Principle Six: Belief in the Divine Decree (qaḍāʾ) and Predestination (qadar)

Introduction

Principle Six: Belief in the Divine Decree and Predestination

There is no doubt that affirming the divine decree and predestination—and deeming belief in them, with all that they entail, obligatory—is among the greatest pillars of faith. The Prophet ﷺ said, “Faith is to believe in Allah, His angels, His books, His messengers, the Last Day, and in the divine decree, its good and its evil.” The Exalted One also said, “Indeed, We have created everything according to a determined measure.” ⦗1⦘

The term qadar derives from the verb qadara, which originally means “to determine the measure of a thing.” In this context it refers to Allah’s prior knowledge of all created things and His eternal will concerning them before they come into existence; nothing occurs except that Allah has already known it, measured it, and willed it. The creed of Ahl al-Sunnah wa-l-Jamāʿah is to believe in the divine decree, both its good and its evil.

Belief in the decree comprises four levels:

1. Belief in Allah’s eternal knowledge of everything before it exists, including His knowledge of the deeds of His servants before they perform them.
2. Belief that Allah has recorded all of this in the Preserved Tablet.
3. Belief in Allah’s all-encompassing will for every event and His absolute power over it.
4. Belief that Allah brings every creature into existence—that He alone is the Creator and that everything besides Him is created.