Before you were born, four things about you were written. So why does anything you do matter?
Islamic Studies · 40 Hadith, 9th and 10th Grade · 60 to 75 minutes
Last lesson, Jibril asked the Prophet (pbuh) about the whole deen, and we learned its three levels: what we do, what we believe, and doing it all as though we see Allah (SWT). Inside the answer about iman were six articles of belief. The sixth one is where we start today.
The Prophet (pbuh) said: "It is to believe in Allah (SWT), in His (SWT) angels, His books, His messengers, and the Last Day, and to believe in divine decree (qadar), both the good and the evil of it."
Hadith 4 looks closely at that last article: what was written for you before you were born, and what that means for how you live.
Before we read anything, take this question seriously. There is no wrong first answer.
What would change about how you study for a test if the grade had already been decided?
Would making dua or saying sorry to someone you hurt still mean anything? Why?
Keep your answer in mind. Later today we will see what the Prophet (pbuh) said when the companions (RA) asked him this same question.
عَنْ أَبِي عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ مَسْعُودٍ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ قَالَ: حَدَّثَنَا رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ، وَهُوَ الصَّادِقُ الْمَصْدُوقُ: "إِنَّ أَحَدَكُمْ يُجْمَعُ خَلْقُهُ فِي بَطْنِ أُمِّهِ أَرْبَعِينَ يَوْمًا نُطْفَةً، ثُمَّ يَكُونُ عَلَقَةً مِثْلَ ذَلِكَ، ثُمَّ يَكُونُ مُضْغَةً مِثْلَ ذَلِكَ،
Abdullah ibn Mas'ud (RA) said: The Messenger of Allah (SWT) (pbuh), and he is the truthful, the believed, told us: "Truly, the creation of each one of you is brought together in his mother's womb for forty days in the form of a nutfah (a drop), then he becomes an 'alaqah (clot of blood) for a like period, then a mudghah (morsel of flesh) for a like period,
Scholars have written a great deal about these stages. Today our focus is what this hadith teaches about qadar.
Why does Ibn Mas'ud (RA) call the Prophet (pbuh) "the truthful, the believed" before telling us something none of us could see?
ثُمَّ يُرْسَلُ إِلَيْهِ الْمَلَكُ فَيَنْفُخُ فِيهِ الرُّوحَ، وَيُؤْمَرُ بِأَرْبَعِ كَلِمَاتٍ: بِكَتْبِ رِزْقِهِ، وَأَجَلِهِ، وَعَمَلِهِ، وَشَقِيٍّ أَمْ سَعِيدٍ؛
then there is sent to him the angel who blows the soul into him and who is commanded with four matters: to write down his rizq (provision), his lifespan, his deeds, and whether he will be wretched or happy.
Which of these four would you most want to know about yourself?
Why do you think Allah (SWT) kept all four hidden from us?
فَوَاللَّهِ الَّذِي لَا إِلَهَ غَيْرُهُ إِنَّ أَحَدَكُمْ لَيَعْمَلُ بِعَمَلِ أَهْلِ الْجَنَّةِ حَتَّى مَا يَكُونُ بَيْنَهُ وَبَيْنَهَا إِلَّا ذِرَاعٌ فَيَسْبِقُ عَلَيْهِ الْكِتَابُ فَيَعْمَلُ بِعَمَلِ أَهْلِ النَّارِ فَيَدْخُلُهَا. وَإِنَّ أَحَدَكُمْ لَيَعْمَلُ بِعَمَلِ أَهْلِ النَّارِ حَتَّى مَا يَكُونُ بَيْنَهُ وَبَيْنَهَا إِلَّا ذِرَاعٌ فَيَسْبِقُ عَلَيْهِ الْكِتَابُ فَيَعْمَلُ بِعَمَلِ أَهْلِ الْجَنَّةِ فَيَدْخُلُهَا".
By Allah (SWT), other than Whom there is no deity, one of you performs the actions of the people of Paradise until there is but an arm's length between him and it, and then what has been written overtakes him, so he acts with the actions of the people of the Hellfire and thus enters it. And one of you performs the actions of the people of the Hellfire until there is but an arm's length between him and it, and then what has been written overtakes him, so he acts with the actions of the people of Paradise and thus enters it."
This ending can feel heavy the first time you hear it. We will come back to it later today and look at what it really means, and why it gives a believer reason for sincerity and hope rather than fear.
Which of these four do you have the most say in, and how does that change the way you see the other three?
Why might that one matter the most for how you live this week?
al-'ilm: Allah (SWT) knows everything, including every choice you will ever make, before it happens.
al-kitabah: He (SWT) wrote all of it down in al-Lawh al-Mahfuz, the Preserved Tablet, long before He created the heavens and the earth. The angel's writing in Hadith 4 is each person's own record, and it matches what is in the Tablet.
al-mashi'ah: Nothing happens anywhere unless Allah (SWT) wills it.
al-khalq: Allah (SWT) is the Creator of everything, including you and your ability to choose.
What is written is a record of what Allah (SWT) already knows, and it does not force anyone. You still truly choose, and you will be asked about your choices. None of us has seen what is written about us, so it can never be our reason to stop trying.
Why does it matter that knowing something is not the same as forcing it?
كَانَ النَّبِيُّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ فِي جَنَازَةٍ فَأَخَذَ شَيْئًا فَجَعَلَ يَنْكُتُ بِهِ الأَرْضَ فَقَالَ "مَا مِنْكُمْ مِنْ أَحَدٍ إِلاَّ وَقَدْ كُتِبَ مَقْعَدُهُ مِنَ النَّارِ وَمَقْعَدُهُ مِنَ الْجَنَّةِ". قَالُوا يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ أَفَلاَ نَتَّكِلُ عَلَى كِتَابِنَا وَنَدَعُ الْعَمَلَ
The Prophet (pbuh) was at a funeral. He picked up something and began scraping the ground with it, and said, "There is none among you but has his place written for him, either in the Fire or in Paradise." They said, "O Messenger of Allah (SWT) (pbuh), shall we not depend on what has been written for us and give up deeds?"
This is the question you answered with your partner at the start of class. Before the next slide, think about what you expect the Prophet (pbuh) to say.
قَالَ "اعْمَلُوا فَكُلٌّ مُيَسَّرٌ لِمَا خُلِقَ لَهُ، أَمَّا مَنْ كَانَ مِنْ أَهْلِ السَّعَادَةِ فَيُيَسَّرُ لِعَمَلِ أَهْلِ السَّعَادَةِ، وَأَمَّا مَنْ كَانَ مِنْ أَهْلِ الشَّقَاءِ فَيُيَسَّرُ لِعَمَلِ أَهْلِ الشَّقَاوَةِ". ثُمَّ قَرَأَ ﴿فَأَمَّا مَنْ أَعْطَىٰ وَاتَّقَىٰ ● وَصَدَّقَ بِالْحُسْنَىٰ﴾ الْآيَةَ.
He (pbuh) said, "Carry on doing deeds, for everyone will find it easy to do the deeds that lead to the place he was created for. Whoever is among the people of happiness will find it easy to do the deeds of the people of happiness, and whoever is among the people of misery will find it easy to do the deeds of the people of misery." Then he recited: "As for he who gives and fears Allah (SWT), and believes in the best [reward]..." (92:5-10)
They asked whether they should rely on what was written and stop doing deeds. The Prophet (pbuh) did not tell them to stop. His answer began with the word i'malu, which means keep doing deeds.
فَأَمَّا مَنْ أَعْطَىٰ وَاتَّقَىٰ ● وَصَدَّقَ بِالْحُسْنَىٰ ● فَسَنُيَسِّرُهُ لِلْيُسْرَىٰ ● وَأَمَّا مَن بَخِلَ وَاسْتَغْنَىٰ ● وَكَذَّبَ بِالْحُسْنَىٰ ● فَسَنُيَسِّرُهُ لِلْعُسْرَىٰ
As for he who gives and fears Allah (SWT) ● And believes in the best [reward], ● We will ease him toward ease. ● But as for he who withholds and considers himself free of need ● And denies the best [reward], ● We will ease him toward difficulty.
What does Allah (SWT) promise the one who gives, and what happens to the one who withholds and denies?
How do these ayat answer the question, "Why try if it's written?"
Notice how the ayat are built: the easing is promised to the one who gives, fears Allah (SWT), and believes. If doing good feels hard for you right now, that does not tell you what is written for you. The ayat show you what to do about it, which is to keep giving and keep your taqwa, and to ask Allah (SWT) to make the way easy for you.
Hadith 4 says your rizq and your ajal were written before you were born, so it's fair to ask whether your 30 Plan page was pointless. The companions (RA) asked the same thing, and the Prophet (pbuh) told them to keep doing deeds. Your plan and your effort are part of those deeds. The rizq and the ajal are His (SWT) part. Scholars explain that the means are written too: studying, seeing a doctor and making dua are all part of what Allah (SWT) decreed, so no effort and no dua is ever wasted.
The workshop put it this way:
"The plan, the classes, the training, the honest work. The effort is your responsibility."
"Results, rizq, timing, doors opening. The outcome was never on your shoulders."
The workshop also said: "We do not plan because we control the future. We plan because the intention and the effort are the part we answer for." Nothing in Hadith 4 cancels your page. It tells you which part of it is yours.
Picture your 30 Plan page. Which lines on it are your part, and which lines were always His (SWT) part?
Hadith 4 ended with a person who was an arm's length from Paradise. Another hadith helps us understand what was really happening.
إِنَّ الْعَبْدَ لَيَعْمَلُ فِيمَا يَرَى النَّاسُ عَمَلَ أَهْلِ الْجَنَّةِ، وَإِنَّهُ لَمِنْ أَهْلِ النَّارِ، وَيَعْمَلُ فِيمَا يَرَى النَّاسُ عَمَلَ أَهْلِ النَّارِ وَهْوَ مِنْ أَهْلِ الْجَنَّةِ، وَإِنَّمَا الأَعْمَالُ بِخَوَاتِيمِهَا
The Prophet (pbuh) said: "A person may do deeds that seem to the people like the deeds of the people of Paradise while in fact he is from the people of the Fire, and a person may do deeds that seem to the people like the deeds of the people of the Fire while in fact he is from the people of Paradise. Truly, the results of deeds depend upon the last actions."
Look at the words "seem to the people." What do they tell you about the person in Hadith 4 who was an arm's length from Paradise?
Ibn Rajab, who wrote one of the best-known explanations of al-Nawawi's 40 Hadith, said that the words "seem to the people" show that what was inside the person was different from what people could see. His explanation runs in both directions:
A bad ending comes from something hidden and corrupt inside a person that other people never saw.
A person whose outward deeds look bad may carry a hidden good quality inside, and at the end of his life that good quality wins out and gives him a good ending.
This describes someone who hides something and keeps choosing it, not a sincere person who is trying and worries about falling short. Scholars explain that a bad ending does not come to someone who is sincere both inside and out.
So the ending is not random, and it is not unfair. What is inside you matters more than how things look outside. That is Lesson 1's niyyah and Lesson 2's ihsan: doing what is right for Allah (SWT) even when only He (SWT) sees it.
It also means no one can judge another person's ending, because only Allah (SWT) sees what is inside.
What is one thing you do where what is inside you matters more than how it looks from the outside?
قُلْ يَا عِبَادِيَ الَّذِينَ أَسْرَفُوا عَلَىٰ أَنفُسِهِمْ لَا تَقْنَطُوا مِن رَّحْمَةِ اللَّهِ ۚ إِنَّ اللَّهَ يَغْفِرُ الذُّنُوبَ جَمِيعًا ۚ إِنَّهُ هُوَ الْغَفُورُ الرَّحِيمُ
Say, "O My servants who have transgressed against themselves [by sinning], do not despair of the mercy of Allah (SWT). Indeed, Allah (SWT) forgives all sins. Indeed, it is He (SWT) who is the Forgiving, the Merciful."
Hadith 4 runs in both directions. A person far from Allah (SWT) can turn toward Jannah near the end of their life, and while you are alive, that door is open to you as well. No one in this room knows what is written for them.
If you have ever worried, "What if I'm written as one of the wretched?", that worry is a sign of a living heart. Let it move you to make dua and turn back to Allah (SWT), rather than letting it freeze you.
Allah (SWT) speaks to people who have "transgressed against themselves" as "My servants." What does that choice of words tell someone who feels far from Him (SWT)?
Your group performs the same scene twice. In Version A, the character acts on the excuse on your card. In Version B, it's the same scene, and a friend answers the excuse using one of today's texts. Four groups work best, and each group is given one card number.
"If Allah (SWT) wanted me to pray, I'd be praying."
"My grades are already written, so why study for this test?"
"It was written that I'd lose my temper, so it's not my fault."
"My rizq is written, so it doesn't matter how I make money."
"What if I'm written as one of the wretched? Then nothing I do matters."
"I did everything right and still didn't get in. I don't understand why."
Version A: the character gives up on trying for anything else. Version B: a friend helps them see it differently.
The amount of your rizq is written. Whether you reach it through halal or haram is your deed, and you answer for your deeds.
This one is not really an excuse. It comes from real hurt. The effort was your part and the outcome is His (SWT) part, and the hadith of the believer's affair from the 30 Plan workshop teaches that patience turns even this into good.
Each excuse on cards 1 to 5 treats what is written as something we can see and hide behind. None of us has seen what is written, but all of us can see the choice in front of us. Scholars explain that qadar is a comfort when something happens to you, never an excuse for a wrong you choose. When we fall into a sin, the answer is to own it and repent, the way Adam (AS) did.
Take out a sheet of paper and write your three answers quietly.
Your writing stays with you.
Hadith 4 ends with how a life ends, and today we saw that the ending grows out of what is inside a person. The Prophet (pbuh) often made this dua, asking Allah (SWT) to keep his heart firm.
كَانَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ يُكْثِرُ أَنْ يَقُولَ "يَا مُقَلِّبَ الْقُلُوبِ ثَبِّتْ قَلْبِي عَلَى دِينِكَ"
Anas (RA) said: "The Messenger of Allah (SWT) (pbuh) would often say: 'Ya Muqallib al-qulub, thabbit qalbi 'ala dinik' (O Changer of the hearts, make my heart firm upon Your religion)."
Say this dua at least once a day this week, for example after a prayer or before you sleep.
Learn the words by heart, and think about what you are asking for each time you say it.