Someone says that Allaah The Almighty has created Fate but that He cannot control it. He gives the example of two cars that are about to enter a tunnel that is only wide enough for one car. He says that we expect an accident to occur there almost every five minutes, however, we can do nothing about it, and the same applies to Allaah The Almighty. How can this person’s claim be refuted?

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad, sallallaahu 'alyhi wa sallam, is His slave and Messenger.

Believing in Fate and in Divine decree is one of the fundamentals of faith. Without it, faith is incomplete. It means that the Muslim must have belief in the prior Knowledge of Allaah The Almighty of all His creation and all of their actions and affairs, and that Allaah The Almighty wrote all that in the Preserved Tablet. It also means that nothing can ever happen except by His will, for He Says (what means): {And never say of anything, "Indeed, I will do that tomorrow," Except [when adding], "If Allaah wills."} [Quran 18:23-24] Furthermore, belief in Fate means one’s absolute conviction that everything occurs with the power of Allaah The Almighty and that everything is created by Him, Who is the sole Creator. This is proved by logic and by the Sharee‘ah (Islamic law) texts.

There is copious evidence in the Quran and Sunnah (Prophetic tradition) supporting what we have just mentioned; for instance, the verse where Allaah The Almighty Says (what means): {Indeed, all things We created with predestination.} [Quran 54:49] This can also be realized by common sense, for one’s belief in Allaah The Almighty and in His Exalted Attributes, which are related to life, power, knowledge, wisdom, hearing, vision and will, definitely implies belief in the comprehensiveness of His knowledge, will and power. In other words, the logical consequence of this kind of belief is complete conviction that everything in this universe, regardless of the extent of its significance, is certainly included in His knowledge, will and power. This leads to another logical conclusion: anything that occurs in the universe is known to Allaah The Almighty and occurs by His will and power. Therefore, if the person who is mentioned in the question believes in Allaah The Almighty and in His attributes, then he must adopt the kind of belief in Fate that we have clarified.

However, if he does not believe in Allaah The Almighty in the first place, then he must be provided with evidence that proves the existence of Allaah, The Creator and all of His divine attributes before discussing the issue of Fate with him.

Regarding the example that was mentioned by this person, we say that one of the implications of belief in Fate is belief that Allaah The Almighty made the causes a reason for the existence of effects. Ibn Abi Al-‘Izz in his explanation of Al-‘Aqeedah At-Tahaawiyyah mentioned that one’s dependence on the causes and his belief in their inherent power is considered Shirk (polytheism) in Tawheed (Islamic Monotheism), whereas total disregard of causes indicates a deficiency in his thinking and a denial of what is perceivable. Once this is confirmed, we say that when two cars enter a tunnel that is only wide enough for one car, this is certainly a cause for collision unless Allaah The Almighty wills otherwise to prevent it. We are only certain that the accident will occur because we have been taught by Allaah The Almighty that the effect follows its cause in existence and absence; however, Allaah The Almighty is capable of hindering the causes and preventing their effects. For this reason, when Ibraaheem (Abraham) was thrown into the fire, he came out safe and sound. By the same token, Yoonus (Jonah) did not die in the belly of the whale, and Khaalid ibn Al-Waleed was not harmed by the poison he drank when he put his trust in Allaah The Almighty.

Therefore, how could any Muslim ever doubt the fact that Allaah The Almighty is capable of preventing these two cars from colliding when He controls everything? If He decrees a matter He only says to it “Be” and it is; He says (what means): {They have not appraised Allaah with true appraisal, while the earth entirely will be [within] His grip on the Day of Resurrection, and the heavens will be folded in His right hand. Exalted is He and high above what they associate with Him.} [Quran 39:67]

Allaah Knows best.