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Category: Death and the Grave

In the following verse the term “Barzakh” is mentioned.

{Until when death approaches one of them (the polytheists), he says, "My Lord! Send me back, so that I may do good in that which I have left behind!" No! It is but just a word that he speaks; and behind them is a barrier (barzakh) until the Day when they will be Resurrected.} (Quran 23:99-100)

Literally, “Barzakh” means ‘interval, gap, break, partition, bar, obstruction and isthmus’ (a relatively narrow strip of land (with water on both sides) connecting two larger land areas).

The following images give us a clear illustration of what the Barzakh actually is.

The technical meaning of barzakh with respect to the hereafter refers to the transitional stage between one’s life in this world and the eternal life in the next. Therefore, the “Barzakh” is a transitional stage between two stages, just like the isthmus – which is a narrow strip of land that forms a transition between two larger areas of land that are separated by water. We can also liken this transitional period to waiting in the train station, where we are forced to a halt before continuing on to our destination. Just as the passengers waiting in a train station know where they are heading, so to do the people in al-Barzakh know where their ultimate destination concludes. This transitional period will come to an end when the Hour (as-Saa’ah) begins, after which the people will be raised from their graves and will witness the scenes of the Day of Judgment. Even if a person’s corpse was not buried in the grave and instead the body was destroyed – for example through being burned or eaten by wild animals - they will still be in this transitional stage of al-Barzakh.

In al-Barzakh the deceased is granted some faculties, although these will be different in scope and capacity from the abilities enjoyed by humans in this life. They will be limited in a way that Allah Wills. For example, when the deceased is buried they can hear the footsteps of those who walk away from their graves after the burial. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said,

"When a human being is laid in his grave and his companions return, and he even hears their footsteps…” (Saheeh al-Bukhaari).

Therefore, at the time of burial the believer is aware of the comforting presence of the righteous people around his grave for a period equal to the time taken to sacrifice a camel and distribute its meat. ‘Amr Ibn al-‘Aas (may Allah be pleased with him) said,

“When you bury me, stay around my grave for the time it would take to sacrifice a camel and distribute its meat, so that I may be comforted by your presence until I see how I will answer the Messenger of my Lord (i.e. the angels)” (Saheeh Muslim).

As Muslims we must wholeheartedly believe in this, even if scientifically it has been proven that when a person dies all of their senses of reason cease to function, including the ability to hear. Nonetheless, we believe, as Allah (the Almighty) has described Himself:

{To Allâh belongs the dominion of the heavens and the earth and All that is therein, and He is Able to do All things.} (Al-Maa’idah (5), 120)

Truly, he has All-Ability and is the All-Powerful; therefore, He can do what He wishes and as He wishes, even if our feeble and limited intellect cannot comprehend it.

***

At this point, in al-Barzakh, Allah (the Almighty) will give the dead body the ability to hear and understand; this offers us a lesson if we are willing to learn. This lesson is that there will come a time when the very people who cared about us will leave us behind. Indeed, there will come a time when no-one will be able to help us except Allah. Those who called upon others (intercessors either living or dead) besides Allah for help will not be able to seek their help after death, even if they were a Prophet, a Pious Saint or a Friend of Allah (Walliyy). If only man would listen to Allah’s command:

{… so invoke not anyone along with Allâh.} (Surah al-Jinn (72): 18)

Let’s make a solemn promise to ourselves that we will only call upon the One and Only True Lord alone, who is the One above the Heavens; the One who hears the cry of even the ants within the darkness of the night.

Delights or hellish terrors

The life in al-Barzakh will either be filled with delights or it will be full of Hellish terrors, anguish, pain and horror. The very grave that only a few moments ago may have seemed like a mere dark excavation in the ground will either now be one of the gardens of Paradise or one of the ditches of Hell. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said,

“When any one of you dies, he is shown his place morning and evening. If he is one of the people of Paradise then he is one of the people of Paradise, and if he is one of the people of Hell then he is one of the people of Hell”. (Narrated by al-Bukhaari, Bid’ al-Khalq, 3001; Muslim, al-Jannah wa sifat na’eemihaa, 2866).

It was narrated from ‘Aa’ishah (may Allaah be pleased with her) that a Jewish woman entered upon her and mentioned the torment of the grave, saying to her, “May Allaah protect you from the torment of the grave!” ‘Aa’ishah asked the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) about the torment of the grave and he said,

“Yes, the torment of the grave.”

‘Aa’ishah (may Allaah be pleased with her) said:

“I never saw the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) pray any prayer after that but he sought refuge with Allaah from the torment of the grave.” (Narrated by al-Bukhaari, al-Janaa’iz, 1283; Muslim, al-Kusoof, 903).

An example of the torment of the grave can be found in the Qur’aan, when Allah (Almighty) said about Pharaoh’s people:

{The fire; they are exposed to it, morning and afternoon, and on the Day when the Hour will be established (it will be said to the angels): "Cause Fir'aun's (Pharaoh) people to enter the severest torment!"} (Al-Mu’min (40):46)

Let’s turn to the learned Companion, Ibn ‘Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) for the explanation of this verse. He said,

“The souls of the people of Pharaoh and those of their like among the disbelievers are shown the Fire morning and evening, and they are told, ‘This is your abode.’”

Imaam Ibn Katheer (rahimahullah), the famous commentator of the Qur’aan said:

“This verse is the main basis of the Sunni’s belief in the torment of al-Barzakh (which occurs) in the grave.” (Tafseer Ibn Katheer, 4/82)

Al-Qurtubi said some of the scholars quoted (the following) as evidence to prove the torment of the grave, the phrase: “The Fire, they are exposed to it, morning and afternoon.” (Al-Mu’min, 40:46).

A similar view was expressed by Mujaahid, ‘Ikrimah, Muqaatil and Muhammad ibn Ka’b, all of whom said that this verse is proof of the torment of the grave. (Tafseer al-Qurtubi, 15/319)

These verses and Prophetic Narrations indicate that the torment of the grave is real and that it is ongoing in the case of some people. Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (rahimahullah) said in this regard:

“If a person is a disbeliever (we seek refuge with Allaah), then there is no way that the delight will ever reach him, and his torment will be continuous. If a person was a sinner but he was a believer, then his torment in the grave will be commensurate with his sin, and perhaps the punishment for his sin will take less time than the time in al-Barzakh between his death and the onset of the Hour, in which case it will cease.” (al-Sharh al-Mumti’, vol. 3, p. 253).

For some, the punishment in the grave will not be continuous and it may stop all together. Imaam Ibn al-Qayyim (rahimahullah) said:

“…the punishment in the grave is of two types:

1. A type which is continuous, apart from what has been narrated in some Prophetic Narrations which say that it will be reduced during the period between the two blasts of the Trumpet, and then when they are raised from their graves, when they will say:

“Woe to us! Who has raised us up from our place of sleep.” (Surah Yaa-Seen [36]:52).

Further evidence that this punishment will be continuous is seen in the (following) verse (interpretation of the meaning):

“The Fire, they are exposed to it, morning and afternoon” (Al-Mu’min (40):46)

The following Prophetic Narrations indicate this, that although the punishment can be lessened, nevertheless it will still be continuous.

The hadeeth of Samurah which was narrated by al-Bukhaari, about the dream in which the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) saw what was being done to a person who was being punished in the grave until the Day of Resurrection.

The hadeeth of Ibn ‘Abbaas about the story of the two palm branches, where the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) prayed that the punishment (of the people in the two graves) would be reduced as long as the palm branches did not dry out. So the lessening of the punishment was connected only to the period of time that the branches remained fresh.

The hadeeth of Abu Hurayrah, when he [the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)] came to some people whose heads were being smashed with rocks and every time they were smashed they were then restored and they have no respite from that.

The story in as-Saheeh of the man who put on two garments and strutted about in an arrogant manner, so Allaah caused the earth to swallow him up, and he will remain sinking down into it until the Day of Resurrection.

The hadeeth of al-Baraa’ ibn ‘Aazib (narrated by Ahmad) about the story of the disbeliever for whom a door to Hell will be opened (in his grave) and he will look upon his place in Hell until the Hour comes. In some versions it was said that that a hole will be made in his grave and he will feel its distress and smoke until the Resurrection.

2. The second kind, which will last for a while and then stop.

This is the punishment of some sinners whose sins are not so great. They will be punished in accordance with their sins, then the punishment will be reduced, just as they will be punished in the fire then the punishment will end.

The punishment may be stopped by du’aa’, charity, seeking forgiveness or the reward of Hajj – this may reach the deceased from some of his relatives or others.” (ar-Rooh, p. 89).

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Category: Death and the Grave

For those of you who have witnessed the death of someone, you may have noticed that the eyes face a certain fixed direction while the soul is being taken out at the moment of death. This is a phenomenon, the reality of which people without eemaan fail to understand and explain, regardless of how much they may have excelled in worldly sciences. But once again, Islaam provides the most clear, precise, true and accurate answer.

The Prophet (peace be upon him) explained hundreds of years ago,

“When the soul is taken, the eyes follow it.” (Saheeh Muslim)

If you look carefully, while paying special attention to the eyes, you will witness the Prophet’s (peace be upon him) words to be self-evident in the following video:

…Just as the Shaykh begins reciting a passage of the Qur’aan, Allah (Almighty) Wills to take His soul. Indeed, this is a sign of a blessed ending and Allah knows best.

Clearly, we can see in this video that the eyes followed the path the soul took as it left this world, accompanied by the angels. At that point the soul entered into the realm of the hereafter – just as the Prophet (peace be upon him) had elucidated clearly to the believers. As a matter of fact, many people have witnessed this happening to their loved ones and close friends. My uncle narrated to me that just before my grandfather died he too had quickly looked up towards a small window high up in the wall and then all of a sudden he passed away, similar to what the Shaykh can be seen doing in the above video.

Isn’t it amazing that although the Prophet (peace be upon him) was known to be the Most Truthful in his time, even now after such a lengthy period of time after his demise, the truth of his words are still clear for those who wish to reflect and open their hearts. But why is it that we blind ourselves to such signs that Allah (the Most Merciful) shows us in and within the very creation that surrounds us and is perceptible to us, be it over the internet or by way of an incident which occurs in our lives? Why is it that when we are shown a sign our hearts do not soften, our eyes do not shed tears and a sincere drive to do more good doesn’t rejuvenate within us? Why is it then that what is to come after death seems like a far-off and far-fetched reality, something not as vividly real, existent, tangible, significant and substantial as the events of this passing world, that we all know we have to leave one day? The truth is that we know the truth yet fail to let it have an effect on our hearts and in our actions. For, both of these are two different things; the people who know are not necessarily the people who implement. We must remember that this very knowledge may be used to file a case against us or for us on the Day of Reckoning. O Allah! Save us and forgive us for our mistakes. Aameen!

Dear Sisters, surely we will find ourselves in a worrying state unless we take time out to turn to Allah to clean our hearts, our very essence, purify our intentions and thoughts and strive to be from the strong believers (al-Mu’minaat). But the fact remains that unless we ponder deeply over such realities, instead of only our worldly and transient problems and needs, realization and faith won’t hit us hard as it really should.

Many times in the Qur’aan Allah mentions the action of thinking, mentioning thought and contemplation in a praiseworthy way.

{And we have also sent down unto You (O Muhammad) the Reminder and the advice (the Qur'ân), that You may explain clearly to men what is sent down to them, and that they may give thought.} (An-Nahl [16]: 44)

{It is Allâh 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 a people who think deeply.} (Az-Zumar [39]: 42)

This is because the intellect can be a powerful tool, if utilized properly it will do wonders for us. But if not, this very intellect will make us do things that we will only regret. Today, Einstein is revered for his advancements in science, but what did Einstein’s brains give him if it didn’t lead him to Allah? His views about Allah (Almighty) were clearly agnostic. He said,

“I do not believe in a personal God and I have never denied this but have expressed it clearly. If something is in me which can be called religious then it is the unbounded admiration for the structure of the world so far as our science can reveal it.”{footnote}From Wikiquote; letter to an atheist (1954) as quoted in Albert Einstein: The Human Side (1982) edited by Helen Dukas and Banesh Hoffman ISBN 0-691-02368-9{/footnote}

“My position concerning God is that of an agnostic.”{footnote}Albert Einstein in a letter to M. Berkowitz, 25 October 1950; Einstein Archive 59–215; from Alice Calaprice, ed., The New Quotable Einstein, Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 2000, p. 216.{/footnote}

Therefore, even if someone is considered clever in the worldly sense, it doesn’t mean they’ll succeed. The whole world points out to us, is screaming out to us through its very existence, that Allah (the Glorious and Mighty) exists, and that to Him is our return.

{Verily! In the creation of the heavens and the earth, and in the alternation of night and day, there are indeed signs for men of understanding. Those who remember Allâh (always, and in prayers) standing, sitting, and lying down on their sides, and think deeply about the creation of the heavens and the earth, (saying): "Our Lord! You have not created (all) this without purpose, Glory to You! (Exalted be You above all that they associate with You as partners). Give us salvation from the torment of the Fire.} (Aal-‘Imraan [3]: 190)

THAT IS WHY, while reading about the Hereafter, it is imperative that we allow the information to sink into us, to hit us hard, and in this way hopefully it will bring about a change into our lives. Then our intellect will be, Allah Willing, used for what it was originally created for: the worship of Allah (Almighty), and this can be done through contemplation and remembering death often, just as the Prophet (peace be upon him) so sincerely commanded us to do.

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Category: Death and the Grave

So far we have covered in detail regarding the journey the body takes after death, right up until the grave. Now we are going to move on to a completely different journey, and that is of the soul’s journey up towards the heavens and back, straight after death. It is important to understand that although in this life your body and soul are relatively always together, joint and linked, after death they will separate from each other for some time until the soul is returned to the body later on.

A Mystery Unsolved

Although scientists have and are spending a great amount of time, money and effort on researching the body, its functions and capability, they rarely research into the soul and its reality. In truth, specialists of another science have tried to grasp its realism, namely the philosophers. But even they have not and cannot do justice to this topic as the soul is a mystery, beyond the human being’s scope of comprehension.

Some refer to the soul as being the immaterial part of a person and the actuating cause of an individual life. Philosophers like Plato and Aristotle wrote in depth about the soul, so much so that their theories are awarded as being the most detailed and expounded theories regarding the soul to be found in ancient philosophy. In fact, a large part of the later studies pertaining to the soul are largely derived from and heavily influenced by their works and ideas.

‘By the end of the fifth century — the time of Socrates' death — soul is standardly thought and spoken of, for instance, as the distinguishing mark of living things, as something that is the subject of emotional states and that is responsible for planning and practical thinking, and also as the bearer of such virtues as courage and justice… the soul is not only responsible for mental or psychological functions like thought, perception and desire, and is the bearer of moral qualities, but in some way or other accounts for all the vital functions that any living organism performs.'{footnote}Lorenz, Hendrik, "Ancient Theories of Soul", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Summer 2009 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.), URL = <http://plato.stanford.edu/archives/sum2009/entries/ancient-soul/>.{/footnote}

From the above we can see that there has been a great attempt to understand and expound on the reality of this creation of Allah (Almighty), namely the soul. But only the Lord who created it knows its true ability and connection with the body within this transient life and man has indeed been given very little comprehension and knowledge of it. This is proven from the following narration:

Abdullah ibn Masood (may Allah be pleased with him) said: While I was with the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) on a farm, and he was resting on a palm branch stripped of its leaves, the Jews passed by, and some of them said to others, “Ask him about the soul.” Some of them said, “What urges you to ask him about it?” Others of them said, “Don’t ask him in case he says something you dislike.” But they said, “Ask him”, so they asked him about the soul. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) kept silent and did not respond to them, and I knew that he was receiving Revelation, so I stayed where I was. When the Revelation of the verse was complete, he said (interpretation of the meaning):

{And they ask you [O Muhammad] concerning the Rooh [the spirit]. Say: The Rooh: 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.} [Al-Isra 17:85]

The Minor Death

One of the things that we have been given knowledge about by way of the Prophet’s words is that sleep, which is also referred to as the “minor death”, is when the soul is taken up to the heavens while it is still linked to the body and does not fully depart from it. If the soul were to depart fully, then this would be referred to as ‘death’. And truly, many people die in their sleep and others die due to a lack of sleep, as an article on the BBC website suggests:

‘Getting less than six hours sleep a night can lead to an early grave, UK and Italian researchers have warned.’{footnote}Check out: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/8660373.stm{/footnote}

Glory be to Allah! Indeed, there is a connection between sleep and death…That is why, although a person might be sleeping under a warm cosy duvet in a certain part of the world, within seconds… as they fall asleep… they can find themselves performing Tawaaf around the Ka’bah or flying in the heavens or seeing friends or family that are seas upon seas away. All this while s/he is oblivious of even the most nearest of things!

SubhaanAllah! The matter of the soul is a strange one, the reality of which is only fully known by Allah.

{Allah takes the souls at the time of their (owners') death, and (He also takes) those that (their owners) have not died yet - during their sleep. Then He keeps those for which He has decreed death and releases the others for a specified term. Indeed, in this are signs for those who reflect.} (Az-Zumar, [39]:42)

That is why after Khuzaymah Bin Thabit (may Allah be pleased with him) informed the Prophet (peace be upon him) that he had a dream in which he was prostrating upon the Prophet's (peace be upon him) forehead, the Prophet (peace be upon him) said:

"Indeed, a soul surely meets another soul (during sleep)." (Ahmad and others)

Therefore a living person’s soul can see and meet a living or dead person’s soul even in his or her sleep.

Keeping all of this in mind let’s now answer the following question: How much have scientists really truly fathomed about the reality of the soul?

…The very soul that is contained within our sides at this present moment.

…The very soul that has an appointed time to meet its Lord in the near future.

…The very soul that the angels will traverse with into the heavens.

The answer is: very very little indeed.

The Five Stages

The scholars have mentioned that the attachment of the soul to the body has five different stages:

1. Its attachment to it while it is still an embryo in the mother’s womb.

2. Its attachment to it after it emerges to the surface of the earth.

3. Its attachment to it during sleep. In that case, it is attached to it in one respect, and detached in another respect.

4. Its attachment to it in al-Barzakh. Even though it departs and becomes detached from it, its detachment is not complete so as to have absolutely no connection with it.

5. Its attachment to it on the Day of Reckoning, which is the most complete and inseparable attachment.

What we are now going to focus on is the 4th stage – the stage when the soul is extracted from the body and the angels take the soul and begin their journey with it up towards the heavens...

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Category: Death and the Grave

Humans like nice smells. This can especially be seen today in the world around us, where people go out of their way to spend hard earned money on expensive, arousing, sensational and aromatic perfumes of all kinds.

Yes, a small bottle with some colored liquid in it (sorry for being so literal and unromantic) costs many of our light pockets a hell of a lot of money. Why? Because humans - aka we - like nice smells.

The Daily Mail published an article in 2010, which states:

‘Classic fragrances are making a comeback, with sales of perfumes that evoke nostalgic memories increasing by up to 50 per cent in the past year. Why do perfumes from our past have such a powerful effect on us? Professor of Perfumes Roja Dove explains: “When we discover a scent we truly love, it will have large numbers of ingredients within it that have positive, feel-good associations. The scent itself then becomes an odour which also has positive associations, making us feel safe, secure, happy and well.”’

On the other hand, when a smelly person is within our personal range and then their ill-scent somehow reaches our noses, we cringe and move away out of distaste. Depending on the nature of the person who’s suffering, they’ll either back off in an offensive way, or pretend nothing happened in a polite and amicable manner. But even then if we, when finding ourselves in such a predicament, try to push away the frown that reflexively begins to creep into our faces, the heart and nose will continue to suffer till the person concerned goes away…Why? Because our natural instincts are averse to bad smells.

Many people do not know that the angels also have a sense of smell. I mean, they can actually smell! Yes, but it’s different from the way we smell things as they are made out of light and we are made out of clay. Therefore, we are intrinsically different in every way, even in our sensory experience. In fact, the angels are offended by what the sons and daughters of Aadam (‘alayhis-salaam) are offended by. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “Anyone who eats garlic and onions or leeks should not come near our Masjid. The angels are harmed by what harms the sons of Adam.” (Saheeh Muslim)

That is why, just as humans don’t appreciate foul smells, neither do angels. Especially when it comes to garlic-onion breath, we should be careful that our mouths do not exude that which the angels dislike and are harmed by. Wherever people sit to remember Allah, talk about the things that please Him, study the Qur’aan, or pray, angels envelop them with their wings. Therefore, we should take care to clean our mouths and teeth with Miswaak before setting out for such gatherings so people and the angels are not harmed by us. Similarly, we should make sure that our bodies are clean and our clothes are not smelly either, so that those present are not disgusted by our presence.

Bad Deeds Stink

Don’t you agree that evil deeds have a bad and putrid smell? I don’t mean that you can literally smell them, but you can sense them, especially from children – just as the saying goes: “I can smell something fishy.” In this sense, our bad deeds have a smell, an effect, and so do our good deeds have a scent, an effect. Similarly, sinners have a certain look and pious people have a certain look. But this smell and this look can’t be sensed and perceived by just anyone. For example, once a man named Sawad bin Qarib passed by and ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) didn't know him. ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said,

"This is either a soothsayer or he was so in the days of jaahiliyyah."

Upon sitting before ‘Umar, Sawad said, "O commander of the faithful! You never received any of your guests the way you did (receive) me." ‘Umar said, "What we used to do in the days of jaahiliyyah is worse than this. But tell me about what I have asked you." Sawad said, "You were true, O commander of the faithful! I was a soothsayer in the days of jaahiliyyah", then he related (to) him the (i.e. his) story.

But what about those who don’t repent to Allah? Those who don’t mend their ways and never wash themselves and rid themselves from their sins, the sins which linger in their hearts and give out a bad vibe, a bad feeling for others? For example, some women leave their homes with perfume on that others can smell. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said, “If a woman wears a perfume and then passes by people who smelled her perfume, she is then considered an adulteress. And every eye is liable to commit adultery.” (This hadith was reported by An-Nasa’i, Ibn Khuzaymah and Ibn Hibban in their compilations of authentic hadiths. It was also reported by Al-Hakim who regarded it as authentic.)

The same hadith was reported by Abu Dawud and At-Tirmidhi with the following wording: “Every eye is liable to commit adultery; and the woman who wears perfume and then passes by a gathering is such and such (i.e., she is an adulteress).” (At-Tirmidhi regarded the same hadith as authentic.) We learn from reported traditions that the best perfume for women is such that its color is apparent and scent is hidden.

On the other hand, what about those who purified themselves, physically and much more importantly, spiritually? Of course, both are completely and strikingly different in this sense and when the angels come to extract their souls each group will be emitting a different smell.

Yes, if you are a righteous believer, your body will emit a scent unlike any other in this world. It will be smelling of musk, but not like Body Shop’s musk, nor the musk found in Arab shops. It will be out of this world…and yes, the angels will smell it.

So, next time don’t just pay attention to what perfumes you are going to wear or purchase, rather also think about the good deeds you want to perform, which will add to your righteous aroma, purify you, draw the righteous near and push the evil, smelly ones away.

The question is: Which perfume do YOU think smells better and lasts longer?