Tahqiq al-Ihtijaj bil-Qadar li-Ibn Taymiyya
- Author died
- 728 AH
- Editions
- al-Maktab al-Islāmī
Tahqiq al-Ihtijaj bil-Qadar (Arabic: تحقيق الاحتجاج بالقدر) is a theological treatise written by the Hanbali scholar Ibn Taymiyya (661–728 AH / 1263–1328 CE) addressing the invalidity of using divine decree (al-Qadar) as an excuse for committing sins or abandoning religious obligations .
Subject and Core Arguments
The treatise focuses on the Islamic theological distinction between believing in divine predestination and inappropriately invoking it as a moral or legal justification for wrongdoing . Ibn Taymiyya establishes that Muslims and all rational people agree that predestination cannot serve as a defense for sinful behavior . He formulates the principle that divine decree is invoked in response to hardships and calamities (al-masa'ib), not to excuse moral failings and sins (al-ma'ayib) .
A central issue analyzed in the work is the prophetic report concerning the debate between Adam and Moses, in which Adam prevailed in argument over Moses regarding his expulsion from Paradise . Ibn Taymiyya clarifies that Adam did not cite predestination to excuse an ongoing sin or reject accountability; rather, the argument pertained to a decreed affliction that befell his progeny after he had already repented, or predestination mentioned purely in the context of monotheism and submission after repenting .
Refutation of Fatalistic Arguments
Ibn Taymiyya argues that accepting predestination as a legitimate excuse for human disobedience inevitably leads to the invalidation of divine legislation, prophetic messages, moral accountability, and legal penalties (hudud) . He notes that if such an excuse were admissible:
- No thief could be punished, no murderer executed, and no wrongdoer reproached .
- The arguments of figures like Iblis and rebellious nations would have been valid against divine retribution .
- It would mirror the reasoning of the polytheists described in the Quran who argued: لَوْ شَاءَ اللَّهُ مَا أَشْرَكْنَا وَلَا آبَاؤُنَا ("If Allah had willed, we would not have associated partners with Him, nor would our fathers") .
Furthermore, he points out the inherent contradiction of those who invoke decree to excuse their own actions, as they universally reject the same defense when someone wrongs or harms them personally .
Editions
The treatise was edited and its hadiths verified by the scholar Muhammad Nasir al-Din al-Albani, and published under the title al-Ihtijaj bil-Qadar (with its fourth edition issued in 1404 AH) by al-Maktab al-Islami .
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