The Debate
The Debate
The leader of the communists stood up and lectured and talked and raved, until he said:
The people say, "God exists and He is the one who created the world, who protects and guides it, but this saying of theirs is a fairy tale. If He existed, we would see Him as we see the sun, the moon and everything else! They say He is big and great and glorious, as it says in the Quran, the Torah, and the Bible, yet we now see the smallest of things with observational instruments—microscopes and telescopes. We have examined and scrutinized everything, but we cannot see Him. No one has seen Him. No one has even reported to have seen Him! So He is absent and He does not exist. All things are produced by nature according to materialistic principles…."
Abu Abd al-Karim (the Muslim speaker) then said:
So I stood and went up to the podium. I praised Allah Almighty and asked that peace and blessing be sent upon His messenger, our master, Muhammad (pbuh), and said, "The leader who denies the Existence of His Lord and Creator, Glorious in His Power, based his denial on the fact that he cannot see Him, so I ask him, 'Is there a soul in his body and consciousness in his mind?'
Of course, he had to say: Yes, he does have a soul in his body and consciousness in his mind. And if that were so, can he see his soul and consciousness? What is it and how is it?
Like that, he admitted the existence of something he could not see and confessed to the reality of that which he could not witness. In fact, he admitted to the existence of a soul and consciousness because of the obviousness of their effect.
If that were the case then, he should admit the Existence of Allah, for all creation is the effect of His Power and a Sign of His Knowledge and Wisdom.
If this ignorant, defiant person could not even see the soul within his own body, how could he see the Lord of the Worlds, when the soul is one of His Decrees?
The Noble Creator is He with Whom there is no comparison, He Who has no equal. May He (Glorious and Exalted) be magnified above that which the unjust say about Him. {So the disbeliever was utterly defeated. And Allah guides the wrong-doing people.}[Al-Baqarah 2:258]
Abu Abd al-Karim then said, "So the Muslims said, 'Allahu Akbar,' (God is Great!) "Subhan Allah,' (Glory be to Allah!) and they clapped and cheered and were merry, while the misguided deniers were embarrassed and humiliated."
As a result of this debate, the Russians attacked the home of Abu Abd al-Karim and took everything in it of value. Then they sentenced him to death by firing squad. But Allah Almighty, his Creator and Maker, rescued him from their evil and outdid them in an amazing story to be told in its time and place.(1)
Does a Person's Sound, Wise Nature Instinctively Acknowledge that the Universe Must Have a God and Creator?
Allah (Glorious & Exalted) created man to instinctively believe in Him, so the intuitive sense of the Existence of God the Creator is self-evident. Man, by his nature, believes in His Lord, in accordance with the statement of Allah's Messenger (pbuh), "Every baby is born on the fitrah (pure nature), then his parents turn him into a Jew or a Christian or a Zoroastrian." [Sahih al-Bukhari & Muslim]
That explains why, when anything happens to a person all of a sudden, and that thing is a threat to him, his tongue automatically utters a phrase like, "Oh God!" or "Oh Lord!" or something of the sort.
This proves that, in his unspoiled and instinctive state, man was created to believe in the Existence of Allah (Mighty & Majestic)
For, Allah (Glorious & Exalted) is the God and Creator of man, animals, birds, inanimate objects and all things, and He (Glorious & Sublime) is the Creator of this universe and all the accidents and causes therein.
We should therefore know that there is no contradiction between everything being created and there being a cause for its occurrence, for it is from Allah's Way to create causes. That is because He (Glorious & Exalted) is the One Who created the cause and made it a cause.
Other points of proof that this pure, sound, wise instinct necessarily acknowledges the Existence of a Creator for this universe include:
The following are living examples of people who came to know their Creator through this pure, instinctive nature by which we were created to believe in the Existence of Allah (Glorious & Exalted).
A Bedouin man was asked, "What proof do you have of the Existence of the Lord Almighty?"
He said, "Glory be to Allah! Indeed, the droppings indicate the camel and the footprints indicate the traveler. The sky is full of stars, the earth is full of mountain highways, and the seas are full of waves. Does this not indicate the Existence of the Subtle and Well-Acquainted?"
Indeed, the words of this simple, pure-natured Bedouin man adhere more faithfully to experimental methodology which is based on astute observation. Indeed, it is closer in influence on the soul and more powerful in convincing the mind than any form of analogy.
People are of two types:
The type with a sound nature: He knows Allah Almighty and believes in Him because of the intuitive sense with which he was created. Were he to see the signs of Allah Most High in the heavens and the earth, he would know that they are proof of Him—an indication of His Existence. His knowledge and belief in God the Creator precede his knowledge of Allah's signs, for his knowledge of Allah's signs confirms his belief; it does not initiate it.[3]
On this topic, Shaikh ul-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah said,
[People's] sound natures know the Creator [even] without these signs, for they were designed in that way, for if they were not to know Him without these signs, they would not know that these were signs of Him. Because they are of Him and for Him, they must necessarily bring to mind that which they are meant to signify; the meaning of the signifier must be an essential quality in it. It is imperative in this respect to know that the signified is a requirement, for if the significance were not apparent, it would not mean anything.
The type whose nature has been corrupted: He no longer believes in the Existence of a Creator, but if he contemplates the signs of Allah Most High, he would find them pointing to Him, so he would believe in Allah by way of these signs.
It would be as though these signs, in reality, remind people of a truth deep in their psyches.[4]
On this point, Shaikh ul-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah said,
To acknowledge the Creator and His Perfection is a necessary part of the nature of a human being if his nature is unspoiled, even though there is much evidence for that. Many people have need of this evidence when their instinctive nature has been tampered with and exposed to unfortunate circumstances.[5]
Allah Almighty says,
{Were they created by nothing, or were they themselves the creators? * Or did they create the heavens and the earth? Nay, but they have no firm belief.}
[Al-Tur 52: 35-36]
Indeed, in the creation of man there is a sign to indicate the Existence of his Creator.
The Holy Quran calls those who deny the Existence of their Creator (Glorious & Exalted) to think about this great truth which he knows better than anything else in the heavens or on the earth. The Holy Quran says to those deniers of Allah's Existence (paraphrased):
If it were not Allah Who created you, who created the universe around you? Could you have been created without anything to create you? Did you come from absolute nothingness?
Any reasonable man would say to himself: Certainly not! That is impossible.
Were you the one who made yourself?
He would say: Of course not….for that would make things appear ever more impossible.
Were you the one who created these heavens and this earth?
He would say: Of course not! To say such a thing would be arrogant.
This is the kind of proof ordinary people can get their minds around. That is why, in the Holy Quran, many chapters begin in the form of rhetorical questions.[6]
This form of Quranic address, demonstrated in the two verses above, held great influence over some of the Arabs who heard it.
Al-Bukhari narrated in his authentic collection, on the authority of Muhammad ibn Jubayr ibn Mut`im, through his father (may Allah be pleased with him), who said, "I heard the Prophet (pbuh) read Surat al-Tur in the maghrib (sunset) prayer. When he reached the verse,
{Were they created by nothing, or were they themselves the creators? * Or did they create the heavens and the earth? Nay, but they have no firm belief. * Or are with them the treasures of your Lord? Or are they the tyrants with the authority to do as they like?}
[Al-Tur 52: 35-37]
and my heart was about to fly." [Reported by al-Bukhari]
In his Tafsir, Ibn Kathir says about verse 35 from Surat al-Toor, "Jubayr had just approached the Prophet (pbuh) after the Battle of Badr to ransom the captives, and at that time he was [still] a polytheist. Hearing this part of this chapter was one of the things that caused him to enter Islam afterwards."
Imam Malik:
Al-Razi related on the authority of Imam Malik that al-Rashid asked him about that (meaning about the Existence of Allah), so he (meaning Imam Malik) demonstrated it to him through the variation in languages, sounds and songs.[7]
In other words, the variations in language among different individuals and peoples in all parts of the world, and likewise the sounds and harmonies are from the signs and proofs that bear witness to the Existence of this Creator God and His Great Wisdom and Power.
Imam Abu Hanifa:
On the authority of Abu Hanifa, some unbelievers asked him about the Existence of an Almighty Maker (the Creator), so he told them, "Leave me, for I am pondering a matter I was informed about. He told them about a ship on the sea, overloaded with all types of merchandise, but without anyone to protect it or steer it, yet despite that, it comes and goes by itself, braving great waves to relieve itself of it [the merchandise], going wherever it pleases without anyone to guide it.
They (the infidels) said, "That is something no sane person would say."
So he replied, "Woe to you! All that is in existence in the higher world and the lower world and all the masterfully designed things therein, do they not have a Maker?"
Thus, these people were rendered speechless and they returned to the truth, accepting Islam at his hand.[8]
And so we see that the pure, unsullied, wise nature of man necessarily knows that the universe has a Creator God—a Wise Planner. No one denies what his pure nature and unpolluted reason would admit except an insolent, ignorant fool.
Imam al-Shafi`i:
On the authority of Imam al-Shafi`i, who was asked about the Existence of a Maker (Creator), he said, "Behold the berry leaf! It is of one flavor, yet the worm eats it and produces silk, the bee eats it and produces honey, the sheep eats it and produces dung and droppings, and the gazelle eats it and produces musk, though it is only one thing."[9]
Imam al-Shafi`i demonstrated the point with some of the signs of Allah (Glorious & Exalted), which testify to the greatness of His creation and the Absoluteness of His Power, and this indicated His Own Existence.
For, Imam al-Shafi`i knew that this sign indicated this Creator God because of his own sound nature. As such, the sign was a confirmation of his belief, not the cause of it, as we have previously explained.
Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal:
On the authority of Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal, who was asked about that (meaning the proof of Allah's Existence), he said,
Behold a well-protected fortress, smooth, without door or window, its exterior like white silver, its interior like pure gold. Then, as it was so, its walls were penetrated and there came forth a seeing, hearing animal, beautiful in shape and sound, lovely (meaning an egg when a chick emerges).[10]
Abu Nuwas was asked about that (meaning the proof of Allah's Existence), and he replied in verse:
Contemplate the foliage of the earth and look,
At the effects of what the Sovereign has made.
Eyes of staring silver,
With irises of melted gold.
On a bar of chrysolite, witnessing,
That Allah is without partner.
Ibn al-Mu`tazz said about that (meaning Allah's Existence):
Oh wonder how he disobeys the Divine,
Or how the infidel denies,
When in all things there is a sign,
Indicating that He is One.
We conclude this section of the chapter with the following verses of the Quran:
{Can there be a doubt about Allah, the Creator of the heavens and the earth?}
[Ibrahim 14: 10]
{Or has He taken daughters out of what He has created, and selected for you sons?}
[Al-Zukhruf 43: 16]
{Should not He Who has created know? And He is the Most Kind and Courteous (to His slaves), All-Aware (of everything).}
[Al-Mulk 67: 14]
Yet, were we to put what these Noble Verses refer to into logical, rational form to address the atheist who denies the Existence of God the Creator, it would go as follows:
You—the atheist—know of yourself that you are created: that you came into existence after not being.
So, either you were created from nothing and something created you…
And it is impossible that you were created out of nothing.
Therefore, something that exists created you.
And this Maker: either he is you yourself or someone other than you.
And it is impossible that your Maker is you yourself.
Therefore, it must necessarily be something other than yourself who created you.
This 'other' who created you is either like you—in need of someone to create him—or he is not in such need.
And it is not possible that the one who created you is like you, because if he were like you, we would also have to say about him what we say about you.
Therefore, it must necessarily be that the one who created you is self-sufficient, not in need of anyone to create him.[11]
Without a doubt, this Maker is Allah (Glorious & Exalted).
In conclusion, man's sound, unsullied, wise nature knows by necessity that the universe has a Creator, Wise and Supreme, Sufficient unto Himself, not in need of anyone to create Him, for He is the Creator of all.
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[1]The Method of Argument and Debate in Settling Matters of Belief(Manhaj al-Jadal wal-Munadharah fi Taqrir al-I`tiqaad), by Dr. Uthman Ali Hassan
[2]The Jurisprudence of Worship(Fiqh ul-`Ibadaat), by Shaikh Muhammad ibn Salih al-Uthaymeen
[3]Physics and the Existence of the Creator(Al-Fisiyaa' wa Wujood al-Khaaliq), by Dr. Ja`far Shaikh Idris
[4]Ibid.
[5]Collection of Legal Rulings(Majmoo` al-Fataawa), by Ibn Taymiyyah
[6]Ibid., #15
[7]Tafsir al-Quran al-Karim, by Ibn Kathir
[8]Ibid.
[9]Ibid.
[10]Ibid.
[11]Physics and the Existence of the Creator(Al-Fisiyaa' wa Wujood al-Khaaliq), by Dr. Ja`far Shaikh Idris
