| The Sovereign: (14) Does not He Who Created Know...

There are several issues concerning this:

Issue 1: The necessity of the Creator's knowledge of the created.

The meaning of the verse is that whoever creates something must necessarily know that which He creates. This premise is established by this text and also by rational proofs.

Creation (Khalaq) is defined as bringing into existence (Ijad) and formation according to intention (qasd). The one who intends something must know the reality of that thing, as it is impossible for someone heedless of a thing to intend it.

Just as it is established that the Creator must know the essence (mahiyyah) of the created thing, He must also know its quantity (kammiyyah). This is because its occurrence at a specific measure, without being more or less, must be by the intention and choice of the agent. Intention is preceded by knowledge. Therefore, He must have known that specific measure and intended to bring about that measure, making its occurrence preferable to any greater or lesser measure. Otherwise, the specification of that measure over a greater or lesser one would be a preference of one possibility over another without a determining factor (murajjih), which is impossible.

Thus, it is established that whoever creates something must know the reality, quantity, and quality of that creation.

Based on this premise, our scholars use this verse to demonstrate that the servant is not the originator (mujīd) of his own actions, from two perspectives:

First Perspective: They argue: If the servant were the originator of his own actions, he would have to be knowledgeable of their details. However, he is not knowledgeable of their details; therefore, he is not their originator.

The necessity of knowing the details is proven in two ways:

1. By appealing to this verse (as established above).
2. By the fact that the occurrence of, say, ten parts of a movement is possible, and the occurrence of more or less is also possible. The specification of exactly ten parts, to the exclusion of more or less, must be because the capable, choosing agent (al-qādir al-mukhtār) specifically willed it. If the capable agent specifies the occurrence of those ten parts, He must know that what occurs is ten, neither more nor less. If the servant were the originator of his actions, he would know their details.

The servant is not knowledgeable of the details of his actions for several reasons:

1. The speed/slowness of motion: The theologians agree that the difference between fast and slow motion is due to the interposition of rests (sakanāt). The agent of slow motion performs motion in some spaces and rest in others, yet it never crosses his mind that he performed motion here and rest there.
2. Counting parts of motion: An agent of motion does not know the number of parts of that motion unless he knows the number of spatial units (aḥyāz) between the starting point and the end point. This depends on his knowledge of how many indivisible atoms (jawāhir fardiyyah) fill that distance from beginning to end, which is certainly unknown.
3. Unconscious movement: The sleeper or the faint may move from one side to another, yet they do not know the essence or quantity of that movement.
4. The view of Abū ʿAlī and Abū Hāshim: They hold that the agent acts upon a meaning that necessitates his presence in a space. This necessitating meaning is often not even conceived by most people.

These points demonstrate that the servant is not the originator of his actions.

Second Perspective: We use this verse to argue that the servant is not the originator by noting the sequence of the preceding verses. Allah mentions that He knows the secret and the manifest, and everything in the breasts, and then follows it with: {Does not He Who Created Know?} This statement connects logically only if Allah is the Creator of everything they do secretly and openly, and everything in their hearts. If He were not the Creator of these things, then saying {Does not He Who Created Know?} would not necessitate that He knows these things. Therefore, it is established that Allah is the Creator of all that they do secretly and openly, both actions of the limbs and actions of the hearts.

If it is objected: "Why can it not mean: Does not He Who Created the physical bodies know these things?" We reply: Being the creator of other things does not necessitate knowing those other things. A person can be the agent of something without knowing something else. However, being the Creator of a thing does necessitate knowing that thing, because the Creator of a thing must know it.

Issue 2: Grammatical analysis of the verse.

The verse is open to three interpretations:

1. Nominative Man (Who): {من خلاق} (Who has a Creator) is in the nominative case, and the object (the created thing) is implied. The meaning is: Does not He Who created His creature know?
2. Accusative Man (Who): {من خلق} (Who created) is in the accusative case, and the subject (Allah) is implied. The meaning is: Does not Allah know who created?

The first interpretation is preferable. The second interpretation implies that Allah knows the essence of the one who is created, but it does not necessarily imply that He knows the states (aḥwāl) of the one who is created. The purpose of the verse is the latter (knowing the states/actions), not the former.

3. Man in the sense of Mā (What): {من} is understood as {ما} (as in the verse: By the heaven and He Who built it [Ash-Shams: 5]). In this case, Mā refers to what people conceal, reveal, and harbor in their breasts. This interpretation necessitates that the actions of the servants are created by Allah.

Regarding the phrase: {And He is the Subtle, the All-Aware}

There is a difference of opinion regarding the meaning of Al-Latīf (The Subtle): Some say it means "The All-Knowing." Others say it means He is the one who performs subtle actions (al-ashyā’ al-latīfah) whose manner of operation is hidden from most agents. This is why it is said that Allah's subtlety towards His servants is wondrous, referring to the fine details of His planning for them and within them. This second view is closer, otherwise, mentioning Al-Khabīr (The All-Aware) afterward would be redundant.

! 7 < { It is He Who made the earth manageable for you, so walk upon its regions and eat from His provision. And to Him is the Resurrection. } > 7 !

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