Al-Hakam
Exalted and Glorious
He is the One who judges His creation. He is the One who discriminates between truth and falsehood. Nothing can resist His will, and nothing supersedes His law; so do not make any judgments out of the law of Allah, and do not turn to any other law.
From: The Children Around the Table of Allah by Shaykh Muhammad Sa’id al-Jamal ar-Rifa’i Head of the Higher Sufi Council in Jerusalem and the Holy Land Teacher at the Dome of the Rock (al-Aqsa)
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He is the one who orders. He is the bringer of justice and truth. He judges and executes His justice. There is no justice but His. None can oppose His decree and none can prevent or delay the execution of His orders. He is the cause of the judged, the judge, the justice, and the judgment. All that happens in the universe is the effect of that one and only cause.
What is destiny? It is an immutable cause of definite quality and quantity, which cannot be changed in either its attributes or its measure, directed toward a distinct aim upon which it will create a preconceived effect at a specific time.
How can a human being, who is shortsighted, see the beginning and end of a chain of events? Even if we are heedful, we can only realize these things after they have happened. Everything is predestined, and causes are directed to their effects. All is hidden in al-Lawh al-Mahfuz, the Secret Tablet. The Lord looks upon it 300 times a day and orders the angels to execute that which is to happen.
But Allah, in His mercy, has also written His divine law in His holy books. A human being understands it to the extent of his purity, sincerity, faith, knowledge, wisdom, and finally to the extent of his lot. Again, according to his lot, a person obeys or rebels and is rewarded or punished accordingly.
How often grandchildren pay for the sins of grandfathers, and fathers pay in advance for the sins of future generations! Do not judge Allah’s justice. Often poison for one is medicine for another.
In Allah’s attribute of the great Judge, al-Hakam, there are good tidings to the faithful, and a warning to nonbelievers. Those whose destiny is felicity in this world and the Hereafter can only receive it if they obey Allah and worship Him. One has to encounter the cause to be able to receive the effect. That is why the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) says, “Only if you act can you receive that which was destined for you.”
Among the faithful there are four attitudes with respect to destiny:
- There are those who are practical and try to judge what will happen to them next by taking lessons from what has happened to them already. That practicality also includes their concern for what will happen to them in the Hereafter.
- There are those who show regret and repent for troubles that have befallen them as well as for troubles that have befallen other people through them. They accuse themselves and fear Allah’s judgment. They are thankful to Allah for the good things that happen to them, and also thankful for the good things that have happened to others through them. They believe that everything wrong is from themselves and everything good and right is from Allah.
- There are those who are not concerned either about the past or the future for they know that everything is in Allah’s Hand. They are the children of the Now in which they live and try to live right.
- And there are those who are concerned neither with the past and the future nor with the present. Their hearts are totally occupied with their Lord: they are with Him. Whoever is blessed with this state is the best in the eyes of God and creatures.
Oh believer, first know that your destiny is on the way and there is no stopping it! It will happen. And as there is no need to worry about what will happen, neither is there reason to regret whatever has happened, for regret, will change nothing. Accept, and you will be rewarded with satisfaction and peace. Instead of questioning Allah’s judgment, be a true judge of yourself. Neither tyrannize yourself nor excuse and pamper yourself. Then judge others as you judge yourself. If you have any power to execute your judgment, make sure that your judgment is not other than Allah’s decree, and that your power is none other than that which is in His hand.
‘Abd al-Hakam is he who executes Allah’s judgment upon His servants as He wills. Allah says: “The decision belongs to Allah alone.” (Surah An’am 57)
And He says, “But no, by the Lord [O Muhammad,] they can have no (real) faith until they make thee judge in all disputes between them and find in their souls no resistance against thy decisions but accept them with the fullest convictions.” (Surah Nisa’ 65)
If someone takes ablution in a state of purity and peace of mind, and then, in the middle of the night, recites ya Hakam until he falls asleep, his heart will be filled with divine secrets. His words will be effective and accepted by his opponents.
From: The Name & the Named by Shaykh Tosun Bayrak al-Jerrahi al-Halveti
