Source: Fatāwā Arkān-e-Islām
Are Provision and Marriage Already Written in al-Lawḥ al-Maḥfūẓ?
الحمد لله، والصلاة والسلام علىٰ رسول الله، أما بعد!
From the time Allah ﷻ created the Pen, everything that will occur until the Day of Judgment has been written in al-Lawḥ al-Maḥfūẓ. This is clarified in the ḥadīth of the Prophet ﷺ:
«اَوَّلُ مَا خَلَقَ ٰالْقَلَمَ َّ قَالَ لَه: اُکْتُبْ قَالَ: ربی وَمَاذا اَکْتُبُ قَالَ: أکتب مَا هُوَ کَائِن، فجری فی تلک الساعة بماهو کائنٌ اِلَی يوم القيامة»
(Musnad Aḥmad 5/317; Sunan Abī Dāwūd 4700; Jāmiʿ al-Tirmidhī 2155)
“Allah created the Pen first, then said to it: ‘Write.’ The Pen asked: ‘My Lord, what should I write?’ He said: ‘Write whatever will happen.’ So at that moment, it wrote everything that will occur until the Day of Resurrection.”
It is authentically reported that when the fetus in the womb reaches four months:
Provision is decreed by Allah ﷻ and cannot increase or decrease, but it is tied to causes — a person must strive to obtain it. Allah ﷻ says:
﴿هُوَ الَّذى جَعَلَ لَكُمُ الأَرضَ ذَلولًا فَامشوا فى مَناكِبِها وَكُلوا مِن رِزقِهِ وَإِلَيهِ النُّشورُ﴾ (Sūrah al-Mulk: 15)
“It is He Who made the earth manageable for you, so walk among its paths and eat from His provision, and to Him is the resurrection.”
① Maintaining family ties (Ṣilat al-Raḥim)
The Prophet ﷺ said:
«مَنْ أحبُ أَنْ يُبْسَطَ لَهُ فِی رِزْقِهِ أَوْ يُنْسَأَ لَهُ فِی أَثَرِهِ فَلْيَصِلْ رَحِمَهُ»
(Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 2067)
“Whoever wishes his provision to be increased and his lifespan extended, let him maintain ties of kinship.”
② Taqwā (fear of Allah)
Allah ﷻ says:
﴿وَمَن يَتَّقِ اللَّهَ يَجعَل لَهُ مَخرَجًا ﴿٢﴾ وَيَرزُقهُ مِن حَيثُ لا يَحتَسِبُ﴾ (Sūrah al-Ṭalāq: 2–3)
“And whoever fears Allah — He will make for him a way out, and will provide for him from where he does not expect.”
It is wrong to say, “Since provision is already written, there is no need to strive.” This is laziness and weakness. The correct approach is to work for it through lawful means.
The Prophet ﷺ said:
((اَلْکَیِّسُ مَنْ دَانَ نَفْسَہُ، وَعَمِلَ لِمَا بَعْدَ الْمَوْتِ، وَالْعَاجِزُ مَنْ اَتْبَعَ نَفْسَہُ ہَوَاہَا وَتَمَنَّی عَلَی اللّٰہِ الأماني))
(Jāmiʿ al-Tirmidhī 2459; Sunan Ibn Mājah 4260)
“The intelligent person is the one who controls himself and works for what comes after death; the incapable is the one who follows his desires and merely wishes upon Allah.”
Just as provision is decreed, marriage is also written in advance. Allah ﷻ has already determined who will marry whom. Nothing in the heavens or the earth is hidden from Him.
وَاللّٰهُ أَعْلَمُ بِالصَّوَابِ
Are Provision and Marriage Already Written in al-Lawḥ al-Maḥfūẓ?
Answer
الحمد لله، والصلاة والسلام علىٰ رسول الله، أما بعد!
From the time Allah ﷻ created the Pen, everything that will occur until the Day of Judgment has been written in al-Lawḥ al-Maḥfūẓ. This is clarified in the ḥadīth of the Prophet ﷺ:
«اَوَّلُ مَا خَلَقَ ٰالْقَلَمَ َّ قَالَ لَه: اُکْتُبْ قَالَ: ربی وَمَاذا اَکْتُبُ قَالَ: أکتب مَا هُوَ کَائِن، فجری فی تلک الساعة بماهو کائنٌ اِلَی يوم القيامة»
(Musnad Aḥmad 5/317; Sunan Abī Dāwūd 4700; Jāmiʿ al-Tirmidhī 2155)
“Allah created the Pen first, then said to it: ‘Write.’ The Pen asked: ‘My Lord, what should I write?’ He said: ‘Write whatever will happen.’ So at that moment, it wrote everything that will occur until the Day of Resurrection.”
The Decree of the Unborn Child
It is authentically reported that when the fetus in the womb reaches four months:
- Allah sends an angel to breathe the soul into it.
- The angel writes its provision, lifespan, deeds, and whether it will be wretched or blessed.
(Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 3208)
Provision: Decreed Along with Its Means
Provision is decreed by Allah ﷻ and cannot increase or decrease, but it is tied to causes — a person must strive to obtain it. Allah ﷻ says:
﴿هُوَ الَّذى جَعَلَ لَكُمُ الأَرضَ ذَلولًا فَامشوا فى مَناكِبِها وَكُلوا مِن رِزقِهِ وَإِلَيهِ النُّشورُ﴾ (Sūrah al-Mulk: 15)
“It is He Who made the earth manageable for you, so walk among its paths and eat from His provision, and to Him is the resurrection.”
Means of Provision
① Maintaining family ties (Ṣilat al-Raḥim)
The Prophet ﷺ said:
«مَنْ أحبُ أَنْ يُبْسَطَ لَهُ فِی رِزْقِهِ أَوْ يُنْسَأَ لَهُ فِی أَثَرِهِ فَلْيَصِلْ رَحِمَهُ»
(Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 2067)
“Whoever wishes his provision to be increased and his lifespan extended, let him maintain ties of kinship.”
② Taqwā (fear of Allah)
Allah ﷻ says:
﴿وَمَن يَتَّقِ اللَّهَ يَجعَل لَهُ مَخرَجًا ﴿٢﴾ وَيَرزُقهُ مِن حَيثُ لا يَحتَسِبُ﴾ (Sūrah al-Ṭalāq: 2–3)
“And whoever fears Allah — He will make for him a way out, and will provide for him from where he does not expect.”
Striving for Provision
It is wrong to say, “Since provision is already written, there is no need to strive.” This is laziness and weakness. The correct approach is to work for it through lawful means.
The Prophet ﷺ said:
((اَلْکَیِّسُ مَنْ دَانَ نَفْسَہُ، وَعَمِلَ لِمَا بَعْدَ الْمَوْتِ، وَالْعَاجِزُ مَنْ اَتْبَعَ نَفْسَہُ ہَوَاہَا وَتَمَنَّی عَلَی اللّٰہِ الأماني))
(Jāmiʿ al-Tirmidhī 2459; Sunan Ibn Mājah 4260)
“The intelligent person is the one who controls himself and works for what comes after death; the incapable is the one who follows his desires and merely wishes upon Allah.”
Marriage Is Also Decreed
Just as provision is decreed, marriage is also written in advance. Allah ﷻ has already determined who will marry whom. Nothing in the heavens or the earth is hidden from Him.
وَاللّٰهُ أَعْلَمُ بِالصَّوَابِ
