5. The Day of Judgement and the Resurrection (qiyama)
Approximately 1,200 verses of the Qur'an speak of life after death and
the Day of Resurrection, as do a vast number of sayings related from Prophet
Muhammad and his successors (peace be upon all of them). This number
reveals the importance and significance of life after death and emphasizes that
the life of the human being does not end at death but in fact continues
afterwards towards a new life - indeed, its true life. Allah placed human
beings on the earth to test them, and so different people live for different
lengths of time before they die and their souls are separated from their
bodies. Their souls then live on, facing the grave and the questioning
therein. After that, the souls return to their bodies which will be
resurrected on the Day of Judgement, on which day they will receive whatever
they deserve according to their beliefs and deeds in life.
Some people will go to Heaven, also called the Garden, or the
Paradise. Others will go to Hell, oftentimes called the Fire. And a
select few will be brought into a state of nearness to God.
Both Heaven and Hell have different levels; the worst of people will be
in the lowest depths of Hell, while the best of them will be in the highest
parts of Heaven.
Death and Life after Death
And they ask you concerning the spirit. Say: "The
spirit, it is one of the things, the knowledge of which is only with my Lord,
and of knowledge, you mankind have been given only a little. (17:85)
Although humanity has been permitted to know only a little about life
after death right now, the Holy Qur'an still reveals some of the secrets
surrounding the soul. The Qur'an says:
It is Allah who takes away the souls at the time of their death, and
those that die not during their sleep. He keeps those souls for which He
has ordained death and sends the rest for a term appointed. Verily, in
this are signs for people who think deeply. (39:42)
The soul will be buried along with the body in the grave. It could
get permission from Allah to depart from the grave, but it must go back to it
again. Each individual, if faithful, faces two paradises after death, or
if he is unfaithful and a sinner, two hells. One of them is for the souls before the
Day of Judgement, and the second is the permanent abode.
Once Prophet Jesus (peace be upon him) sent two messengers to the city
of Antioch to call for monotheism and the worshipping of Allah. One of
the men of that town embraced the faith and followed them, so the king of the
land ordered that righteous man to be killed. When he died, he
said: "Verily I have believed in your Lord. So listen to
me. It was said to him when the disbelievers killed him, 'Enter
paradise.' He said, Would that my people knew what my Lord Allah has forgiven
me for and made me one of the honored ones.'" (36:25-27)
The paradise that he had entered was of the kind, calledbarzakh, that
the soul lives in before the Day of Judgement; on the Day of Judgement everyone
will know the fate of everyone else, and there will be no need, as above, to
tell others.
The descriptions of both types of hellfire are very vivid and
painful: "Evil torment encompassed Pharaoh's people - the
fire: they are exposed to it morning and afternoon, and on the day when
the Hour will be established." (40:46)
Islam teaches that the parting of the soul is
accompanied with severe pain. The moment of death has been described:
Nay! When the soul reaches the collarbone, and it will be said,
"Who can cure him and save him from death?" and he, the dying person,
will conclude that it is the time of departing, and he is shrouded; the drive
on that day will be to your Lord. (75:26-30)
Remember that the two recording angels receive each human being after
attaining the age of puberty, one sitting on the right and one on the left, to
note his actions. Not a word does he utter but there is a watcher sitting
by him to record it. And the stupor of death will come in truth; this is
what you have been avoiding. And the trumpet will be blown; that will be
the day whereof warning had been given, and every person will come forth with
an angel to drive him and an angel to bear witness. It will be said to
the sinners: "Indeed, you were heedless of this. Now We have
removed your covering, and sharp is your sight this day." (50:17-22)
But for the true believers, the departure of the soul will be peaceful:
It will be said to the pious: "O you in complete rest and
satisfaction, come back to your Lord well-please yourself and well-pleasing
unto Him. Enter then among my honored servants, and enter my
Paradise." (89:27-30)
Repentance and Forgiveness
Repentance is the giving up of sin and is the best way of expressing
regret for having committed one. It involves both sincerely regretting
having committed the particular sin and then resolving never to do it
again. Repentance is the source of and means to success: "Turn
to Allah, O Believers, that you may be successful." (24:31)
No matter how grievous a person's sin may be, the forgiveness of Allah is
greater, and no one should be ashamed to turn towards Allah in repentance
because Allah can erase the sins of whomever He pleases.
Say: "O My servants who have transgressed against themselves,
despair not of the mercy of Allah; verily, Allah forgives all sins.
Verily, He is the Forgiving, the Merciful. (39:53)
Tell My servants that I am the Forgiving, the Merciful. (15:49)
Will they not turn to Allah and ask His forgiveness? Allah is the
Forgiving, the Merciful. (5:74)
Your Lord is full of forgiveness for mankind in spite of their
wrongdoing. (13:6)
Despite His ability to destroy mankind if he so willed, the main
characteristics of Allah are forgiveness and mercifulness, and for this reason
Muslims begin nearly every action, speech, or endeavor with the words, "In
the name of Allah, the most Merciful, the most Compassionate.
Repentance is of benefit both now and during the Hereafter.
Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family) has narrated that repenting
brings an increase of wealth, protection from danger, and an easing of
hardships and difficulties. Furthermore, it has been said that the
fastest way to attain nearness to Allah is to humble the self before Allah and
admit to wrongdoing. The benefits of repentance for the next life are
obvious - entrance into Paradise and safety from the Hellfire.
Repentance will be accepted up until the moment of death. Prophet
Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family) once said that if a person seeks
repentance one year before dying, Allah will accept it. Even if a person
seeks repentance one day before dying, Allah will accept it. Then he
pointed to his throat and said that even if someone seeks repentance before his
soul reaches here, Allah will accept it.
Nonetheless, repentance should be done as soon as possible and should
not be delayed; this point has been emphasized again and again in the Islamic
tradition. Imam 'Ali says: "How numerous are the procrastinators
who postpone [repenting and doing good deeds] until death overtakes them!"
Repentance should be done in secrecy and privacy. People can
establish a direct link to Allah while seeking repentance without the necessity
of a third person interfering and in fact should not let others know about
their sins. Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family) once told
Imam 'Ali (peace be upon him): "O 'Ali, blessed is he whom Allah looks
upon while he is weeping for the sin that none is aware of except Allah."
In addition to not revealing his own sins, every person must conceal the
faults of his brother or sister in religion to preserve that person's honor and
society. That person's faults may be dealt with personally and privately
but must not be spread among society.
A person who sincerely repents is loved by Allah and is as if he or she
had never committed any sins at all. Imam al-Baqir (peace be upon him)
has said: "He who repents of his sins is as one who has not any
burden of sin." But repentance must be sincere; Allah
knows who sincerely regrets misdeeds and who is just saying words. A
person came to Imam 'Ali (peace be upon him) and said, "Astaghfirullah,
I seek Allah's forgiveness," and the Imam (peace be upon him) replied:
Do you know what asking Allah's forgiveness is? It is a word that
stands on six supports. The first is to repent over the past. The
second is to make a firm determination never to revert to it. The third
is to discharge all the rights of people so that you may meet Allah quite clean
with nothing to account for. The fourth is to fulfill every obligation
which you ignored in the past so that you may now be just with it. The
fifth is to aim at the flesh grown as a result of unlawful earning so that you
may melt it by grief of repentance till the skin touches the bone and a new
flesh grows between them. And the sixth is to make the body taste the
pain of obedience as you previously made it taste the sweetness of
disobedience. On such an occasion, you may say, "I seek Allah's
forgiveness."
References
Bukhari, The Book
of Ahkam (Laws), vol. 1 p. 101; Muslim, Kitab
al-Imaara (The Book of Leadership), vol. 1 narrations 4-6, et
al.
Usud
al-Ghaaba, vol. 5 p. 520
Sahih Tirmithi, vol. II p. 220,
Faraa'id al-Simtayn, vol. 2 p. 242.
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