The question is whether everything has been predestined or do we create our own future? Although generally most people do not believe in predestination, but then, if there is a God, has everything been decreed or not?
I am reminded of the famous quote make in the film Terminator 2, when Sarah Connor carved “No fate” on a wooden table before she went off to kill a person and change the future. In fact it is a message which she was drilling into her son which he understood, that ‘The future is not set. There is no fate but what we make for ourselves’. Which gave him hope that he can change the future.
But what is the Islamic understanding? In the book ‘Blessings of Prayer’, Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, the Promised Messiah, has refuted an allegation made by Sir Sayyid Ahmad Khan when he said that there is no such thing as the acceptance of prayer, instead prayer was no more than a form of worship. He based this on his belief that whatever is going to happen has already been determined, therefore how can a prayer be accepted if the matter has already been determined by God?
The Promised Messiah rejected this view and proclaims that Allah hears and accepts the supplication of believers which are offered in humility and sincerity, and that the acceptance of prayer sets in motion its own chain of causes which culminates in the fulfilment of the objective prayed for.
The Promised Messiah uses his own example of a person having their prayers accepted, but of course there has and still is, many saintly people who have such a close relationship with God that their prayers are accepted immediately and they inform people of the acceptance and outcome which then comes true. Of course, some doubters will say ‘it was just a coincidence’, but for a believer it helps develop their spirituality and conviction that there is a Living God who does respond to our prayers. And this is of course, one of the best ways to reassure yourself that there is a Living God, by having your prayers answered.
But still, if Allah has determined everything, then how does this work? Why is there a need to pray for something which has already been determined?
First of course, some things have been decreed which will not be changed. Allah has put into motion different laws which are constantly operating i.e. cause and effect, law of gravity etc. The Solar System has been developed that it follows its course, therefore the Earth will go around the Sun and we will have a sunrise and sunset every day. This has been decreed and will happen. The apple will drop to the ground, the tide will come in etc. These will continue until Allah decides to stop them. They are things which have been permanently decreed.
But there are some things which can be changed. The best example being the story of Jonah, who told his people that they will be punished and he left them to await their punishment. But in his absence, they repented and cried to their Lord for forgiveness. Allah listened to their prayers and accepted their forgiveness and saved them from His punishment. They changed their future!
What we need to understand is that Allah knows everything, the past, present and future are all in front of Him, therefore everything is ‘Decreed’, as He knows it will happen. We are limited in our knowledge and only know the past and present, but not the future. But you know that you woke up today and started reading this, therefore you are 100% certain that this happened and so you are 100% certain that this was decreed as its happened, it is a fact. When we know that something has definitely happened, then there is that certainty. As Allah knows what is going to happen, then He has that certainty and therefore it becomes a Decree.
But there is something else. Allah has given us free will, the ability to make choices. We can decide whether we want to continue reading or stop. We constantly face choices throughout the day, not knowing whether they are good for us or bad. As we don’t know the future, therefore we create our future. Whilst Allah is constantly guiding us, we make the decisions and either accept that guidance or reject it. Therefore we are making our own future through the choices we make, but as Allah knows what decisions we are going to make before we do it, therefore it has all been decreed.
The ability to have free will is important and what stands us out from the rest of the creation of Allah. The whole purpose of this physical world is to develop your relationship with God, but God wants us to do that voluntarily, He does not want to force us. As He has stated in the Holy Qur’an in Chapter 5, verse 49:
“For each of you We prescribed a clear spiritual Law and a manifest way in secular matters. And if Allah had enforced His Will, He would have made you all one people, but He wishes to try you by that which He has given you. Vie, then, with one another in doing good works. To Allah shall you all return; then will He inform you of that wherein you differed.”
The ability of having free will means that we can make our own choices, make our own future, but it also carries the burden that we will be answerable for all the choices we make. But that is how we learn. Only if we make a choice can we learn from it and build on it. If Allah took away that choice, then we couldn’t learn and develop, instead we would have to do whatever we were commanded. But this is not what Allah wants from us, He wants us to develop and grow and strive to become a better person. Yes sometimes we may make the wrong choice and take the wrong path, but Allah understands that we are weak and make mistakes, therefore we will always be guided to make a change, to make the right choice. But we have to make that choice, Allah will not force us to do so. Because when we face Allah on the Day of Judgement, then we will see all the choices that we have made and be informed as to what was our real intention behind those choices and then be judged accordingly. In this process, we will have to accept that judgement as we know that it was our choices that led to the actions. But if it was out of our hands, if Allah had forced us to do something, then we could blame Allah for the actions we took. Hence why Allah will not force His Will, but allow you to make your own choices, thereby making your own future.
Therefore, our future has not been predestined, and whilst Allah will know our future and thereby it is ‘Decreed’, but we can make our own future, and so ‘The future is not set. There is no fate but what we make for ourselves’.