Hell

CHAPTER FOUR

Section One

The Hell

O you who are heedless of your own self, daydreaming by the obsession of this world, which even now draws closer to their end and loss! Renounce all thought upon what you must leave, and turn your mind to thoughts of your final destination. For it has been given you to know that Hell is the destiny of all men, for it is said, There is not one of you but shall come to it. This is a fixed ordinance of thy Lord. Then shall We deliver those that were God-fearing, and leave the wrongdoers therein crouching.

The Messenger of Allah has said, ‘In the Hell there lie seventy thousand valleys, each of which has seventy thousand ravines, in each of which are seventy thousand serpents and seventy thousands scorpions. The unbeliever and the hypocrite shall have not have respite until they have been cast down upon each one of them.’1

1 Ibn Qani, al-Mujam

2 Muslim, Jannah

3 Bukhari, Riqaq. Muslim, Iman

4 Ibn al-Mubarak. Abu Nu’aym. Ibn Abi Shayba

Just as the number of its gates is seven, being the number of the parts with which a man sins. They are layered one above the other: the uppermost is the Hell (Jahannam), then comes the Blaze (saqar), the Flame (Laza), the Furnace (al-Hutama), the Fire (al-sa’ir), Hellfire (al-Jahim) and the deep hole (al-Hawiya).

Contemplate the depth of the deep hole, which is without limit, just as there is no limit to the desires of this world; for just as one worldly desire ends only in another which is yet stronger, so the deep hole of the Hell ends only in another deep hole which is yet more deep.

Abu Hurayra said, ‘Once, when we were with The Messenger of Allah (upon him peace) we heard the sound of something falling. “Do you know what that was?” he asked, and we replied, “Allah and His Messenger know best.” “That was a rock,” he said, “which was cast into the Hell seventy years ago and which has only now reached its floor”.’2

The Messenger of Allah (upon him peace) said, ‘The least torment of Hell’s occupant shall, on the Day of Judgement, wear sandals of fire, the heat of which will cause his brains to boil.’3

Contemplate the state of this man, who has been dealt with lightly; consider how must be the state of one who is treated with cruelty. And should you ever doubt the intensity of Hell’s torment, then merely bring your finger near to a flame and draw a comparison from that.

The Messenger of Allah (upon him peace) described the nature of Hell quite clearly, saying, ‘Allah (The Exalted) ordered Hell to be strengthened up for a thousand years until it becomes red; then it was strengthened up for a further thousand years until it turned white; then it was strengthened up for another thousand years until it became black. Black it is, and shadowy.’4 2 www.GardensOfSunnah.co.uk

Next look to the foulness of the pus which shall flow from their bodies until they are flooded in it totally; this is ghassaq.5 Abu Sa’id al-Khudri said, ‘The Messenger of Allah (upon him peace) said, “If one pail of the Hell’s ghassaq were to be voided into this world it would pollute the lives of the whole of its inhabitants”.’6

5 Ichor, a thick purulent matter, or the tears of the inhabitants of Hell, or an intense cold.

6 Tirmidhi, Jahannam

7 Tirmidhi, Jahannam

8 Ibn Hanbal, Musnad

9 Muslim, Jannah

10 Tirmidhi, Jahanam

Abu’l Darda said, ‘The Messenger of Allah (upon him peace) said, “Hunger will be cast upon the people of Hell until it itself becomes equal to the torment they are in. They shall cry for food, and are given food from bitter thorn fruit, which neither nourishes, nor satisfies hunger. And again they cry for food, and are given food which chokes them. They remember that in the world they used to drink to relieve choking, so they desire for a drink, and boiling water is passed up to them with iron hooks, but when it comes near to them it burns their faces, and when it enters into their bellies their insides split. ‘Call the Guardians of Hell!’ they say, and they petition them, saying, ‘Pray to your Lord to lighten our punishment for one day!’ but they reply, ‘Did Prophets not come unto you with clear proofs?’ ‘Yes,’ they say. ‘Pray,’ they continue, ‘although the prayer of the unbelievers can only go astray’. Then they say, ‘Summon Malik!’ and they call him. ‘O Malik! Let your Lord make an end of us!’ they cry to him, but he says to them, ‘You are to remain.’”

And al-A’mash said, “I have been told that between their petition and Malik’s response shall be a thousand years.” The Prophet (continued, and) said, “Then they say, ‘Call upon your Lord, Our evil fortune triumph over us, and we were a people in misguidance. O our Lord! Bring us hence, and if we return (to sin), then are we wrongdoers.’ And He says in reply, ‘Fall back therein, and speak not to Me.’ At this they despair of any good, and begin to sob, to lament, and to curse.’”7

Look now at the serpents and scorpions of the Hell, their strong venom, their great size, and the ugliness of their appearance. They are let loose against its people and irritated against them, and do not wear out of stinging and biting for a single moment.

The Messenger of Allah (upon him peace) said, “In Hell there are serpents which resemble the necks of long-necked camels, the bite of which suffer for forty autumns, and in it there are scorpions like loaded mules, the sting of which endures for forty autumns also.’8

Then, after all this, think upon how the bodies of Hell’s people will swollen. For Allah (The Exalted) shall cause their frames to grow in length and breadth so their torment may thereby be increased. They feel the fire’s blazing and the bites of the snakes and the scorpions in all their parts at once and without any interruption.

Abu Hurayra said, ‘The Messenger of Allah (upon him peace) once said, “In Hell, the unbeliever’s molar (tooth) will be as large as Mount Uhud, and his skin will be stretched a three day journey’s length”.’9

The Messenger of Allah (upon him peace) said, ‘His lower lip shall have fallen down onto his breast, while his upper lip curls back and covers his face.’10 3 www.GardensOfSunnah.co.uk

And he said, upon him peace, ‘On the Day of Judgement the unbeliever will drag his tongue on Sijjin, where people will tread upon it’.11

11 Tirmidhi, Jahanam

12 Muslim, Jannah

13 Bukhari, Tafsir Surat 19. Muslim, Jannah

14 Bayhaqi,Bath

15 Bukhari, Adab

With their bodies thus enlarged Hell shall burn them many times; however their skins and flesh shall constantly be renewed. Al-Hasan said, As often as their skins are consumed We shall exchange them for fresh skins: ‘Hell shall consume them seventy thousand times each day, and each time it does so they shall be told “Return”, and they return to their previous condition.’

Now contemplate the weeping and sobbing of Hell’s people, and the way in which they shall cry out in grief and lamentation, for this is to be imposed on them as soon as they are cast into Hell. The Messenger of Allah (upon him peace) said, ‘On the Day the Hell will be brought. It has seventy thousand reins, each of which shall be held by seventy thousand angels.’12

For as long as they are granted leave continuously to weep, to sigh, to moan and to cry out in grief and lamentation, they find some relief therein; however they are to be denied this also.

The Messenger of Allah (upon him peace) said, ‘On the Day of Judgement, death shall be brought in the form of a white ram, which is then slaughtered between Paradise and Hell. And it shall be announced, “O people of Paradise, eternity, and no death!” and “O people of Hell, eternity, and no death!”13

The Messenger of Allah (upon him peace) said, ‘On the Day of Judgement people will be taken from Hell to Paradise, until, when they draw near there. And breathe in its fragrance, and behold its palaces and all that Allah has prepared for its people, a voice calls out, “Take them away from it, for they are to have no share therein!” and they return with a grief the likes of which was never known by the first or the last (of mankind). “O our Lord!” they say. “Had You put us in Hell without revealing to us the reward which You did show us, and that which You have prepared for those who aided Your cause, the matter would have been easier for us.” And Allah (The Exalted) says, “This was My will in your case. For when you were alone, you challenged Me with sins, but when you met the people you were modest, showing them the opposite of what you displayed to Me; you magnified them, and did not magnify Me. You made donation to them, but none to Me; today, therefore, shall I cause you to taste the painful punishment, and deprive you of the rewards everlasting.”’14

An astonishing thing it is, that you should laugh and play, and busy yourself with the base things of this world, although you know not how your fate has been determined. And should you say, ‘Would that I could know my destiny, and to which goal and place of return I am traveling, and in what fashion my fate has which you may draw comfort and set confidence in your hopes. It is arrived at by looking to your circumstances and works, for in truth, ‘everyone is helped towards that for which he has been created.’15 If you have been helped towards that path of virtue, then rejoice, for you have been distanced from Hell; if, however, when each time you set out to do good you are weighed down by obstacles which delay you, while whenever you set out to do evil its means become readily available, then you should know that you are doomed. For this is the warning of an outcome just as much as rain is the indication of the growth of plants, and as smoke is the indication of fire. 4 www.GardensOfSunnah.co.uk

Poetry by Shaykh Ahmad Raza

He Ye Umeed Raza Ko Teri Rahmat Se Sha-ha

Na Ho Zindani Dozkh Tera Banda Ho Kar16

16 Hidayak-e-Bakhshish; p39

17 ibid; p122

18 ibid; part 2; p5

19 Surah Al-Tafif, Surah No: 83, Verse: 25

Raza has hope in your mercy O King

I will not be a prisoner of Hell as I’m a slave of yours’

Hirze Jaa Zikre Shafat Kijiye

Nar Se Bachne Ki Soorat Kijiye17

Make the remembrance of intercession loved by the heart

Create a way to save yourself from the Hell fire

Nariyo Ka Dor Ta Dil Jal Rahata Noor Ka

Tum Ko Dek-ka Ho Gaya Tanda Kaleja Noor Ka18

It was the era of people from Hell, burning was the heart of light

Saw you and became cool the heart of light

Section Two

Paradise

Know that you have come to know of the sorrows, it is time to contemplate on the joyfulness which shall therein consist. Whosoever draws away from one of them must needs find residence in the other; occupy your heart therefore with fear through long meditation upon the terrors of Hellfire, and with hope through long consideration of the permanent bliss which is promised the people of the Gardens. Provoke you soul onwards with the whip of fear, and lead it by the reins of hope along the Straight path; thus shall you win a mighty kingdom and be secure from the painful punishment.

Let your thoughts think upon Paradise’s people: upon their faces shall you perceive the expression of delight; they shall be given to drink pure wine which is al ready sealed,19 seated upon pulpits of rubies in tents of shiny white pearls, among carpets of wondrous green, reclining upon couches placed beside rivers flowing with wine and honey, surrounded by youths and pages, decorated by the princes (Hoors) from among the fine and beautiful, who are as sapphires and pearls, untouched by either man or jinn, who walk proudly through the levels of Paradise, their trains carried by seventy thousand pages. The couches’ surrounds are wonderful white silks such as astonish the eyes. The Princes’ heads are covered with crowns with pearls both great and small; teasing they are, perfumed and safe from old age or any hardship, isolated in tents and places of sapphire raised up in the centre of Paradise’s gardens; modest of gaze and large-eyed. They and their spouses are served up around with glass, vessels and a trophy filled with a white wine, which delights those who drinks of it. They are severed around by servants and pages like hidden pearls, a reward for their former actions. They are in a secure abode, among gardens and springs, and in gardens and rivers, at a seat of truth before a mighty Ruler in which they gaze upon the countenance of the Generous King. The expression of 5 www.GardensOfSunnah.co.uk

delight shines upon their faces as they are afflicted by neither dust nor ignominy, rather are they servant honoured with diverse gifts from their souls desired, eternally. They fear not, neither do they rejoice, eating of its various foods, and drinking its milk, wine and honey from rivers whose beds are of silver, whose pebbles are pearls, and the sand of which is strong musk. Its plants are saffron, and its people are showered upon by clouds of rosewater raining down on hills of camphor, and given glass-and what glasses!-of silver inlaid with pearls, both great and small, and sapphires, one of which contains the sealed wine mingled with sweet water of Salsabil, and a glass whose light shines through its gems because of their purity, and through which appears a drink of perfection and redness never before tasted by man. In the perfection of its design and the superbness of its completing it is given in the hand of a servant the effulgence of whose face stands challenge to the shining sun.

Abu Hurayra said, ‘Allah’s Messenger, upon him peace, has said, ‘You shall be in health, and never fall ill! You shall live, and never die! You shall be young, and never age! You shall be in comfort, and never in any hardship!’ this is what He has declared (The Exalted) And they were called: ‘This is the Paradise you have inherited the reward of your doings’.”’20

20 Surah Al-A’araf, Surah No: 7, Verse: 43. Muslim, Jannah.

21 Muslim, Zakat

22 Bayhaqi, Bath

Paradise has eight gates: whoever was of the people of Prayer shall be called from the Gate of Prayer; whoever was the people of Fasting shall be called from the Gate of Fasting; whoever was of the people of Charity; shall be called from the Gate of Charity and whoever was of the people of the Holy War shall be called from the Gate of the Holy War.” And Abu Bakr, Allah be pleased with him, said, “By Allah, not one of us minds from which gate he shall be summoned. But shall anyone be summoned from them all?” “Yes,” he replied, “and I hope that you shall be amongst them”.’21

Jabir said, ‘The Messenger of Allah (upon him peace) said to us, “Shall I not speak to you of the chamber of Paradise’” “Please do, O Messenger of Allah,” we replied, “may Allah bless you grant you peace, and may our mothers and fathers be your ransom!” And he declared, “In Paradise there shall be Chambers of every kind of precious stone. Their exteriors shall all be visible from within and their interiors from without. Inside them shall be joy, pleasures and happiness such as no eye has seen, no ear heard, and which has never occurred to mortal mind.” “O Messenger of Allah!” we said, “For whom shall those Chambers be?” And he replied, “For those who spread a broad greeting of peace, who give out food, who fast at length and pray at night when the people are asleep.” “O Messenger of Allah!” we said. “And who might maintain such a thing?” “My Ummah can maintain it,” he said, “and I shall tell you how. Whoever meets one of his brethren and greets him or replies to his greeting has spread abroad greeting of peace. Whoever feeds his family and dependants so that they are satisfied has given out food. Whoever fasts the month of Ramadan and three days in every other month has fasted at length. And whoever prays the Night and the Dawn Prayers with a congregation has prayed at night when the people are asleep; meaning the Jews, the Christians and the Zoroastrians.”’22

The Messenger of Allah (upon him peace) was once asked about His statement (The Exalted), And goodly dwellings in gardens of Eden, and he replied, ‘They are palaces of pearls, in each of which are seventy ruby mansions, in each of which are seventy emerald rooms, in each of which are seventy beds, on each of which are seventy mattresses of every type, on each of which is a wife who is one of the Princes. And in every room there are seventy tables, on each of which are seventy varieties 6 www.GardensOfSunnah.co.uk

of food. In every house are seventy servant-girls. Every morning the believer shall be given strength enough to enjoy all of this.’23

23 Tabarani. Bayhaqi, Bath.

24 Hidayak-e-Bakhshish; p 81

25 Al-Bazzar, al-Musnad

26 Muslim, Fitan

27 Hakim. Bayhaqi, Bath

Respected Brother/Sister! This is for those who believe in one Allah and follow the Sunnah of the Prophet, yes this is the reward, no-one can reward you this except The Lord of the Worlds. So it is either we live like this in this world or wait for it in the next, you choose.

Poetry by Shaykh Ahmad Raza

Saba Woh Jale Ke Bagh Pale Woh Phool Kile Ke Din Ho Bhle

Lawe Ke Tale Thana Me Kule Raza Ki Saba Tumhare Liye24

May a wind blow that makes gardens glow (with beautiful flowers)

May a flower show which makes day’s flow

Under the flag opens in thanks

The tongue of Raza is for you

The Shaykh in this verse writes that let the day to day activities take place, but my job is for you and my tongue is for you, so I will continue to praise you.

Section Three

The Wall of Paradise, its Land, Trees and Rivers

Contemplate the appearance of Paradise, and meditate upon the delight of its inhabitants and the sorrow of he who denied it because of his satisfaction with the world as a replacement.

Abu Hurayra said, ‘The Messenger of Allah (upon him peace) said, “The Wall of Paradise is of silver and gold bricks, while its soil is of saffron and its earth of musk”.’25

And he was once asked, upon him peace, about the soil of Paradise, and he replied, ‘It is of white flour and pure musk’.26

Abu Umama said, ‘The Messenger of Allah (upon him peace) used to say, “In truth, Allah (The Exalted), will benefit us by the wanderer and their questions.” For a wanderer once came and said, “O Messenger of Allah! In the Qur’an Allah has mentioned a harmful tree, and I had never believed that in Paradise there could be a tree which causes harm.” “Which tree is that?” he enquired, “The lote-tree” (Sidr), he replied, “which has thorns.” But he answered, “Allah (The Exalted), has said, And thornless lote-trees: He shall remove each thorn and replace it with a fruit, each of which shall open up to provide seventy-two varieties of food, no two of which shall be the same.”’27 7 www.GardensOfSunnah.co.uk

Abu Hurayra has narrated that the Prophet (upon him peace) once said, ‘Whoever enters Paradise shall find comfort and no distress; his garments shall not grow therebare, neither shall his youth ever come to an end. In Paradise there shall be that which no eye has seen, no ear heard, and which has never occurred to mortal mind.’28

28 Ibn al-Mubarak. Bayahaqi, Bath

29 Tirmidhi, Qiyama

30 Surah Baqarah, Surah No:2 Verse: 25

31 Ibn al-Mukarak. Ibn Abi-Shayba

32 Ibn al-Mubarak. Al-Bazzar, al-Musnad.

Abu Hurayra said, ‘The Messenger of Allah (upon him peace) once said, “The characteristic of the first crowd to enter Paradise shall be as the moon on the night when it is full. Therein shall they never spit, sneeze, or void their bowels. Their vessels and their combs shall be of gold and silver, and their sweat shall be musk. Each one of them shall have two wives the marrow in whose legs are visible through their flesh, so beautiful are they. There arise no differences among them, neither any hate: their hearts are as one. By morning and eve they proclaim the glory of Allah.”’29

Subhan-Allah! Houses which we can’t buy in this world; the earth of pure musk, beautiful fruit which can’t be found on any tropical island, no more bad habits, no hatred for anybody, what a life it will certainly be?

Section Four

The Food of Paradise

In the Qur’an there is a description of the food of Paradise’s people, which includes fruit, plump fowl, mannah and quails, honey, milk, and innumerable other varieties. Allah (The Exalted) has said, ‘Whenever they would be provided with a fruit to eat, they would say seeing its shape this is the same subsistence which we got before and which we got before and that was given to them resembling in shape.’30

Zayd ibn Arqam, ‘A man from the Jews once came into the presence of Allah’s Messenger (upon him peace) and said, “O Abu’l Qasim! Do you not claim that the people of Paradise shall eat and drink therein?” saying to his companions, “If he admits this to me then I have proved false him!” And The Messenger of Allah (upon him peace) said, “Even so. By Him in Whose hand lies my soul, one of them will be granted the strength of a hundred in eating, drinking and sexual relations.” And the Jew said, “The man who eats and drinks must needs relieve nature”. But The Messenger of Allah (upon him peace) replied, “They shall relieve nature by means of a sweat which flows upon their skins like musk, after which their bellies become slender once more”.’31

Ibn Masud said, ‘The Messenger of Allah (upon him peace) said, “You shall only have to behold a bird in Paradise and desire it for it to fall down before you roasted”.’32 8 www.GardensOfSunnah.co.uk

Section Five

The Princesses (Hoors)

These are described in the Qur’an, and are given a further explanation in the Traditions. Anas has related that The Messenger of Allah (upon him peace) once said, ‘A single morning or evening in the path33 of Allah is better than the world and all it contains. An area in Paradise half a bow’s length around or the space which one’s foot occupies is better than the world and all it contains. Were but one of the wives of the people of Paradise to look out upon the earth she would illuminate it entirely, and fill (the space) between (Paradise and earth) with perfume. The covering which is upon her head’-meaning her scarf-‘is better than the world and all it contains.’34

33 i.e. participating in the Holy War.

34 Bukhari, Jihad

35 Surah Al-Rahman; Surah No: 55; Verse: 58

36 Tirmidhi, Qiyamah. Ibn Hanbal

37 Bayahaqi, Bath

38 Tirmidhi, Jannah

39 Tabarani. Bayahaqi, Bath.

Abu Sa’id al-Khudri said, ‘The Messenger of Allah (upon him peace) said, (commenting) upon His statement (The Exalted) ‘As if they are rubies and corals:’35 “When one comes to behold her face in her tent it is purer than a mirror. The smallest pearl upon her would light up all that is between East and West. She shall be dressed in seventy garments through which his gaze passes until he observes the marrow of her leg underneath.”’36

Abd Allah ibn Umar said, ‘The lowest in rank of Paradise’s people shall be a man with a thousand servants hasting busily on his account, each of whom is about a different task.’

‘The Messenger of Allah (upon him peace) said, ‘A single man in Paradise shall wed five hundred Princesses, four thousand virgins, and eighth thousand deflowered women, and shall embrace each one of them for a period equal to his life time in the world’.37

‘The Messenger of Allah (upon him peace) said, ‘In Paradise there is a market in which there is neither purchases nor sale, but only images of men and women. Anyone that desires an image may enter into it. And in Paradise there is a host of the Princesses, who lift up their voices in a sound the likes of which had never been heard by any creature, saying, “We are the eternal ones, and shall never pass away. We are the joyful ones, and shall never grieve. We are the satisfied ones, and shall never be irritated. Blessed, therefore, is he who shall be ours, and for whom we shall be.”’38

Abu Umama al-Bahili said, ‘The Messenger of Allah (upon him peace) said, “At the head and feet of every man that enters Paradise there shall sit a pair of Princesses, who sing to him in the most beautiful voice ever heard by man or jinn; not the devil’s whistle, but only the praise and hallowing of Allah”.’39

Usama bin Zayd has related that The Messenger of Allah (upon him peace) once said to his Companions, ‘Is there anyone that will roll up his sleeves for Paradise? Truly, Paradise is without rival. By the Lord of the Kaba, it is a light which sparkles, and sweet basil which waves, and a lofty palace, and a flowing river, and abundant ripe fruit, and a beautiful wife, in happiness and ease in an abode everlasting. It is joy in a lofty home, splendid and secure.’ And they said, ‘We are the ones 9 www.GardensOfSunnah.co.uk

who will roll up their sleeves for it, O Messenger of Allah!’ And he said, ‘Say, “if Allah (The Exalted) so wills”.’40

40 Ibn Maja, Zuhd

41 Tirmidhi, Sifat al-Jannah

42 Al-Bazzar, al-Musnad

43 Ibn Hanbal, Musnad

44 A place approximately fifty miles south of Damascus.

45 Tirmidhi, Jannah

A man once came to The Messenger of Allah (upon him peace) and asked, ‘Will there be horses in Paradise, for they please me greatly?’ ‘If you should so desire’, he replied, ‘you will be brought a horse of ruby which will fly with you in Paradise wherever you please.’ Another man said to him, ‘I am fond of camels; shall there be any camels in Heaven?’ and he answered, ‘O servant of Allah; if you are received into Paradise then you shall have therein whatever you soul desires and your eye finds delectable.’41

‘The Messenger of Allah (upon him peace) said, ‘When Paradise’s people are settled therein, friends will yearn for one another, and the couch of one will travel to that of another so that they meet and discuss what had passed between them in the worldly residence. One of them will say, “O my brother, do you recall such-and such a day, and such-and-such an assembly, when we prayed to Allah, and He forgave us?”’42

And he said, upon him peace, the people of Paradise are hairless, beardless, white, compact in limbs, use Kohl, and are thirty-three cubits and their breadth seven’.43

‘The Messenger of Allah (upon him peace) said, ‘The lowliest of Paradise’s people shall have eighty thousand servants and seventy-two wives. A dome of pearl, chrysolite and sapphire shall be raised up for him, which is as broad as the distance between al-Jabiya44 and Sana’. They shall be wearing crowns the least pearl of which would cast light from East to West.’45

‘The last man to enter Paradise, who is the least of them in degree, will be given to see all that he owns for a distance of a hundred years’ journey, all of which is gold and silver palaces, and tents of pearl. His vision will be enhanced, so that he describes its most distant parts as well as he beholds its nearer places.

‘Morning and night they shall be served with seventy thousand dishes of gold, in each of which is a dish different from the others; the taste of the last shall be as delicious as that of the first. In Paradise there is a sapphire in which are seventy thousand mansions, in each of which lie seventy thousand chambers, in which there is not a single crack or break.’

Abu Hurayra said, ‘In Paradise there is a Princes called al-‘Ayna’. Whenever she walks seventy thousand maids of honour walk on her right and left, while she asks, “Where are they that enjoined goodness and forbade evil?”’ 10 www.GardensOfSunnah.co.uk

Section Six

The Vision

Jabir ibn Abd Allah al-Bajali said, ‘We were sitting once with The Messenger of Allah (upon him peace) when he looked at the full moon, and said, “You shall behold your Lord just as you see this moon. You shall not be obstructed from the vision of Him. Therefore, if you are able to pray before the sun rises and before it sets, then do so.”

Muslim relates in his Sahih that Shuayb once said, ‘The Messenger of Allah (upon him peace) recited His (The Exalted) word: For those that created good shall be the greatest good, and even more (and commented as follows): “When the people of Paradise enter and those of Hell enter Hell, a bearer of news shall call out, saying, ‘O people of Paradise! There is a meeting for you with your Lord, which He wishes to bring about for you.’ ‘What might that tryst be?’ they enquired. ‘Did He not load heavily our scales, and whiten our faces, and bring us into Paradise and deliver us from Hell?’ And the veil is lifted, and they gaze upon the Countenance of Allah (The Exalted) and never had they been given anything more beloved to them than this.”’46

46 Muslim, Iman

So let us prepare for the final journey, as Allah (The Exalted) clearly informs us:

‘Every soul will taste death’

We are here for a short period and then life begins when the soul is extracted. O Brother/Sister! Do not disobey the commands of Allah and follow the Messenger of Allah (upon him peace)!!!