The Difference Between Qada' and Qadar and the Ruling on Citing Qadar as an Excuse
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The questioner:
Honorable Shaykh, may Allah reward you. What is the difference between qada' and qadar? And what is the ruling on citing philosophy as an excuse for danger?
The Shaykh:
Citing.
The questioner:
And his turning toward the moon in the void, just as the turning of the son of Adam (peace be upon him) toward Musa.
The Shaykh:
Qada' and qadar: Qada' is the judgment; qada' is the judgment, and qadar is the encompassing of the measures of things and their times. Yes, there is a difference between them. Qada' is the prior judgment, Allah's judgment regarding the occurrence of things from the beginning of creation to its end, a qadri judgment. As for qadar, it is Allah's encompassing of the measures of these judged matters, their times, and the time of their occurrence, as He the Exalted and Sublime said:[Al-Furqan 25:2] [Al-Qamar 54:49].
The questioner:
Yes.
The Shaykh:
Citing an error: It is not permissible to cite qadar as an excuse for an error. It is not permissible. The one who errs seeks forgiveness and repents, and does not cite qada' and qadar. One only cites qada' and qadar regarding calamities in which a person has no control, which befall him without his choice and without his action; they are merely Allah's action upon him.
So a person has no choice or action in calamities; they are merely the action of Allah (Exalted and Majestic is He). As for sins, they are his action, they are his action, and his earning. So he repents to Allah and does not cite qada' and qadar. If citing qada' and qadar were of benefit, it would have benefited Iblis:[Al-Hijr 15:39] citing Allah with qada' and qadar, and that did not benefit him. And Adam did not cite qada' and qadar for the error.
Rather, he cited it for the calamity, which was his expulsion from Paradise. Because Musa (peace be upon him) said to him, "When you drove us out of Paradise?" He said this to Adam (peace be upon him). So Adam cited qada' and qadar against him, because leaving Paradise is a calamity, and it was by Allah's qada' and qadar. As for the sin that he (peace be upon him) committed, he repented from it, and Allah accepted his repentance. It is not possible that Musa would ask him about something from which he had repented and which Allah had forgiven him for. That is not possible.
Honorable Shaykh, may Allah reward you. What is the difference between qada' and qadar? And what is the ruling on citing philosophy as an excuse for danger?
The Shaykh:
Citing.
The questioner:
And his turning toward the moon in the void, just as the turning of the son of Adam (peace be upon him) toward Musa.
The Shaykh:
Qada' and qadar: Qada' is the judgment; qada' is the judgment, and qadar is the encompassing of the measures of things and their times. Yes, there is a difference between them. Qada' is the prior judgment, Allah's judgment regarding the occurrence of things from the beginning of creation to its end, a qadri judgment. As for qadar, it is Allah's encompassing of the measures of these judged matters, their times, and the time of their occurrence, as He the Exalted and Sublime said:
and has created each thing and determined it with [precise] determination.
وَخَلَقَ كُلَّ شَيْءٍ فَقَدَّرَهُ تَقْدِيرًاIndeed, all things We created with predestination.
إِنَّا كُلَّ شَيْءٍ خَلَقْنَاهُ بِقَدَرٍThe questioner:
Yes.
The Shaykh:
Citing an error: It is not permissible to cite qadar as an excuse for an error. It is not permissible. The one who errs seeks forgiveness and repents, and does not cite qada' and qadar. One only cites qada' and qadar regarding calamities in which a person has no control, which befall him without his choice and without his action; they are merely Allah's action upon him.
So a person has no choice or action in calamities; they are merely the action of Allah (Exalted and Majestic is He). As for sins, they are his action, they are his action, and his earning. So he repents to Allah and does not cite qada' and qadar. If citing qada' and qadar were of benefit, it would have benefited Iblis:
[Iblees] said, "My Lord, because You have put me in error,
قَالَ رَبِّ بِمَا أَغْوَيْتَنِيRather, he cited it for the calamity, which was his expulsion from Paradise. Because Musa (peace be upon him) said to him, "When you drove us out of Paradise?" He said this to Adam (peace be upon him). So Adam cited qada' and qadar against him, because leaving Paradise is a calamity, and it was by Allah's qada' and qadar. As for the sin that he (peace be upon him) committed, he repented from it, and Allah accepted his repentance. It is not possible that Musa would ask him about something from which he had repented and which Allah had forgiven him for. That is not possible.
Source
قناة «العلامة الدكتور صالح الفوزان»، 05 من 15 / شرح أصول الإيمان / الإيمان بالقدر / صالح الفوزان / العقيدة/ كبار العلماء — youtube.com (1:03:32)
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.