How Merciful is Allah

How Merciful is Allah?

— A Response to a
Criticism on the Qur’an by Mr. Jochen Katz —

The Learner

 

Mr. Jochen Katz has summarised one of
his articles thus:

He has prescribed mercy for himself
[6:12], yet he does not guide some, even though he could [6:35, 14:4].

The basic theme of Mr. Katz’s brief
article is that at one place, the Qur’an says:

He [Allah] has inscribed [prescribed]
for himself (the rule of) mercy.

According to Mr. Katz, if God really
is as meriful as the Qur’an says then He should have guided all of mankind to the right
path and thereby allowed them the everlasting bliss of the life of Paradise. But, the
Qur’an says that this is not the case. It says that even though Allah could have guided
all of mankind to the path of His liking, but He still did it not:

… If it were Allah’s will, He could
gather them together unto true guidance. …

Instead, the Qur’an says that, rather
than guiding all of mankind to the right path, He guided whom He pleased and the rest He
led astray, as is clear from one of the verses of the Qur’an which reads as:

Allah leads astray whom he pleases,
and he guides whom He pleases, …

Mr. Katz writes:

If it is Allah’s will that some
perish, if it is his will that some are not guided as 6:35 clearly says, how can aya 12 of
the same sura be true, that He has prescribed mercy for Himself? Is it merciful to lead
astray…

In the article that follows, I shall
try to briefly present my point of view regarding the verses and the concepts that Mr.
Katz seems to have misunderstood, because of which he believes that the referred verses
contradict each other.

 

An Analysis of the Referred
Verses:

Let us, first of all, take a look
at the three verses which form the basis of Mr. Katz’s article. The first among these verses may be translated as:

Ask them: Whose is it that is
between the heavens and the earth? Say: It is Allah’s. He has decreed mercy for Himself,
[thus] He shall definitely gather you all to the Day of Resurrection, in the coming of
which there is no doubt. Indeed, those who have lost their souls shall not believe [in
it]. (Al-An`am 6: 12)

The second verse reads as:

If it is hard for you to bear their
aversion [from the truth] seek if you can a chasm in the earth or a ladder to the sky by
which you can bring them a sign [for We are not going to show them any signs to make them
believe]. Had God pleased, He would have guided them all [to the right path]. So, do not
be carried away by your desire [to guide them]. (Al-An`aam 6: 35)

The third verse reads as:

Each messenger that We sent, spoke
only in the language of his own people so that he may clarify [Our commandments] to them.
Allah leads astray whom He pleases and guides whom He pleases. He is the Mighty, the Wise.
(Ibra’heem 14: 4)

These are the three verses on the
basis of which Mr. Katz has pointed out the said contradiction in the Qur’an. These three
verses, as is quite obvious, deal with two separate phenomena. One is the obvious
corollary of Allah’s Mercy (the first verse), and the other is the wisdom behind the
Allah’s law regarding guidance of the human soul in the life of this world (the second and
the third verse). Now, obviously, being merciful does not automatically imply lack of
wisdom. What it does imply is that the wisdom should not negate mercy in anyway. As shall
be seen in the following paragraphs, the two [i.e. wisdom and mercy] go hand in hand, and
are in no way mutually exclusive or contradictory.

God’s Mercy — As Introduced by
the Qur’an

The Qur’an says that God is Most
Merciful. He is Rahmaan and Raheem. Rahmaan means that the
extent of His Mercy is beyond our comprehension. He is infinitely Merciful. While Raheem
means that this level of His Mercy extends forever, it shall never reduce.

According to the Qur’an, some of the
signs of God’s Mercy are that:

• His Providence and His blessings in
  the life of this world, are not limited to those who submit to His commands. He is the
  Provider for everyone, whether a person is faithful to Him or whether he rejects His call;
• He does not punish the sinners for
  their sins immediately, He gives them respite and time to correct their behavior;
• When a sinner turns to Him and asks
  His forgiveness with an honest heart and a sincere resolve to correction, He not only
  forgives his sins but also converts his bad deeds into good ones;
• When a person calls Him with a sincere
  and an honest heart and asks for His guidance, He opens the doors of His guidance for such
  a person;
• He does not put a man in such a
  situation where he is forced to lose his faith in Him;
• He does not hold man responsible for
  something that is against the commands of Allah, if man is forced to do such evil by
  external conditions;
• He does not hold man responsible for
  something that is against the commands of Allah, if such evil is done in ignorance;
• He sent His prophets and messengers
  for man’s guidance to the path of His liking;
• He rewards man for his intention of
  doing good, even though man is not able to carry out his intention;

I am sure if a person looks at and
around himself, he shall find innumerable items that are a sign of God’s infinite Mercy.
If our eyes see and our ears hear and our touch feels, and our tongue tastes and our
hearts beat, it is only because of His infinite Mercy. He has provided everything that was
not only essential for our subsistence on this earth but also that which makes our stay on
the earth comfortable and enjoyable. He has filled the heart of parents with the love that
a child needs. He has provided water with the quality to quench the thirst of a dry mouth.
And He has bestowed trees with the cool shadow to provide the wayfarer a respite from the
burning sun. He has given us our senses, He has bestowed on us the faculty of reason and,
most of all, He has given us this life — A life which we never want to let go.

The Qur’an also tells us that one of
the obvious corollaries of God’s Mercy is justice. Thus, the Day of Judgment — the day on
which good and evil shall be separated and shall be given their respective rewards —
according to the Qur’an is an essential requirement of God’s infinite Mercy.

The Law of Guidance of the Human
Soul

The first part of the law of guidance
of the human soul pertains to the freedom of choice that God has given man in a particular
sphere. The Qur’an tells us that the life of this world is a test. Man is given this life
and is bestowed with all the good things in life not because he earned these good things,
but to be tested as to how he uses these things. The good times and the bad times in this
life are generally distributed among individuals not as a reward or a punishment for their
deeds, but to test them regarding whether they are thankful when given good times and
whether they remain steadfast in the way of their Lord, when given bad times. The Qur’an
tells us that for the purpose of this test man was given freedom to choose in a particular
sphere — especially the sphere in which he was being tested. Thus, man may, if he
chooses, turn away from the right path or he may submit to its demands. God Himself gave
man this freedom.

If God had so wanted, He could have
made all men follow the right path. But that would effectively have meant that man was not
given any freedom to choose. And without this freedom the human soul could not have been
tested. In such a case, all men would have been good, not by choice but by default. Reward
or punishment would then have become meaningless. Thus, even though God could have guided
all men to the right path, He did it not, so that man could be tested effectively and so
that his good and bad deeds be truly called his own and so that he be rewarded for opting
for the good and punished for opting for the evil. This is exactly what the following
verse means:

Had God pleased, He would have
guided them all [to the right path]…. (Al-An`aam 6: 35)

The second part of the law of
guidance of the human soul is that God opens His doors for guidance only to those who
prove themselves deserving of this favor. If man honestly searches for the truth, God
shall guide Him to the right path. But if man is wary of the truth, God shall only
increase his hatred for the good. This law of guidance of the human soul has been
explained by Dr. Khalid Zaheer, in one of his articles titled “The
Qur’anic Law of Guidance“, in the following words:

According to the details available
in the Qur’a^n on the nature of the law, each individual who has been put through the
test of this worldly life has been provided with adequate abilities to distinguish right
from wrong, truth from untruth. However, since the this-worldly part of man’s life
was meant to be only a trial in God Almighty’s plan to decide as to who from amongst
the human beings are going to be found deserving the privilege of entry into al-Jannah and
who are not, wrong and untruth were allowed to be shrouded under tempting, attractive
appearances. Thus, to tell a lie in many worldly situations accompanies some immediate
material gains, while to tell a truth, it requires the truthful to make sacrifices in
doing so. However, those who are declining to follow the right behaviour for worldly gains
have been provided with enough abilities to know from within their souls that what they
are doing is in fact hideous. Therefore, an individual’s act of lying, for example,
may bring some immediate worldly benefits for him on the one hand, but would also be
accompanied by a feeling of guilt in his conscience on the other. This voice of the
conscience continues to condemn if the individual continues to defy its verdicts, although
each subsequent stroke of conscience-pricking if ignored is likely to be less pronounced
than the earlier ones. In other words, the facility of self-correction from within is not
available to individuals unconditionally and endlessly. If the voice of the conscience is
valued by the individual through his positive responses to its calls, it grows in
strength. If it is ignored, it gets weaker until such time that it finally disappears into
extinction.

Likewise, if an individual
demonstrates his willingness to respond to the calls of his conscience, no matter what the
consequences, and as a result even when he commits a crime against its verdict, he
earnestly regrets and corrects himself, this inner facility not only survives but grows
from strength to strength. For such people the path of truth and righteousness is not only
familiar but extremely pleasing. Thus, whenever the ultimate truth in the form of the
message of a prophet of Alla^h approaches them, they find no hesitation in recognizing and
acknowedging it. They, in fact, find it so familiar that they do not notice any variance
between their inner conscience and the contents of the message. Accordingly, the message
appears to them most convincing and appealing.

Thus when Alla^h’s message is
presented before individuals, their responses are in direct correlation with the state of
their conscience. There are some who give an immediately positive response. Such are the
people who had preserved the sanctity of their conscience by always respecting the truth
and nobility. Since they were always accustomed to acknowledging and respecting the truth,
when the clearest manifestation of truth is presented to them, it is no wonder that they
unhesitatingly incline towards it. It is an inviolable law which is enforced through
subtle manipulations in the human feelings ultimately affecting the behavioural pattern of
individuals. The application of the positive aspect of the law in an individual not only
helps him in realising the veracity of the truth, it furthermore leads him to the higher
levels of achievement of it. Thus their life in this world is a spiritual journey made
easier (taysi^r) enabling them to be taken from the darkness of relative untruth towards
the ever-brightening light of truth.

But for those who have been
consistently ignoring the truth in its different manifestations, they do not get the
privilege of welcoming the message of Alla^h, the highest level of truth. It is as if when
a student fails at a lower grade examination, he cannot be expected to make it to success
at a higher one. They are not only deprived of acknowledging the truth, but are
furthermore allowed to plunge into the ever-deepening darkness of ignorance (imha^l).

However, it seems that not every
one belongs to the category of people who possess the highest level of nobility of heart.
There are many others who despite having duly respected verdicts of their conscience on
many occasions, did show a tendency of going on the wrong side as well to fall into the
trap of doing acts that were not acceptable to the conscience. Thus their inner souls are
not as unmistakably clean as of those belonging to the first category. At the time when
they are confronted with the message of truth, they are not as immediately clear about its
veracity as is the case of those belonging to the first category. They might, therefore,
hesitate, to begin with, in accepting it, even to the extent of apparently denying it.
However, on later reconsideration, they realise that their earlier decision was incorrect.
Thus they too ultimately get the privilege of ackowledging and valuing the truth. The
Qur’a^n says, ” And there are others who have confessed their faults.
They mixed good works with others that are evil. It may be that Alla^h will turn to them
with compassion. Surely Alla^h is Most Forgiving, Merciful.(9:102)

As for those who have lost the true
sifting ability of their souls as a consequence of their persistently wrong behaviour,
since their inner realisation has perished, they do not find themselves able to appreciate
the purity of the message that comes from Alla^h. The Qur’a^n mentions the
description of a group of such people belonging to the tribe of Quraish thus: “So
comply not with the wishes of those who reject (the Truth). They wish that you should
compromise so that they may also compromise. Do not pay heed to any mean swearer,
backbiter, one who goes about slandering, forbidder of good, transgressor, sinful, crude,
and above all mean and infamous. Only because he possesses riches and children. When Our
signs are recited before him, he says ‘Tales of the ancient.’”
(68:8-15) On another occasion it is mentioned thus: “Ah the woe that day for
those who deny, who call the day of judgement a lie! None denies it but the wicked, the
transgressor. When Our revelations are recited before him, he says: ‘Fables of long
ago.’ No. In fact what they have been doing has rusted their hearts.”
(83:10-14) Even if people belonging to this category apparently accept the truth, it is
only for worldly benefits and not for genuine consideration of acknowledging the voice of
the truth. The Qur’a^n says, “When the hypocrites come to you, they say,
‘We confirm that you are the messenger of Alla^h.’ Alla^h indeed knows you are
His messenger. Alla^h bears witness that hypocrites are indeed liars. They have made their
oaths a shield, thus they obstruct others from the way of Alla^h. It is certainly evil
what they do. That is because they came to believe, and then disbelievd, so their hearts
were sealed and now they do not understand.” (63:1-3)

Those who deny the message of the
prophets, they still get the opportunity from God to consider accepting it for a while. On
persistent denial, however, the inner conscience begins to lose its God-given ability and
when their intransigence goes beyond a certain divinely established limit, the inner
damage is rendered irreparable. It is an inflexible aspect of the law of guidance in the
case of such people that, as the Qur’a^n informs us, Alla^h seals their hearts, their
ears and their eyes, such that they do not get any further opportunity from Him of
acknowledging the truth. All attempts to bring them close to faith fail, because the inner
ability that could enable them to acquire it has disappeared for ever. As a consequence
the Qur’a^n informs us that Alla^h has, “… raised a barrier in front
of them and a barrier behind them, and have covered them over so that they are not able to
see (the truth). Whether you warn them or do not warn them, it is all the same; they will
not believe.” (36:9-10) They are described by the Qur’a^n as worse than
beasts (7:179, 25:44, and 8:22) since they have allowed themselves to remain deaf, dumb
and blind to the ultimate truth despite being blessed with such faculties which, if they
were properly used, could have lead them to appreciating it.

This is the basic outline of the law of guidance of
the human soul. God gives guidance to man or leads him astray on the basis of this law. No
one, even if he be a prophet of God, can influence Him in the implementation of this law.
This is exactly what the verses, like the third cited verse (Ibra’heem 14: 4)
mean.

In the particular environment in which the Qur’an was
revealed there were at least two groups who believed that they were the chosen one’s of
God. One were the Bani-Israil — the jews — and the other were the leaders of Quraish.
Both these classes of people tried to convince their followers by saying that if Mohammad
(pbuh)’s message was really a blessing of God, then no one could have surpassed them in
accepting it. If God had chosen them to be the leaders over others during the past many
centuries, then how could anyone — especially the poor and the homeless — surpass them
in this case. It is primarily as a reply to such idiosyncrasies of the two groups that the
Qur’an has stressed that no one has a monopoly over God’s guidance. God guides and leads
people astray, according to His own laws, and in the implementation of His laws, no one
can have any influence on Him. He cannot, in anyway be bound by the likings of others. He
is completely free in this implementation and does exactly how He pleases. It is to
signify this fact that these verses in a number of instances are followed by the following
attributes of God:

1. Waasi`and `aleem, (as in A’l
   Imraan 3: 73) meaning “Liberal” or “One whose mercy is not
   limited” or “Munificent” and “All Knowing” or
   “Omniscient”
2. zul-fadhl al-`azeem, (as in A’l Imraan
   3: 74) meaning “One with infinite or abounding grace”;
3. `aleem and Hakeem, (as in Al-Insaan
   76: 30) meaning “All Knowing” or “Omniscient” and “All
   Wise”; and
4. `azeez and Hakeem, (as in Ibra’heem
   14: 4) meaning “Mighty” and “All Wise”.

The first set of attributes at the end of such a
verse signifies that God’s mercy is not limited to a particular people [as the Jews and
the leaders of the Quraish would like it to be]. He is All Knowing, He guides
whom He, according to His absolute Knowledge, knows to be deserving of this favor. The
second attribute at the end of such a verse signifies the same meaning as “Waasi`“.
The third set of attributes at the end of such verses signifies that God knows who is
deserving of His favors and that all His laws and decisions are based on infinite wisdom.
While the fourth set of attributes at the end of such verses signifies that God is
absolutely independent of any influnce in the implementation of His laws. He is the
Mighty. And all His laws and decisions are based on infinite wisdom.

In the light of the explanation given above, we can
say that the contradiction pointed out by Mr. Katz is actually based on an incorrect
understanding of the cited verses. Because these verses relate to separate phenomena,
therefore there does not arise the question of any contradiction(s).

 

© Copyright May, 1999. All Rights Reserved
with the Author

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