What Is the Ruling on Claiming That Creation Has Always Existed Through Infinite Regress; Does Holding This Belief Amount to Kufr?
Answered by Shaykh Irshaad Sedick
Question
What is the ruling on claiming that creation has always existed through infinite regress; does holding this belief amount to shirk or kufr?
Answer
In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate. May Allah alleviate our difficulties and guide us to what pleases Him. Amin.
Islamic theology is clear that Allah alone is without beginning or end, while everything else is contingent and created. Allah Most High says: “He is the First and the Last, the Manifest and the Hidden, and He has perfect knowledge of all things.” [Quran, 57:3]
To claim that the universe itself is eternal, without beginning and not brought into being by Allah, contradicts this fundamental truth. Classical scholars of kalam, such as Imam Tahawi and Imam Bayhaqi, stressed that creation is originated (hadith) and that Allah alone is pre-eternal (qadim).
Does This Belief Constitute Shirk or Kufr?
- If one holds that creation itself is eternal and uncreated, this is kufr (disbelief) because it denies a core element of tawhid: Allah alone is the Necessary Being, all else contingent.
- If one says creation is eternal alongside Allah, this is a form of shirk (associating partners), as it attributes pre-eternity to other than Allah.
- Suppose one speculates without affirming, such as entertaining the idea but still affirming Allah as Creator. In that case, it is a grave error and misguidance, but not necessarily kufr until the denial of revelation is explicit.
The world is originated (has a beginning), and it has a Maker. He who says otherwise is a disbeliever. [Nasafi, al-Aqa’id al-Nasafiyya]
Practical Approach
- Hold firmly that Allah alone is eternal and everything else is His creation.
- Steer clear of idle speculation, not every abstract theory is consistent with tawhid; keep your belief rooted in Quran and Sunna.
- Seek sound knowledge: Study basic aqida texts (e.g., al-‘Aqida al-Tahawiyya, Jawharat al-Tawhid, al-Kharida al-Bahiyya) to fortify faith against philosophical doubts. Please register for our excellent course on What Muslims Believe and Why, by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani, and based on the Kharida Bahiyya.
- Deepen faith through worship, remembrance, prayer, and reflection, strengthening conviction more than argumentation.
I pray Allah grants us unwavering certainty in His Oneness, shields us from confusion, and increases us in beneficial knowledge.
And Allah knows best.
[Shaykh] Irshaad Sedick
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
Shaykh Irshaad Sedick was raised in South Africa in a traditional Muslim family. He graduated from Dar al-Ulum al-Arabiyyah al-Islamiyyah in Strand, Western Cape, under the guidance of the late world-renowned scholar Shaykh Taha Karaan (Allah have mercy on him), where he taught.
Shaykh Irshaad received Ijaza from many luminaries of the Islamic world, including Shaykh Taha Karaan, Shaykh Muhammad Awama, Shaykh Muhammad Hasan Hitu, and Mawlana Abdul Hafeez Makki, among others.
He is the author of the text “The Musnad of Ahmad ibn Hanbal: A Hujjah or not?” He has been the Director of the Discover Islam Centre, and for six years, he has been the Khatib of Masjid Ar-Rashideen, Mowbray, Cape Town.
Shaykh Irshaad has fifteen years of teaching experience at some of the leading Islamic institutes in Cape Town. He is currently building an Islamic podcast, education, and media platform called ‘Isnad Academy’ and has completed his Master’s degree in the study of Islam at the University of Johannesburg. He has a keen interest in healthy Prophetic living and fitness.
