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Islamic Theology and Free Will
By: Muhammad Saidi-Mihr Amir Divani
The issue of compulsion and volition can be analyzed from various aspects and approaches. Since this treatise does not have the capacity for an extensive discussion regarding this issue, we will merely investigate in short several religious teachings regarding the relationship of divine attributes with determinism.37
Some people assume that various fundamentals of Islamic belief are incompatible with belief in free will and therefore by accepting these beliefs one must also believe in compulsion. In short, these fundamentals consist of (a) creational unity, (b) the past eternal knowledge of Allah, and (c) the generality of Allahs will.
a. Unity in Creation
In favor of determinism, it is stated that creational unity means that the sole Creator of all things is God. Thus, because human actions are also phenomena of the world of creation, the generality of the attribute of Gods creation includes human actions. Therefore, only God is the Creator of humanitys deeds. That is, humans have no role in generating their own actions. In effect, there is no place for free will within humans.
In contrast, the correct meaning of creational unity is that the only independent creator that creates without the permission of a separate entity is God. Thus, creational unity does not negate the fact that other beings may be the origin of creation and fabrication through divine will and according to the general laws that He has ordained. Additionally, as we have previously stated, the Holy Quran has attributed origination and influence to Gods creations. Consequently, creational unityaccording to its correct interpretationis compatible with humanitys role in their own deeds and does not result in determinism.
b. Gods Past Eternal Knowledge
Presented here is an abstract of the determinist rationale based on the past eternal knowledge of God: God knows beforehand what people will and will not do in the future. Additionally, the nonconformity of divine knowledge with external truths necessitates the alteration of divine knowledge to ignorance.
To state matters differently, if God knows that a specific person will perform a specific action at a specific time, but that person abandons that action at that time, Gods knowledge would become ignorance because according to the assumption, that which was within Gods knowledge did not conform to actuality. However, the absolute knowledge of God requires that He know all events and phenomena as they truly are.
Thus, performing an action that God knows will happen is necessary, and carrying out any action that God knows will not occur is impossible. As a result, human deeds are either necessary or impossible. Which means that none of our deeds is volitional; because the occurrence of the actions that we perform is necessary and not accomplishing them is impossible; also, the actions that we do not perform are impossible to execute and abandoning them is necessary.
In response to this rationale, we can declare, there is no doubt that God has foreknowledge of our actions, yet that which is recorded in divine knowledge is human actions complete with all their characteristics and conditions. Some of these characteristics include space and time elements and some pertain to the agent. One of the characteristics of volitional actions is that they emerge though volition and free choices.
Therefore, the fact that God has foreknowledge of our volitional actions means that God knows that a specific person, utilizing their free willnot under compulsionshall perform a specific action in a specific time and place. To state matters differently, if God knows that an individual shall perform an action at time A and location B, then performing that action becomes necessary at time A and location B and its occurrence at time B or location C would be impossible. Similarly, if God knows that a definite action shall be performed with volition, then that action must surely occur through volition.
Therefore, it is clear that the necessity for the occurrence of volitional actionsaccording to Gods foreknowledgeis not only not contradictory to it being volitional, but it confirms it. Because Gods foreknowledge means that, the compulsory and involuntary occurrence of these actions is impossible.38
The conundrum [shubhah] of divine knowledge and free will, in addition to having complex expositions such as the one we presented, has simple and more general forms that are usually expressed using terms such as destiny or fate.
It is clear from the response we gave for this conundrum that terms such as destiny or fate do not mean that humans have no volition; rather that a persons destiny is nothing more than the fact that the person shall perform their volitional actions with free will and their involuntary actions, involuntarily. In other words, destiny has two areas: The domain outside volition: In this case, the duty of the believer is submission and contentment.
The domain of volitional actions: In this area, fate is not in conflict with our free will and choices. Thus, in this domain, humans are responsible for their actions.
c. Generality of the Divine Will
Another of the Islamic principles of faith, which may seem to necessitate compulsion, is the Divine Will predominance principle: according to religious teachings and various Quranic verses,39 nothing happens outside the all-encompassing sphere of the Divine Will. As a requirement of this principle, all actions and even feelings adhere to Gods will. In this case, is there any room left for free will?
The answer to this claim can be extracted from our previous discussion regarding the divine knowledge and human volition incompatibility conundrum. Here, Gods will does not involve the occurrence of actions in an absolute manner and free of conditions. In fact, His will requires that every effect be originated by an immediate cause while preserving all the conditions of the effect. Hence, in the same way that the Divine Will requires involuntary emanation of heat from fire, His will also requires that our volitional actions be accompanied by human knowledge, will, and volition. Therefore, realization of the Divine Will not only does not negate free will, it guaranties it.
These discussions reveal that if the religious teachings regarding divine attributes are correctly understood, they will not contradict the principle of free will.
Not only is the doctrine of free will able to answer all determinist conundrums, there are many verifications to its validity. These verifications are moral or intuitional in nature and are more or less available to everyone. On the whole, these proofs provide a secure foundation for free will: inner feeling and intuition of free will; indecision; legislating social laws, prohibitions, and ordinances; existence of instructive systems and penal codes and rewards; and regret for performing acts of evil are several of these proofs.40 The consequential and extensive existence of these affairs in our individual and social lives has made even hard fatalists unable to refute free will in practice.
Quran and Free Will
There are many verses in the Holy Quran that directly or obliquely speak of humanitys free will and its role in ones deeds. For instance, the Quran has stressed the voluntariness of faith and disbeliefboth of which are innate acts: And say: The truth is from your Lord, so let whoever wills believe and whoever wills disbelieve.41
Additionally, verses that speak of testing and trialing humanity in their worldly life indicate their free will, since testing an agent without volition is futile.
And We shall try you with evil and goodness and surely, you shall return to Us.42
Moreover, various Quranic verses inform of our responsibility towards our actions. Needless to say, only volitive agents may be held answerable.
And stop them for surely they are responsible. 43
Furthermore, all Quranic verses that pertain to recompense and retribution for the actions of humans either praise the righteous and criticize the wicked, speak of humankinds injustice towards their souls, inform of appointing prophets or the establishment of religions, or include edicts and proscriptions. All these issues validate free will in some way because if there were no free will these Quranic verses would have no acceptable or coherent meaning.
In addition to the verses we have indicated, various verses speak of the generality of the Divine Will and its precedence over the will of humankind or the generality of divine knowledge. However, as we have previously stated, if the intent of these verses are correctly understood, there will be no inconsistency with the voluntariness of some of our deeds.
Human Perfection (Teleology)
Theological anthropology is not limited to the origin of humanity, the structure of its being, and its natural potentials. In fact, it includes a long eulogy regarding the purposes of humanitys creation, the levels of its perfection, and the methods of attaining these perfections. It would not be an exaggeration to claim that all the scientific teachings of Islam, both in the spheres of religion and ethics, have been presented in order to guide humanity toward their highest state of perfection.
The perfection of an object gains meaning through the purposes of its existence. The closer a being comes to the purposes of its creation, the more complete it is. The purpose of the creation of humans, contrary to many other creations, can only be realized through conscious choices. This is why humanitys perfection is volitive and must be obtained. In addition, because the ultimate objective of humanitys existence has no limits, humans can attain unlimited levels of perfection. As a result, one can always speak of a more perfect person and thus the path of perfection has no journeys end.
Of course, phrases such as walking the path of perfection do not mean that there is a path external to humanitys being that brings them closer to the purpose of their creation; rather, here, the travelermysticand path are one. In other words, humans path of perfection is themselves. Thus, transitive and immanent acts can only help one attain perfection if they affect ones soul and cause it to transcend its respective status. Therefore, any external or unrelated affair to the human essence, such as fame, riches, and titles cannot bring about humanitys true perfection. The Quran indicates this truth in a very subtle manner: They [have] ranks before Allah.44
This assertion both indicates humanitys various levels of perfection and also signifies that the source of this difference is not external to their own essence but it is they themselves that are the ranks and statuses. In other words, spiritual ranks are not like worldly conventional ranks to which one can be appointed or discharged; rather, each person is a rank and level of perfection.
The Quran regards the ultimate purpose or telos of humanitys creation and the terminus of their perfection the attaining of the rank of Gods servant: And I have not created the jinn and humans except that they serve Me.45
Thus, by increasing our servility towards God we become more complete. Servility towards God begins with outward humility and performing the sacred rites of religion. It progresses in synchrony with love of God, understanding Him, and sincerity [ikhlās] in ones actions. Gradually, humans reach a position in which all their states, from their motives and thoughts, to their speech and deeds, become divine and their carnality [hawāye nafs] and materialism are altogether extinguished. In this state, our truth-discerning eyes are opened and we see the degrees of divine Unity through our hearts and discover the entire world as a manifestation of the names and attributes of the Supreme Truth. It has been narrated from Amir al-Muminīn, Alī (a) that: I have never seen anything but that I saw God before it, with it, and after it.46
As we have previously indicated, people are multidimensional beings. Therefore, their perfection requires that all of their existential aspects grow simultaneously and that all of their physical and spiritual potentials and capacities be employed in the best possible manner. In portraying the perfect human, the mundane doctrines only emphasize several specific aspects: some philosophers regard the perfection of humankind in the perfection of their intellect, and some mystics seek it in seclusion and ascesis [riyāẓat]. Others perceive furthering the conquest and exploitation of nature as a standard for human perfection. According to Islam, human perfection cannot be realized but through coordinated and simultaneous development of all human abilities, such that all talents are utilized on the path of servitude and intimacy with God.
Islams perfect human does not become attached to the world or bewitched by it. In fact, perfect humans regard the phenomena of the natural world as divine signs and blessings and consider the world a plantation for reaping for the next world. According to their perspective, their material bodies are not cages but one of the gifts of their creation that must be utilized in the best possible manner. In addition, such persons do not retreat from society. Indeed, they regard being with people and helping their fellow humans a type of servitude and worship of God, which results in closer intimacy with God. They are also distressed and troubled at the pain and suffering of others. This is why the divine prophets and saints [awliyā ilāhī]which are exalted examples of human perfectionhave lived within the society and worried about the spiritual and material problems of their peoples and became heartsick at the transgressions that caused their peoples to go astray and the persecution and privation that troubled them. The Quran declares of our holy prophet (S): Surely, there has come to you a messenger from among yourselves; grievous to him is your suffering, anxious he is over your [guidance], to the believers [he is] gentle and compassionate.47
Another manifestation of human perfection in Islam is contemplation. In many verses, the Quran enjoins us to contemplate and think. Doubtless, here the intended faculty for contemplation is not instrumental reason, which is the foundation of industry and technology. This is because history clearly shows that there is no interdependence between industrial development and the exploitation of nature and humanitys perfection in either their material or spiritual aspects. The contemplation that Islam regards as a precondition to perfection is the reflection upon the fundamental truths of the world that bring about a more complete state of self-knowledge and understanding of God. For example, we must contemplate the inherent nature of humankind and the world, its origin and final destination, the status of humanity in the world, and our rights and obligations. Additionally, this contemplation must result in a foundation for conscious servitude towards God that is suffused with love and understanding. It must also strip the rust of ignorance and negligence from humanitys heart and soul. According to various Hadith, such contemplation is greater than [heedless] worship, and is in fact the essence of meritorious worship: A moments thought is superior to seventy years of worship.
And the intellect is that which is used to worship the Beneficent.48
The intellect of faith is like a righteous person; It is the guardian and ruler of the city of the heart.
That marvelous messenger said very beautifully; A grain of your intellect is better than fasting and prayer.
This is because your intellect is essential and these two are incidental; These two obligations complete that.49
There are many discussions about the attributes and manifestations of human perfection in Islam and the portrayal of the countenance of a perfect human is like the drawing of an exquisite painting that cannot be created without the use of hundreds of marvelous colors and unparalleled patterns. Here are several of the most notable qualities of a perfect human in one sentence. Perfect humans are self-knowing, god-knowing, contemplative, self-analyzing, faithful, pious, righteous, monotheist in thought and practice, adorned with all virtues and divested of all ethical evils, suffused with love of God, possessed of love and compassion for all of Gods creatures, vigilant and heedful of the rights of the oppressed and deprived, true servants of God, nightly worshipers and daily toilers, predominant over their carnalities [shahawāt al-nafsānī], and utilizers of nature for divine purposes.
Of course, as we have previously stated, human perfection has unlimited stages. Therefore, the more extensive and deep-rooted a person can make these qualities within themselves, the higher the degree of perfection.
Worship and the Complete Human
One of the subtle and precious expressions of the human soul is worshiping a divine being, confiding in Him, and confessing ones needs to Him [rāz wa nīyāz]. As we have stated earlier, humanitys need and propensity for worship is one of the characteristics that make them superior to animals. One of the achievements of divine religions is that they respond to this need in the best possible manner by enjoining people to worship the true Deity and preventing worship of false gods.
Confiding ones secrets and professing ones needs to his Lord is one of the most beautiful expressions of worship. This is because in this state a person perceives their Lord more intimately than a person perceives any other; they regard Him worthy of their confidence; and with faith in His power, benevolence, and grace they profess their needs to Him. Praying to God, if done with love and purity of heart, and with the help of divine attraction [jazabah-ye ilāhī], can promote a person to such heights that even the angels cannot attain and can bless a person with unrivaled ecstasy and bliss.
The Quran enjoins humans to call upon God at all times. Also, it regards the true enlightened [Ulul-Albāb] to be those who do not forget God no matter what circumstances they have in their lives: Those who remember Allah while standing and sitting and lying on their sides.50
Additionally, many Quranic verses enjoin people to ask for succor sincerely: He is the Living; there is no Allah but Him. So call upon Him, making your religion His sincerely.51
Various Quranic verses advise worshiping God in private. It seems that in private, our soul is better prepared for spiritual connection with God and soaring towards the Heavens: Call upon your Lord, humbly and secretly; Surely, He loves not transgressors.52
In addition to enjoining humankind to worshiping the One God, Islam sets specific standards for worship. Besides various Quranic verses that are themselves supplications or prayers,53 we have inherited a legacy of valuable prayers [duā] from the Infallibles (a). These prayers display the most beautiful features of worship, sincerity, love, and devotion. Even so, the most important Islamic worship is Ṣalāt (Farsi: Namāz)the Muslim daily ritual prayer.
Notes:
37. - It is worthy of note that various rationales have been presented in verification of determinism. Some of these rationales are philosophical and others are based on psychological and sociological provisions. By referring to the physical characteristics of the human body, various determinists have claimed that no human action is truly volitional and free of physiological determinative factors. Thus, one may speak of the various approaches to determinism; such as the philosophic approach, the sociologic approach, etc. In this discourse, we shall discuss the Kalam approach that addresses the relationship of free will with various religious beliefs regarding the attributes of God.
38. - In philosophical terms, the necessity for occurrence of a volitional action is of the same type of the necessity for occurrence of an effect whose sufficient cause is realized. In other words, when the sufficient cause for the occurrence of a volitional action is realizedincluding the external and internal conditions of the agent such as selection, choice, and willits occurrence becomes necessary.
39. - For examples see: Sūrah Yūnus 10:100; and Sūrah Takwīr 81:29.
40. - In various parts of the Mathnavī-e Manavī (Spiritual Couplets), Maulānā has utilized these evidences and has regarded them as proofs of free will. Some of these verses include:
a. Intuition of Free will: Doubtless, we have free will; feeling cannot refute it.
Free will is hidden within us; when faced with a dilemma it is revealed.
Intuition shows the same as feeling does; O brother, they both are of the same tier. (Book V)
b. Indecision: That you ask yourself tomorrow, should I do this or that; this itself is proof of free will, O Idol!
We are caught in indecision between two things; how can this indecision be involuntary?
How can should I do this or that happen, if ones hands and feet are tied? (Book V)
c. Ordering and Forbidding Others: No one tells a stone to come; and who would seek loyalty from a piece of clod?
No one tells a stone that it has come late; or that O stick! Why have you struck me?
Orders, forbiddance, wrath, respect, and retribution; go with nothing but free will, O true of heart! (Book V)
d. System of Reward and Punishment: Teachers beat their pupils; would they ever punish a black stone?
Would you ever tell a stone to come; and if not, I will punish the naughty? (Book V)
e. Regretting Evil Deeds: Our weeping is a reason of free will; our embarrassment has become a reason for compulsion.
If there is no free will, what is this shame; what are pity, humiliation, and modesty?
If all was compulsion, who would be embarrassed; if all was injustice who would be guardian? (Book I)
41. - Sūrah Kahf 18:29.
42. - Sūrah Anbīyā 21:35.
43. - Sūrah Sāffāt 37:24.
44. - Sūrah Āli Imrān 3:163.
45. - Sūrah Dhārīyāt 51:56.
46. - Ilm ul-Yaqīn, vol. 1, p. 49. Also according to Sadī :
Humans can reach the status that they see naught but God; Behold the greatness of humanitys position.
And Shaīkh Maḥmūd Shabastarī said in his book Gulshan-e Rāz:
ٰ ٰ
According to one whose whole being is infused with revelation; The whole world is the book of Divine Truth (God).
47. - Sūrah Tawbah 9:128.
48. - Uṣūl-e Kāfī, vol. 1, p. 11.
49. -
50. - Sūrah Āli Imrān 3:191.
51. - Sūrah Ghāfir 40:65.
52. - Sūrah Arāf 7:55.
53. - These verses generally begin with the term (Our Lord  and relate the substance of the supplications of prophets, saints, and the faithful [muminūn]. For examples, see: Sūrah Baqarah 2:201, 2:250; and Sūrah Āli Imrān 3:8-9, 3:16.
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