What will happen to me when I die?
The whole life of a
Muslim constitutes of a trial and test by means of which his final destiny is
determined. For him, death is the return of the soul to its Creator, God, and
the inevitability of death and the Hereafter is never far from his
consciousness. This serves to keep all of his life and deeds in perspective as
he tries to live in preparedness for what is to come. For Muslims, the concept
of death and the afterlife in Islam is derived from the holy Qur’an, the
final revealed message from God.
We learn that death
is exactly like sleeping; complete with dreams (6:60, 40:46). The period
between death and resurrection passes like one night of sleep (the
holy Qur’an: 2:259; 6:60; 10:45; 16:21; 18:11, 19, 25; 30:55). At the moment
of death, everyone knows his or her destiny; heaven or hell. For the
disbelievers, death is a horrible event; the angels beat them on the faces and
rear ends as they snatch away their souls (the holy Qur’an:8:50, 47:27,
79:1). Consistently, the holy Qur’an talks about two deaths; the
first death took place when we failed to make a stand with God's absolute
authority. That first death lasted until we were born into this world. The
second death terminates our life in this world (the holy Qur’an 2:28,
22:66, 40:11).
The Qur’an,
contains various death themes that add significantly to our insight into the
meaning of death, the concept is left undefined and always portrayed in close
relationship with the concepts of life, creation, and resurrection.
All that is on earth
will perish. (The Holy Qura’n 55:26)
Allah says in the
Quran: “Everyone
shall taste death. And only on the day of resurrection shall you be paid your
wages in full. And whoever is removed away from the fire and admitted to
paradise, this person is indeed successful. The life of this world is only the
enjoyment of deception.” (The Holy Qur’an:3:185)
In other words, the
holy Qur’an says that it is a person who has to taste death, and his
physical existence does not separate from his soul. Death is the termination of
an individual comprehensive being, capable of believing and disbelieving, and
not simply a living organism. Life does not end with death.
In the same way that
a person does not cease to exist in sleep, similarly he does not cease to exist
in death. And in the same way that a person comes back to life when waking from
sleep, also he will be revived at the great awakening on the Day of Judgement.
Hence, Islam views death merely as a stage in human existence. Physical death
should not be feared but one should, however, worry about the agonies of
spiritual death caused by living a life of moral corruption.
The mystery of life
and death is resolved in the holy Qur’an by linking it to the working
of human conscience and its ability to maintain a healthy status of human
spiritual-moral existence with faith in God. Human efforts should be concerned
with the revival of human conscience, which will lead to a meaningful life.
Muslims are always
buried, never cremated. It is a religious requirement that the body be ritually
washed and draped before burial, which should be as soon as possible after
death. The dying person is encouraged to recite and declare his or her faith.
When a Muslim dies his or her face should be turned right facing towards Makkah
(127 South-east from United Kingdom). The arms and legs should be straightened
and the mouth and eyes closed; and the body covered with a sheet. A baby dying
at or before birth has to have a name.
Death is divinely
willed and when it arrives it should be readily accepted. There should,
therefore, be no reasoning by the bereaved as to why they have lost their loved
one. Islamic scholars such as the twelfth century theologian, Al Ghazali stress
that death is unpredictable and can happen at any time and as such Muslims
should always be prepared for the inevitable and for what is about to occur. It
is but a gateway from this short but mortal existence to a life of immortality
in the afterlife.
The Judgment Day and it’s period
Shaykh Muhammad ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may Allaah have mercy on
him) said:
The Day of Reckoning is one day, but it is a day whose
length is equal to fifty thousand years, as Allaah says (interpretation of the
meaning):
“A questioner asked concerning a torment about to befall upon the
disbelievers, which none can avert, from Allaah, the Lord of the ways of
ascent. The angels and the Rooh [Jibreel (Gabriel)] ascend to Him in a Day the
measure whereof is fifty thousand years” [al-Ma’aarij 70:1-4]
i.e., this torment will befall the disbelievers on a day the
length of which is equal to fifty thousand years.
In Saheeh Muslim it is narrated from the hadeeth of Abu
Hurayrah (may Allaah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings
of Allaah be upon him) said: “There is no owner of gold or silver who does not
pay what is due on it (i.e., zakaah) but when the Day of Resurrection comes,
plates of fire will be prepared for him and with them will be branded his
forehead, his flanks and his back, and every time they cool down they will be
reheated, on a Day the length of which is equal to fifty thousand years, until
judgement is passed among the people.”
This long Day is the day that will be hard for the kaafirs
as Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“and it will be a hard Day for the disbelievers” [al-Furqaan
25:26]
“Truly, that Day will be a Hard Day — Far from easy for the
disbelievers” [al-Muddaththir 74:9-10]
What may be understood from these two verses is that it will
be easy for the believer, and that is indeed the case. For this long Day with
its horrors and serious matters will be made easy by Allaah for the believer,
but it will be hard for the kaafir. I ask Allaah to make me and my Muslim
brothers among those for whom Allaah will make the Day of Resurrection
easy.
But thinking too deeply about such matters of the unseen
comes under the heading of extremism concerning which the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Those who go to extremes are doomed,
those who go to extremes are doomed, those who go to extremes are doomed
.”
Our duty with regard to the matters of the unseen is to
submit and to accept them according to their apparent meaning, without
discussing them in depth or trying to compare them to worldly things. For the
matters of the Hereafter are not like the matters of this world; even if the
meanings may have something in common, there is still a great difference
between them. I will give the example of what Allaah has told us about there
being palm-trees, pomegranates, fruits, the flesh of birds, honey, water, milk,
wine etc in Paradise, but He also tells us (interpretation of the
meaning):
“No person knows what is kept hidden for them of joy as a reward for
what they used to do” [al-Sajdah 32:17]
And Allaah says in a hadeeth qudsi: “I have prepared for My righteous
slaves that which no eye has seen, no ear has heard nor has it entered the
heart of man.”
There are things in this world that bear the same names as
these blessings of Paradise mentioned here but the fact that they have a name
in common does not mean that the wine of Paradise is like the wine of this
world, or that the fruits of Paradise are like the fruits of this world, and so
on.
Although they may share a name and a common meaning, all the
things of the unseen that share a meaning with things that are seen in this world
are not like them in reality, so we should pay attention to this principle and
accept the matters of the unseen according to the apparent meanings, and not
try to do any more than that.
Hence when Imam Maalik (may Allaah have mercy on him) was
asked about the words of Allaah (interpretation of the meaning):
“The Most Gracious (Allaah) rose over (Istawa) the (Mighty) Throne (in
a manner that suits His Majesty)” [Ta-Ha 20:5] –
How did He rise over it? He lowered his head and started to
sweat, because of the seriousness of this question. Then he raised his head and
spoke his famous words that became the standard comment regarding all the
attributes that Allaah has ascribed to Himself: “(The concept of) rising is not
unknown, but how it happened (in the case of Allaah) cannot be comprehended.
Believing in it is obligatory and asking about it is bid’ah (an
innovation).”
Probing deeply into such matters is bid’ah because the
Sahaabah (may Allaah be pleased with them) who were more keen than us to seek
knowledge and goodness did not ask the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah
be upon him) such questions, and they are sufficient as an example. What I have
said now about the Last Day may also be applied to the attributes of Allaah
which He has ascribed to Himself of knowledge, power, hearing, seeing, speaking
etc. The way in which these words apply to Allaah is nothing like the way in
which the same words apply to man. Each attribute suits the one to whom it is
ascribed. Just as there is none like unto Allaah in His Essence, there is none
like unto Him in His attributes.
In conclusion: the Last Day is one Day, and it will be hard
for the kaafirs and easy for the believers. What has been narrated about the
various kinds of reward and punishment is a matter which cannot be fully
understood in this world, even though the basic meanings may be known to us in
this world.
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