المعنى الاصطلاحي

The continuance and consecution of the Almighty Lord's actions for eternity, and that every one of His actions is preceded by another action.

الشرح المختصر

"Tasalsul al-hawādith" (continuance of occurrences): The word "tasalsul" is one of the general terms that the people of scholastic theology have introduced. Used in this sense, it means the order of infinite affairs. "Tasalsul" is of three types: 1."Tasalsul mumtani‘" (impossible consecution): which is "tasalsul" of effects, the doers, and the causes. It means that for every doer, there is another doer on an infinite basis. This is a false claim according to sound mind and the agreement of men of reason. Another example of this is the "tasalsul" of the effectiveness of an effect, like saying: any occurrence must have a created cause, and that cause must have a created cause as well. 2. "Tasalsul mumkin" (possible consecution): which is "tasalsul" in actions or objects, and the consequent effects. This means that the second occurrence is dependent upon the occurrence before it, and that occurrence is dependent upon the one before it. And this is what is meant by "tasalsul al-hawādith". There is a difference in opinion concerning this type, and the people have three views regarding it: a) It is absolutely possible; this is the view of the Imams of the Sunnah and Hadith and the philosophers. However, the Muslims along with the rest of the people of other religions, and the majority of the men of reason from among all sects say that everything other than Allah is created and produced after it was non-existent, whereas the philosophers view that the universe has no beginning. b) It is not possible, neither in the past nor in the future. This is the view of Al-Jahm ibn Safwān and Abul-Hūdhayl al-‘Allāf. c) It is possible in the future rather than the past, and this is the view of the majority of the followers of Jahm, and Abul-Hūdhayl, from among the Jahmites, the Mu‘tazilites, and the Ash‘arites, and those who agree with them. 3. "Tasalsul wājib" (necessary consecution): it is the endless continuance of the Lord's actions as proven by both reason and the Shariah. And that every time the bliss of the people of Paradise comes to an end, Allah will create a new type of bliss that never ends for them. The same applies to Allah’s actions for eternity, and that every action is preceded by another action. Our Lord, the Almighty, has never been lacking any of His aspects of perfection like His speech, will, and actions… "Hawādith" has two meanings: 1. It is used to mean the created beings, or regeneration. Hence, it is known that not every occurrence is created. 2. The succession of the Lord's actions and their continuance without an end. As for "hawādith" that have the meaning of the creation, then it is the succession of the actions or objects, and they have no beginning either, because it is the result of the notion of the continuance of the lord's actions. As for the individual acts, then there is no doubt that they are preceded with non-existence. It may be said that there is no time supposed for the creation of the world, except that it is possible for this to occur before that time. This is because Allah's existence has no beginning. This is an aspect of "tasalsul jā’iz" (possible succession), not "tasalsul wājib" (necessary succession). Adopting the view that the occurrences or creation has no beginning should not necessarily mean that they are joined or associated with Allah, the Almighty. There is no problem in this case. However, it is impermissible to claim that the creation has always existed in the past, i.e. that the creation's existence has no beginning. In fact, this is disbelief, because this statement necessitates that there is no creator for the creation even though it has been created out of non-existence.