Adal

Adl - Justice of God

The second basic belief in Islam is Adl which means Divine Justice.

To believe in adl means to believe that all actions of Allah are in accordance with per fect

justice and reason. Allah is just - beyond all injustices. Allah does not like oppression, cruelty

and any kind of injustice among His servants.

One sect of Sunni Muslims (Ash’arites) completely denied Allah’s justice. They believe that

Allah has full power to act as He likes. So by His power and authority He can throw a gooddoer into hell fire and an evil-doer into paradise and no one can protest against His order.

But another group of Sunni Muslim and Shia Muslims believe that it is true that Allah is the

Supreme power and Supreme authority and no one can challenge His action or decision,

but He is perfect, and therefore all His actions and decisions are always based on justice.

What is the meaning of Justice

It is important to know the meaning of justice because sometimes it is confused with

equality. For example, a person who does not know the correct meaning of justice may ask

many wrong questions, such as, If Allah is Just and all His actions are based on justice then:

Why there are some rich and some poor people in the world ?

Why men are physically strong and women weak and frail ? 

Why there are black and white people ?

Why some people have long life and some die at a very young age ?

All these facts and many other realities in the world can confuse a person if he believes in

Divine justice but does not know the right meaning of justice.

It is important to know that the meaning of justice is not equality as these two words have

entirely different meanings.

Hazrat Ali has given an accurate definition of justice. He said justice means, to put a thing in

its right place. In contrast, injustice means putting a thing not in its due place.

For example, if we sit on the table and put our books on the chair then it is injustice as they

are not in their right places.

Similarly, if we pay equal wages to a highly qualified professor and an ordinary teacher or

we give equal marks both to a hardworking and lazy student, then it is not justice.

Justice is that everyone should get what he deserves for. Justice is this that a professor

should get more salary than an ordinary teacher as he has done more work to acquire

knowledge and has better abilities to do work. Justice is that each student should be

graded according to the quality of his work. i.e., equal treatment, or equal distribution is not

justice, rather it is injustice.

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Thus equality is not a condition for justice, rather rights and appropriate dealings is justice.

By keeping this meaning of justice in mind, we can easily understand as to why there are rich

and poor, long and short, black and white people in the world? Why men are strong and

women are weak? There are good reasons and logical explanations. For example, the

delicate body of woman is a beauty and the reverse is a defect for her.

Thus Divine justice is that everyone should get his/her rights in propor tion to his / her needs

and abilities.

It is also important to note that the many cases of injustices we see all over the world is

because of favoritism and human unjustness. Allah Subhanahu taala is Just and He will punish

such people on the day of judgment for their unfairness in dealings.

The Holy Quran clearly states that Allah’s decisions and dealings are always based on

perfect justice. He is the Lord of the universe and He can do everything He likes as there

can never be a slightest opposition or resistance against His will, but it is one of His attribute

that He is Just (Adil).

Thus He can throw a good man in the hell-fire by His power, but He will never do so

because of His perfect personality.

He will pardon many people befitting for the hell-fire because He is compassionate,

merciful, and kind, i.e., His mercy outshines His justice.

The Prophet has taught us du’a to ask Allah Subhanahu taala, not to deal us with justice but

with mercy and leniency.

The Holy Quran clearly states that :

Allah is never unjust in the least degree€ (4:40)

we shall set up scales of justice on the day of judgment so that not a single soul will be

dealt with unjustly in the least.€ (21:47)

Allah Commands justice, kindness and charity to one’s kindred, and forbids

indecency and oppression.€ (16:90)

This made it very clear that why Shia consider Adl as the basic belief of Islam and why they

differ with Sunnis on this issue.

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basic beliefs of islam

Divine Justice in the Natural systems.

The definition of justice given by Hazrat Ali (as) can precisely be seen in the Divine laws of

nature working in the universe.

Scientists have amazingly confirmed that they find everything in its right place. There is

nothing in the universe disorderly and haphazard.

Scientists say that there is a precise balance between the sun, ear th and other planets. If this

balance is disturbed, the whole solar system will collapse. This balance which is a beautiful

demonstration of Divine justice is found in every atom of the universe. As atom is the unit of

matter, it means that justice prevails everywhere in the universe.

Professor Haldane, a famous biologist, has written an ar ticle On being the right size. In this

interesting article, he proves that every living creature ( man, animals, insects etc.) has the

right size, i.e. their bodies fit to their living conditions and circumstances.

Thus the whole universe and its uncountable things are the witnesses of Allah’s adl (Divine

justice).

The Holy Quran confirms the scientific view of the universe.

He has raised the heavens and has set up a standard for everything.€ (55:7)

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Chapter 11

Causes of human sufferings

and natural disasters

Everyday when we read the newspaper or watch TV, we come to know about many

different kinds of human miseries and mishaps. We also see people around us miserably

suffering with chronic diseases, hunger, and poverty. We also hear about many catastrophic

natural disasters such as earthquake, floods, hurricanes, tornado, cyclone, storms and

droughts killing millions of people and leaving millions of widows, orphans, and handicaps.

A question arises that when God is All-mighty i.e. capable of controlling anything and

everything and God is also all-knowing i.e., He knows everything that happens anywhere in

the universe, then why such dreadful events occur.

This is a very important question. Many atheists use this question as a valid reason to deny

the existence of God. This question also disturbs many ignorant Muslims. It is therefore

essential for all Muslim students to have a satisfactory answer to this question.

This question does not have one simple answer as there are many different causes of human

suffering and afflictions.

Some of the major causes of calamities and sufferings are as follows:

Reaction of our action and Divine punishment.

Warning and reminder to turn back to God.

To energize and stimulate human spirit and to intensify his efforts.

Examination.

Divine system.

Reaction of our action.

The major cause of our all sufferings and miseries is our deeds. i.e., in most of the cases we

suffer because of our wrong doings. Quran has disclosed this law of God.

Then it shall be said to the wrongdoers: Taste the everlasting torment; Shall you be

rewarded except according to your deeds€ (10:52)

i.e., You receive the payment of what you earn. This law of God has also been discovered

by Isaac Newton in Nature which we teach in Physics. i.e., every action has an equal reaction.

If we sincerely study and analyze our sufferings and miseries we will really know that in most of the

cases our sufferings are the outcome of our own actions or attitude. Let us see this categorically.

Hunger and poverty

The most common kind of suffering and infliction are hunger, poverty and diseases. Let’s

analyze the causes of these infliction one by one.

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Poverty is the lack of enough income and resources to live comfor tably. It is one of the

world’s main social problems. In both developing and developed countries, millions of

people are suffering because of pover ty. Poverty is the most common social disease. Many

of the poor people in the world cannot buy the food, shelter, clothing, and medical care

that they need. This creates frustration, hopelessness and lack of interest in life. In the late

1980’s, it was estimated that I billion people, about a fifth of the world’s population, were

so poor that their health and lives were endangered.

But what is the cause of poverty and who should be held responsible for all that suffering ?

Man or God ?

Poverty has variety of causes. Some of them are being mentioned here.

a- Lack of education, skills and aptitude to do work. Many people don’t want to do work.

They suffer due to their laziness or less interest in work. Some people think that Allah

Subhanahu taala is our sustainer and He has taken the responsibility of our basic needs. It

is true, but still a lot of effor ts are needed to take our share from the Divine warehouse.

So in many cases poverty is due to the under utilization of human potential and natural

resources.

b- Inflation also significantly contributes to pover ty. Inflation means increasing the price of

goods which affects a certain group of the society. We experience this problem now

and then. This is a man-made cause in which human selfish nature works to get as much

as possible without considering anything.

c- Some countries are poor because of lack of exper tise and equipment needed to

produce adequate food supplies for most of their people. It is also due to the lack of

involvement in science and technology.

d- Many women become poor after they are divorced or separated from their husbands. It

is also a personal reason.

e - In some cases poverty also results from natural disasters such as floods, droughts or

poor harvests. This can also be the indirect cause of our wrongdoing which we shall

discuss later.

Thus in most of the cases we find that the hunger and pover ty are mainly either due to the

improper distribution of amenities or under utilization of natural abilities and resources

Divine Punishments

It is important to know more about the Divine punishments. Quran has described the Divine

punishments in detail. However, it is not easy for an ordinary person to identify the Divine

punishment and more importantly its actual cause.

Diseases and epidemics

Disease is also a major cause of sufferings. It is said that diseases have killed or disabled

more people then all the wars ever fought. Each year, tens of millions of people die from

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different kinds of diseases. In the United States alone, diseases kill nearly 2 million people

each year and leave many people permanently disabled.

Apparently it seems that God is solely responsible for all kinds of diseases as He has created

the viruses, bacteria which cause many different kinds of diseases. But this is not true.

Medical experts say that almost all diseases are caused by ignoring the standard laws of

nature. i.e., our life-style, habits, living conditions and physical environment nur ture diseases.

Let’s take malaria, the most common disease of the third world countries. Malaria is caused

by protozoan called plasmodia and is transmitted by the bite of the female anopheles

mosquito. It is true that Allah Subhanahu taala has created the mosquito and plasmodia

which infect us with malaria. But Allah has also instructed mosquitoes to live in dir ty water

and filthy environment. thus, by creating a dir ty environment, we invite mosquitoes,

houseflies, rats, and other germs carriers in our home to deliver diseases.

Similarly AIDS, the most dangerous and incurable disease, which has killed millions of

peoples, is a disease sponsored by criminals. The cause of AIDS is HIV virus, undoubtedly

created by Allah, but who transfer it into the human body ? Allah or the patient himself

/herself. At least in this particular disease doctors have honestly acknowledged that the only

source of this disease is the patient himself / herself as he or she is the one who has

acquired it. That is why they have named it Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome.

Even those innocent people who get this disease from blood transfusion or blades are due

to the human negligence.

Thus in most of the cases, the sufferings due to the chronic disease that makes the life

miserable, are the result of our own deeds.

Black Death.

As mentioned above, not always but in most of the cases, the cause of the disease is one’s bad

deed or negligence of Divine orders. Sometimes the whole nation is punished by epidemics.

Scientists say they don’t yet know, how all of sudden a particular epidemic disease grows and

spreads widely killing millions of people and then goes away itself without any human efforts.

For example, outbreaks of plague have been repor ted in different periods of history that

have killed hundreds of millions of people.

In 542 AD an epidemic of plague struck Constantinople (now Istanbul, Turkey) and killed half

of the population.

In 1347, one of the most disastrous plague burst out in Europe which killed 40,000,000

people - about a fourth of the European population at that time. This pandemic plague is

called Black Death in history.

In 1800’s a third epidemic appeared suddenly in China and spread like a fire. It killed more

than 20 million people.

Scientists have tried to guess some of the probable causes of these epidemics but are

puzzled by their mystified origin. For instance, they can not answer such questions, how a

particular cause develops that spreads plague, and why it has developed at some par ticular

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time and not at any other time, and how it stops itself without any apparent reason.

To cite an instance, consider the apparent known cause of the second epidemic - Black

Death, which killed 40 million people in Europe. It is said that the source of this epidemic

were Black Rats which carry a particular species of flies called Xenopsylla Cheopsis. But the

origin from where all these rats who arrived to spread the epidemic is still a riddle. More

surprisingly, why the same rats did not spread the disease where they were living before.

Further to their surprise, it was found that the Brown Rats, which are rare in Europe, came

from China and killed the Black Rats which were spreading the disease.

Those who do not believe in God and in His planning, such epidemics will remain a mystery.

But those who read Quran can understand, why the Black Rats brought the disease in Europe

and who sent the Brown rats to stop the epidemic.

Natural Disasters

The natural disasters such as ear thquakes, storms, floods, and droughts, which bring

different kinds of miseries are also sometimes due to our bad deeds. Quran has described

in details that how these many kinds of natural disasters have wiped out many nations in the

past when they disobeyed Allah and crossed the Divine limits.

Quran mentions different kinds of natural disasters which were caused by the wrath of Allah

Taala.

Each one of them We seized for his crime. Of them, against some We sent a violent

tornado: some were caught by a (mid-night) blast, some We caused the earth to swallow

up ( powerful earthquake or major volcano eruption), and some We drowned (in water).

It was not Allah Who injured (or destroyed) them: they injured (destroyed)

themselves.€(29:40)

In surah HUD, it is mentioned with all details that how the nations of the following prophets

were punished one after the other because of their sins and rebellious nature.

1 - Prophet Nuh (as) - FLOOD

His whole nation except his companions was perished by a great flood. Huge flow of

water welled out from the earth and from the sky and all were drowned except few

believers. (11:21-49)

2 - Prophet Hud (as) - A DREADFUL EXPLOSION

His whole nation, named Aad was destroyed by a horrible natural disaster except those

who obeyed him. (11:49-59)

3 - Prophet Saleh (as) - A MIGHTY BLAST

His whole nation, named Thamud, except his true followers, was smashed by a dreadful

explosion that rang along with a powerful storm. (11:61-67)

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856 Iran 200,000 Earthquake

893 India, Iran 330,000 Earthquake

1138 Egypt, Syria 330,000 Earthquake

1201 North Egypt 1,100,000 Earthquake

1290 Northeast China 100,000 Earthquake

1556 Central China 830,000 Earthquake

1693 Sicily 300,000 Earthquake

1703 Honshu; Japan 200,000 Earthquake

1730 Hokkaido; Japan 137,000 Earthquake

1731 Beijing; China 100,000 Earthquake

1737 Calcutta; India 300,000 Earthquake

1779 Northern Iran 100,000 Earthquake

1887 Eastern China 900,000 River flood

1920 Central China 200,000 Earthquake

1923 Tokyo 142,800 Earthquake

1927 Central China 200,000 Earthquake

1970 Bangladesh 266,000 Cyclone

1976 Northeast China 240,000 Earthquake

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4 - Prophet Lut (as) - A MOST POWERFUL EARTHQUAKE

His whole nation, except his true followers were destroyed by turning the whole town

upside down, followed by a rain of baked clay layer on layer. (11:77-82)

5 - Prophet Shu’ayb (as) - A POWERFUL BLAST

His whole nation, named Madyan, except his few followers, was killed by a powerful

Explosion (Earthquake). (11:84-94), (29:36)

6 - Prophet Moosa (as) -THROWN INTO THE SEA

Pharaoh, his Chiefs and the whole army were drowned into the River Nile.

After giving all details of crimes and punishments, Quran very clearly tells the cause of such

dreadful natural disasters in the following verse.

These are some of the stories of communities which we have told you €”€”€” It was not

WE that wronged them: They wronged their own souls€. (11:100)

Thus, these verses of the Holy Quran have explained that one of the major cause of natural

disasters is Divine punishment. However, we can not say for sure that each and every natural

disaster is a Divine punishment. But the natural disaster do occur as in the past with hor rible

results. Hundreds of natural disasters of high intensity have been recorded in the history.

Here, we present just few of these many natural disasters that terribly hit various nations in

last one thousand year.

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The Holy Quran has identified the root cause of many of such kinds of natural disasters, as

mentioned above, in the following verse;

Verily, Allah does not deal unjustly with man in any way: it is man that does unjust to

his own soul.€ (10:44)

Divine warnings to turn back to our Lord

If we study carefully the painful incidents of our life that occurred in some specific

circumstances and judge them in context of our behavior, we can realize that most of these

painful events were the milestone of our progress. Many times it has happened that a

sudden shock or blow in our life becomes the turning point. These mild punishments are

just to discipline us in order to save us from severe punishments.

Those who are mindful they take the advantage of such occurrence and change their

behaviors, but those who are not watchful they just cry and complain and finally meet even

more severe consequences of their heedless attitude.

We find many people who have very smooth and comfortable life forget their Lord and a

sudden undesirable event wakes them up from their deep sleep. A plain and easy living is

just like driving on smooth highways in a pleasant night. If the driver is not warned in time by

a slash, he will certainly face a dreadful accident. This is why in modern highways engineers

fix artificial light barriers at regular short distances just to prevent sleeping during the long

driving. Thus ups and downs and hardships in life also serve the same purpose and keep us

attentive to escape deadly events.

The Holy Quran rejects such heedless people who do not take lessons from their sufferings.

We afflicted them with calamities and misfortunes so that they might humble

themselves, but their hearts were hardened ..... (6:43)

Thus hardships and painful events can have many different causes and it is not fair to

consider them punishment without proper identification. Moreover in most of the cases

there are many blessings of Allah in our sufferings as they energize and stimulate our spirit

and intensify our efforts.

Even the natural disasters such as earthquakes, droughts, floods, wars bring many significant

changes in our physical world and society.

A poisonous snake seems to be a very dangerous enemy of mankind, but its poison which

can kill a careless person, is used as a medicine to save the lives of thousands of people.