Doubts Regarding Divine Decree and Matters of Creed
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
Question:
Honorable Shaykh, may Allah grant you success, if a person is beset by doubts regarding divine decree and destiny, and matters of creed, and his soul dislikes this and suffers from it, does he become one of the deviants, and is he sinful for it?
Answer:
First of all, divine decree and destiny are the secret of Allah in His creation, so do not delve into it. Do not delve into it; it is obligatory for you to believe in it, but do not delve into its issues, asking why and why. Leave this and submit to Allah (Mighty and Majestic). Submit to Allah that what He has decreed must happen, and what He has ordained must occur, and that Allah does not create anything in vain, and that Allah is Wise and places things in their proper places, and that Allah does not wrong anyone. Submit to Allah in this, and do not delve into discussions of the decree; you will never reach anything. You will never reach anything but confusion and turmoil. It is sufficient for you to believe in divine decree and destiny and submit to Allah (Mighty and Majestic); this is sufficient for you.
This is from the perspective of divine decree and destiny. As for asking about doubtful matters in order to avoid them, and studying them in order to avoid them, this is something required of the believer; he should know, as we mentioned, the ways of evil in order to avoid them. But as for divine decree and destiny, never attempt to delve into it. You will see that the more you delve into it, the more ignorant you become. Why? Because it is the secret of Allah in His creation. And Allah has not burdened you with researching divine decree and destiny. He has burdened you with doing what you are able to do, and He has given you the ability to act. So act, my brother. If you occupy yourself with divine decree and destiny, you are not a gas, nor is this your occupation. This is entrusted to Allah (Exalted and Majestic): use what you are able to use, and what you do not have the capacity to do, and avoid what you are able to avoid. This is what is required of you: to avoid evil and do good. This is what is required of you. Yes. They say.
If you are unable to do something, look: if you are unable to do something, Allah does not hold you accountable.[Al-Baqarah 2:286]. If you are unable to do something, you are not held accountable. If you left it because you were unable, you are not held accountable. If you were ignorant of something, you are not held accountable for it until you know it. If you forgot and fell into something prohibited, Allah does not hold you accountable. [Al-Baqarah 2:286]. [Al-Baqarah 2:286]? A child is not burdened with obligations until he reaches the age of maturity, and as long as he is below the age of maturity, he is not held accountable. Allah (Exalted and Majestic) never burdens you with what you cannot bear, ever.
Honorable Shaykh, may Allah grant you success, if a person is beset by doubts regarding divine decree and destiny, and matters of creed, and his soul dislikes this and suffers from it, does he become one of the deviants, and is he sinful for it?
Answer:
First of all, divine decree and destiny are the secret of Allah in His creation, so do not delve into it. Do not delve into it; it is obligatory for you to believe in it, but do not delve into its issues, asking why and why. Leave this and submit to Allah (Mighty and Majestic). Submit to Allah that what He has decreed must happen, and what He has ordained must occur, and that Allah does not create anything in vain, and that Allah is Wise and places things in their proper places, and that Allah does not wrong anyone. Submit to Allah in this, and do not delve into discussions of the decree; you will never reach anything. You will never reach anything but confusion and turmoil. It is sufficient for you to believe in divine decree and destiny and submit to Allah (Mighty and Majestic); this is sufficient for you.
This is from the perspective of divine decree and destiny. As for asking about doubtful matters in order to avoid them, and studying them in order to avoid them, this is something required of the believer; he should know, as we mentioned, the ways of evil in order to avoid them. But as for divine decree and destiny, never attempt to delve into it. You will see that the more you delve into it, the more ignorant you become. Why? Because it is the secret of Allah in His creation. And Allah has not burdened you with researching divine decree and destiny. He has burdened you with doing what you are able to do, and He has given you the ability to act. So act, my brother. If you occupy yourself with divine decree and destiny, you are not a gas, nor is this your occupation. This is entrusted to Allah (Exalted and Majestic): use what you are able to use, and what you do not have the capacity to do, and avoid what you are able to avoid. This is what is required of you: to avoid evil and do good. This is what is required of you. Yes. They say.
If you are unable to do something, look: if you are unable to do something, Allah does not hold you accountable.
Allah does not charge a soul except [with that within] its capacity
لَا يُكَلِّفُ اللَّهُ نَفْسًا إِلَّا وُسْعَهَاOur Lord, do not impose blame upon us
رَبَّنَا لَا تُؤَاخِذْنَاif we have forgotten or erred
إِن نَّسِينَا أَوْ أَخْطَأْنَا
Source
شرح إغاثة اللهفان من مصائد الشيطان لابن القيم، فصل في القلب المريض — islamhouse.com (39:12)
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.