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PARADISE AND HELL

Allah سبحانه وتعالى‎

has promised that as long as a person believes that Allah is One and has no partners and that Muhammad is His Prophet and Messenger and believe in all His prophets and messengersthey will be saved from the Fire of Hell.

Believers that commit punishable major sins such as adultery will be punished unless Allah in His Mercy forgives him/her. In the case of murder Allah may forgive the murderer if the murdered person forgives his/her murderer.

Believers subjected to Hell will however be released, after a very long period of time, on account of their belief, whereas unbelievers will remain in Hell for all eternity. As for those that believed and committed suicide, suicide is a state of disbelief and as such they die as an unbeliever.

THE INHABITANTS OF PARADISE

One day the Prophet

told his companions, "When the inhabitants of Paradise enter a herald will announce, 'You will live forever and will not die. You will be in good health and never become ill. You will be young and never grow old and you will be in comfort and never encounter discomfort.'"

HOW TO GET TO PARADISE

Ubadah, Samit's son heard the Prophet

say, "Whosoever bears witness that there is no god except Allah, the One, without an associate, that Muhammad is His worshipper and Messenger, that Jesus is the worshiper and Messenger of Allah, and His Word (Be) that He conveyed to Mary and a spirit from Him, that Paradise is a truth, that the Fire is a truth, will be admitted by Allah to Paradise no matter what he did."

PARADISE AND HELL

Anas recorded that during one of the Prophet's sermons he heard him say, "If you knew what I know, you would laugh a little and weep a lot, whereupon the congregation covered their faces and sobbed. The Prophet

continued, "Paradise and Hell have been shown to me. I have never seen anything so good or so evil like them until this day."

THE PROPHETS AND THEIR NATIONS

Ibn Abbas related that one day the Prophet

told his companions that a prophet had been shown to him in a vision who had only a small group of people with him. Then he was shown other prophets some of whom had just one or two followers, whereas others had none at all. Then, suddenly he saw a huge assembly and thought it was his nation, but he was informed, "This is Moses and his nation; look at the horizon." He looked and saw a great multitude, then he was told to look at the other horizon and there also was a great multitude, whereupon he was told, "These are your nation. From them seventy thousand will enter Paradise without being taken to account or suffering."

Thereafter the Prophet

went to his room and the companions began to speculate about those who would enter Paradise without account or suffering. Some said, "Perhaps they are his companions," others said, "May be they are the ones who were born Muslims and never associated anyone with Allah," and so forth. Then the Prophet

returned and asked them what they were discussing so they told him. He replied, "They are those who neither made charms, nor amulets, nor did they desire them. They did not believe in omens but trusted their Lord." Then Ukasha, Mohsin's son stood up and requested, "Supplicate to Allah that He makes me one of them." The Prophet

replied, "You are one of them." Then another stood up and asked the same, but the Prophet (sa)

answered, "Ukasha has beaten you to it, the supplication has been made."

THE COMPANIONSHIP OF THE PROPHET

IN PARADISE

One day, Rabia, Ka'b Aslami's son, who attended the Prophet

and prepared the water for his ablutions, was asked by the Prophet

, "Would you like to ask for something?" Rabia replied, "I would like to ask for your companionship in Paradise." Then the Prophet

inquired, "Is there anything else?" whereupon he replied, "No, that is all." Then the Prophet

told him, "Then help me by increasing the number of your prostrations."

THE REWARD OF A SIMPLE GESTURE

The Prophet

told his companions that he had seen a man who would enter Paradise because he cut down a tree from the side of a road just because it was harmful to Muslims. Allah was thankful for his gesture and forgave him his sins.

RANKS IN PARADISE

On another occasion, Mughirah, Shubah's son heard the Prophet

telling his companions, "Prophet Moses asked his Lord, 'Who will be in the lowest rank in Paradise?' He was informed, 'It will be a man who will arrive when the all the dwellers of Paradise have entered Paradise and it will be said to him, 'Enter Paradise.' But he will ask, 'How can I enter, Lord, when everyone has settled in his place and taken his gifts?' Whereupon he will be asked, 'Will you be satisfied if you had a kingdom like the kingdoms of the monarchs of the world?' He will reply, 'I will be content O Lord.' Then he will be told, 'You have such and its like, and its like, and its like.' At the mention of the fifth time he will say, 'O Lord, I am content,' and will be told: 'That is for you and ten times as much again. You will have whatever your soul desires and whatever delights your eyes.' And he will say again, 'O Lord, I am satisfied!'

Then Moses asked, 'Who will have the highest rank in Paradise?' Allah said, 'Those will be the ones whom I exalted with My Own Hands and whose rank I shall attest with My Seal. No eye has seen, no ear has heard and the mind of no man has ever conceived their rank.'"

DWELLING PLACES IN PARADISE

Regarding the houses in Paradise the Prophet

told his companions, "A believer will have a tent in Paradise hollowed out from a pearl. Its height will stretch for seventy miles into the heaven. The believer will have his family with him, and he will go about in it and not one of them will see the other."

THE DWELLERS OF PARADISE

At another time he told his companions, "The dwellers of Paradise will look at the mansion of those above them as you gaze at the bright, distant planets upon the eastern and western horizons. Such will be the differences in their ranks." When he was asked if the mansions would be those of the Prophets that no one else would be able to reach he replied, "Yes, but by Him in whose Hands is my soul, there will also be those who believed in Allah and did not belie His Messengers."

A VISION OF THE PROPHET

Samurah, Jundab's son was among the companions when the Prophet

said, "Last night two people came to me in a vision and said, 'Come with us.' So I accompanied them and we came across a man lying on his back whilst another stood near his head striking it with a stone. No sooner had the stone struck the person on his head with the stone than it rolled away from him and the striker went after it, picked it up and returned with it. In the meantime the head of the person that had been struck recovered from his injury and the striker hit him again. I asked my two companions, 'Exalted is Allah, who is this?' But they said, 'Proceed, proceed.'

Then we came to another man lying on his back whilst another stood near him with a hooked bar of iron in his hand. He approached him from one side, ripped open his mouth right down to his neck, then he ripped open his nostril down to his neck and gouged out his eye down to his neck. Then he turned to his other side and did the same by which time the first side of the man's face had recovered from its injuries and the punisher returned to the other side and repeated what he had done before. I asked my companions, 'Exalted is Allah, what are these two doing?' But they said, 'Proceed, proceed.'

Then we went on and arrived near a pit that was like an oven out of which came cries. We glanced into it and saw naked men and women who cried out as the flames from below reached them. I asked my companions, 'Exalted is Allah, who are these?' But they said, 'Proceed, proceed.'

Then we proceeded until we arrived at a stream, the water of which was red like blood, and in it there was a man, swimming. On the bank of the stream was another who had gathered many rocks. When the swimmer approached him, he would strike him with a rock that would smash his face and he would start swimming again, and as he approached the bank once more the man on the bank struck him again and smashed his face. I asked my companions, 'Exalted is Allah, who are these two?' But they replied, 'Proceed, proceed.'

So we proceeded until we reached a Garden that was full of spring flowers and in its middle was such a tall man that I was unable to see his head, it was as if it was hidden in the sky. Around him were so many children, the number of which I have never seen before. I asked my companions, 'Exalted is Allah, who are these?' But they said, "Proceed, proceed.'

After this we arrived at a tree that was so enormous, I have never seen any so big, nor yet so beautiful, and my companions asked me to climb it. We all climbed up and saw a city built from alternate blocks of gold and silver. When we reached the gate of the city we asked for the gate to be opened and it was, so we entered. In it we saw people, half of their bodies were the most beautiful bodies you could ever imagine, yet their other half was the most ugly.

There was a stream flowing through the middle of the city, its water was pure white. My companions said to the people, "Go plunge into the stream." So they did, when they came out their ugliness had vanished and they had became very beautiful.

My two companions then told me, 'This is the Garden of Eden and that is your residence.' I raised my eyes and saw a palace like a white cloud and they repeated, 'This is your residence.' I said to them, 'May Allah bless you both, now let me enter.' But they said, 'Not just yet, but without doubt you will indeed enter it.'

Then I said to my companions, 'Tonight I witnessed many strange things. What are their meanings.' They replied, 'We will tell you now. The first person you saw whose head was being struck with a stone was the one who committed the Qur’an to memory, then forgotten it and neglected the obligatory prayers.

The person whose mouth, nostrils and eyes were being ripped open to the neck was one who ran from his home spreading lies which then circulated throughout the world. As for the men and women in the oven they were adulterers and adulteresses.

The man you saw swimming in the stream being stoned was one who earned interest (usury)on his money, and the ugly person near the fire was Malik, the Guardian of Hell.

The very tall man in the Garden was Abraham and the children around him were those who died upright.' At this point a companion of the Messenger of Allah

asked, 'O Messenger of Allah (

), were any of the children, the children of unbelievers?' He replied, 'Yes, and the children of unbelievers. Those who were half beautiful and half ugly were people who had done both good and bad deeds, and Allah pardoned them.'"

THE DEPTHS OF HELL – A FALLING DISTANCE OF SEVENTY LIGHT YEARS

One day when the companions were with the Prophet

he heard the sound of something heavy crash and asked, "Do you know what that was?" To which they replied, "Allah, and His Messenger

know best." "That was a stone that had been thrown into Hell seventy years ago," he replied, "it kept falling until that moment. It reached the bottom of Hell just now and the sound you heard was when it hit the bottom."

THE LEAST PUNISHMENT IN HELL

Numan, Bashir's son heard Prophet Muhammad

say, "The one who is least punished amongst the inhabitants of the Fire will be the one who has two brands of fire under his feet and his brain boils. He will imagine himself to be the most punished person, yet, he will be the least punished among them."

A DEED THAT WILL LET YOU ENTER PARADISE

Muaz asked the Messenger of Allah

, "O Messenger of Allah

, tell me of a deed which will cause me to enter Paradise and keep me away from the Fire." He answered, "You have asked me about a very weighty matter, but it is easy for one whom Allah makes it easy. Worship Allah but associate nothing with Him. Offer the prayer, pay the obligatory charity, fast the month of Ramadan and make the pilgrimage to the House."

Then he asked, "Shall I inform you of the Gates of Goodness? Fasting is a shield, charity lightens sins as water extinguishes a fire. Similarly, prayer in the middle of the night." Then he recited:

"Whose sides forsake their couches

as they supplicate to their Lord in fear and hope;

who give in charity

of that which We have given them.

No soul knows what pleases the eye

is in store for them

as a recompense for what they used to do."

Qur’an 32:16-17

He continued, "Shall I tell you of the head of the matter and of its pole, and its highest hump?' Muaz replied, 'Certainly, O Messenger of Allah

.' The head of the matter is Islam, its pole are prayers and its highest hump is Jihad in the Cause of Allah," he replied.

Then he asked, "Shall I tell you of that which is the owner of all this." Muaz replied, 'Certainly, O Messenger of Allah

.' Whereupon he took hold of his tongue and said, "Keep this under control." Then Muaz inquired, 'O Messenger of Allah

,shall we be called to account in respect of what we say?' "May your mother lose you, people will be thrown face downwards into Hell only because of the harvest of their tongue!" he replied.

THE ENCOMPASSING MERCY OF ALLAH

Some captives were brought before the Prophet

and a women ran frantically in search of her infant. When she found her infant she picked it up, hugged and suckled it. The Prophet

told his companions, "Could you imagine this woman throwing her child into the Fire?" "Indeed no," replied his companions. Whereupon the Prophet

said, "Allah is more merciful towards His worshippers than a mother is to her child."

[5. Surah Al-Maidah : Ayah 56]

"And whoever takes Allah and His apostle and those who believe for a guardian, then surely the party of Allah are they that shall be triumphant."