An error that many people fall into regarding the divine decree.

The Shaykh : I wish to remind you, at the end of my discussion of this mawquf hadith, of a fact that Islamic preachers, let alone others, often fail to notice. We stated in this mawquf hadith and in the marfu' hadith that Allah (Mighty and Majestic) writes the lifespan, provision, and happiness or misery of the fetus while it is still in its mother's womb. Let us assume, then, that He also writes its character. But does this writing mean that a person has no power to strive for happiness? Is it permissible for someone to say, "Since the writing has already occurred, whether it be happiness or misery, what is the use of working?" One might say, or I might say, "I am either happy or miserable, so why should I trouble myself in this world? If I was written as happy, I will be happy and enter Paradise. If I was written as miserable, God forbid, what is the benefit of my work or effort? So let me enjoy this life, and in the Hereafter, if I was written as happy, I will be happy. If I was not written as happy, what is the benefit of wasting my time here in obedience, worship, jihad, and so on?" Many people might say this. We answer with a well-known response that we often mention on such occasions, and this answer also addresses what came in this hadith, since the character was also written. We say: The character is either good, which corresponds to the happiness mentioned in the authentic hadith, or bad, which corresponds to misery. Just as it is not permissible for someone to say, "If I was written as happy, I am happy in this world and the Hereafter, so why should I trouble myself? And if I was written as miserable, I am miserable in this world and the Hereafter, so why should I trouble myself even more?" The answer is: There is no doubt that Allah (Mighty and Majestic) has written the happiness and misery of every person, just as He has written their provision and lifespan; there is no doubt in this. But where do we go regarding the principle of causes? When Allah (Mighty and Majestic) wrote happiness or misery for a person, and likewise everything He wrote for them while they were still a fetus, such as provision and lifespan, all of this is linked to the person's striving and earning. In other words, by His wisdom, when Allah (Mighty and Majestic) writes happiness for this fetus, which has not yet entered the realm of obligation, the world, Allah (Mighty and Majestic) knows from this fetus that when it enters the rank of obligation, it will believe, and faith is happiness, so He writes it as happy. And the opposite is the opposite: He knows from a certain person that when they enter this rank, the rank of obligation, they will not obey their Lord and will not respond to His call and invitation, so He writes them as miserable, because they themselves strived for this misery. This same question was directed to the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) when they asked him whether our knowledge, happiness, and misery are something that preceded and the pen has already run with it, or whether the matter is new. He said: Then they asked him (peace and blessings be upon him), "So what is the use of working?" He said: Work, for everyone is facilitated for what they were created for. So whoever is among the people of happiness will work with the work of the people of happiness, and whoever is among the people of misery will work with the work of the people of misery. Then he recited His saying (Glorified and Exalted is He): فَأَمَّا مَنْ أَعْطَى وَاتَّقَى * وَصَدَّقَ بِالْحُسْنَى * فَسَنُيَسِّرُهُ لِلْيُسْرَى So as for he who gives and fears Allah and believes in the best, We will make easy for him the easy way meaning: Paradise, وَأَمَّا مَنْ بَخِلَ وَاسْتَغْنَى * وَكَذَّبَ بِالْحُسْنَى * فَسَنُيَسِّرُهُ لِلْعُسْرَى ⁽⁸⁾ But as for he who withholds and considers himself free of need ⁽⁹⁾ And denies the best [reward],[Al-Layl 92:8-9] So the ease has its causes. Then He said (Glorified and Exalted is He): فَأَمَّا مَنْ أَعْطَى وَاتَّقَى But as for he who gives and fears meaning: He gave wealth and purified himself with it and feared his Lord (Mighty and Majestic). This is the one for whom Allah facilitates the path to the ease, which is Paradise. As for the one who was stingy, meaning did not pay the zakah of his wealth, وَاسْتَغْنَى and considered himself self-sufficient and turned away from obeying his Lord, فَسَنُيَسِّرُهُ لِلْعُسْرَى Then We will make it easy for him toward the hardship.; so the ease is achieved by taking its causes, and the hardship is also achieved by taking the causes that lead to it. So this writing, while the fetus is still in its mother's womb, is merely a discovery of what Allah (Mighty and Majestic) knows about this fetus until it reaches the age of obligation. Let us assume that the character was also written, but this writing is also merely a discovery of what this person will be. For example, a person is created stingy; do you think he will remain on this fitrah and not strive against his self? If he strives against his self, Allah writes him as one who strives, not as a miser, a stingy person, or a disobedient one, because a person is not held accountable for their fitrah, but they are held accountable to strive against their desires if they were created with something contrary to what pleases their Lord (Blessed and Exalted is He). In summary: It is necessary not to separate, in the realm of obligation, in the realm of happiness and misery, between what preceded in the writing of happiness or misery, good character or bad character. It is not necessary to separate between the writing and taking the causes that ultimately lead to what preceded in the book.