About Fate

Written in Turkish by Mehmet Yaşar KANDEMİR

Translated into English by İbrahim Faruk CEYLAN

From the well known Faqihs1 of Tabi’un2, Yahya bin Yamar was qadi3 of Merv in modern-day Iran.

He studied hadith with some companions of the Prophet such as Abu Hurairah and Abdallah ibn Abbas.

One year, he went on a pilgrimage to Kaaba.

At those times, some people started to believe there was no such thing as Fate. “Ah!” said Yahya. “I wish I would meet one of the friends of the Prophet, I would ask their opinions about those who deny destiny.”

Just then, he saw Umar ibn al-Khattab’s famous son Abdullah entering the mosque. Yahya quickly approached him. After explaining some of those people were reading Quran and were getting tied up with science:

“Those people say: ‘Events happen by themselves; Allah has no role in it and has no knowledge about this.’ What is your opinion on this?”

Abdullah ibn Umar said: 

“Tell this to those who deny fate when you meet them! I do not have any ties with them or vice versa. I swear to Allah, even if one of them had a pile of gold at the size of Mount Uhud and gave all of it to the poor for the sake of Allah, unless he believes in fate, his deeds won’t be accepted by Allah.

“My father Umar told me: ‘One day, we were in the same place with the Prophet (s.a.w). A man with a white dress and black hair came to him. He did not look like a traveler, none of us knew him. The Man came near the Prophet and sat right next to him. He put his hands on the Prophet’s laps and said:

‘O, Muhammad. Tell me about Islam!’ 

‘Islam is a there is no god other than Allah, Muhammad is his messenger, to pray honestly, to give your alms, to fast in Ramadan, to go on a pilgrimage to Kaaba if you can.

‘You have told the truth!’ Him asking and approving the answer was strange to us. Next, the man said:

‘Now, tell me about Iman!

‘Iman is believing in Allah and his angels, books, prophets, afterlife and finally fate and all good and evil is from Allah.’

The man again said:

‘You have told the truth. What is Ihsan then?’

Messenger of Allah replied:

‘Ihsan is obeying Allah as if you are seeing him. Even if you are not seeing Him, He always sees you.’

The man again said:

‘You have told the truth. When is the Day of Resurrection?’

The Prophet replied:

‘The inquired does not know more than the inquirer.’

‘Then, tell me about the signs of the Day of Resurrection!’

‘Children treating their mothers as if they are their slaves, barefooted vagabond herdsmen building high and beautiful buildings and competing about it.’

After he got his answers, the man silently went away. I could just gasp at him. Then our beloved Prophet said to me:

‘Umar! Do you know who this was?’

I said:

’Only Allah and his Messenger knows who he was.’

‘He was Jibreel!(Gabriel) He came to teach you about your religion.’”1

1 Muslim, Faith, Book 1, Hadith 1; Ebû Dâvûd, Sunnah, Book 42, Hadith 100; Ibn Majah, Vol. 1, Book 1, Hadith 63

 

 

 

 

 

 

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