941 — Ahmad ibn Yahya Thalab said: “I do not know of any Arab who was a denier of divine decree.” He was asked, “Does belief in divine decree occur in the hearts of the Arabs?” He replied, “Allah forbid! There is not among the Arabs anyone but one who affirms divine decree, both its good and its evil. Among the people of ⦗594⦘ the Age of Ignorance and of Islam, this is abundant in their poetry and speech.”

Shaykh Abu al-Qasim al-Hafiz said: “This is the doctrine of Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jamaah, which they have inherited, generation after generation, from the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, without doubt or misgiving. All praise belongs to Allah for that, and I ask Allah, by His bounty and mercy, to bring it to completion.”