Title: More on Taqdeer - Fate Question: Allah's Apostle, the true and truly inspired said, "(The matter of the Creation of) a human being is put together in the womb of the mother in forty days, and then he becomes a clot of thick blood for a similar period, and then a piece of flesh for a similar period. Then Allah sends an angel who is ordered to write four things. He is ordered to write down his (i.e. the new creature's) deeds, his livelihood, his (date of) death, and whether he will be blessed or wretched (in religion). Then the soul is breathed into him. So, a man amongst you may do (good deeds till there is only a cubit between him and Paradise and then what has been written for him decides his behavior and he starts doing (evil) deeds characteristic of the people of the (Hell) Fire. And similarly a man amongst you may do deeds till there is only a cubit between him and the (Hell) Fire, and then what has been written for him decides his behavior, and he starts doing deeds characteristic of the people of Paradise." Can you elaborate this hadith in the context of free will in Islam? Because from the apparent text reading it is clear that everything about a human being is already written and preserve, so the concept of judgment day is seemingly contradicted to what has been already decided? Regards Answer: It is not prudent to comment on a given hadith without collecting and analyzing all of its various narrations and then deliberating upon it in the light of the Qur'an. However, strictly from the perspective of fate and taqdeer , the narrative seems quite clear. Before taking a look at the cited hadith, it is important to remember that " taqdeer" in the referred context implies God's absolute knowledge about everything, including each man's ultimate destiny in the hereafter. The narrative tells us that even before the birth of a person, God has full knowledge regarding the deeds he/she would perform during the life of this world, regarding his means of livelihood, regarding the time of his death and regarding his ultimate destiny in the hereafter. The narrative then explains how God's knowledge is absolute and without any flaw. As an example, it tells us that a person about whom God knows that his ultimate destiny will be in hellfire, he will inevitably reach the hellfire. Even if such a person had apparently seemed to have lived most of his life in piety and goodness, he would ultimately commit deeds - with his own freewill - that will disqualify him from entry into paradise. A further important lesson in this hadith ascribed to the Prophet (pbuh) is that no person, however pious and god-fearing he has been, should be complacent about his deeds. He must remember that his test during the life of this world continues till his death and till that time the chance of qualifying for eternal bliss as well as that of eternal punishment continues to exist. Any complacency and carelessness on his part, may completely nullify his deeds piety and goodness and lead him to the eternal punishment of hellfire. Regards, Moiz Amjad October 23, 2004