A Case Inbetween Two Concerns

Chapter Four : the Progeny (a.s.) Defending (justice) and (monotheism)

Hereafter we shall try to collect and classify the fundamentals of thought, which the Imams of the progeny (A.S.) have presented to declare that misunderstanding of the Islamic concept. We shall introduce these ten fundamentals one after another.

1. Destiny and Fate as a System in the Universe:

The system that reigns over this universe is a (necessary inevitable) and (punctual accurate) one; nothing might happen – under the same circumstances and factors – except the thing that had already taken place.

This system is established according to the system of (cause effect) ruling over the whole universe, this system is not limited to the physical material world; rather it reigns over the metaphysical world too.

Casualty system is the system of destiny and fate, for part of the fundamentals of (casualty) is the (inevitable) being of (effect) whenever the (cause) happens to be; in addition to the quantitative and qualitative identification of the (effect).

Thus, when a match is rubbed against the rough surface of a matchbox, fire and heat necessarily, inevitably and certainly are produced (unless there were some hindrances) furthermore, the heat emitted from this friction has a limited identified quantity that is proportionate to the size of the match stick, the degree of friction, and the nature of the rough surface. The inevitability of (effect) occurrence is (destiny), its quantitative, qualitative identification is (fate). Hence (destiny) means the inevitable necessity, and (fate) (Al Qaudar) means estimation and quantity.([^1])

Al Kulainy relates from Yunus bin Abdul Rahman who relates a conversation between him and Abul Hassan AL Redha(A.S.):

O, Yunus! Do you know what is fate?

I said: No.

He said: It is engineering and fixing the limits of being (survival) and nothingness (extinction).

He (A.S.) also said: (Destiny is arrangement (Ibram).([^2])

So, this universe is a band of organized links of a chain, and the law that governs over it is inevitability, necessity, estimation, and identification (Al Tahdeed).

The individual and social life of man is not an exception or a novelty in this universe, he is subject to the laws and codes that rule over the universe, thus man, his deeds and individual or social movement are situated within the circuit of destiny and fate. If he stands up to support Allah giving and sacrificing for him, Allah will support him. The Sublime said:

[If you make efforts in Allah’s way, He will help you] Muhammad v. 7.

And if man languishes and slacks off, Allah will leave him to his own; if he moves, works and activates himself Allah will enrich him; if he turns lazy and weak Allah will leave him wadding through his laziness and weakness; if he becomes honest Allah will support and lead him to success, if he lies and cheats, Allah will leave him to his lying, cheating, trickery and bluff.

All these are part of Allah’s norms, destiny and fate. Man lives absolutely within the circuit of Allah’s destiny and fate, subject to the inevitability, system and the obligations they (destiny and fate) dictate.

Muhammad bin Jacob Al Kulainy narrates: Ameeral Mumenien(A.S.) after the battle of (Saffien) was sitting somewhere in (Al Kuffah), and old man approached him and knelt before his hands saying:

(O, Ameeral Mumenien! Is our campaign to (Al Sham) part of Allah’s destiny and fate?

Ameerul Mumenien said: Aye Aye old man! You may never climb a hill or descend into a valley only by the destiny and fate of Allah.

The old man said: O Ameerul Mumenien! Allah then will pay back for my efforts.

He (A.S.) said: O, old man! Wait a minute, by the name of Allah, He has already rewarded you; during your march during your stay and during your departure, never once were you obliged or compelled to do something.

The old man said: How come you say, “We were not obliged or compelled” while you yourself say, “our march, campaign and departure were part of destiny and fate?”

He (A.S.) said:

Now, do you think it was an inevitable destiny and a compelling fate? If it were so, Allah’s reward, punish-ment, commands and prohibitions, as well as His promises of a better end and threats for wicked deeds would have been meaningless; hence the guilty would not have been reproached and the good would not have been praised; rather the guilty would have much better deserved reward than the good; and the good would have much better deserved punishment instead of the guilty.

That is what the brethren of Satan worshipers, the foes of the Beneficent, the party of the devil, those who believe in determinism as well as the Magis say. Allah the Sublime has assigned to the people their tasks giving the option and warning them just to keep them alert, rewarding generously for a few good deeds, He has never been disobeyed unwillingly and He has never obliged the people to obey Him;

He has never given anybody any authorization to own something; he had never created heaven, earth and what is inbetween them in vain; He had never sent the Prophets heralding of heaven and warning of hell in vain. That is what the disbelievers think, woe to the disbelievers, fire awaits them.

The old man stood up and started to recite the following couplets:

You are the Imam we obey anticipating

On the Day of Judgment that our obedience

May intercede for us before the Beneficent,

You have removed what is ambiguous in our problem

May God answer your favour to us by a favour from Him.([^3])

The first part of the text pertains to (destiny) and (fate) in general; it contains all man’s activities and movement represented in what the Imam(A.S.) said:

(Aye Aye O old man! You may never climb a hill or descend into a valley only by the destiny and fate of Allah).

2. (Destiny and Fate) is the Divine System in the Universe and in Man’s life

This system by all its details is Allah the Sublime’s creation and innovation; it embodies Allah’s will and desire. Whatever are find in the whole universe and in man’s life of deeds, reactions, movements, births, extinctions, weakness and growth only take place by Allah the Sublime’s will and desire within the circuit of destiny and fate up to the levels of casualty laws that reigns over the universe.

Strange enough, some people seek Allah the Sublime and His deeds only by penetrating this universal system, never seeking Him at the core of the system itself, as if this system runs in a direction other than Allah the Sublime’s, and as if He only gets through, blocks and alters this system.

The late (Sadrul Mutaalihien) discussing (Fakhruldeen Al Razy’s opinions say:

(The most strange thing is that whenever those people intend to prove any origin of religion like proving the potency of the Maker, Prophethood or the afterworld – they are compelled to cripple the quality of nature, repudiating the reasonable connection among things and the subjective existenecialist order and the essential system of beings which is the changeless norm of Allah.)

They often refuge to this habit to prove most of the ideological origins, the way this man (the advocate of their theologians) has done (referring to AL Razi author of the Interpretation).

Believing that all events of the universe and every wicked and good deed in man’s life are only Allah the Sublime’s destiny and fate; and believing that everything in the universe is destined by Allah’s fate is an essential faith for the ideology of every Muslim.

Al Sadouqu narrated from the Messenger of Allah(S.A.) (None of you may attain complete faith unless he believes in fate, its good side and its bad one, its sweet side and its bitter one.)([^4])

(Al Kulainy) in his (Al Kafi) narrated from Abu Abdullah Al Sadiqu (A.S.) who said: Ameerul Mumenien (A.S.) used to say: (No servant of God can find the nectar of faith unless he realizes that he would never have missed anything he had gained, and would never had gained anything that he had missed; and that Allah the Great and Al mighty is the only Useful and Harmful one).([^5])

(Al Sadouqu) in (Al Tawheed) narrates from Ali bin Musa AL Ridha (A.S.) who narrates from his father and great grand fathers up to Ali bin Abi Taleb(A.S.) who said:

I heard the Messenger of Allah (S.A.) saying:

(Allah (Exalted be His Supremacy) said: that who does not accept my destiny and fate ought to seek a god other than Me.).([^6])