CHAPTER 6 (Part 2)
ALLAH’S ATTRIBUTES &
OTHER DOCTRINAL ISSUES
God’s Attributes
Does God have anthropomorphic
attributes (human features)? The Ibadhi’s reply is negative. Their understanding
of the attributes of God differ from that of some other Islamic schools, again,
due to the difference in the methods of interpretation of certain Qur'anic
verses. Some of the other sects apply literal interpretation in cases where figurative
method is suitable as we shall see. Thus in Suratu Taha (20), ayah 39, Allah
after relating to Nabii Musa (Moses) the story of how, when he was a baby, he was
placed in a chest and the chest was put in a river, ended by saying:-
وألقت عليك محبة مني ولتصنع على عيني
The verse has been literally
translated as follows:-
“And I endued you with love from me, in order that you
may be brought up under My Eye”.
(Dr. Al Hilali & Dr. Khan).
Ustadh Abdullah Yusuf Ali after translating
the ayah in the same way as above went on to explain it further in the footnote
no.2560 that “Allah’s special providence (i.e. God’s special care) looked after
him (Nabii Musa) in bringing his mother to him”. In other words, Abdullah Yusuf
Ali interprets the phrase, “under my eyes” in the verse to mean, “under God’s special
care”. We must not forget that the Pharaoh had issued instruction for all male
Israel babies born in Egypt to be killed, so for Nabii Musa to survive or be
saved, he needed God’s special providence and protection. The Ibadhis agree with
Abdullah Yusuf Ali’s interpretation but some Islamic sects construe the phrase
“under my eyes” literally to mean that God has eyes (though not like human
eyes) which interpretation we totally reject. Again in Suratul Qamar (54)
Ayah l4, Allah talks about Noah’s Ark (Nabii Nuh’s ship)
تجري بأعيننا لمن كان كفر
“(The ship) floating under Our Eyes: a reward for him who had
been rejected”! (Dr. Al Hilali & Dr. Khan).
But Abdullah Yusuf Ali has
explained it this way:-
“She floats under Our Eyes (and care): a recompense to one
who had been rejected”.
The latter translation
conforms with the Ibadhi’s understanding that Allah’s eye means His care. This
metaphorical translation is based on the opinions of such Sahabas and Tabi’in
as Ibn Abbas, Al-Hassan, Al-Dhahak and others (See part III, Section 30 of
Musnad Rabi’i).
Now let us see how the word يد which has
appeared in several verses in the Qur'an has been
literally and wrongly interpreted as “hand”. In Suratul Fat’h (48), verse l0 reads as under:-
"إن
الذين يبايعونك إنما يبايعون الله يد الله فوق أيديهم فمن نكث فإنما ينكث على نفسه
ومن أوفى بما عاهد عليه الله فسيؤتيه أجرا عظيما"
Dr. Al Hilali & Dr. Khan
have translated the verse as follows:-
“Verily those who give pledge to you (O Muhammad SAW)
they are giving pledge to Allah. The Hand of Allah is over their hands.
Then whosoever breaks his pledge, breaks it only to his own harm and whosoever
fulfils what he has covenanted with Allah, He will bestow on him a great
reward”.
The Almighty after using the
clause, “The Hand of Allah is over their hands”, metaphorically He then
goes on to explain it at the end of the same ayah to mean, “and whosoever
fulfils what he had covenanted with Allah, He will bestow on him a great reward”.
Therefore the original words
in the verse,
يد الله فوق أيديهم
do not prove that God has a
hand but mean He will bestow a great reward to those who fulfill their pledge to
the Prophet. Further details of the great reward which Allah would bestow on
those who would fulfill their pledges are given in ayahs 18-20 of the same Sura,
that is, Suratul Fat’h (48). In Suratu Sad (38) we come to the following verse
(75):-
(Allah) said: “O Iblis what
prevents you from prostrating yourself to one whom I have created with
Both My Hands”.
(Dr. Al Hilali & Dr. Khan).
“One”, in the verse, refers to Adam.
Ibadhis have adopted the
interpretation given by the Sahaba, Ibn Abbas to the word بيدي in the
ayah, to mean with My Power and Skill and have rejected the literal
interpretation of the word in the sense of with Both My Hands. The
Ibadhi’s figurative interpretation is supported by ayah 59 of Suratul Imran (3)
where Allah says
"إن مثل عيسى عند الله كمثل أدم خلقه من تراب ثم قال له كن
فيكون"
“Verily the likeness of Isa before Allah is the likeness of Adam.
He created him from dust, then (He) said to him: ‘Be!’ and he was.” (Dr. Al Hilali & Dr. Khan)
In other words God created
Prophet Isa (Jesus) in the same way as He created Adam. He created him from
dust and then said to him: “Be” and he was. Allah did not say that he
created him with both His Hands as was alleged in S.38 V.75 above. So when Allah
wants to create something He does not create it with both his Hands as a potter
does. He merely says “Be!” and it is. Allah has said the same thing in Ayah 40
Suratu An-Nahl (l6):-
"إنما قولنا لشيء إذا أردناه أن نقول له كن فيكون"
“Verily! Our word unto a thing when We intend it, is
only that We say unto it: ‘Be’ – and it is”. (Dr. Al Hilali & Dr.
Khan).
In Arabic, as in other languages, a
word may have several meanings, some of them literal, others metaphorical. For
example the word يد means “hand”, but it also means power, control or help. Thus the
Arabs say:-
How long a person would live
is in the power of God = الأعمار بيد الله
Under his control = تحت يده
God’s help goes with the group
(instead of individuals) = يد الله مع الجماعة
The matter is not in my authority
= ليس الأمر بيدي
In all these examples, and there are
several others, the word يد has not been
used to mean ‘hand’ in its literal sense. In the same way, in the Qur'an some
words like عين وساق و وجه (eye, leg,
face) have been applied in their figurative meanings. It is also alleged that Allah
has legs and the following verse no.42 of Suratul Qalam (68) is presented as a
proof of it:-
"يوم يكشف عن ساق ويدعون الى السجود فلا يستطيعون"
which is literally translated
as follows:-
“(Remember) the Day when
the Shin shall be laid bare (i.e. the Day of Resurrection) and
they shall be called to prostrate themselves (to Allah), but they (hypocrites)
shall not be able to do so”.
(Dr. Al Hilali & Dr. Khan).
Abdullah Yusuf Ali after translating
يوم يكشف عن ساق as “The
Day that the Shin shall be laid bare” he explains it further to mean “when
men are confronted with the stark reality of the Day of Judgment”. In
other words he does not seem to agree with the literal translation. The literal
interpretation is strange because the words يوم يكشف عن ساق form an Arabic expression (عبارة خاصة) which is employed in the following contexts:
كشفت الحرب عن ساقها
to mean the war was violent or
flared up; it has nothing to do with legs. Ibn Abbas, the Holy Prophet’s cousin
is reported to have explained the expression:
يوم يكشف عن ساق يعني عن الأمر الشديد
“The Day when
things will be difficult”.
These interpretations of Ibn
Abbas agree with the explanation given by Abdullah Yusuf Ali above. It is also
alleged that Allah has a Face and the following verses are cited in support of
the claim:-
ولله المشرق والمغرب فأينما تولوا فثم وجه الله (البقرة
آية 115)
which is translated literally
as follows:-
“And to Allah belong the east and the west, so wherever
you turn there is Allah’s Face”. (Abdullah
Yusuf Ali).
And in Ayah 88 of Suratul
Qassas (28) Allah says:-
كل شيء هالك إلا وجهه
which Dr. Hilal and Dr. Khan
have translated this way:-
“Everything will perish save
His Face”.
If we are to accept these literal
translations as right, one might as well ask, if “everything will perish
except Allah’s Face”, then what about His Hands and Legs? Will they also
perish since only the Face will remain? There is no doubt that these literal
translations lead us to blasphemous conclusions. So the Ibadhis reject them and
construe the word “Face” to mean God Himself. The Ibadhi
interpretation of the word وجهه to mean “himself” has been unwittingly supported by the above –
mentioned translators when they came to translate ayah 125 of Suratu Nnisaa
(S.4) figuratively as follows:-
"ومن
أحسن دينا ممن أسلم وجهه لله وهو محسن وأتبع ملة إبراهيم حنيفا"
“Who can be better in religion than one who submits his whole
self to Allah, does good, and follows the way of Abraham the true in
faith?” (Abdul1ah Yusuf Ali).
while Dr. Al Hilali & Dr.
Khan translate وجهه to mean “his
face (himself)”. Thus the translators have thus interpreted the wordوجهه metaphorically in the same way
as the lbadhis have done in previous ayahs. This is the explanation given
by Ibn Abbas when he was asked about the following verse:-
"ويبقى وجه ربك ذو الجلال والإكرام" (سورة الرحمن 55 آية
27)
He explained that everything
will perish except Allah Himself.
(Hadith 873 of Musnad
al-Rabi’i).
To say that Almighty Allah has hands,
legs, eyes and face, etc. and then add a statement that there is nothing like
Him is to contradict oneself. Suppose a person were to say that God has branches,
leaves, flowers and roots, our immediate reaction would be, He must be like a
tree or plant, and if the person were further to add: But He is not like
anything (ليس كمثله شيء), we would
say this person is inconsistent with himself in his description of God.
Some of these words have been used in
the Qur'an in their functional rather than ordinary senses. For the function of
a hand is to work or control. A farmer works with his hand and owner of an animal
(be it horse, dog or cow) controls it from straying by holding firm the rope
with which it is tied round its neck. The same is true of an eye; the mother’s
or nurse’s eye is a protection for a child against potential danger. Nobody, in
his senses, would leave a child under the care of a blind man.
In Suratul Baqara (Ayah 272)
Allah says:-
وما تنفقون إلا ابتغاء وجه الله
which Abdullah Yusuf Ali,
after translating it literally, “and you shall only do so (i.e. spend)
seeking the Face of Allah,” goes on to explain, in the footnote, the word,
Face, to mean Favour or Glory. So the ayah would translate as follows:-
And you shall only spend
seeking Allah’s Favour.
Similarly in Suratul A’Raf
(Ayah 29) Allah has commanded:
"واقيموا وجوهكم عند كل مسجد وادعوه مخلصين له
الدين" 4
which has been interpreted by
the same translator as follows:-
“And that ye set your whole selves (to Him) at
every time and place of prayer, and call upon Him, making your devoting
sincere”.
In Suratul Imran (3), Ayah 20
Allah says to His Messenger:-
"فإن حاجوك فقل أسلمت وجهي لله ومن اتبعن"
which means:
“So if they dispute with you say: “I have submitted myself
to Allah and so have those who follow me”.
In all these Qur'anic Verses,
and there are many others, Allah has used the word وجه in its figurative sense to mean “self” and not “face”.
In the same way, in Chapter 14
(Ibrahim) Allah has said in verse 4:
"وما أرسلنا من رسول إلا بلسان قومه ليبين لهم" 5
And we sent not a messenger
except with the language of his people, in order that he might make (the
Message) clear for them.
(Dr. Al Hilali & Dr. Khan).
Here the translators have interpreted
the word لسان to mean,
language, not “tongue”. In other words they have explained the word لسان in its functional
or figurative sense rather than its literal meaning.
Similarly in verse l4 of
chapter 32 (As – Sajdah) Allah says:-
فذوقوا بما نسيتم لقاء يومكم هذا إنا نسيناكم
Then taste you (the tournament of the Fire) because of
your forgetting the Meeting of this Day of yours. Surely We too will forget
you. (Dr.
Al Hilali & Dr. Khan).
Ustadh Abdullah Yusuf Ali
after translating the word, نسيناكم in the same way as above went on to explain in the footnote
that “forget” has been used in the sense of “to ignore deliberately”
because Allah does not forget, as Prophet Moses (Nabii Musa) said in reply to
the Pharaoh in chapter 20 (Taha), verse 52:-
لا يضل ربي ولا ينسى 6
My Lord neither errs nor
forgets (Dr. Al Hilali & Dr. Khan).
Thus it can be seen the danger
of literal interpretation in that it might lead to contradictions. So Ibadhis
have resorted to allegorical interpretation in such circumstances in order to
reconcile what appears to be contradictory verses. It should also be remembered
that forgetfulness is a human, not divine attribute.
In the interpretation of the Qur'an,
it is important to bear in mind that certain fundamental principles laid down on
the Qur'an itself must not be violated. For example in Suratul Ikhlas, the
basic principle of faith have been described as follows:-
(1)
Allah is One.
(2)
He is Independent and Self–Sufficient.
(3)
He begets not, nor was He begotten.
(4) There is none like unto him (or comparable to Him).
So any interpretation of the
Qur'an that even remotely suggests, for example, that there is more than one
God, or that He begets or was begotten, or that He resembles or compares with,
in any way, one of His creatures, must be rejected. To resort to Hadiths to
support literal interpretation of the Qur'an in such cases is inappropriate
because Hadith cannot validate what is contrary to the principles of faith
enshrined in the Holy Book. The Qur'an is the Basic Law of Islam, and Hadiths
are its supplementary or subsidiary legislation which is intended to explain
the Basic Law but it cannot be applied to alter it. A genuine or authentic
Hadith should not contradict the Qur’an, if it does then it must be fabricated
or invented.
Advocates of literal interpretation of
the Qur'an sometimes bend the rule to support their beliefs as in Verse 26 of
Chapter 10 (Suratul – Yunus) where Allah says:-
للذين أحسنوا الحسنى وزيادة
To those who do right is a
goodly (reward) and “more”.
They interpret “more” figuratively
to mean “to see Allah’s Face” on the Day of Judgment and have tried to
support the interpretation by weak Hadiths. On the other hand, Ibadhis interpret
“more” in the light of Verse 160 of Chapter 6 (Suratul An’am):-
من جاء بالحسنة فله عشر أمثالها
“Whoever brings a good deed shall have ten times the like thereof to his credit” (Dr.
Al Hilali & Dr. Khan).
Thus there is not one
particular rule for interpreting all the verses of the Qur’an, but the
sectarian fanatics are bent on condemning and apostatizing others for
allegorical method of interpretation which they themselves indulge in when it
is convenient for them to do so.
Dr. Israr Ahmed Khan in his Qur’anic
studies, An introduction (p.143), after commenting that scholars have
subscribed to three different views on the interpretation of Allah’s attributes,
the first two being literal forms, explains:-
“And thirdly, the attributes of Allah, particularly
those depicted through the words denoting human organs such as ‘hand’ and ‘eye’
are all allegorical, hence interpretation in the light of popular usage, i.e.
‘Allah’s hand’ signifies His authority, and ‘Allah’s eye’ mean His
all-awareness.
Literal explanation of these statements enshrined in
the previous heavenly-Books has already led individuals and nations to the
development of an anthropomorphic concept of God and thereby to the growth of
the divine-idol sculpture”.
In other words, Dr. Israr A.
Khan explains the reasons why God is depicted in human form in some religions
in because their scholars have applied literal methods in interpreting their
Scriptures.
Ibadhis have been accused of having
adopted through the Mu’tazilites certain ideas of Allah’s attributes as a
result of contact with and influence of the Roman Greek and Indian cultures and
religions. But anyone who has been to Greece and visited their museums in
Athens would have seen exhibitions of statues Roman and Greek gods with hands,
legs, and eyes. So one wonders who has adopted Greek ideas of God, we or those
who say that God has limbs!
In the matter of the attributes of
Allah (صفات الله) Ibadhis are guided by the
following Hadith of the Holy Prophet narrated by Ibn Abbas and Abu Dhar:
تفكروا في الخلق ولا تتفكروا في الخالق فإنه لا يدرك إلا
بتصديقه
“Think of the creation but do not think of the Creator
for He is incomprehensible except by belief in Him”.
(Hadith 823 of Musnad Imam
Rabi’i).
Then what are Allah’s
attributes? These have been expressed in his beautiful ninety nine names such
as:-
الرحمن, الرحيم, العظيم, الغفور, الكريم, العلي, العليم,
القدير, الخبير, الخ
“The merciful, the Compassionate, the Mighty, the Forgiving, the
Benefactor, the Supreme, the All-Knowing, the Omnipotent, the Well Aware, etc”.
In verse 22, 23 & 24 of
Suratul Hashar (59), some of these attributes have been expressed as follows:-
هو الله الذي لا إله إلا هو عالم الغيب والشهادة هو الرحمن
الرحيم (22)
“He is Allah beside whom there is no god but He. He is
Omniscient of what is invisible and what is visible. He is the Most Gracious,
the Most Merciful”.
"هو
الله الذي لا إله إلا هو الملك القدوس السلام المؤمن المهيمن العزيز الجبار المتكبر
سبحان الله عما يشركون" (23)
“He is Allah beside whom there is no god but He, the King, the
Holy, the CSource of Peace and Perfection, the Guardian of Faith (and Provider
of Security), the Preserver of Safety, the All-Mighty (the Omnipotent), the
Compeller, the justly Proud, Glory be to Allah! (High is he) above all that
they attribute to Him as partners.”
هو الله الخالق البارئ المصور له الأسماء الحسنى (24)
“He is Allah, the Creator, the Originator, the Creator of all
Forms and Shapes, To Him belong the Beautiful Names.”
These are only a few of Allah’s
attributes, but while probably all Islamic schools are agreed as to their close
association with Allah, there are however differences as to the exact nature of
their relationship with Him. The so-called Orthodox and the Ash’aris hold the
belief that Allah possesses these qualities which are in His essence (جوهره). We may
however understand these conflicting conceptions if we examine man’s relation
with his knowledge. We acquire knowledge from the moment we are born, from our
parents when we are babies, from teachers when we go to school and generally
from our environment, physical as well as social. Our behaviour is considerably
influenced by these external sources of knowledge and experience. This process
of gaining knowledge is continuous throughout our lives and knowledge so gained
becomes part of us in an extraneous sense. Knowledge thus gained may also be
lost though, say, mental illness or infirmity or though old age by forgetting
some or all of what we know. Allah has said in chapter 16 (An-Nahl), verse 70:-
ومنكم من يرد الى ارذل العمر لكي لا يعلم بعد علم
شيئا
“And of you
there are some who are sent back to senility (feeble age) so that they know
nothing after having known (much)”.
(Dr. Al Hilali & Dr. Khan).
But in the case of Allah, His
knowledge is His. He has not acquired it from outside sources and then become
part of Him nor is He ever going to lose it as in the case of man, nor is His
knowledge increasing or decreasing. The same is true of other attributes and so
Ibadhis believe that they are His essence ((عين ذاته or ((جوهره or All that
make Him what He is. This will be even more clear if we were to explain ayah 23
of ((سورة الحشر in this way:-
هو الله, هو الملك، هو القدوس،
هو السلام، هو المؤمن، هو المهيمن، هو العزيز، هو الجبار، هو المتكبر ..... الخ
In other words Allah is The Total
Combination of all His attributes. In a booklet الأصول الثلاثة وشروط الصلاة والقواعد الأربعة by the late Sheikh Muhammad bin
Abdul-Wahhaab (the founder of Wahhaabism) (p.15), he has quoted the following
hadith narrated by Ibn Masoud:-
كنا نقول قبل أن يفرض علينا
التشهد: السلام على الله من عباده..... وقال النبي صل الله عليه وسلم لا
تقولوا, السلام على الله من عباده, فإن الله هو السلام ولكن قولوا التحيات لله
والصلوات والطيبات, السلام عليك أيها النبي ورحمة الله وبركاته...... الخ
What Ibn Masoud narrates is
that they used to say in prayers while kneeling السلام على الله (عند التحيات) but Allah is Salaam, so السلام على الله would mean السلام على السلام so the Holy Prophet forbade
them to pray like that and instructed them to say like this:-
السلام على النبي الخ
By saying that الله هو السلام the Prophet (Peace be upon
him) has meant to explain the attribute of السلام as Allah’s essence, not
in His essence. The same is equally true of His other attributes.
Thus man has these qualities in an
extraneous, possessive sense and so we say, Man has knowledge or has power.
But with respect to God, He is knowledge and He is Power, as these
qualities are His Essence (عين ذاته) they are
part of Him, not apart from Him.
Freewill and Predestination
Does man have freewill to do what he
likes or are his actions predestined before their occurrence? A debate on this
issue has been going on since the first century of Islam when the Umayyad
dynasty was ruling the Islamic State. Because of the abuse of power exercised
by the ruling family, people began to wonder whether their misconduct was
permissible under Islamic justice. The State officials defended the policy by
saying that they were not personally responsible for what they did. On the
contrary their actions were governed by God who was the power for everything
for good and for evil alike. A man by the name of Ma’bad al-Juhany started to oppose
this policy by preaching openly the doctrine known as Qadariya in which man is
made accountable for his wrong doing - they should not be ascribed to God. The
implication of this doctrine is that it made rulers also accountable for their
wrong actions – and so it did not find favour with them. Ma’bad al-Juhani was
therefore executed by Hajjaj, the Governor of Basra, in 80 H. under the orders
of the ruler, Abdul Malik bin Marwan. Ghaylan al-Dimashqi, a student of al-Juhani continued
with the campaign and added it was incumbent on every Muslim to urge people to
do right actions and to forbid them from committing wrong deeds(الأمر بالمعروف والنهي عن المنكر). But he too
was put to death on the orders of the ruler Hisham Abdul Malik after his
accession to the throne in 105 H.
It was not long before a new movement
under Wasil bin Ata’ (80 –131 H.) and Amr bin Ubayd was
formed in the name of Mu’tazila after they broke away from their teacher, the
famous scholar Hasan Al-Basri. The two were his pupils who had attended his
lectures in the great mosque of Basra. The adherents of this movement, the Mutazilites,
adopted the doctrine of freewill (qadariya) advocated by Ma’bad al-Juhani by
which man was to be made accountable for his wrong actions otherwise it would
be unjustified to punish him either in this life or in the Hereafter. The
antithesis of Qadariya is Jabariya, a doctrine which explains that man’s
actions are the results of compulsions from God and that if He did not wish he
(the man) would not have committed sin. The first person to advocate it publicly
was al-Juhani bin Safwani, a pupil of Ja’ad bin Dirham. The movement started in
Tirmidh (Khurasan) in the beginning of the second century H.
On the other hand, Abu al-Hasan
Ash’ari (270 – 330 H.) explained that man’s deeds were created by God but
acquired by man. Ibadhis have adopted the Al-Ash’ari’s approach to explain the
relation between man’s actions and his Creator. The Sunni’s view or stand in
this regard has been expressed by الموسوعة الميسرة (p.36) as follows:-
“And man is Allah’s slave created in this existence, controlled
in some matters and free in others”.
Let us now see what the
Prophet’s Tradition say in this regard. The Prophet was asked by Jibril, what
is Faith? He replied:-
أن تؤمن بالله وملائكته وكتبه
ورسله واليوم الآخر وبالقدر خيره وشره إنه من الله
“To believe in Allah and His angels, His books, His Messengers,
the Hereafter and in the predestination (Fate) that good and evil are from
Allah” Hadith No.769 (Musnad Imam Rabi’i).
The Hadith has been confirmed
by other collectors – Imam Ahmad bin Hanbal, Muslim, Al Tirmidhi and others. In
the Holy Qur'an there are number of verses which appear to support both views.
For example:-
ما أصاب من مصيبة في الأرض ولا
في أنفسكم إلا في كتاب من قبل ان نبرأها (الحديد 57 آية 22)
“No calamity befalls on the earth or in yourselves but it is inscribed
in the Book of Decrees (Al-Lauh Al-Mahfudh) before We bring it into existence.” (Dr. Al Hilali & Dr. Khan).
In another chapter (Suratu
Nnisaa, verse 78), Allah says:-
وإن تصبهم حسنة يقولوا هذه من
عند الله وإن تصبهم سيئة يقولوا هذه من عندك قل كل من عند الله
“And if some good reaches them they say, “This is from Allah”,
but if some evil befalls them, they say, “This is from you (Muhammad)”. Say
“All things are from Allah”.
There are many examples of calamities
which befall us for which we have no control: earthquakes, volcanic eruptions,
floods, tornadoes, drought or lack of rains and other so-called natural disasters.
On the other hand we get moderate rains, fine weather, as examples of blessings
from Allah without any efforts on our part.
But there are other Qur’anic verses which put
the blame on man for evils suffered by him,
"ما أصابك من حسنة فمن الله وما أصابك من سيئة فمن نفسك"
(آية 79 سورة النساء 4)
“Whatever of good reaches you is from Allah, but whatever evil befalls
you is from yourself”. (Dr. Al Hilali & Dr.
Khan).
And in another verse, Allah
says:-
"وإذقنا
الناس رحمة فرحوا بها وإن تصبهم سيئة بما قدمت أيديهم إذا هم يقنطون" (آية 36
سورة الروم 30)
“And when we cause mankind to taste of mercy, they rejoice
therein; but when some evil afflicts them because of (evil deeds and sins) that
their own hands have sent forth, behold, they are in despair!”.
(Dr. Al Hilali & Dr. Khan).
There are several other Qur’anic
verses which also put the responsibility for wrong doing on the culprit himself
but the following is more emphatic:-
"وما
أصابكم من مصيبة فبما كسبت أيديكم ويعفوا عن كثير"
(آية 30 سورة الشورى 42)
“And whatever misfortune befalls you, it is because of what your
hands have earned. And He pardons much”.
(Dr. Al Hilali & Dr. Khan).
Let us now see the practical
application of these ayahs. Strange as it may seem, man has no control over
what is going on inside his body; he cannot, for example, regulate the
circulation of his blood, nor his digestive or respiratory system. Once he
swallows food through his alimentary canal it goes through a digestive process
over which he has no control, and the same is true of the respiratory system by
which oxygen is inhaled into the lungs and then absorbed in the blood stream.
These various systems in our bodies have been set up by Allah Himself as part
of His creation of man. He has also created substances which are poisonous to
the systems in our bodies. For example if a person drinks liquor over a long
period of time, he may get cancer of the liver. Similarly a habit of cigarette
smoking leads to cancer of the lungs. Therefore if a man is addicted to liquor
or cigarette smoking and consequently suffers from cancer of the liver or the
lung, he should not say that God inflicted him with the disease since He has
created good and evil. It is true that He created man with all the systems
inside him as well as the substances which are poisonous and harmful to them.
But man has brought the affliction on himself by acquisition, that is
acquisition of poisons into his body. And so Ibadhis believe that Allah has
created evils but man acquires them.
Similarly if a man, while
intoxicated, drives a car and meets with an accident, he should not say that
God caused the accident when in fact he is personally responsible for it.
Otherwise all criminals who are caught will plead that God caused them to commit
the crimes for which they are charged and will demand acquittal.
The learned Ibadhi scholar, the late
Sheikh Abdullah bin Humaid Al Salmy has summarized poetically Allah’s relationship
with man’s actions in the following verses:-
وعلمه سابق في كل ما جعلا
وإنما الفعل مخلوق ومكسب
فالخلق لله والكسب لمن فعلا
His knowledge precedes every act of His creation
Yet action is created as well as acquired
But then creation is Divine, and acquisition is human
(Translation by the Author).
The term ‘qadariya’ in the sense of freewill
is confusing because it comes from the word ‘qadar’ meaning predestination or
fate which is the opposite of freewill. But it has been explained in the الموسوعة الميسرة (p.l125 vol.2) that the term
‘qadariya’ is applied both to those who deny ‘qadar’ as well as to those who
assert it. In the studies in Ibadhism by Dr. Amr Khalifa Ennami, the term
Qadariya has been used in the sense of predestination (p.146), and also in the
Hadith No.806 of Musnad Rabi’i the term has been applied in the same sense.
In the theological issues that have
been discussed in this chapter there are, in general, two schools of thought;
(1) Mu’tazilism and (2) Ash’arism.
The Mu’tazila School
It started in the first century of the
Hijra in protest against the arbitrary exercise of power during the Umayyad
regime. The state officials defended their tyrannical conduct by saying that
they were not responsible for what they did, for God predestined everything. So
Ma’abad Al Juhany opposed this policy and started preaching publicly the
doctrine that man, including the Caliph, was accountable for his own evil
conduct; it should not be ascribed to God. Hence Caliph ‘Abdul Malik ibn Marwan
ordered his execution in the year 80H. (699CE). After the death of Al Juhany,
Ghailan al-Dimashqi continued the campaign and added that is was the duty of every
Muslim to order the performance of good deeds and to forbid committing evil
actions. This was interpreted as a campaign to overthrow the Umayyad rule and
so he too was executed under the order of Caliph Hisham ibn Abdul Malik in the
year l05H (724CE). But the real founder of the school was Wasil ibn ‘Atta who
lived in 80-l3lH.
Among its notable principles
are:
(1) That the Qur’an is a created word of Allah.
(2) That Allah will not be seen by the people of Paradise.
(3) That Allah is everywhere.
(4) That those who commit grave sins are neither believers
nor non-believers, they are between
the two states and are destined to Hell unless they repent before their deaths.
(5) That the Quranie verses relating to anthropomorphic
expressions should be interpreted allegorically to avoid any resemblance of Allah
to his creatures. That Allah’s attributes are part of His essence, not apart
from Him. So they say Allah is powerful instead of He has power. In the
latter expression, it would mean that power is a separate entity from its
Possessor, Allah, whereas according to the Mu’tazilites the two are one entity.
(6)
That it is the duty of a Muslim to order the
performance of good deeds and to forbid wrongdoing. Thus it is incumbent on
every individual to implement the doctrine according to his capacity. Thus:-
(6) A
ruler to his subjects,
(6) A
Governor to the people of his district,
(6) A
preacher or Imam to his parishioners,
(6) A
teacher to his students,
(6) A
father to members of his household etc.
(7) That man creates his own actions, and so has complete
freedom in, and full responsibility for, his conduct (whether good or bad) otherwise
he could not be rewarded for good deeds nor punished for his sins.
(8) That rational interpretation of the Qur'an and Hadiths
be applied where appropriate.
With the exception of the
principles No.3 and 7, the Ibadhis share common ground with the Mu’tazila
doctrine.
In section 5 of chapter 3 of الموسوعة الميسرة (p.76) it is stated that Mutazila’s conception of God’s attributes and their
relation with Him has been influenced by a Greek
philosopher, Anbaduqles and a statement by him has been quoted from a book الملل والنحل by
Shahrastani, a Shafi’I scholar who lived 479-548H. According to the statement,
Anbaduqles says that God’s attributes are His essence that is part of His
nature. This is also the view of Mutazila. If we refer to الملل والنحل (Al Milal wa Nihal p.67) we learn that Anbaduqles went to Nabii
(Prophet) Daud and studied under him; he also frequently visited Luqman, the
sage, and acquired knowledge from him and then returned to Greece. It should be
remembered that both Nabii Daud and Luqman were Muslims. Nabii Daud was a
prophet, and like all prophets who came before and after him, was a Muslim –
they all preached one religion, namely, Islam. Likewise Luqman was a Muslim,
and there is a chapter in the Holy Qur’an named after him – Suratu Luqman(31) . In verse 13, Allah says:-
وإذ قال لقمان لابنه وهو يعظه يا بني لا تشرك بالله إن
الشرك لظلم عظيم
And (remember) when Luqman
said to his son when he was advising him: ‘O my son! Join not in worship others
with Allah. Verily joining others in worship with Allah is a great wrong
indeed.
(Dr. Al Hilali & Dr. Khan).
Here Luqman was teaching his
son the first fundamental principle of Islam. Then in verse I7, Luqman
continues,
O my son! Perform prayers... ..........يا بني أقم الصلاة
Thus Luqman taught his son the
second pillar of Islam. So it is obvious that when the Greek philosopher went to Nabii Daud (AS) and
the sage Luqman to acquire knowledge, he must
have learnt a great deal about Islam and so his philosophical principles which he formulated when
he returned home to Greece must have been
influenced considerably by what he learnt from them. Hence it is not correct to deduce that whenever
Islamic principles happen to agree with Greek
philosophy, the former have been necessarily influenced by the latter, because the common religion
of Islam, as taught by previous prophets, came much earlier than Greek
philosophy. And Greek philosophers visited various parts of the Middle East
especially at the time when they ruled that region. So the Mutazila principles
are not the result of the influence of Greek philosophy; on the contrary it is
the Greek philosophy which has been influenced by Islam as taught by Luqman,
Nabii Daud and other prophets who came before Nabii Muhammad (Peace be upon
him). This is not to say that everything that is in Greek philosophy
constitutes Islam – but there are traces of Islamic principles in it which have
been later modified. (See, for example, the philosophy of Pythagoras on p.72 of الملل والنحل)
The Al-Ash’ar School
It is so-called after Abul Hassan Al Ash’ari, a descendant
of Abu Musa al Ash’ari who represented Seyyidna Ali in the Arbitration. He
lived 270 – 330H. He studied in the Mu’tazila School and was its adherent for forty
years, then abandoned it. According to Prof. Saeed Sheikh in his book, Studies
in Muslim Philosophy (published in Lahore), the following are among the
principles of Ash’arism:-
(1) That the Qur’an is uncreated, and so it is pre-eternal
with no beginning, and part of the essence of Allah.
(2) That Allah will be seen by the people of Paradise,
(3) That Allah has attributes but have no resemblance to
human attributes, and they are not part of His essence.
(4) That he who committed a grave sin, even if he did not
ask for forgiveness before his death, will be granted pardon with Allah’s mercy
or with the Prophet’s intercession (p.92 الموسوعة الميسرة). (Simplified Encyclopedia).
(5) Allah creates actions and man acquires them.
Ibadhis do not agree with the
above principles except the last one (No.5).
______________________________
1 See also V.45 of Chap. 24 (النور) and V. 30 of Chap. 21 (الأنبياء)
2 See also V.171 of Chap. 4 (النساء)
3 See also V.48 of Chap. 2 (البقرة)
4 See also V. 112 of Chap. 2 (البقرة)
5 See also V. 27 of Chap. 20 (طه)
6 See also V. 64 of Chap. 19 (مريم)
>>>>>> (To
be Continued)
Reference:
Ibadhism, The Cinderella of Islam, by Soud H. Al Ma'awaly, pg: 82-102
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