For instance...

For instance, we can mention the name of the Egyptian writer, Ahmad Amin who has written the Fajr al-Islam, the Zuh’l al-Islam, the Zuhr al-Islam and the Yaum al-Islam. Ahmad Amin has to a great extent evinced his ability to discuss and analyze social questions, but as far as the question of fate is concerned, he has proved as helpless as the scholastic theologians.

Towards the end of his book, Fajr al-Islam he has, in a special chapter, discussed the question of predestination and freedom of will, but on the whole it appears that according to him a belief in destiny means predestinarianism. Hence he is not prepared to believe that the hadiths regarding destiny are authentic. Similarly he is unable to believe that the Nahj al-Balaghah is a collection of the sermons and letter of Imam Ali.

Of course, he is not blame, because it is due to his lack of knowledge that he is so skeptic. As a rule it may e said that no scholar, whether a European, an Egyptian or an Iranian. Whose knowledge is confined to social sciences is in a position to express an opinion on the history of Islamic knowledge.

Whenever the European historians or the orientalists have expressed an opinion about the question of fate, they have either described Islam as a religion of predestination or have claimed that the doctrine of fate and destiny is not found in the Qur’an and that it was created later by the scholastic theologians. An orientalist says: “The cardinal principles of Islam are as follows: God is One: Muhammad is His Prophet ….

The theologians have preached that Allah has foreordained the fate of everybody and that His Will is unchangeable. This doctrine is called jabr (predestination; literally compulsion)…………………….”. Gustav Le Bon, in a defending way says that in this respect the Qur’an has not said anything more than what the other sacred Books say.

After quoting verses of the Qur’an and making certain remarks he adds” “Islam has been accused of having a belief in fate, but this charge is as baseless as all other charges. We have already put the Qur’anic verses on this subject before our readers. They say no more than what is written in this respect in our sacred Book. All philosophers and schoolmen are of the view that all events are preordained and totally unchangeable.

Luther, who was a reformer, himself has written: “All available evidence in the sacred Book is repugnant to the theory of liberty. This evidence is found in many places of the Scripture.