What proceeds from them is either speech or action. In speech, they do not precede Him; rather, they do not speak until He speaks, and they intercede only for those with whom He is pleased. We must likewise conduct ourselves toward Him and His messengers: we must not speak about religion until He has spoken, nor put ourselves ahead of Allah and His Messenger, nor worship Him except as He has commanded. A higher degree still is to do nothing except what He has commanded, so that all our actions are either obligatory or recommended.

If this is the case with causes such as these, what of someone who places his trust or hope in other causes—heavenly bodies, for example—or in the actions of human beings, such as kings, leaders, companions, friends, slaves, followers, and others?

Among the things that should be understood is the statement made by a group of scholars:

“Placing one’s reliance in causes is a form of associating partners with Allah that violates His oneness. Denying that causes are causes is a deficiency in reason, while disregarding causes altogether undermines the revealed law. True trust and hope combine what is required by belief in Allah’s oneness, reason, and the revealed law.”

The explanation is this: looking to a cause means that the heart depends on it, places hope in it, and relies upon it. Nothing in creation deserves this, for nothing acts independently: it necessarily has cooperating causes and opposing forces. Moreover, despite all this, unless the One who ordains causes makes it operate, it will not operate.

This is among the things that demonstrate that Allah is the Lord and Sovereign of everything, and that the heavens, the earth, all that lies between them, the celestial spheres, and everything they contain have a Creator and Governor distinct from them. For you will find that whatever proceeds from a celestial sphere, a heavenly body, an angel, or anything else cannot independently bring about anything