Twenty-Fifth Assembly (Khwan-Pur-Nemat)

A discussion arose about the will of God and intention. The Venerable Master said: In 'Ismat-ul-Ambiya (The Sinless- ness of the Prophets) it is mentioned that the 'will of God' and 'intention' are one and the same. 'Whatever he obtains by intention results in his being overtaken by other-than-God; whereas whatever he obtains by the will of God produces nothing but God in him. A distinction has been made to this extent and it has been said that the fear of the prophets and the saints consists in this: whatever is in the will of God is not known to anybody except God-not to any angel, the heavenly tablet, nor the pen. What the pen is commanded to do is write that so and so, the son of so and so is fortunate, whereas so and so, the son of so and so, is wretched, as God wills. All of this is found in the above-mentioned 'Ismat-ul-Ambiya. Whatever the pen is commanded to write on the tablet is done so in this manner. From the point of view of investigation, although the pen writes, it is ignorant of what is within the divine will, as is also the tablet upon which it writes.

One particle from your infidel locks Is like the raid of a hundred thousand horses.

In the meantime, Husamuddin, the prayer-leader of Habita Khan, said: Tonight is the Shab-i Barat (the Night of Decisions). The angels are informed about everything that is to take place in the coming year, all of which is to be put into effect. For example, the Angel of Death is informed that so and so, on Sunday, after the midday prayer, will leave the abode of what is transitory for that which is everlasting. The Venerable Master said: He is also informed, in this way, that so and so, on Sunday, will leave the world, if God so wills. In this also the will of God is hidden.

He enquired: When, on Sunday, he died, was the Angel of Death informed that this was the will of God? He replied: Once death has occurred, the will of God is known, but this was not previously known. Also, 'Our speech is before the existence of things. Concerning whatever God Almighty gives notice is going to be put into effect and has been made dependent on His own will, the Angel of Death knows no more than that God Almighty has given information about it and that it is bound to His own will. He does not know absolutely that it will happen, but what he makes known is done so only after it has come into existence. Before that he simply says that it will happen, but he does not have knowledge of what lies in the inscrutable will of God. Also, for the reason that, in our religion, an exception in receiving something in faith is held as permissible. In other words, if a believer says, 'I am a believer-God willing.' It is permissible to hold this with regard to attaining what one desires. With regard to the present and past, however, how can faith be present? He has indisputable knowledge that he is a believer. There cannot be any doubt about that, for it is known. It can, however, be present in actions which are just about to happen: will it happen or not? There is room for doubt in this situation. This can happen only when a person is not absolutely certain, e.g. about a good end-that depends on how he accepts things. A person is not informed therein whether he will be faithful till the end or not. It is permissible to have a doubt in this situation.

When you let your hair down coquettishly A hundred disasters befell the world thereby.

Imam Shafi'i, however, holds that it is permissible to have recourse to God's will about the present. He does not hold that there is any wavering or doubt. He says that no wavering or doubt-by the will of God is found in his own faith. That is why he holds it as permissible from now till then but adds that an action of the present or the past is just as it was in reality. By saying, 'If God wills' with respect to that action he behaves well because it is fitting for him to entrust it to the will of God and to remove himself from the action, even though, at the present moment, there is no doubt or hesitancy in his own faith. Instead, he has certain knowledge concerning

it, but what is fitting is for use to put our trust in the will of God. As proof, he adduces the following verse. When the Apostle was in Medina, before his victory over Mecca, he saw in a dream that he had already conquered Mecca and had entered it. Now the dream of a prophet is revelation. There is no hesitation or doubt in it, nor is a fabrication at all possible. It is as though they have seen for themselves. In this regard God Almighty in His own noble speech has also mentioned that 'You shall most certainly enter the sacred mosque in safety if God so wills' (Q 48:27). If He had given this amount of information, 'You shall enter', it would have been sufficient for the news was of an event which would undoubtedly take place. For these reasons no untruth or opposition is allowable therein: the thing will take place. In addition to this God Almighty has given fitting instruction. In this interpretation He has said, 'You shall most certainly enter the sacred mosque in safety if God so wills'. Hence it is known that, in each thing which has come into existence through a person it is fitting to attribute it to the will of God. This is the proof adduced by Imam Shafi'i.

Our own theologians, however, give this reply: What is tentative in the verse quoted above is not what is connected with the words 'you shall enter' but with 'in safety' because the promise does not pertain to their entering safely or fear- fully but simply to their entering. Of what use is it to say, 'If God wills? In matters where there is no promise or information, however, it would be better to refer it to the will of the Maker.

A discussion arose about the will of God and intention. The Venerable Master said: In 'Ismat-ul-Ambiya (The Sinless- ness of the Prophets) it is mentioned that the 'will of God' and 'intention' are one and the same. 'Whatever he obtains by intention results in his being overtaken by other-than-God; whereas whatever he obtains by the will of God produces nothing but God in him. A distinction has been made to this extent and it has been said that the fear of the prophets and the saints consists in this: whatever is in the will of God is not known to anybody except God-not to any angel, the heavenly tablet, nor the pen. What the pen is commanded to do is write that so and so, the son of so and so is fortunate, whereas so and so, the son of so and so, is wretched, as God wills. All of this is found in the above-mentioned 'Ismat-ul-Ambiya. Whatever the pen is commanded to write on the tablet is done so in this manner. From the point of view of investigation, although the pen writes, it is ignorant of what is within the divine will, as is also the tablet upon which it writes.

One particle from your infidel locks Is like the raid of a hundred thousand horses.

In the meantime, Husamuddin, the prayer-leader of Habita Khan, said: Tonight is the Shab-i Barat (the Night of Decisions). The angels are informed about everything that is to take place in the coming year, all of which is to be put into effect. For example, the Angel of Death is informed that so and so, on Sunday, after the midday prayer, will leave the abode of what is transitory for that which is everlasting. The Venerable Master said: He is also informed, in this way, that so and so, on Sunday, will leave the world, if God so wills. In this also the will of God is hidden.

He enquired: When, on Sunday, he died, was the Angel of Death informed that this was the will of God? He replied: Once death has occurred, the will of God is known, but this was not previously known. Also, 'Our speech is before the existence of things. Concerning whatever God Almighty gives notice is going to be put into effect and has been made dependent on His own will, the Angel of Death knows no more than that God Almighty has given information about it and that it is bound to His own will. He does not know absolutely that it will happen, but what he makes known is done so only after it has come into existence. Before that he simply says that it will happen, but he does not have knowledge of what lies in the inscrutable will of God. Also, for the reason that, in our religion, an exception in receiving something in faith is held as permissible. In other words, if a believer says, 'I am a believer-God willing.' It is permissible to hold this with regard to attaining what one desires. With regard to the present and past, however, how can faith be present? He has indisputable knowledge that he is a believer. There cannot be any doubt about that, for it is known. It can, however, be present in actions which are just about to happen: will it happen or not? There is room for doubt in this situation. This can happen only when a person is not absolutely certain, e.g. about a good end-that depends on how he accepts things. A person is not informed therein whether he will be faithful till the end or not. It is permissible to have a doubt in this situation.

When you let your hair down coquettishly A hundred disasters befell the world thereby.

Imam Shafi'i, however, holds that it is permissible to have recourse to God's will about the present. He does not hold that there is any wavering or doubt. He says that no wavering or doubt-by the will of God is found in his own faith. That is why he holds it as permissible from now till then but adds that an action of the present or the past is just as it was in reality. By saying, 'If God wills' with respect to that action he behaves well because it is fitting for him to entrust it to the will of God and to remove himself from the action, even though, at the present moment, there is no doubt or hesitancy in his own faith. Instead, he has certain knowledge concerning

it, but what is fitting is for use to put our trust in the will of God. As proof, he adduces the following verse. When the Apostle was in Medina, before his victory over Mecca, he saw in a dream that he had already conquered Mecca and had entered it. Now the dream of a prophet is revelation. There is no hesitation or doubt in it, nor is a fabrication at all possible. It is as though they have seen for themselves. In this regard God Almighty in His own noble speech has also mentioned that 'You shall most certainly enter the sacred mosque in safety if God so wills' (Q 48:27). If He had given this amount of information, 'You shall enter', it would have been sufficient for the news was of an event which would undoubtedly take place. For these reasons no untruth or opposition is allowable therein: the thing will take place. In addition to this God Almighty has given fitting instruction. In this interpretation He has said, 'You shall most certainly enter the sacred mosque in safety if God so wills'. Hence it is known that, in each thing which has come into existence through a person it is fitting to attribute it to the will of God. This is the proof adduced by Imam Shafi'i.

Our own theologians, however, give this reply: What is tentative in the verse quoted above is not what is connected with the words 'you shall enter' but with 'in safety' because the promise does not pertain to their entering safely or fear- fully but simply to their entering. Of what use is it to say, 'If God wills? In matters where there is no promise or information, however, it would be better to refer it to the will of the Maker.