1286—Muhammad ibn Abd al-Rahman informed us; he said: Abdullah ibn Muhammad ibn Abd al-Aziz informed us; he said: Suwayd ibn Sa'id related to us; he said: Shu'ayb ibn Bakkar related to us, ⦗769⦘ from Muhajir al-Bardha'i, who said: Muhammad ibn Sulayman al-Azdi related to us; he said: Suhaym ibn al-Ala al-Abdi related to us, from al-Hakam ibn Aban, who said: Ikrimah related to us, saying:

“I was present with Abdullah ibn Abbas when a man came to him and said, ‘O Abu al-Abbas, tell me: who are the Qadariyyah, the deniers of divine decree? For people in our region of the East have differed greatly concerning them.’

“Ibn Abbas replied: ‘The Qadariyyah are a people who will appear at the end of time. Their religion is speculative theology. They claim that Allah did not decree acts of disobedience for His creatures, yet He punishes them for what He decreed for them. Those are the Qadariyyah; they are the Magians of this Ummah, and they are cursed upon the tongues of all the Prophets. Do not dispute with them, lest they tempt you away from the truth; do not sit with them, do not visit their sick, and do not attend their funerals. They are the followers of the Dajjal; the coming of the Dajjal is dearer to them than cool water.’

“The man said, ‘O Abu al-Abbas, do not be angry with me, for I am only asking, having been afflicted by them.’ He said, ‘Ask.’ The man said, ‘How can there be Magians within this Ummah when this Ummah has been shown mercy?’

“He replied, ‘I shall tell you, perhaps Allah will benefit you thereby.’ The man said, ‘Please do.’ He said: ‘The Magians claim that Allah did not create any vermin or filth, nor did He create anything harmful; rather, He creates only what is beneficial and all that is good. They claim that divine decree is evil, and that all evil is the creation and work of Iblis. The Qadariyyah likewise claim that Allah did not create evil and that we are not tested by it, even though Iblis is the source of all evil and admits that Allah created him. The Qadariyyah claim that Allah willed something from His servants which did not come to pass, thereby placing it beyond His sovereignty and power; while Iblis willed something from the servants, and it came to pass. Thus, according to the Qadariyyah, Iblis is stronger and mightier ⦗770⦘.

“‘Such are the Qadariyyah—and they have lied, the enemies of Allah. Indeed, Allah tests and punishes on account of that by which He tests, and He is not unjust. He is not questioned about what He does. He bestows His grace and rewards them solely by His grace toward them, and He does whatever He wills. But they are the enemies of Allah: they formed an assumption, then confirmed that assumption in their own minds, saying, “We are the ones who act, who are rewarded, and who are punished for our deeds; no one has any favor over us.” Thus, they were deprived of what is from Allah, and abandonment overcame them.’”

Suwayd ibn Sa'id said: “There is no god but Allah! How dreadful a statement that is. Indeed, Allah is the One who guides aright and leads astray, who shows mercy and punishes.”

The man then said, “All praise is due to Allah, who has bestowed upon me the favor of bringing you to me, O Abu al-Abbas. May Allah grant you success, give you victory, and honor you. By Allah, I was among the most vehement of them in advancing this view, which I held to be religion before Allah. But the illuminating truth has now become clear to me. I call Allah to witness, and I call you all to witness, that I repent to Allah and renounce what I used to say. I have become certain that good is from Allah, and that acts of disobedience are from Allah, by which He tests whomever He wills among His servants. There is no decreer but Allah, and none besides Him who guides aright or leads astray.”

Ikrimah said: “The man remained with us weeping until he set out on a naval expedition, where he was martyred. May Allah have mercy on him.”