Wanton Ascription

The title to this article is pretty stuffy. But I thought it captured best what I had to say about the tendency to ascribe everything to Allah SWT.. even the faults in our paths. Like the propensity to say it was Allah that made me even do the mistakes, so that I could find myself.. kinda thing.

I myself have used that logic in the past.. to bring in a sense of sanctity to the mistakes I have made. trying to see all my hiccups as part of God's plan..

I recently heard a speech by Yaser Qadihi that talked about the difference between Satan's and Adam's (AS) sins. When Satan disobeyed Allah SWT and incurred his wrath, his words were, But Allah, you made me do it! Where as Adam AS stated, O Allah! Indeed I have wronged myself and you.. Forgive me. This difference in response is very enlightening.

There is this brand of spirituality.. and I too have dabbled with it.. Where the notions are that- 

1)  "Everything -all good and bad comes from the One creator. So there is no true good and bad. Its all relative" 

or 

2) "The one God is so powerful and omnipotent that we are mere puppets. We are entities with no true agency but objects of God's will so recognising his omnipotence we just have to see his hands in everything we do".

On the outset, both these looks good. After all God is the ultimate Creator, creating the whole universe. And He is omnipotent who has control over all things. So these two positions seems to be a good recipe for a believer, right?

Seems to be.. but actually No. What is right, i infer is, 

• While Allah SWT remains omnipotent, He gave us Free Will (My humble inference. Allah knows best).  And we are responsible for our actions, while He retains intimate control of us which he exercises when we seek His help and whenever He wills. 
• Allah SWT created All that is in the universe, good and bad.. But he retains clear distinction of what is Good and What is Bad and appreciates what is Good. 

And here is where Islam categorically informs us, as opposed to what Aghora Philosophy or Advaita Philosophy or many other philosophies do in misinforming us. 

Because I believe Allah SWT gave us freedom over choosing our actions, I believe He is all the more merciful. For He lets us on paths to self explore and realise while constantly being in power. Allah SWT COULD HAVE BEEN constantly driving us. He has all the Power to do so. But instead He LETS us drive ourselves. This LETTING.. this could be the biggest mercy and gift of his.. I think of this as that of His Benevolence that wants us to live and learn from life. 

While enjoying this Rahma, how can we suddenly err and mess up and call that as His fault and His doing? If Allah SWT was the full mind and action manipulator, he needn't have had a parley with Satan or Adam (AS) in conversation.. He merely had to drive them like puppets. He created them both a certain way and I infer that He laid open a field of possibilities for them to be what they choose to be..

Satan/Iblees not owning up to his fault and throwing the fault back at Allah SWT as one of Allah's own decree seems so spiritual in a sense- in that it seems to imply- Oh Allah, i am so subservient to you that even my flaw is the flaw that you decreed. 

BUT

This is no true spirituality! For it does not recognise Allah's generous, expansive gift - the great blessing Allah gave us in the form of Freedom to live a life with a mind. 

Adam AS recognised his fault. He did not throw the blame back at Allah SWT.. saying like Iblees did that it was his design flaw that made him be tempted. In apologising for his error, he showed the space and freedom Allah had given for him to express his being through the process of life. 

 I learnt from this reflection that Allah SWT is Al Qadir - All powerful. But He is not All Meddling. He is Ar Rauf- The Kind, Al Kareem- The Generous, who gave us the possibility of a life to live in our discretion . This is a big responsibility for us. Just as its a big gift. If we choose to submit fully to Allah and obey Him, He will ease the responsibility.. But as long as we live, our mistakes are our own.