Series of Answers by the Eminent Scholar Ata Bin Khalil Abu Al-Rashtah, Amir of Hizb ut-Tahrir, to the Questions of Visitors to his Facebook Page "Fiqhi"
Answer to Question
To Muhammad Al-Khatib
Question:
With your permission, I would like to ask regarding provision (rizq). Does seeking (sa'i) increase the amount of written provision? That is, would a person sitting at home receive the same provision as if they were working? Or, put another way, does advertising or promoting one's work increase the amount of written provision? Thank you. I hope for an answer as soon as possible, and may Allah protect our Sheikh and grant him a long life.
Answer:
Walaikum Assalam Wa Rahmatullahi Wa Barakatuh,
It seems you have some confusion regarding the subject of provision (rizq) and seeking (sa'i)... In any case, this matter is explained, particularly in the Kurasah (The Booklet), and you can review it there as it is covered comprehensively. However, I will summarize some of it for you:
[As for the issue of provision, the many verses that are definite in meaning (qat'i ad-dalalah) leave no room for anyone who believes in the Quran except to believe that provision is in the hand of Allah, which He gives to whom He wills. The issue of provision is different from the issue of Qadar (Fate). Qadar means that Allah knows a certain matter will happen before it occurs, so it is written and decreed. As for provision, it is not just that Allah knows a person will be provided for, so it is written and decreed; rather, in addition to that—i.e., in addition to the fact that He has decreed the provision—the Provider (al-Raziq) is Allah and not the servant. This is what the verses indicate:
لَا نَسْأَلُكَ رِزْقًا نَّحْنُ نَرْزُقُكَ وَالْعَاقِبَةُ لِلتَّقْوَى
"We ask not of you provision; We provide for you, and the [best] outcome is for righteousness." (Surah Taha [20]: 132)
وَكُلُوا مِمَّا رَزَقَكُمُ اللَّهُ حَلَالًا طَيِّبًا وَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ الَّذِي أَنْتُمْ بِهِ مُؤْمِنُونَ
"And eat of what Allah has provided for you [which is] lawful and good. And fear Allah, in whom you are believers." (Surah Al-Ma'idah [5]: 88)
... These verses are definite in meaning that Allah is the Provider, and that He provides for whom He wills, and that He is the one who extends provision for whom He wills and restricts it. In all of them, provision is attributed to Allah, and they state that there is no provider other than Him, which indicates that He is the one who provides, and this is a literal attribution...
Thus, the attribution of provision to Allah is a literal one. Furthermore, there is no mention in any verse or Hadith attributing provision to a human being in the sense that they provide for themselves. Instead, the attribution of provision in all texts is to Allah the Almighty. As for the instances where provision is attributed to a human giving to another, the intended meaning is "give them the money" and not the act of creating provision. For example, Allah (swt) says:
وَلَا تُؤْتُوا السُّفَهَاءَ أَمْوَالَكُمُ الَّتِي جَعَلَ اللَّهُ لَكُمْ قِيَامًا وَارْزُقُوهُمْ فِيهَا وَاكْسُوهُمْ
"And do not give the weak-minded your property, which Allah has made a means of support for you, but feed them with it and clothe them." (Surah An-Nisa [4]: 5)
And He (swt) says:
وَإِذَا حَضَرَ الْقِسْمَةَ أُولُو الْقُرْبَىٰ وَالْيَتَامَىٰ وَالْمَسَاكِينُ فَارْزُقُوهُم مِّنْهُ
"And when [other] relatives and orphans and the needy are present at the [time of] division, give them [something] out of it." (Surah An-Nisa [4]: 8)
The meaning in the first verse is "give them food," and in the second verse "give them from this provision that has come to you." It is a command to give to them from the provision, and not an attribution of the act of providing to them. The attribution of provision in the sense of the "actor" of provision is never mentioned except for Allah Almighty. Thus, you find verses saying:
نَّحْنُ نَرْزُقُكُمْ
"We provide for you." (Surah Al-An'am [6]: 151)
In other verses:
وَرِزْقُ رَبِّكَ
"And the provision of your Lord." (Surah Taha [20]: 131)
And in other verses:
كُلُوا وَاشْرَبُوا مِن رِّزْقِ اللَّهِ
"Eat and drink from the provision of Allah." (Surah Al-Baqarah [2]: 60)
In all of these, the act of provision is attributed to Allah and assigned to Him. This provides a meaning that does not accept interpretation (ta'wil), which is that Allah alone is the Provider (al-Razzaq), and that provision is in the hand of Allah.
Based on this, it is mandatory to believe that Allah is the one who provides for the creation, because the evidence is definite in its source and definite in its meaning. Believing in it is an obligation (fard) and disbelieving in it is kufr (disbelief). Whoever does not believe that Allah is the Provider has disbelieved, and we seek refuge in Allah from that.
This is the matter of provision in terms of belief (iman) and evidence. However, alongside His command to believe that He is the Provider, Allah Almighty has commanded humans to seek (sa'i) to obtain this provision. He (swt) says:
هُوَ الَّذِي جَعَلَ لَكُمُ الْأَرْضَ ذَلُولًا فَامْشُوا فِي مَنَاكِبِهَا وَكُلُوا مِن رِّزْقِهِ
"It is He who made the earth tame for you - so walk among its slopes and eat of His provision." (Surah Al-Mulk [67]: 15)
And He (swt) says:
فَإِذَا قُضِيَتِ الصَّلَاةُ فَانتَشِرُوا فِي الْأَرْضِ وَابْتَغُوا مِن فَضْلِ اللَّهِ
"And when the prayer has been concluded, disperse within the land and seek from the bounty of Allah." (Surah Al-Jumu'ah [62]: 10)
In these two verses, He commanded seeking to obtain provision. When this command to seek provision is coupled with the verses stating that Allah is the Provider, the meaning of Allah being the Provider becomes clear, and the meaning of believing that Allah is the Provider is explained. The first set of verses all decisively state that Allah is the Provider—meaning He is the one who gives provision and not the human—and these two verses command the work to obtain Allah's provision...
The reality is that seeking (sa'i) is not the cause (sabab) of provision. This is because a cause (sabab) inevitably produces the effect (musabbab), and the effect only results from its cause. A knife is the cause of cutting, so it is what cuts. Fire is the cause of burning, so it is what burns. Cutting does not happen without a knife (i.e., a sharp tool), and burning does not happen without fire (i.e., a burning material). This is what a cause is. If seeking provision were like that, it would be the cause of provision, and the reality would be that seeking is what brings provision, just as the knife is what cuts and the fire is what burns. But seeking provision is not like that; it is not like the knife for cutting or the fire for burning. This is because seeking provision may occur without provision being obtained, and provision may be obtained without seeking it. That is, the cause may exist without the effect occurring, and the effect may occur without its cause, or even without any apparent cause at all. This indicates decisively that seeking is not the cause of provision.
Examples of this in life are numerous and widespread. A merchant who seeks profit may end up with a loss or no profit; the seeking occurred but the provision did not. Thus, the "cause" existed but did not produce the "effect." Since it did not produce it, it is not a cause, because a cause must produce the effect inevitably...
Furthermore, an heir to wealth receives provision without seeking it. If seeking were the cause of provision, wealth would not be obtained without seeking, because the effect only results from its cause. Obtaining wealth through inheritance without seeking is proof that seeking is not the cause of provision, as the provision occurred without the existence of seeking...
All of this proves decisively that seeking provision is not the cause of provision; i.e., it is not what brought the provision. It is not like the knife that performed the cutting or the fire that performed the burning. Thus, it is not what brought the provision because it is not a cause for it...]
Therefore, the Provider is Allah (swt), and this is a matter of Aqidah (creed). However, seeking (sa'i) is a Sharia ruling (hukm shar'i). If you seek, you receive the provision that Allah has decreed for you and you receive the reward for seeking provision. If you do not seek, you still receive the provision that Allah has decreed for you, but you would be in violation of the Sharia ruling because you did not seek as Allah commanded you.
This should be sufficient, Allah willing. As I mentioned to you earlier, the subject is mentioned in full in the Kurasah. If anything remains unclear to you, you can refer back to the booklet, as it is sufficient. May Allah be with you.
Your brother, Ata Bin Khalil Abu Al-Rashtah
27 Safar 1445 AH Corresponding to 12/09/2023 CE
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