Nothing Will Be Except What He Wills

Wa lā yakūnu illā mā yurīd. Nothing will be except what He wills.

The next statement is: wa lā yakūnu illā mā yurīd. Having explained and defined Allah (swt) with these tenets, he says: nothing will be except what He wills. He is so much in control of everything that there is nothing whatsoever that will be, except if He wills. This may suggest to some people that the statement only concerns something coming into existence. No: it extends even to something moving from one place to another. The movement of a hand from one place to another is also something coming into being. It is a new movement; it is a new frame. Seen from the point of view of videography, it is a new frame.

That is why there is a whole discussion on the atomic theory, atomic philosophy. There is no need to go into it here; but basically, the question is this: how was that particular individual who had the ʿilm, the special knowledge given to him by Allah (swt) during the time of Sulaymān (peace be upon him), able to bring that throne, in the blink of an eye, from Yemen to Jerusalem? In the blink of an eye.

Some people have propounded the theory that the world is constantly refreshing, at some amazing rate. Looking at somebody, one cannot tell that they are being refreshed. It is just like looking at a computer screen: there is a refresh going on, but it cannot really be seen, except that on video the movement can sometimes be seen slightly. But it is a very fast refresh. One frame can be changed: one man can be in the corner here, and in the next frame he can be over there. That is what they do in movies, in films, in videos. The whole world, they say, is constantly perishing and renewing itself; constantly perishing and recreating itself. This is not necessary to believe in; it is speculation, a theory. But even Muslims have actually talked about this, and called it the atomic theory. Very interesting.

So it is as though he had this ability that Allah (swt) had given him: to have the throne there in one frame, and in the immediate next frame, here. And Allah knows best. Very interesting. Our scholars have gone into great depths about these things. It is just that now, unfortunately, Muslims have put themselves into this position, or allowed themselves to come into this position, of just fighting over land and water, and basically defending themselves, where a lot of progress cannot be made; and it is a sad case. But in the high times, some of the things that the Muslim scholars were able to come up with and contribute are just amazing.

So nothing will be; not a leaf falls, as Allah said: wa mā tasquṭu min waraqatin illā yaʿlamuhā. He knows it; He willed it to be in that particular way.