Death:
Everyone who lives in this
world has to die at his
appointed time, whether he
is amongst the pious or
wicked. Allah says in the
Qur’aan:
“Every soul shall taste
death.”[1]
And,
“We did not grant to any
human immortality before you
(O Muhammad (sallallahu
alaihi wa-sallam)) then if
you die, would they live for
ever.”[2]
Soul:
Soul is a creation (Makhlooq)
of Allah. It remains in
contact with the body
throughout the worldly life
and causes the body to have
life. Death occurs when the
soul departs. Allah says
about the soul in the
Qur’aan:
“They ask you concerning the
soul. Say that the soul is
from Allah and you have not
been given knowledge of it
except a little.”[3]
Some believe that the soul
of Allah’s Messenger (sallallahu
alaihi wa-sallam) is
omnipresent. Mulla Alee
Qaree, a famous Hanafee
theologian says, “… the Ruh
(spirit) of Rasoolullah is
present in the house of
every Muslim.”[4]
This is an erroneous view
because the abode of
righteous souls after death
is Paradise, as mentioned in
the following Ahaadeeth,
Ka’ab Ibn Malik related that
the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu
alaihi wa-sallam) said:
“The believer’s soul is a
bird which feeds upon the
fruits of the trees of
Paradise, until Allah
returns it to its body on
the Day he is Resurrected.”[5]
Narrated Anas (radhi allahu
anhu), when the ailment of
the Prophet (sallallahu
alaihi wa-sallam) got
aggravated, he became
unconscious, whereupon
Fatima said, “Oh, how
distressed my father is!” He
said, “Your father will have
no more distress after
today.” When he expired, she
said, “O Father! Who has
responded to the call of the
Lord Who has invited him! O
Father, whose dwelling place
is the Garden of Paradise
(i.e. Al-Firdaus)! O Father!
We convey this news (of your
death) to Jibreel.” When he
was buried, Fatima said, “O
Anas! Do you feel pleased to
throw earth over Allah’s
Messenger (sallallahu alaihi
wa-sallam)?”[6]
Grave:
Grave is the abode of the
body after death, the
Messenger of Allah (sallallahu
alaihi wa-sallam) said:
“Verily the grave is the
first step in the stages of
the Hereafter; if one finds
salvation (at this stage)
the succeeding (stages)
become easy for him, and if
he does not find salvation
in it, what follows this
stage is very hard upon
him.”[7]
The bodies of common people
decay in their graves with
the passage of time, whilst
the bodies of the Prophets (alaihi
as-salaam) are preserved as
a sign of honor. It is also
known by observation that
bodies of some martyrs are
preserved.
Barzakh:
Linguistically, “Barzakh”
means a veil, barrier or
partition between two
things. Ibn Abbas (radhi
allahu anhu) defines Barzakh
as, a Hijab (a partition of
veil). Adh-Dhahhak (a
Tab’ieen scholar of Tafseer)
says: ‘Barzakh is the stage
between this world and the
Hereafter.’[8]
Al-Qurtubi, in his
exposition on these various
interpretations states: ‘The
Barzakh is a barrier between
two things. It is the stage
between this world and the
other world - from the time
of death until the time of
Resurrection. Thus, whoever
dies enters the Barzakh”[9]
All these various
explanations point to one
underlined fact, that the
soul after having separated
from its worldly body,
enters into a realm behind
which there is a barrier
forbidding any return.
Many Soofis hold the
incorrect belief that
soul is a part of Allah.
“Abu Bakr al-Kalabadhi
mentions, “It (the soul)
never entered under the
humiliation of ‘Be’ …
(the soul’s) only
function is to produce
life and being alive, as
well as producing life,
is the attribute of Him,
Who causes life, just as
shaping and creating are
an attribute of the
Creator. [The Doctrine
of the Soofis (Kitab al-Ta’arruf
li-madhhab ahl al-Tasawwuf)
(Eng. Trans.) p.50-51]
This argument is false,
since the soul does not
produce life on its own,
it is only a creation of
Allah and comparing the
creation to the Creator
is falsehood.
