Are humans destined to do things or human do things cause of free will?

Question

I have seen stuff like these, I dont remember exactly but here are some parts in my words:

• the ink has dried destiny has been written
• Allah makes path that is in destiny easier for the person.
• no matter how much you work you will get what's destined

Then there things that seem to imply otherwise:

• freewill is given so you make right or wrong choices and upon which you will be judged.
• humans have free will and therefore they are punished or rewarded.
• Destiny isn't something that decides what we do but something Allah knows you will do. (Whereas according to above what's written in destiny is what you will get)

So maybe destiny is something more fluid part of it gets decided while rest is left on us. I mean i don't know why there has been 2 conflicting ideas.

If i accept destiny is in our hands than somethings make more sense but there are clear hadith in fact if i am not wrong believing in destiny is fundamental part of faith. So if destiny isn't in our hands then what are we judged on? Not that i want to be judged.

Answer 1

This is a long time ago discussion among two major parties in Islam. Fatalism(Aljabrieh) and mandate(Alekhtiyarieh).

What does that mean?

Fatalism: They say that we are obligated to do whatever ALLAH wants us to do and all of our state and live curve is just a path drawn for us and we have no choice or ability to change this destiny.

Mandate: They said No this is not true, we have the ability to do whatever I want whenever and however I want.

Now we can say both are False. Imam Sadiq (as) says that:

لا جبر ولا تفويض انما امر بين امرين

No fatalism not mandate, It's something between

So What is the thing between.?

The example that @Bludream is just great, but I'll give some more clarifications.

If we say that we are obligated to do everything then ALLAH is unfair if he wants to punish us if you make something bad. It axiomatic that to punish somebody you have to give him the ability to choose.

Now if you say that we are totally mandate and you have free will to do whatever, then what is the difference between us and a God?!! Moreover this can't be done, for example if someone wants to commit a suicide so this is his wish then he come to the fifth floor and fall down, Ok after that he didn't die!!! This happens... This prove that we are not totally free and we can't do whatever we want to do.

Check answers in this question: https://islam.stackexchange.com/questions/11843/allah-knows-everything/11873#11873

For more information please refer to this: http://www.imamreza.net/eng/imamreza.php?id=1764

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Edit: answering your comment.

To choose to commit suicide this is totally your decision and your free will. ALLAH told us that it's religiously not tolerable, and gave us brains and minds and feelings to feel and think and decide what is the best for us. So, If you want to commit suicide this is your free will. But this doesn't mean that you'll die. To die or not This is ALLAH's wish and Orders.

In simple words acts are free willing to do but Results come only from ALLAH.

Answer 2

To clarify you this matter I want to use an example of a school class, God to be the teacher and the students as humans please bear with me.

• Destiny is what God has decided for us on our path like a test that a teacher will prepare for his students.
• The teacher already knows his students and the possible result but he takes the test as a proof for the students themselves and their parents.
• The test is like our destiny. But we were free to choose any answer we wanted that's our free will.

Remember Allah is not restricted to time or other limitations of materialistic world of ours and therefore
for example:

if he wants to test you with a limited income then if you work 100 times more you'll again eventually end up with the same income (e.g. being forced to spend a lot for an accident) but that doesn't mean you should not find and try to do the best possible thing. you just shouldn't feel disappointed of continuing to do good. just find what good is to do

• Maybe to work harder until you pass the test and Allah let's you have more income
• Maybe to understand you are doing something wrong and you need to change it
• or maybe you are just being tested for your endurance to continue your Halal work
• ...

Our job is just to pass the exam as best as we can and to improve ourselves; not to think we are being forced and everything was already planned, it is just already known what we will do by Allah's unlimited knowledge.