#الأربعون_في_ذكر_الأربعين

17. The Decree Written Forty Years Before Adam Was Created Abu Hurairah reported that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: ((احْتَجَّ آدَمُ وَمُوسَى، فَقَالَ لَهُ مُوسَى: يَا آدَمُ، أَنْتَ أَبُونَا، خَيَّبْتَنَا وَأَخْرَجْتَنَا مِنَ الْجَنَّةِ. قَالَ لَهُ آدَمُ : يَا مُوسَى، اصْطَفَاكَ اللهُ بِكَلَامِهِ، وَخَطَّ لَكَ بِيَدِهِ، أَتَلُومُنِي عَلَى أَمْرٍ قَدَّرَ اللهُ عَلَيَّ قَبْلَ أَنْ يَخْلُقَنِي بِأَرْبَعِينَ سَنَةً؟ فَحَجَّ آدَمُ مُوسَى، فَحَجَّ آدَمُ مُوسَى)) ثلاثا. “Adam and Musa debated with each other. Musa said to Adam, ‘You are our father, but you disappointed us and caused us to be expelled from Paradise.’ Adam replied, ‘O Musa, Allah chose you to speak to Him and wrote for you with His own Hand. Are you blaming me for something that Allah had already decreed for me forty years before He created me?’ So Adam won the debate against Musa.” The Prophet repeated this three times. [Reported by Al-Bukhari (6614) and Muslim (2652)] Brief Commentary: 1. The Prophet (peace be upon him) informed us of matters of the unseen that Allah had taught him. Among them is this debate which may have happened when their souls met in heaven, or during Musa's lifetime when he asked Allah to show him Adam. However, the best approach is to leave the details of how this happened to Allah. 2. Musa said to Adam: "Are you Adam, the one whose sin removed you...?" He was referring to Adam eating from the forbidden tree, which led to his expulsion from Paradise. Musa blamed him for causing his own and his children's removal from Paradise—not for the sin of eating itself. 3. Adam replied: "Are you Musa, whom Allah chose for His messages?" He meant: Allah preferred you over others by giving you the Torah, which contains my story. He also spoke directly to you. Yet you blame me for something that was decreed for me before I was created? Allah had already willed it to happen, due to His prior knowledge. How can I act against Allah's knowledge? Why do you focus on the action (the cause) and forget the original decree (destiny), especially since you are among the chosen righteous ones? 4. The Prophet then said three times: "Adam defeated Musa in debate," meaning Adam successfully defended himself against blame. 5. Adam did not use destiny as an excuse for disobeying. Rather, he used it to explain the resulting hardship—being expelled from Paradise. Destiny can be cited for hardships, not for faults. No one should use destiny as an excuse for sins. If that were allowed, everyone who kills, steals, or spreads corruption would justify it by destiny. 6. This hadith shows that debating matters of faith and providing sound evidence is acceptable. 7. It also confirms that Allah speaks, in a way that befits His majesty. 8. The hadith also indicates that there are different categories of qadar: 1) The first is the general decree for all creation. This occurred 50,000 years before creation of the heavens and earth when Allah created the Pen and told it to write. It asked: 'What shall I write?' He said: 'Write everything that will happen until the Day of Judgment.'" The Pen wrote all that will occur. 2) The second decree concerns Adam and his descendants. This is the one referenced in this debate between Adam and Musa. It occcured 40 years before the creation of Adam. 3) The third decree is specific to each person. This occurs when fetus reaches four months; an angel comes, breathes the soul into it, and is commanded to write its provision, lifespan, deeds, and whether it will be blessed or doomed. 4) The fourth is the annual decree on Laylat Al-Qadr. It is called the Night of Decree because Allah decrees what will happen in the coming year. Note: These decrees do not contradict the first, general decree. References: - Sharh Muslim - Fat-h Al-Bari - Sharh At-Ṭaḥāwiyyah by Sh. Al-Barrāk https://t.me/madrasatuna/6042