Frequently asked questions regarding Determinism and Free Will The question of Determinism and Free Will, as understood from the Holy Qur'an was concisely stated earlier (in reply to a question). Further questions arising out of this view can now be discussed once the degrees of determinism imposed by cosmic arrangement and degrees of human freedom have been understood in the context of three different spheres. Once we establish the fact that man is accountable for his actions in his earthly life, we immediately face the following paradoxical questions: Knowledge of God : Taqdeer in Muslim theology means the Knowledge of God. If everything is in the knowledge of God even before it happens, it means that things have been completely predetermined because God's knowledge is always true. Whatever is to happen, according to His knowledge, will definitely happen. This means that man is not free to act. Conversely, if we hold that man has freedom of action, it means that whatever we do in this world was not within the prior knowledge of God, which is absurd. Nothing happens without God's will : The Holy Qur'an and the Hadeeth literature often states that nothing can happen in the world without the will of God. This means that everything is predetermined and man is helpless in the world. Moreover, it means that even if one commits a sin, it is so because God had willed it. In other words, God becomes responsible for evil in the world, which is again absurd. If man is free, can he do everything : If man can do whatever he wants, then man would destroy the order on the earth leading to chaos. Influence of the environment : Why is man accountable for his conduct when he is born in environments predetermined by God? Obviously, to a great extent, the environment and the moral ambiance determine our moral conduct. If the cosmic determinism is there, we should not be punished or rewarded for what we do under the conscious or unconscious influence of our environment. I would try to address each of these questions here. 1. Knowledge of God: Some people present the issue of taqdeer (Religious Determinism) in the following manner: Taqdeer is another name for Ilm-e-Ilaahi (Knowledge of God). Now God knows everything before hand, which also includes our future. Suppose God knows that Mary will get good marks in the spot test but Daniel will not. Now God's knowledge cannot be incorrect . Therefore Mary is pre-determined to get good marks and Daniel is pre-determined to get bad marks. Their results are already determined whether they work hard for the test or ignore it. The same can be applied to sin or piety. A person commits a murder because it was already written in God's knowledge; a person helps a poor sick lady because it was already written in his Taqdeer. But this view fails to answer the question that why should a sinful person be punished and a pious person be rewarded on the day of judgment when they were not doing it out of free will? One can go further and say why should a murderer be sentenced to death when it was actually not his doing, but the result of his Taqdeer , and why should Mary get a prize for getting good marks when it was actually her Taqdeer that did it?. It is true that God knows everything. He knew that John will make up his mind to murder his friend. But the question is 'Did John make up his mind to murder his friend because God knew it? or God knew it because John was to independently make up his mind to murder his friend? A couple of illustrations may help us answer the question. Let us imagine that white ants are eating away the wooden pillars of a shed. We can say, "Look ! This roof will fall down." Finally the roof falls down. The question is "Did the roof fall because we said so" or "We said so, because the roof was about to fall due to other factors?" If I drop a glass from the top floor of a high rise building, you would immediately predict that within a few seconds, the glass will crash on the ground. Did it crash because you predicted so? or it it that you said so because you knew it would so happen on the basis of your knowledge about falling bodies? These illustrations are only partially and incompletely analogous to the knowledge of God. Our knowledge, on the basis of which, we predicted that the shed will fall down or the glass will crash on the ground is learned and acquired knowledge. This knowledge was not acquired through any supernatural means. It is based on the study of physical bodies and laws of nature. God's knowledge about future is of a different nature. We have no understanding of God's ways. But one thing is certain. God knows that a certain individual would perform a certain act, but the individual would perform the act out of his will. God only knew it in advance. Therefore, if John murders his friend, he does that with his free will. Although it is correct that God already knew it. John has not murdered his friend because God knew it; rather God knew it because John was to murder his friend out of his free will. Therefore John should be held accountable for his act. 2. Nothing happens without God's will: It is true that God is the only effective force in the world. He has full control over the universe and not a single particle is beyond his command and control. However this does not mean that God is responsible for every evil in this world. Here a distinction between God's 'Sanction' and his ' Liking' must be understood. Everything that happens in the universe follows God's sanction or permission for it. Nothing can happen unless God allows it to happen. However, it does not necessary mean that He also likes whatever He sanctions. This world is a place where all men are being judged. Human actions are being watched and recorded for final judgment on the Day of Judgment. Since this life is a test period, men must have the freedom to choose between evil and good. God would not interfere with human choices, nor would manipulate them, because this would defeat the very purpose of a test. This world is like an examination hall. A supervisor passes by a student and finds that the student is writing down an incorrect reply to the question asked. Should the supervisor ignore this mistake or should he tell the student that he is not attempting the question correctly? Obviously, we think that the correct conduct of the supervisor entails that he should ignore the student's mistake. If the student is checked right during the examination, the very purpose of the examination is defeated. Similarly, God allows us to make moral choices at our will and does not interfere through angels and divine powers when we are pursuing an immoral path. Thus we create evil in the world by reckless behavior and by making wrong moral choices. God is not responsible for this evil. He has only permitted it, but surely, does not like it. 3. If man is free he can do anything Man is free to make up his mind and to build intentions to perform good or bad acts. He is free to wish, intend and plan - but he is not always free to implement his plans. To carry out our intentions, we need the cosmic harmony to go along with us. But the number of forces acting in this world may obstruct our plans and thwart them. Our frustrated designs (whether good or bad) show that the cosmic determinism does not necessarily go along with our intentions. Carrying out our good or bad intentions is often beyond our control. God's superimposed rule over everything fixes boundaries for possibilities open to us in the realm of carrying out actions. Through his power over everything, he plans and designs the universe. His plans clearly and unquestionable overrule ours. Thus, when it comes to human actions we must know that although we are not free to carry out our plans in life , but we are free to make up our mind to do anything . In other words, we are free to have an iraada (intention) but not free to implement it. But the final judgment is to be passed not on our ability to do something but to intend and strive to do it. We shall be punished or rewarded for something that we are free to choose. We would not be punished or rewarded for something that is beyond our control. We are perfectly free to choose and make up our minds to do something. If the intended action is good we would be rewarded, irrespective of the fact whether we are able to carry it out or not. The same is true of evil intentions and efforts also. 4. Environment Among other factors that affect our lives, the environment (family, peers, media, literature, society and state) is the most obvious. Religion does not argue whether the environment has any influence or not, and if it does affect our moral choices, to what extent can we resist or succumb to it. It however establishes a rule that we would only be held responsible to the extent that we were free to choose. The conscious or unconscious influences that might have shaped our choices would be accounted for in the hereafter. One would only be held responsible for his choices that he was perfectly free to make, and to such extent only. Nadir Aqueel Ansari