Islam teaches that there is life after death, and this is known as Akhirah. In Islam, it is Allah who decides when a person dies and most Muslims believe that when they die, they will stay in their graves until Yawm al-din, the Day of Judgement. On that day, they will be raised from their graves and brought before Allah and judged on how they lived their earthly lives. This belief is known as the resurrection of the body. Those who have performed more good deeds than bad will enter Jannah, or Paradise. Jannah is a place described as a ‘garden of everlasting bliss’ and a ‘home of peace’. In Jannah there will be no sickness, pain or sadness. Those who have performed more bad deeds than good will enter Jahannam or Hell. This is a place of physical and spiritual suffering. Muslims believe that Allah is forgiving, merciful and compassionate, so not all bad actions will be punished. Allah will forgive those who have repented for their sins and those who have done some good in their lives, for example showing kindness to others. There are, however, some sins that many Muslims believe to be unforgivable. These include the sin of shirk. A person may have one of two states of mind at the time of death: if he was obedient he regrets that he did not do more righteous deeds at the time of his death; but if he is disobedient, he regrets his shortcomings and wishes to return to this life so that he could repent and act righteously. However, by then it is too late. Allah The Almighty Says (what means): {…and if they seek to please Allah, yet they are not of those who will ever be allowed to please Allah.} [Quran 41:24] and also: {Until, when death comes to one of them (those who join partners with Allah), he says: “My Lord! Send me back, So that I may do good in that which I have left behind!” No! It is but a word that he speaks; and behind them is Barzakh (a barrier) until the Day when they will be resurrected.} [Quran 23:99-100] Death is an indisputable fact; Allah The Almighty Says (what means): {And the stupor of death will come in truth: “This is what you have been avoiding!”} [Quran 50:19] Who can argue about death and its agonies after hearing these words? Who can dispute the pressing of the grave? Who can delay his death from its appointed time? Allah The Almighty Says (what means): {….when their term comes, neither can they delay it nor can they advance it an hour (or a moment).} [Quran 7:34] Belief in life after death is central to the meaning and purpose of most Muslims’ lives. Many Muslims believe that they are on this earth for a relatively short time and during this time they are preparing themselves for eternal life after death. They view this life as a test and try to do as many good deeds as they can. In order to get to Jannah, they must also fulfil their Islamic obligations. “Be in this world as though you were a stranger or a traveller/wayfarer.” (Sahih Al-Bukhari) This hadith of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) captures the essence of our lives in this world. We are advised to be as strangers, for strangers constantly long to return to their homes and are willing to do whatever possible and beneficial for returning to their origins. Like the traveller we should trek forward with our final destination in mind and stop only to replenish ourselves for the journey. We must travel light, and not let the material desires of this world serve as a luggage too heavy to carry. The concept of the Hereafter and the final destination of man is well laid out in the Quran. It clearly states the meaning of this life and the ultimate goal that we should look to achieve through this world. “What is the life of this world but play and amusement? But best is the Home in the Hereafter, for those who are righteous. Will ye not then understand?” (Quran 6:32) “Then did you think that We created you in vain and that to Us you would not be returned? Therefore exalted be God, the Sovereign, the Truth; no deity is there save Him, Lord of the Supreme Throne.” (Quran 23:115-116). The Quran is also very straightforward in detailing that for man to be successful in the Hereafter, he must truly believe in the Hereafter and look forward to this meeting with his Lord. Those men who believed in One God, His Messengers, His Books, His Angels, the Day of Judgment, and established regular prayers and charity will have nothing to fear and will look forward to this meeting. “…Do not fear and do not grieve, but receive good tidings of the Paradise which you were promised. We were your allies in this worldly life and [are so] in the Hereafter, and you will have therein whatever your souls desire, and you will have therein whatever you request [or wish], as a hospitality from the Forgiving and Merciful.” (Quran 41:30-32) But those who did not practice the injunctions set out by the Quran and misused their free will; those that did not believe in this meeting with their Creator will be cast aside by their Lord just as they cast aside the warnings of the Quran. “Such as took their religion to be mere amusement and play, and were deceived by the life of this world. That day shall we forget them as they forgot the meeting of this day of theirs, and as they were wont to reject Our Signs.” (Quran 7:51) Our judgment on the aforementioned day and our subsequent reward or punishment must serve as inspiration for us to lead pious lives. We beseech the Almighty to guide us on the Sirat-ul-Mustaqeem in every prayer, but we must make the effort to find this path and stay on it. As travellers in this world we must equip ourselves with good companions and the right knowledge that will prevent us from straying off this path. In addition to the doing of good being equated to “Seeking the Face of God” (Quran 2:272), the Quran provides us with a variety of vivid descriptions of the rewards for the believers and the punishment for the disbelievers.
The destinations of Heaven and Hell and their abject description in the Quran should rally us towards right and enable us to shun evil. We must be clear that every deed will be recorded and big or small; we will get our just reward. “And We place the scales of justice for Day of Resurrection, so no soul will be treated unjustly at all. And if there is [any deed even] the weight of a mustard seed, We will bring it forth. And sufficient are We to take account.” (Quran 21:47) It is important to note that not only will we be judged on the basis of whether we fulfilled our duties towards God, but also whether we fulfilled our duties towards our fellow men, or Haqooqul-Ibaad as they are called. Compassion for mankind and general good conduct will be of great value in the final judgment. “The heaviest thing that will be placed in a person’s Balance on the Day of Resurrection [after the testimony of Faith] is good manners, and God hates the obscene, immoral person.” (Al-Tirmidhi) The righteous are promised lush carpets, cushions, bubbling springs, pure wines, adornments, thrones, Gardens, Beautiful Companions, much rest, satisfaction and the fulfilment of their hearts desires; “…And therein is whatever each soul desires and delights the eyes…” (Quran 43:71) On the Day you see the believing men and believing women, their light proceeding before them and on their right, [it will be said], ‘Your good tidings today are of gardens beneath which rivers flow, wherein you will abide eternally.’ Indeed in that is the great success.” (Quran 57:12) On the other hand, we are forewarned of the misery which awaits us if we are unable to protect ourselves from sin. Before mentioning what the Quran portrays of Hell, a frightening hadith comes to mind. The Companion, Zaid b. Thabit, narrated how, when the Holy Prophet (PBUH) and his Companions were once passing some graves of polytheists, the Prophet’s horse bolted and almost unseated him. The Holy Prophet (PBUH), then said: “These people are being tortured in their graves, and were it not that you would stop burying your dead, I would ask God to let you hear the punishment in the grave which I (and this horse) can hear.” (Sahih Muslim) The Quran further iterates the point of the torment that awaits the disbelievers and wrong-doers in their final abode. This does not begin when they are finally being judged, but from the very moment that their souls are taken from their bodies. “And if you could not see when the angels take the souls of those who disbelieved… striking their faces and their backs and saying, ‘Taste the punishment of the Blazing Fire.’” (Quran 8:50) “And if you could but see when the wrongdoers are in the overwhelming pangs of death while the angels extend their hands, saying, ‘Save yourselves! Today you will be awarded the punishment of extreme humiliation for what you used to say against God other than the truth, and that you were, toward His verses, being arrogant.” (Quran 6:93) Wrong-doers will have no respite if they die in this state of unbelief. No matter how much they beg for another chance, their life on this world will be over and they will have nothing left but regret. Most of the times we forget the truth that one day we are going to leave this life. We are going to leave everything behind us. How many years have you lived so far? And how many years are you going to live more? All of these years are nothing compared to our standing in the day of Resurrection! So, death is not seen as the termination of life, rather the continuation of life in another form. Death is the final destination of worldly life, but it is just the beginning of another eternal life. Allah has mentioned what the person will say at the day of judgment … “He will say, “Oh, I wish I had sent ahead [some good] for my life.” (Quran 89:24 ) So, What have you prepared for your life? I mean the eternal life. How can someone prepare for something that he doesn’t know!! You have to open your eyes to see the truth. To read and reflect upon the Holy Quran. The Quran answers your questions about life, death and why we are here and where we are going after death!! The Quran guides us to the straight path. The issue of death is mentioned in several Ayahs the Quran. Death is inevitable. No matter how many people try to escape death, it will reach everyone. “And the intoxication of death will bring the truth; that is what you were trying to avoid”. Quran 50:19. Some people deny resurrection and afterlife, and thus challenge Allah. The Quran challenges them by saying that why those people then do not put back the soul which has reached the throat (of the dying person) and is about to escape the body. “Then why do you not (intervene) when (the soul of a dying person) reaches the throat? (83) And you at the moment are looking on, (84) But We (i.e. Our angels who take the soul) are nearer to him than you, but you see not, (Tafsir At-Tabarî) (85) Then why do you not, if you are exempt from the reckoning and recompense (punishment) (86) Bring back the soul (to its body), if you are truthful? (87)“ Quran 56:83-87. It also says that when death approaches the sinners and disbelievers, and they sense the upcoming chastisement, they pray to God to go back to life to do some good deeds; but this will never be granted to them. “For such is the state of the disbelievers], until, when death comes to one of them, he says, “My Lord, send me back That I might do righteousness in that which I left behind.” No! It is only a word he is saying; and behind them is a barrier until the Day they are resurrected.” Quran 23:99 &100. The most frequently quoted verses of the Quran about death are: “Every soul will taste death, and you will only be given your [full] compensation on the Day of Resurrection. So he who is drawn away from the Fire and admitted to Paradise has attained [his desire]. And what is the life of this world except the enjoyment of delusion.” Quran 3:183 Another verse relates this issue: “[He] who created death and life to test you [as to] which of you is best in deed – and He is the Exalted in Might, the Forgiving” Quran 67:2 Don’t think that you have that much time to find the truth, to know who you are, to turn back to Allah, to do good deeds…. Nobody knows when he/she is going to die and where!! This life is too short and death comes suddenly! In brief, by remembering death often we can purify ourselves and our actions to attain success in this world and the Hereafter. Let us not ever forget that this moment could be our last, and not put off until tomorrow what can, and should be done today.
( The authors write regularly on Islamic topics exclusively for opinion pages of “ Kashmir Horizon”. Views are their own)
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