10

During a conversation between me and my friend (he is not a believer)

He said: That's why I am not a believer because Allah didn't guide me to the right way.
I said, How do you know that?
He said: Isn't every thing predestined (قضاء وقدر)?
I said : Yes.
He said: Ok then, you got you're answer.

He was right, but it's very clear he is cheating himself. But logically, I didn't know how to tell him that?

So, my point is:

How to answer those who say "Allah guides whom He wills" and that's why I am not a believer, as everything is predestined?

Improve this question
3
  • 1
    Instead of asking how to answer. Ask in a manner that your friend would ask here while critically thinking. "How to answer" is primarily opinion-based.
    – Bleeding Fingers
    Commented Feb 1, 2014 at 20:55
  • 1
    maybe would be better if you can study around the issue of "قضاء و قدر", Allah is the unique and has created all these creatures, His will is likewise unique but has given each of us a seemingly independent will and power to choose. These versatility of wills and choices never contradict the very basic belief that "لا حول و لا قوة الا بالله"! Good question anyway :)
    – owari
    Commented Feb 2, 2014 at 22:46
  • 1
    If I could, I would downvote every answer here; the contradiction between on the one side teaching that everything that exists does so only by the will of god, and then on the other side teaching humans have free will, has sparked centuries of debate among islamic theologians, not just a short question to be brushed away in two paragraphs. If we can actually make independent choices, then where is god's will in that? If we can't, then why is anyone culpable for any "choice" he makes? Free will is no easy topic, and many will consider your friend to be right in pointing it out to you.
    – G. Bach
    Commented Jul 27, 2016 at 14:19

6 Answers 6

Reset to default
15

You could've simply quoted this telling verse of the Holy Quran:

Allah doesn't change a people unless they change their inner condition themselves." (13:11)

If you're not seeking guidance and knowledge you'll be never guided.

In other words, Allah guides everyone but those who insist to go astray and do sins will be eventually left over themselves and hence will be misled. This is nature of Dunya (world) as created by Allah, Allah doesn't force His authority here (لا اکراه فی الدین):

وَلَوْ شَاءَ رَ‌بُّكَ لَآمَنَ مَن فِي الْأَرْ‌ضِ كُلُّهُمْ جَمِيعًا ...

If it had been thy Lord's will, they would all have believed [but it had been not] ... [Yunus, 99]

But at the Day He will and that's why He says:

الْمُلْكُ يَوْمَئِذٍ لِّلَّـهِ يَحْكُمُ بَيْنَهُمْ ...

On that Day of Dominion will be that of Allah: He will rull and judge between them ... [Al-Hajj, 56]

Improve this answer
7
  • 1
    But how can someone change their innerself if Allah decides not to guide them?
    – Zohal
    Commented Dec 27, 2015 at 13:58
  • 1
    @Zohal, To give you a succinct answer, they should find out under what circumstances Allah does decide to guide them!
    – infatuated
    Commented Dec 27, 2015 at 17:16
  • 1
    How would they know the circumstance if they are not being guided?
    – Zohal
    Commented Dec 28, 2015 at 13:14
  • 2
    @Zohal, Well, if they are not being guided, it means that they have failed to do what is required to be guided. In other words Allah doesn't prevent someone from finding guidance if s/he is doing what it takes to be guided. In other words, human agency itself is part of the Divine destination.
    – infatuated
    Commented Dec 28, 2015 at 16:08
  • 1
    But someone wouldn't think of asking for guidance if they have not been guided into thinking about the truth and into thinking about being guided.
    – Zohal
    Commented Dec 28, 2015 at 22:23
9

In this verse 24:46 Allah will guide whom he wants. We can find the characteristics of the "whom" in these verses: 5:16 and 6:88-87 and 39:23

In Al-Mizan Vol.:10, Page: 59, according to verse 5:16, Allameh Tabatabee completely explains the characteristics of the people whom Allah will guide. I bring you the statement:

The guidance of Allah benefits him who follows His pleasure. In other words, the Divine guidance will affect only those who would follow His pleasure. Guidance in this verse denotes conveyance to the destination; Allah takes such people to a way or ways of peace or too many such ways, one after another. Peace is unrestricted; as such, it denotes safety and freedom from all misery and distress that spoil the happiness of life in this world or the hereafter. The Qur’an has described Islam, faith and piety as success, achievement and security and the peace mentioned here fits perfectly on that.

Improve this answer
0
3

There are many verses in the Quran proving freedom of human. Some of them are as followings:

That is the Day, the truth, so whosoever wills takes a way to his Lord. http://tanzil.net/#78:39

Indeed, We have guided him to the path, he is either grateful or ungrateful. http://tanzil.net/#76:3

Say: 'This is the truth from your Lord. Let whosoever will, believe, and whosoever will, disbelieve it' For the harmdoers, We have prepared a Fire, the pavilion of which encompasses them. When they cry out for relief, they shall be showered with water as hot as molten copper, which will scald their faces; how evil a drink, and how evil a restingplace! http://tanzil.net/#18:29

More verses can be found here

First we use our freedom and select a way then God support us by providing us needed things like air, food, water, power,...

When God says he guide whom he will it means Allah guides who firstly himself wanted to be guided then Allah guides him.

Whoever hopes for the tillage of the Everlasting Life, We will increase his tillage; and whoever hopes for the tillage of this world, We give him some of it, but in the Everlasting Life he shall have no share. http://tanzil.net/#42:20

Improve this answer
0
1

You were wrong in answering this question:

isn't everything a Predestination (ﻗﻀﺎﺀ ﻭﻗﺪﺭ)?

By yes. No it is not, this is so much against Islam: people do have choice and they choose their path in life. Such things are said to something like death (it can't be changed).

Allah did guide him but he did not listen to his guidance. How do Allah guide him?

By sending people like you to let him know about Islam, seeing people die each day so he would think logically about death and god and many other signs.

Improve this answer
0
1

ASSALAM O ALAIKUM

Verily, Allah SWT is the one who guides or misguides a person according to his deeds. ALLHAMDOLILLAH. In Quran ALLAH SWT says "we have put a veil over the eyes of evil doers so that they go astray" (well, these are not the exact wordings). So ALLAH SWT may misguide a person who does evil And for the one who wants to find him, ALLAH SWT says "if you come a step towards me I will come 70 towards you” (again not the exact words so I recommend you to search for these references). So it would be a false and obviously irrational reasoning to blame ALLAH SWT for your condition because it all depends on your deeds.

Now as far as predestination is concerned it has been proved a good topic of debate to those who do not want to believe or suffer from ignorance because it requires some feeling to understand rather than pure logic. And the belief which is solely mine in this context is "things are not happening just because ALLAH SWT has written it rather you did them by your own (we have been given free will in ISLAM) and ALLAH SWT, the omnipresent, the omnipotent and the omniscient and much more obviously knew everything that you will do from the day he created universe so he has written everything and without doubting his precision (NAUZOBILLAH) you can say everything will surely pass by as it is written.

Improve this answer
1
-2

Assalamu Alaikum ...

Please ask him why he goes for work to earn, so and so, if everything is pre-destined? Allah is the Razzak, still we work heard and spend 16 years in school/university all together and work everyday. But when it comes to Hedayah, we say the Malique of Hedaya is Allah and so and so..... To achieve anything in this world we need to work heard same for Guidance as well.

Improve this answer
1

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .