It is examination season. Everybody is busy studying and revising what has been taught to them over the course of the academic year. For the hardworking ones, it is all about revisiting all those neural connections which they have established upon first encountering the syllabus content. For the less fortunate, this period is a frantic combination of some revising and a lot of learning. After all, most of the content is new material to them. No matter the state one is in, one fact stands out; that everyone is hard at work.
From Umar ibn Al-Khattab from the Prophet (PBUH) who said:
“If only you relied on Allah a true reliance, He would provide sustenance for you just as He does the birds: They fly out in the morning empty and return in the afternoon with full stomachs.”
(Ahmad, An-Nasaa’I, Ibn Majah, Al-Hakim and At-Tirmidhi who said: “Hassan sahih”)
Students (and, in fact, everyone else) are like birds. Just like the bird leaves its nest everyday to look for worms, students leave their halls of residence or rented apartments or even their homes everyday in search of knowledge. Just like the bird which looks everywhere its wings can take it to find the sustenance for itself and its young, students attend lectures and tutorials in order to find the knowledge that they need. Indeed, food is found everywhere, so why do birds have to fly far and wide in order to find it? The key here is what birds regard as beneficial food. Mulberry leaves may be food for a caterpillar, but certainly it is not for most birds. Similarly, every day the student is inundated with information. Receiving this information is considered learning. So why, for instance, does an Imperial College student goes to Imperial College and not to Oxford? Apart from the plain fact that he is only enrolled in Imperial College, the Imperial College student goes to Imperial College because that is where he can find the information he needs to graduate with top honours in his field.
If Allah wills that the bird will meet the pellets from a hunter’s shotgun, will the bird be flying back to his nest with a full stomach? Unlikely.
If Allah wills that the student will meet, head on, the bonnet of a car speeding at 80km/h, will he be able to return home satiated, full of knowledge? Unlikely.
If Allah wills that the food that the bird seeks has run out, will the bird be able to satisfy his hunger? Unlikely.
If Allah wills that all lecturers go on strike today, will the student be able to quench his thirst for knowledge? Unlikely.
The reality, my friends, is that we are all at the mercy of Allah’s will. We are like live puppets tied to a string. We might be able to move to our left, but if the string pulls us to the right, try as we might, we will not move one inch towards our intended destination. Fellow puppets might plan to stab us from the back, but if their strings pull them away from us, all that would be in vain. We might want to wake up at 8am on the day of a 10am paper to revise some notes but if the string only yanks us from our beds at 9.30am, our plans are thrown out the window. Just like that.
We are the live puppets, but Allah is the puppet-master. He controls everything, from the fate of the spectacle you are wearing, to the banana or the chocolate muffin you are eating, right down to every bacterium that is living in your stomach. It may be true that we may have our own intentions and desires, but that is because Allah lets us have it.
We might want to achieve first-class honours in our examinations this year, and we may study for every single second we are awake. If Allah wills that we come down with a sudden pain in our upper right abdomen which leaves us stricken in bed, what can we do my dear friends? What can we do? And if it turns out that the pain is caused by an abscess in the liver which could be fatal, who can help us?
وعلى الله فليتوكل المؤمنون …
…and in Allah should the faithful (Ever) put their trust [3:122, 5:11]
That is the reality of it all. We are at the mercy of Allah’s will. This is why tawakkal is a very important aspect of a Muslim’s faith.
… ومن يتوكل على الله فهو حسبه …
…And if any one puts his trust in Allah, sufficient is (Allah) for him… [65:3]
Whoever relies on Allah, and then Allah will suffice for him. If Allah helps us in our examinations, then bring the toughest papers on Earth. But if Allah leaves us in the examination room with a sudden mental block, even the simplest papers will leave us crying inside. What if Allah leaves us altogether?
Ibn ‘Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them) reported that the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) used to supplicate: “O Allah! To You I have submitted, and in You do I believe, and in You I put my trust, to You do I turn, and for You I argued. O Allah, I seek refuge with You through Your Power; there is none worthy of worship except You Alone; that You safeguard me against going astray. You are the Ever Living, the One Who sustains and protects all that exists; the One Who never dies, whereas human beings and jinn will all die”.
(Bukhari and Muslim)
Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said, “Whoever says (upon leaving his house):
بسم الله توكلت على الله ولا حول ولا قوة إلا بالله
‘Bismillah, tawakkaltu ‘alallah, wa la hawla wa la quwwata illa billah (I begin in the Name of Allah; I trust in Allah; there is no altering of conditions but by the Power of Allah),’ it will be said to him: ‘You are guided, defended and protected.’ The devil will go far away from him.”
(Abu Dawud, At-Tirmidhi and An-Nasa‘i)
Abu Dawud reported it with this addition: “One devil will say to another: ‘How can you deal with a man who has been guided, defended and protected?’”
Let us rely on Allah fully after all our preparations have been made and after all efforts have been exhausted in revising for our examinations. Let us also make du‘a that He makes it easy for all our brothers and sisters out there who are struggling and working hard. We might be fighting for our first-class honours degree, but there are many others who are struggling to live and stay alive. Let us also pledge that we will train ourselves not only to be good students, but also good Muslims who will be genuine witnesses of the truth unto mankind.
All good is from Allah, but all that is bad comes from the results of our own doing.
Hello,
I hope your exams go really well. I am a Christian who’s stumbled on your blog and am glad I have. I’m very interested in doctrine of God issues. You express well a very strong doctrine of Allah’s sovereignty in this post. I’m just wondering how you seek to square that with your last comment:
“All good is from Allah, but all that is bad comes from the results of our own doing.”
I’m genuinely interested in knowing a Muslim approach to squaring divine sovereignty with human responsibility. Quite understand if you’re busy right now (!) and I won’t be offended if you don’t reply. But thank you for your post,
Glen.
We have a specific article of faith (from 6 articles) called belief in the Qadaa & Qadar (Qada: Whatever Allah had preordained before creation based on His divine plan of creation; Qadar: Whatever Allah Determined based on his divine knowledge and wisdom).
I will only give few verses from the Quran (God’s Words revealed to the Last Prophet s.a.w.) to answer your quiry.
“Whatever of good reaches you, is from Allah, but whatever of evil befalls you, is from yourself” [al-Nisa’ 4:79]
“and I am not unjust to the slaves” [Qaaf 50:29]
“and your Lord treats no one with injustice” [al-Kahf 18:49]
“Surely, Allah wrongs not even of the weight of an atom” [al-Nisa’ 4:40]
“Anyone among you who wills, let him walk straight. And you cannot will unless (it be) that Allah, the Lord of the ‘Aalameen, wills” [al-Takweer 81:28-29]
From these verses it’s clear that Allah’s (God’s) Divine Will and Preordainment can never be associated with Evil. However He created good and evil in this world and this is how the system in this created world work. Humans as slaves to Him will strive the best achieve his “Good standards” as tabulated in the Quran (the Devine Revealation). This ensures that the consequence of his actions (determined by the person itself) results in good redemption either in this Life or Hereafter.
“Is there any Reward for Good – other than Good?” [Ar-Rahman 55:60]
If the consequences are viewed bad (within the limited knowledge of the human), Muslims will exercise Patience as the Quran states:
“But it is possible that ye dislike a thing which is good for you, and that ye love a thing which is bad for you. But Allah knoweth, and ye know not. ” [al-Baqarah 2:216]
“In order that ye may not despair over matters that pass you by, nor exult over favours bestowed upon you. For Allah loveth not any vainglorious boaster,” [al-Hadid 57:23]
Allah Knows Best.
Thankyou very much for this. Very useful. I think the thing I’m wrestling with is the analogy to being ‘live puppets’ coupled with the responsibility you give to our actions. You say Allah even created evil. How do you avoid saying Allah commits evil – especially given your ‘puppet-master’ analogy? How is he not also just as culpable for the evil that his puppets commit? How are his puppets culpable for the strings he pulls?
It’s those sorts of questions I’m wrestling with. Thanks again for your interactions.
Glen
Salam aleik,
It’s a very interesting question that you brought up here. I may not be the best person to explain, but I suppose I can share a few things that are within my knowledge. =)
As far as I understand, you ask how can a person be accountable for the evil/wrong doings that are happening in the world, whereas, Allah is the one that control everything. Correct me if I misunderstood the question.
The questions reminds me of verses in Sura as-Shams, verse 7-8
“By the Soul, and the proportion and order given to it; And its enlightenment as to its wrong and its right; ”
Please also check al-Balad, verse 10 and al-Insan, verse 3.
Each individual is given the chance to go either towards the correct path, or to the wrong path. The action taken out of the choice, is then accountable onto the individual, be it as tiny as an atom or even less.
Sura ar-Ra’d; verse 11 :
“For each (such person) there are (angels) in succession. Before and behind him: they guard him by command of Allah. Verily never will Allah change the condition of a people until they change it themselves (with their own souls). But when (once) Allah willeth a people’s punishment, there can be no turning it back, nor will they find, besides Him, any to protect.”
God’s will, we know that a person is capable to control what lies within his/her heart. Let’s read what come after the first two verses that I’ve given earlier in this reply:
Sura as-Shams, verse 9-10
“Truly he succeeds that purifies it, And he fails that corrupts it!”
Before I proceed, I suppose, I would also like to bring forth one of the many important aspects in the Teachings of Islam.
Islam is a Deen (way of life) that is full of compassion. And The Lord, Allah, is a compassionate creator, full of mercy.
Al-Quran, is the kalamullah (literally translated as Words of Allah), that is taught to the mankind so that the mankind can find the correct path, where they will find happiness and serenity, both in this world and the hereafter.
So, back to the explanation about Allah’s merciful attributes, despite the wrong doings that the person is doing, Allah will always forgive his/her sin if him/her repents.. under one condition.. S/he does not commit shirk (meaning, not associating Allah with any other being).
Az-Zumar, verse 53 :
“Say: “O my Servants who have transgressed against their souls! despair not of the Mercy of Allah: for Allah forgives all sins: for He is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful. ”
An-nisa’, verse 48:
“Allah forgiveth not that partners should be set up with Him; but He forgiveth anything else, to whom He pleaseth; to set up partners with Allah is to devise a sin most heinous indeed.”
And I believe you also understand well why not committing shirk is a very important condition set. =) I remember once, a friend of mine (he is also a Christian), told me why they invite people into Christianity. He gave me this analogy. Quoting his words:
“You go to the shop, and you see a warm-looking glove. Will you ever know how warm it is until you buy it, and wear it by yourself? You will only know it, when you buy it, and wear it outside in the cold winter. And if it’s warm, then you’ll benefit from it during the cold day like today.”
=) Forgive me for such a long reply. ^^; Because, these all are pieces and pieces of a big jigsaw puzzle.. When I want to explain the bit about the good/evil happening in the world, somehow I must explain about these other things, otherwise the overview picture will be lacking and incomplete.
Also, relating to the article itself… i.e about Tawakkal.
The concept of tawakkal, is to make du’a (prayers), make effort, and then rely on Him.
All three aspects must exist. Because, the Earth is created with laws. If we want to get good marks, by standard law, you shall do revision, attend lectures and everything. And those things, you have to make an effort to do it. You can choose not to do it. It’s all in your heart =).. and the outcome from your heart will determine what you are going to do. The action is then accountable. But then, there are times when you strive and make effort, yet, your exam result still not as good as how much time you spend on revision (since the article is related to exam anyway). Because at the end, the ultimate decision is Allah’s decision. And ultimately, what Allah counts is the effort that you make. If then, the result is not as expected, like bro Azizul mention previously, the Muslims will exercise Patience. Which is another pieces of the jigsaw puzzle.
To bring it to a wider scope, with related to the evil doings etc etc. If you refer to Sura ar-Ra’d, verse 11 (which I’ve given above), ultimately Allah is the one that change the condition of the people. But Allah set a condition on it. He will change it, provided that they make the initiative to change what is in their soul.
=) I hope this reply will clear up some of the confusion. Please do correct me if there are mistakes any where in the reply.
‘Allahu’alam.. and the truth is, Allah knows best.
Qalamfajr
- the first step is always the hardest one to take, but then, if you are not going to take the first step, then you’ll reach nowhere.
http://quran.al-islam.com/Targama/DispTargam.asp?nType=1&nSora=4&nAya=48&nSeg=1&l=eng&t=eng
Assalam
I appreciate Brother Glen asking questions and understanding them in a positive manner I will be glad if he continues and gets convinced I will suggest him to also get in touch at islam@irf.net or http://www.irf.net Dr. Zakir Naik is a expert who can give very convincing answers inshAllah.
Regards
Inam
mohd.inam@gmail.com