Part of Concepts of Ahl as-Sunnah (series completed)
· Lesson 108 of 1251
Summary of Sunni concepts | Concept (106) | Evil is not attributed to God Almighty
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Transcript
Machine translation — may contain errors
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A Summary of the Concepts of Ahl al-Sunnah:
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Evil is not attributed to Allah Almighty.
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For it was narrated from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) in one of the opening supplications of prayer,
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in which he said:
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"And evil is not attributable to You."
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It was reported by Muslim, Abu Dawud, and al-Tirmidhi.
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This negation necessitates the impossibility of attributing evil to Allah Almighty in any manner whatsoever:
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neither in His Essence, nor in His names or attributes,
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nor in His actions.
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For He, Glory be to Him, is far above and exalted beyond that,
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and His actions are all pure goodness.
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Evil exists only in relation to the created being, what pertains to it, and what emanates from it.
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This is as Allah Almighty said:
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“Whatever of good befalleth thee (O man) it is from Allah, and whatever of ill befalleth thee it is from thyself. We have sent thee (Muhammad) as a messenger unto mankind and Allah is sufficient as Witness.” (4:79)
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“Whatever of good befalleth thee (O man) it is from Allah, and whatever of ill befalleth thee it is from thyself. We have sent thee (Muhammad) as a messenger unto mankind and Allah is sufficient as Witness.” (4:79)
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Meaning: Whatever afflicts you, O son of Adam, of that which harms or grieves you,
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it is because of your own sins and disobedience.
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This does not contradict the fact that evil, just like good,
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occurs by the decree and predetermination of Allah, Mighty and Majestic.
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As Allah Almighty said in refutation of the hypocrites:
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“Wheresoever ye may be, death will overtake you, even though ye were in lofty towers. Yet if a happy thing befalleth them they say: This is from Allah; and if an evil thing befalleth them they say: This is of thy doing (O Muhammad). Say (unto them): All is from Allah. What is amiss with these people that they come not nigh to understand a happening?” (4:78)
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“Wheresoever ye may be, death will overtake you, even though ye were in lofty towers. Yet if a happy thing befalleth them they say: This is from Allah; and if an evil thing befalleth them they say: This is of thy doing (O Muhammad). Say (unto them): All is from Allah. What is amiss with these people that they come not nigh to understand a happening?” (4:78)
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“Wheresoever ye may be, death will overtake you, even though ye were in lofty towers. Yet if a happy thing befalleth them they say: This is from Allah; and if an evil thing befalleth them they say: This is of thy doing (O Muhammad). Say (unto them): All is from Allah. What is amiss with these people that they come not nigh to understand a happening?” (4:78)
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"So what is [wrong] with these people that they hardly understand any statement?"
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For what Allah enacts of justice among His servants,
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and His punishment of those among them who deserve punishment,
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is beloved, pure good,
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even if it is considered evil in their view or relative to them—
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such as severing the hand of the thief or executing retribution upon the murderer.
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In summary, Allah is the Creator of both good and evil,
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but evil is a separate created effect (maf'ul),
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and not an attribute of Allah Almighty.
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Nor is it said that He, Glory be to Him, is a "doer of evil."
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Rather, it is good from the standpoint of its connection to His action and predetermination,
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and evil only from the standpoint of its attribution to the one for whom it is evil.
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Thus, it is a relative matter with two aspects:
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One aspect is good,
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which is the aspect attributed to Allah Almighty
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in terms of creation, bring into existence, and divine will,
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due to the profound wisdom contained therein—
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wisdom whose knowledge Allah may reserve exclusively for Himself,
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or disclose of it what He wills to whom He wills among His creation.
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The second aspect is evil,
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which is the aspect attributed to the created being who caused it and experienced it.
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For this reason, one must observe proper etiquette with Allah in speech
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and refrain from attributing evil to Him, Glory be to Him.
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Just as al-Khidr said to Moses (peace be upon him)
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when he explained to him what he had done to the ship:
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"So I intended to damage it,"
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attributing the action [of damaging] to himself.
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Whereas when he explained the aspect of good in rebuilding the wall,
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he said: "So your Lord intended that they reach maturity
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and extract their treasure as a mercy from your Lord,"
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attributing the goodness to Allah Almighty.
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Then he said regarding all of it:
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“And as for the wall, it belonged to two orphan boys in the city, and there was beneath it a treasure belonging to them, and their father had been righteous, and thy Lord intended that they should come to their full strength and should bring forth their treasure as a mercy from their Lord; and I did it not upon my own command. Such is the interpretation of that wherewith thou couldst not bear.” (18:82)
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"That is the interpretation of that about which you could not have patience."
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A Summary of the Concepts of Ahl al-Sunnah.