Is there in the saying of Allah the Exalted: ( ... and when your Lord took from the children of Adam from their backs ... )

The Shaykh : Yes, other than that.

The questioner : Shaykh, in Surat al-A'raf, the verse of fitrah (the innate natural disposition): the verse, it contains that Allah, Blessed and Exalted is He, will question all the children of Adam on the Day of Resurrection when they associate partners with Allah, Blessed and Exalted is He, in shirk (associating partners with Allah), since Allah, Mighty and Majestic, placed in them the fitrah (the innate natural disposition) and even made them bear witness against themselves. Is there in the verse evidence that Allah, Blessed and Exalted is He, holds accountable the one who associates partners with Him without a Messenger being sent, based on the evidence of the verse of fitrah (the innate natural disposition) and the taking of the covenant?

The Shaykh : Absolutely not. There is no evidence in the verse for that at all. Rather, it contains that the argument of Allah, Mighty and Majestic, is established against His servants from the aspect of fitrah (the innate natural disposition) first. But it is not in the verse that He holds them accountable based on this argument alone, due to the known evidences, among which is the saying of Allah the Exalted: and the hadith of the four who defend themselves, like the one who died in a period of interruption and the call of a Prophet did not reach him, or like the one who was afflicted with senility or the insane, and the like of that. These are the evidences that necessitate accountability and reckoning on the Day of Resurrection, if good then good, and if evil then evil. As for the verse you mentioned, which speaks about the creation of souls in the world of the embryos, this does not imply accountability and punishment before the establishment of the argument.

The questioner : Do you mean his saying: ?

The Shaykh : Yes, because in the verse there is only this argument of fitrah (the innate natural disposition) from Allah, Mighty and Majestic. And this verse aligns with the authentic hadith, which is his saying (peace and blessings be upon him): Every newborn is born on the fitrah (the innate natural disposition) or So this fitrah (the innate natural disposition) is the argument of Allah, Mighty and Majestic, from that world. But this does not mean that He punishes on the basis of it.