Title: Fate & Free Will Question/Comments: I have gone through your site on fate. I would like to ask 2 more questions.1.Does Allah (SWT)already knows what will happen or has He (SWT)already decided what will happen? Hope you will explain clearly difference between knows and decided. 2.Where in The Quran does Allah (SWT)says that man has free will? Hope you will answer this question. Thank you. Answer: Your answers are as follows: God knows what will happen before it happens. He does not say that He has decided what will happen before hand. The difference is that if God knows what is going to happen it does not automatically mean that He affects the events in any way. However, if He has decided something it means that He has orchestrated the events. Knowing the future is different than creating the future. 2. The very concept of reward and punishment in the hereafter entails the concept of free-will. After all, how can one be held responsible, punished or even rewarded for something in which he was not even free to do otherwise. Consider the following verse from the Holy Qur'an: (The fact is that) God does not burden anyone beyond his capacity; every soul will have what it has earned and it will be held responsible only for its own doing. Al Baqarah 2:286 I hope I have clarified the issue. God knows best. Ronnie Hassan January 25, 2005