allah's Rasul (saw) as saying: 

“Verily, a person performs deeds for a long time like the deeds of the people of Paradise. Then his deeds are terminated like the deeds of the people of Hell and, verily, a person performs deeds like the people of Fire for a long time, and then this deed of his is ultimately followed by the deeds of the people of Paradise.”

Sahl b. Sa'd reported it from Allah's Rasul (saw) that a person apparently performs the deeds of the people of Paradise in public, while he is destined to be among the dwellers of Hell, and a person acts apparently like the people of Hell, while in fact he is destined to be among the dwellers of Paradise.

*** 

Muslim narrated that Tawus al-Yamani said: I found some of the companions of Rasulullah (saw), saying:

“Everything is by decree.”

Tawus added: I heard Abdullah ibn Umar say that Rasulullah said:

“Everything is by decree – even incapacity and ability.”

***

Abu Huraira reported Allah's Rasul (saw) as saying:

“Verily Allah has fixed the very portion of adultery which a man will indulge in, from which he cannot escape. The adultery of the eye is the lustful look, and the adultery of the tongue is the licentious speech, the heart desires and yearns, which the parts may or may not put into effect.”

***

Ubayy b. Ka'b reported that Allah’s Rasul (saw) said: 

“The young man whom Khadir killed was a non-believer by his very nature and had he survived he would have involved his parents in defiance and unbelief.”

***

Aisha, the mother of the believers, reported that a child died and I said: “There is happiness for this child who is a bird from amongst the birds of Paradise.” 

Thereupon Allah's Rasul (saw) said: 

“Don't you know that Allah created Paradise and He created Hell and He created the dwellers of Paradise and the dwellers of Hell?”

Aisha, the mother of the believers, said that Allah's Rasul (saw) was called to lead the funeral prayer of a child of the Ansar. I said: “Allah's Rasul, there is happiness for this child who is a bird from the birds of Paradise for it committed no sin nor has he reached the age when one can commit sin.” 

He said:

“Aisha, per adventure, it may be otherwise, because Allah created for Paradise those who are fit for it while they were yet in their father's loins and created for Hell those who are to go to Hell while they were yet in their father's loins.”

***

Narrated by Abu Huraira (r.a.):

Rasulullah (saw) said:

“Adam and Moses argued with each other. Moses said to Adam, ‘Are you Adam, whom Allah created with His own hands and blew into from His Spirit, and made His angels prostrate before you, and made you live in Paradise in comfort and ease, yet with your mistake you expelled us all from Paradise!?’ 

Adam said to him, ‘Are you Moses, whom Allah selected as a Rasul and to whom He spoke directly and conferred upon you the tablets in which everything was clearly explained and granted you the audience in order to have a confidential talk with you. What is your opinion, how long ago was the Torah written before I was created? 

Moses said: Forty years before. 

Adam said: Did you not see these words: Adam committed an error and he was enticed to (do so). 

He (Moses) said: Yes. 

Whereupon, he (Adam) said: Do you then blame me for an act which Allah had ordained for me forty years before He created me?” 

Allah's Rasul (saw) said: 

“This is how Adam evidently prevailed over Moses.”

***

Abdullah b. 'Amr b. al-'As reported: I heard Allah's Rasul (saw) as saying: 

“Allah ordained the measures (of quality) of the creation fifty thousand years before He created the heavens and the earth, as His Throne was upon water.”

 

Abu Huraira (ra) reported Allah's Rasul (saw) as saying: 

“A strong believer is better and is more lovable to Allah than a weak believer, and there is good in everyone, but cherish that which gives you benefit (in the Hereafter) and seek help from Allah and do not lose heart, and if anything in the form of trouble comes to you, don't say : If I had not done that, it would not have happened so and so, but say: Allah did that what He had ordained to do, for your "if" opens the gate for the Satan.”

***

Tirmidhi narrates:

Omar (r.a.) asked: “O Rasulullah, what do you say, are our activities created as we engage in them, or have they already been predestined?”

Rasulullah (saw) answered:

“O Hattab’s son, everyone is facilitated to carry out that which has been predestined for him. He who is from the good will strive for the good, and he who is from the bad will strive for the bad!”

***

Narrated by Salman (ra):

“Nothing increases one's lifespan except good deeds, and nothing repels Divine Decree except prayer (supplication).”

 ***

Abu Khizamah narrates: 

The Rasul of Allah (saw) was asked: “Do you think the medicines with which we treat ourselves, the readings by which we seek healing, and the means of protection that we seek, change the decree of Allah at all?” 

He said:

“They are also a part of the decree of Allah. The son of Adam was created with ninety-nine deaths before him, if he can overcome these dangers, he will eventually come to old age and die.”

***

Hadhrat Ali (ra) narrates: 

The Rasul of Allah (saw) said: 

“Until the servant has faith in the following four things he is not a believer: That there is no God but Allah, that I am the Rasul of Allah, that death and life after death exists, and that destiny is a reality.”

***

Jabir bin Abdullah (ra) narrates: 

The Rasul of Allah (saw) said: 

“Until a servant believes that good and bad is from fate, that whatever has reached him could never have missed him, and what has missed him could never have reached him, he cannot be a believer.”

***

Narrated by Abdullah bin Amr...

The Rasulullah (saw) came upon us as though holding two books in his hands and asked us, 

“Do you know what these books are?”

“No O Rasul of Allah, we may only know if you tell us.”

Upon this he showed the book in his right hand and said, 

“This is a book from the Rabb of the worlds. In it are the names of those who will go to paradise, their father's names and the names of their tribes. It contains every name in detail, there will be no addition to it nor will there be any subtraction from it anymore.”

Then he showed the book in his left hand and said, 

“This too is a book from the Rabb of the worlds and contains the names of those who will go to hell, their fathers’ names and the names of their tribes. Every name has been recorded in detail, there will be absolutely no addition to it nor any subtraction from it anymore.”

We asked, “O Rasul of Allah (saw) if it has been predetermined then what is the purpose of our deeds and practices here?” 

He said;

“Be righteous and moderate, for he who will go to paradise regardless of whatever deed he may have done in the past his final deed will be the deed of the people of paradise. And he who will go to hell, regardless of whatever deed he may have done in the past his final deed will be the deed of the people of hell. Our Rabb has determined the fate of His servants. One section is in hell.”

***

It was narrated on the authority of Abu Hurairah (ra) that the Rasul (saw) said: 

“There is no Adwa (no disease is conveyed from the sick to the healthy without the Permission of Allah), nor Haamah (i.e. owl), nor Safar.”

A Bedouin stood up and said, “Then what about my camels? They are like deer on the sand, but when a mangy camel comes and mixes with them, they all get infected with mangy.”

 The Rasul (saw) said: 

“Then who infected the first one? There is no adwa and safar, Allah has created every soul and preordained its life, sustenance, and every incident he will encounter!”

*** 

Abu Hurairah (ra) narrates:

Rasulullah (saw) said,

“Nobody's good deed will take him to paradise.”

“How about you O Rasul of Allah (saw)?”

The Rasul (saw) answered: 

“Yes, including me. I will go to Paradise only out of the bounty and grace of Allah. Therefore, my companions, refrain from going to extremes in your work and your worship. Follow the right (moderate) way to get closer to Allah. And let none of you wish for death. For if it is a person of good virtue, he may increase his good virtue and if he is a sinner then he may repent before death.”

Bukhari, Tajrid Hadith number 1918. 

***

Abdullah ibn Amr reported: 

The Rasul of Allah, (saw) said, 

“Verily, Allah Almighty created His creation in darkness and He cast over them His light. Whoever is touched by that light is guided, and whoever misses it is led astray. Thus, I say the pens have been dried upon the knowledge of Allah.”

***

Zaid ibn Thabith (ra) narrates:

Rasulullah (saw) said,

 “If Allah were to punish the inhabitants of His heavens and of His earth, He would do so and He would not be unjust towards them. And if He were to have mercy on them, His mercy would be better for them than their own deeds. If you had the equivalent of Mount Uhud in gold, or the equivalent of Mount Uhud which you spent in the cause of Allah, that would not be accepted from you until you believed in the Divine Decree and you know that whatever has befallen you, could not have passed you by; and whatever has passed you by, could not have befallen you; and that if you were to die believing in anything other than this, you would enter Hell.” 

*** 

Suraqa ibn Malik asked: “Allah's Rasul, are ‘deeds’ tied to the fact that-the pens have dried after recording them and destinies have begun to operate or are they based on the future (unaffected by the past)?” 

Thereupon he said: 

“Deeds are tied to destiny which is written, and the pens have dried. Everyone is facilitated towards that for which he has been created.”