IS IT TRUE THAT ALLAH CREATED EVIL?

Assalamualaikum wr wb.

Greetings, this is Abu Musa.

This Friday morning, October 25, 2024, as usual, I opened my computer to begin working. Typically, when I work, I listen to some lectures on YouTube. When I opened YouTube, the algorithm suggested a title: "UNDERSTANDING DESTINY CORRECTLY," with a duration of just a little over 10 minutes. I was curious, so I decided to listen. A while into the lecture, something strange caught my attention. A Islamic preacher mentioned that Allah created both good and evil. I was quite shocked to hear such a statement. With many questions in mind, I wondered, "Did Allah truly create evil?" I continued listening to understand what evil Allah had created.

After watching the video until the end, it turned out that A Islamic preacher concluded that Allah created evil to bring forth good. He then explained that Allah created virtues such as honesty, patience, and humility so that they would surface as a response to the vices of lying, anger, and arrogance in humans. He based this conclusion on Surah As-Syams (91): 7-10 (which we will discuss shortly).

His argument seemed plausible, but what if this narrative is compared with verse 79 from Surah An-Nisa:

مَّآ أَصَابَكَ مِنۡ حَسَنَةٖ فَمِنَ ٱللَّهِۖ وَمَآ أَصَابَكَ مِن سَيِّئَةٖ فَمِن نَّفۡسِكَۚ وَأَرۡسَلۡنَٰكَ لِلنَّاسِ رَسُولٗاۚ وَكَفَىٰ بِٱللَّهِ شَهِيدٗا

"Whatever good you receive is from Allah, and whatever calamity befalls you is from yourself. We have sent you as a messenger to all mankind, and Allah is sufficient as a witness." (Q.S. An-Nisa: 79)

Doesn’t this contradict what was said earlier?

In Surah An-Nisa, Allah clearly says, "Goodness comes from Allah, but any evil comes from yourself." From this alone, Allah rejects the notion that evil comes from Him. So, how do we explain the good and bad qualities in humans? If Allah did not create them, then where did they come from?

Wasn’t it clear from Surah An-Nisa: 79 ? Still confused ? Let me explain.

HOW DO WE EXPLAIN GOOD AND EVIL?

Many Muslims misunderstand that both good and evil come from the same source, namely Allah. This conclusion often comes from incorrect doctrines and misinterpretation of Quranic verses. For instance, take the verse shared by An Islamic preacher, Surah As-Syams (91): 7-10. Let’s break it down:

وَنَفۡسٖ وَمَا سَوَّىٰهَا فَأَلۡهَمَهَا فُجُورَهَا وَتَقۡوَىٰهَا قَدۡ أَفۡلَحَ مَن زَكَّىٰهَا وَقَدۡ خَابَ مَن دَسَّىٰهَا

"And the soul and its perfection; then He inspired to it its wickedness and its righteousness. Indeed, he succeeds who purifies it, and he fails who corrupts it." (Q.S. As-Syams: 7-10)

In verse 7, it says that the soul is perfected. Let’s sharpen our logic.

If we read this verse, it means the soul was not perfect before, and Allah perfected it, right?

Now, what term did Allah use to perfect the soul?

To answer this, let’s refer to another verse, Surah Sad (38): 72:

فَإِذَا سَوَّيۡتُهُۥ وَنَفَخۡتُ فِيهِ مِن رُّوحِي فَقَعُواْ لَهُۥ سَٰجِدِينَ

"So when I have perfected it and breathed into it My Ruh, then fall down to it in prostration."

Here, Allah clearly answers that the perfection of the soul is achieved through the term "RUH". Therefore, the terms NAFS (soul) and RUH must be separated, because it is the RUH that makes humans perfect.

So, what is RUH ?

Let Allah answer this—please refer to Surah Al-Qadr (97): 3-4:

تَنَزَّلُ ٱلْمَلَٰٓئِكَةُ وَٱلرُّوحُ فِيهَا بِإِذْنِ رَبِّهِم مِّن كُلِّ أَمْرٍ

"On that night the angels and His Ruh (Gabriel) descended with God's decree to arrange all affairs"

It is clear that the function of RUH is to manage all affairs. Why is Jibril called RUH ? Because Jibril’s role is to bring information that increases knowledge. In the next verse, we can understand that the information contained in the Quran is also called RUH, because through the Quran, we gain all knowledge. Please refer to Surah Ash-Shura (42): 51:

۞وَمَا كَانَ لِبَشَرٍ أَن يُكَلِّمَهُ ٱللَّهُ إِلَّا وَحۡيًا أَوۡ مِن وَرَآيِٕ حِجَابٍ أَوۡ يُرۡسِلَ رَسُولٗا فَيُوحِيَ بِإِذۡنِهِۦ مَا يَشَآءُۚ إِنَّهُۥ عَلِيٌّ حَكِيمٞ

"It is not for any human that Allah should speak to him except by revelation, or from behind a veil, or that He sends a messenger to reveal what He wills by His permission. Indeed, He is Exalted in Might and Wise."

From these verses, we can conclude that what perfects humans is called RUH, or in our terms, the ability to develop intellect.

In a hadith about intelligence (RUH), Allah grants it to humans when they are 40 days old in the womb. This means: From Abdurrahman Abdullah bin Mas’ud ra, he said, the Prophet Muhammad saw said to us: "Verily, your creation is gathered in the womb of your mother for forty days as a nutfah (sperm), then it becomes an alaqah (a clot of blood) for forty days, then it becomes a mudhghah (a lump of flesh) for forty days. Then Allah sends an angel to breathe the RUH into it".

Some Muslims believe that NAFS (soul) and RUH are the same, but they are different. For example, based on the explanations above, does a person die while in the womb until the RUH is breathed into them? Of course not. From day 1 to day 39, a human remains alive and in the process because they already have NAFS (soul). But when the person reaches 40 days, they are perfected with RUH. So, NAFS and RUH are certainly different.

Let’s continue with Surah As-Syams (91): 8:

فَأَلۡهَمَهَا فُجُورَهَا وَتَقۡوَىٰهَا

"And He inspired to it its wickedness and its righteousness."

From this verse, An Islamic Preacher concluded that Allah created both evil and good. However, to understand this verse, we need to understand the previous verse. As we have studied, RUH is the ability to develop intellect, which humans use to upgrade their thoughts, actions, and judgments.

What is "Ilham"? Please search for the definition of ilham according to the general meaning.

In general meaning, Ilham is a guidance from God or a good inner whisper. Ilham can be in the form of a guide, inner whisper, or thought that arises from the heart. Ilham is different from the whispers of Satan.

From here, we can conclude that evil is NOT CREATED BY ALLAH, but rather it is a product of human free will. The Ilham (information) from Allah, which is the Quran, can only be grasped and understood by the RUH (the ability to develop intellect).

This is what is meant in Surah An-Nisa (4): 79, "Goodness comes from Allah, specifically from the gift of RUH, while evil comes from yourself because the evil has already been informed through Ilham (information from Allah in the form of the Quran), but humans still choose to do it."

This conclusion is answered by Allah in the continuation of the verse from Surah As-Syams (91): 9-10:

قَدۡ أَفۡلَحَ مَن زَكَّىٰهَا وَقَدۡ خَابَ مَن دَسَّىٰهَا

"He who purifies it succeeds, and he who corrupts it fails."

Verse 9 emphasizes that those who make good use of the gift of RUH succeed, while verse 10 emphasizes that those who corrupt their RUH are among those who fail.

SO, IS IT TRUE THAT EVIL IS CREATED BY ALLAH ?

Until we meet again, this is Abu Musa.

Wassalamualaikum Wr. Wb.