Fatwa ID: 03998

Answered by: Maulana Muhammad Afzal Hussain​

Question:

What is the wisdom behind Adam (As) being tested by the Forbidden Tree?

In the name of ALLAH the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful

Answer:

Allah (swt) said in the Quran: “O Adam, live in the Garden, you and your wife, and eat abundantly of whatever you wish but do not approach this tree or else you will be counted among the wrong-doers.”[Sura Baqarah:35]

This suggests that Allah (swt) was testing their mental tendency before sending them to earth as Allah's vicegerent. So they were both put in Paradise. Allah (swt) selected a tree and ordered them not to go near the tree. He also mentioned the consequence of drawing near to it. Allah (swt) wanted to see how much they obeyed his command against the whispers of Shaitan. Allah (swt) could have chosen anything. In this instance, he chose a tree.

This indicates that before man was sent to Earth Moreover, for this kind of test, Paradise was the best possible place. What Allah wanted to impress on man was that the only place that befits man's station in Paradise and that if a man turns from the course of obedience to Allah as a result of Satanic allurements, he will remain deprived of it in the next life even as he was deprived of it once before. The only way he can recover his true status and reclaim the lost Paradise is by resisting effectively the enemy who is always trying to drive him off the course of obedience to Allah. 

Only Allah Knows Best

Written by Maulana Muhammad Afzal Hussain

Checked and approved Mufti Mohammed Tosir Miah

Darul Ifta Birmingham