Principle: Man is given choice, not compelled

Question:
Honorable Shaykh, may Allah grant you success. A questioner says: The principle is that man is given choice, not compelled, or is it the other way around? He asks: What is the legal ruling on this principle, and what is the correct view?

Answer:
Man is both compelled and given choice. He is compelled by the decrees of divine decree and destiny; in that, he has no power to change it. He is given choice in his movements and actions that are within his control and capability. He is given choice in them. Yes. So, from the perspective of divine decree and destiny, he is compelled, but from the perspective of his own actions, he is given choice. Yes. That is to say, we do not adopt the doctrine of the Jabriyyah, who say he is compelled; that is false. We say he is given choice: he performs obedience by his will or leaves it by his will, and he commits sin by his will or leaves it by his will. Allah has given him the choice. Yes.