Is it permissible to invoke the divine decree as an excuse for calamities?
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
Question:
If a calamity befalls a person, or something similar, does he invoke the divine decree after it has occurred?
Answer:
A calamity? Yes, in the case of a calamity, one argues with divine decree (qadar) and is content with Allah, and does not despair:[Al-Baqarah 2:156]. Arguing with divine decree regarding calamities is obligatory (wajib) because it encourages patience and seeking reward, and a person has no power to prevent a calamity. However, arguing with divine decree regarding the commission of sins is not permissible (la yajuz), because a person is able to leave the sin and avoid it. Also, if he argues with divine decree, he does not repent; arguing with divine decree means that he does not repent, may Allah protect us from that, and he attributes his action to Allah, like Iblis who said, "My Lord, because You led me astray." Adam (peace be upon him) blamed himself: [Al-A'raf 7:23]. So Adam did not argue with divine decree; rather, he sought forgiveness from his Lord and attributed the sin to himself: [Al-A'raf 7:23]. This is the believer.
If a calamity befalls a person, or something similar, does he invoke the divine decree after it has occurred?
Answer:
A calamity? Yes, in the case of a calamity, one argues with divine decree (qadar) and is content with Allah, and does not despair:
Who, when disaster strikes them, say, "Indeed we belong to Allah, and indeed to Him we will return."
الَّذِينَ إِذَا أَصَابَتْهُم مُّصِيبَةٌ قَالُوا إِنَّا لِلَّهِ وَإِنَّا إِلَيْهِ رَاجِعُونَThey said, "Our Lord, we have wronged ourselves, and if You do not forgive us and have mercy upon us, we will surely be among the losers."
قَالَا رَبَّنَا ظَلَمْنَا أَنفُسَنَا وَإِن لَّمْ تَغْفِرْ لَنَا وَتَرْحَمْنَا لَنَكُونَنَّ مِنَ الْخَاسِرِينَThey said, "Our Lord, we have wronged ourselves, and if You do not forgive us and have mercy upon us, we will surely be among the losers."
رَبَّنَا ظَلَمْنَا أَنفُسَنَا وَإِن لَّمْ تَغْفِرْ لَنَا وَتَرْحَمْنَا لَنَكُونَنَّ مِنَ الْخَاسِرِينَ
Source
قناة «العلامة الدكتور صالح الفوزان»، [722 -858] هل يجوز الاحتجاج بالقدر على المصائب - الشيخ صالح الفوزان — youtube.com
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.