I have been a muslim for 2 years now al hamd lelah. My question is, if all human doings been written 50,000 years before Allah created anything, where is the free will. Also based on what does Allah guide people? How is it then some people fault if Allah doesn`t guide them? Jazakom allaho khiran

All praise be to Allah, and may His peace and blessings be on the last and best prophet and messenger, Muhammad,

Jazakum Allah khairan for wanting to learn about your religion. As a Muslim, you should always have good thoughts of Allah and believe in His justice and wisdom. When you have questions, maintain your good thoughts of the Creator, yet look for proper answers to keep your heart at ease.

Let us first agree on a few things before we embark on explaining the concept of divine decree.

1. We may not be able to comprehend everything, which is only natural and expected of human beings. We even vary between each other; some may be able to understand certain concepts in math, chemistry or physics while others can’t. So, what do you think about comparing our knowledge and wisdom to that of God? It is so arrogant of us to think that we can understand everything when we know that we can’t even see or hear all things. Doesn’t our mind depend (largely) on our senses to provide it with data, which the mind will later process? What do you think of this data? We all know it is as defective as our hearing and sight and other faculties.
2. The way to God, however, must be simple and comprehendible by all, since we are all required to recognize him and accept the truth sent from him. That is why Islam is simple to understand and accept. The one God, who is omnipotent, omniscient and perfect in all attributes; who created the universe, sent the messengers, and will resurrect humans to a day of reckoning. All that is perfectly simple and proven by compelling evidence. Not only that, it is attested to by our original disposition and inner sense.
3. Once you have recognized God and accepted the true message sent from him, you should submit to him and never doubt His knowledge or wisdom. That is to say, you should respect your limitations and acknowledge His perfection. That, however, doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t be looking for His wisdom in the various aspects of the religion to further confirm your belief and reach higher levels of certainty, but it means that if you couldn’t completely comprehend one thing, it shouldn’t cause you to doubt that which you are certain of, which is the existence and perfection of God and the truth of Islam.
4. The divine will is one of the hardest aspects of religion to fully comprehend, and that has been the case with humans since their beginning. It is not only an issue theologians toil with, but philosophers also had an even wider spectrum of disagreements among themselves. Materialist atheists would be philosophically compelled to deny human agency and free will. After all, everything should be mechanically determined from the Big Bang onwards.
5. We must have faith in Allah’s justice and fairness. His greatness points to His perfection. The perfect would not be unjust.

Now, the Divine Will.

Allah is the creator, owner, controller and disposer of all affairs of this universe. He is omnipotent and compeller, and no one or thing is beyond His power and control. That means that nothing in this universe takes place outside of His control and domination.

He said about us and our will:

وَمَا تَشَاؤُونَ إِلَّا أَن يَشَاءَ اللَّهُ إِنَّ اللَّهَ كَانَ عَلِيماً حَكِيماً”  ”
“But you cannot will, unless Allah wills. Verily, Allah is Ever All-Knowing, All-Wise.” 76:30

Yet, the verse does indicate that we still have a will. Allah gave us a will; that is why we will be held accountable. Yet, this will of us is still superseded by His, as clear from the verse.

Let me give you an example: if you want to have a child, what do you do? You propose to a suitable lady, get married and thereafter, you will both have a child inshallah (If Allah so wills). And the last word (inshallah) says it all. If Allah so wills! Because if he didn’t, you will not have the child, no matter how much you try. That child, then, was willed to exist by Allah, who also created him. But, can you say I am not responsible for him? He came with the will of God and God created him, so I have nothing to do with him. If you say that, all people will consider you insane. The same applies to your deeds. They are like your children in many respects. You make provisions for them and attempt to do them without being forced into them. They are still under the control of Allah, who brought them to existence, and you are certainly responsible for them.

Let us go back to the beginning:

Allah created us all with his will and he wrote all that is to take place in the universe in the preserved tablet 50,000 years before he created the heavens and earth, as reported by Muslim from Abdullah ibn ‘Amr who was quoting the Messenger of Allah (May Allah bless him and give him peace).

Allah also said about the creation:

“إِنَّا كُلَّ شَيْءٍ خَلَقْنَاهُ بِقَدَرٍ”

Verily, We have created all things with Qadar (Divine Preordainments of all things before their creation, as written in the Book of Decrees Al-Lauh Al-Mahfooz) [or due measure].   (54:49)

Allah then created man, and showed him the two ways, good and evil, He said:

وَهَدَيْنَاهُ النَّجْدَيْنِ

“Verily, We showed him the two ways” (90:10)

Some accepted the guidance, and others rejected it, thus Allah diverted their hearts away from it. Given, they don’t return to him in repentance.

He said:

وَنُقَلِّبُ أَفْئِدَتَهُمْ وَأَبْصَارَهُمْ كَمَا لَمْ يُؤْمِنُواْ بِهِ أَوَّلَ مَرَّةٍ وَنَذَرُهُمْ فِي طُغْيَانِهِمْ يَعْمَهُونَ””

And We shall turn their hearts and their eyes away (from guidance), as they refused to believe therein for the first time, and We shall leave them in their trespass to wander blindly. ( 6:110)

He also said:

كَلَّا بَلْ رَانَ عَلَى قُلُوبِهِم مَّا كَانُوا يَكْسِبُونَ “”

“Nay! But on their hearts is the Raan (covering of sins and evil deeds) which they used to earn” (83:14)

Notice the underlined statements in the previous verses.

Some accepted the guidance by Allah’s grace, and He further helped them confirm their faith, He said:

“يُثَبِّتُ اللّهُ الَّذِينَ آمَنُواْ بِالْقَوْلِ الثَّابِتِ فِي الْحَيَاةِ الدُّنْيَا وَفِي الآخِرَةِ وَيُضِلُّ اللّهُ الظَّالِمِينَ وَيَفْعَلُ اللّهُ مَا يَشَاءُ”

Allah will establish in strength those who believe, with the word that stands firm, in this world and in the Hereafter; but Allah will leave, to stray, those who do wrong: Allah does what He wills.” (14:27)

Allah is all knowing and he knew those who are deserving of guidance and those who are not. He, out of fairness, will never hold the people accountable based on His previous knowledge until their actions come to existence.

Some people argue that everything is written and what is the use, then, in striving? Those people, however, never say to themselves when they are hungry, it is written whether I will eat or not, but they go and fix food for themselves.

It also remains to be said that no one knows what is written, and thus may not say it was imposed on him to go to the bar vs. the masjid. Before he left home, he didn’t know what was written, thus he may not claim the writing was the cause of his misguidance and wrong decisions.

I want you also to practice this exercise of free will, say to yourself I will raise my right hand inshallah, and then do it. If you did that, you acted your will out. So, why did you say inshallah? Again, because if he didn’t so will for you, you could have died before you raised your hand, or the building may have collapsed, or something else could have happened to distract you.

Finally, put your trust in Allah and believe in His wisdom, as well as in His fairness. The train is destined to a good place where justice will be established and His all-encompassing mercy will be manifested.

Allah knows best.