Written and collected by Zia H Shah MD, the Chief Editor of the Muslim Times

Ghazali’s occasionalism asserts that God is the sole and direct cause of all events, rejecting inherent causality in creation. The Quran repeatedly emphasizes God’s absolute sovereignty, continuous sustenance, and direct control over all phenomena. Below are key verses that resonate with this framework, organized thematically:

---

1. Divine Sustenance and Preservation

Quran 35:41
إِنَّ اللَّهَ يُمْسِكُ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضَ أَن تَزُولَا ۚ وَلَئِن زَالَتَا إِنْ أَمْسَكَهُمَا مِنْ أَحَدٍ مِّن بَعْدِهِ
“Indeed, God holds the heavens and the earth, lest they cease. And if they should vanish, no one could hold them back after Him.”
Link to Occasionalism: The universe’s stability is not intrinsic but a continuous act of God’s will. Ghazali argued that creation depends moment-by-moment on divine intervention, not autonomous natural laws.

---

2. Divine Role in Every Natural Process

Surah Al-An’am (6:95):

إِنَّ اللَّهَ فَالِقُ الْحَبِّ وَالنَّوَىٰ ۖ يُخْرِجُ الْحَيَّ مِنَ الْمَيِّتِ وَمُخْرِجُ الْمَيِّتِ مِنَ الْحَيِّ ۚ ذَٰلِكُمُ اللَّهُ ۖ فَأَنَّىٰ تُؤْفَكُونَ

“Indeed, it is Allah who causes [the seed] grain and the date seed to sprout. He brings the living out of the dead and brings the dead out of the living. That is Allah; so how are you deluded?” ​islam-science.net

This verse underscores that processes like germination and life transitions are directly caused by Allah, aligning with the occasionalist view that natural events are manifestations of divine will.

Surah Al-An’am (6:96):

فَالِقُ الْإِصْبَاحِ وَجَعَلَ اللَّيْلَ سَكَنًا وَالشَّمْسَ وَالْقَمَرَ حُسْبَانًا ۚ ذَٰلِكَ تَقْدِيرُ الْعَزِيزِ الْعَلِيمِ

“He is the cleaver of daybreak and has made the night for rest and the sun and moon for calculation. That is the determination of the Exalted in Might, the Knowing.”​

Here, the alternation of day and night and the celestial order are attributed directly to Allah’s command, reflecting the belief that such phenomena do not operate independently but are governed by His will.

Surah Al-Waqi’ah (56:68-70):

أَفَرَأَيْتُمُ الْمَاءَ الَّذِي تَشْرَبُونَ

أَأَنتُمْ أَنزَلْتُمُوهُ مِنَ الْمُزْنِ أَمْ نَحْنُ الْمُنزِلُونَ

لَوْ نَشَاءُ جَعَلْنَاهُ أُجَاجًا فَلَوْلَا تَشْكُرُونَ

“Have you seen the water that you drink? Is it you who brought it down from the clouds, or is it We who bring it down? If We willed, We could make it bitter, so why are you not grateful?”​

The provision of water is presented as an act of Allah, suggesting that such essential elements are not the result of autonomous natural processes but of divine intervention.

Surah Al-Mulk (67:19):

أَوَلَمْ يَرَوْا إِلَى الطَّيْرِ فَوْقَهُمْ صَافَّاتٍ وَيَقْبِضْنَ ۚ مَا يُمْسِكُهُنَّ إِلَّا الرَّحْمَٰنُ ۚ إِنَّهُ بِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ بَصِيرٌ ‎

“Do they not see the birds above them with wings outspread and [sometimes] folded in? None holds them aloft except the Most Merciful. Indeed, He is, of all things, Seeing.”​

The flight of birds is attributed to Allah’s sustaining power, indicating that even seemingly autonomous actions in nature are under His control.

---

3. Creation by Divine Command

Quran 36:82
إِنَّمَا أَمْرُهُ إِذَا أَرَادَ شَيْئًا أَن يَقُولَ لَهُ كُن فَيَكُونُ
“His command, when He wills a thing, is only to say to it, ‘Be!’—and it is.”
Link to Occasionalism: Creation is an immediate act of God’s will, not a chain of causes. Ghazali emphasized that “existence is renewed at every instant by God’s power.” (The Revival of Religious Sciences).

---

4. God’s Direct Control Over Events

Quran 57:22
مَا أَصَابَ مِن مُّصِيبَةٍ فِي الْأَرْضِ وَلَا فِي أَنفُسِكُمْ إِلَّا فِي كِتَابٍ مِّن قَبْلِ أَن نَّبْرَأَهَا
“No disaster strikes upon the earth or among yourselves except that it is in a register before We bring it into being.”
Link to Occasionalism: All events, including calamities, are preordained and directly willed by God, denying random chance or independent causality.

---

5. God as the Ultimate Cause of Provision

Quran 10:31
قُلْ مَن يَرْزُقُكُم مِّنَ السَّمَاءِ وَالْأَرْضِ أَمَّن يَمْلِكُ السَّمْعَ وَالْأَبْصَارَ
“Say, ‘Who provides for you from the heaven and the earth? Or who controls hearing and sight?’”
Link to Occasionalism: Even basic functions like sensory perception are sustained by God, not by biological processes alone.

---

6. Continuous Creation and Renewal

Quran 55:29
كُلَّ يَوْمٍ هُوَ فِي شَأْنٍ
“Every day He is engaged in a [new] matter.”
Link to Occasionalism: God’s active involvement in creation is ongoing. Ghazali wrote: “The world is a perishable thing, renewed at every moment by God’s grace.” (The Alchemy of Happiness).

---

7. God’s Sovereignty Over Life and Death

Quran 67:1-2
الَّذِي خَلَقَ الْمَوْتَ وَالْحَيَاةَ لِيَبْلُوَكُمْ أَيُّكُمْ أَحْسَنُ عَمَلًا
“He who created death and life to test you as to which of you is best in deed.”
Link to Occasionalism: Life and death are not natural processes but direct acts of God’s will, reflecting His absolute authority.

---

8. All Knowledge and Power Reside in God

Quran 6:59
وَعِندَهُ مَفَاتِحُ الْغَيْبِ لَا يَعْلَمُهَا إِلَّا هُوَ
“With Him are the keys of the unseen; none knows them except Him.”
Link to Occasionalism: Ghazali stressed that God alone knows and controls the unseen, rendering creation entirely dependent on His knowledge.

---

9. God’s Control Over Natural Phenomena

Quran 30:50
فَانظُرْ إِلَىٰ آثَارِ رَحْمَتِ اللَّهِ كَيْفَ يُحْيِي الْأَرْضَ بَعْدَ مَوْتِهَا
“Observe the effects of God’s mercy—how He gives life to the earth after its death.”
Link to Occasionalism: Even “natural” cycles like seasons are direct acts of God, not impersonal forces.

---

10. Universal Submission to God

Quran 64:1
يُسَبِّحُ لِلَّهِ مَا فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَمَا فِي الْأَرْضِ
“All that is in the heavens and earth glorifies God.”
Link to Occasionalism: All creation submits to God’s will, reflecting their contingent nature and His absolute lordship.

---

11. Rejection of Independent Causality

Quran 8:17
وَمَا رَمَيْتَ إِذْ رَمَيْتَ وَلَٰكِنَّ اللَّهَ رَمَىٰ
“You did not throw when you threw, but God threw.”
Link to Occasionalism: Human actions are directly caused by God. Ghazali rejected inherent human agency, stating: “The connection between cause and effect is not necessary but ordained by God.” (The Incoherence of the Philosophers).

---

Conclusion

These verses collectively affirm Ghazali’s occasionalist worldview:

• No Independent Causality: Creation lacks inherent power; all effects flow directly from God.
• Continuous Divine Action: The universe is perpetually sustained and renewed by God’s will.
• Ultimate Sovereignty: Every event, from a leaf falling to a heart beating, is a manifestation of God’s command.

As Ghazali wrote: “The heart of the believer is a throne for the Merciful”—a recognition that existence itself is a ceaseless act of divine grace. The Quranic worldview leaves no room for autonomous creation; all is a reflection of قُدْرَةِ اللَّهِ (qudrat Allah—the power of God).