Experiences of the Soul after Death

[ابوالوليد المسلم]

Experiences of the Soul after Death

Dr. Suhaib Hassan



The New World of Barzakh begins when the person’s soul leaves his body and his short life on this earth comes to an end. The dying man experiences things which cannot be comprehended by the people around him. As his soul leaves his body through his nostrils, his eyes follow his soul. For this reason, the Prophet (sallAllahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) advised the people to close the eyes of the deceased to make his appearance less ghastly. Allah Almighty says about this moment of dying.

"Then why do you not intervene when the soul (of the dying man) reaches the throat. And you are at that time looking. We are nearer to him, but you do not see. And why do you not, if you are exempt from accountability, call back the soul if you are truthful?" (Qur'an, Surah Al-Waqiah: 83-87)

As the person dies and enters a New World, a window into the 'Akhira' is opened for him to allow his soul to view Heaven and Hell. Death is a time of truth and the lies with which disbelievers surround themselves in this world are exposed. These lies include the denial of the existence of Allah, rejection of the punishment of the grave, and denial of the Day of Judgement.

So when death comes to the disbelievers and they feel the heat of the raging fires of hell, they begin to plead for a second chance on earth to do good. But all their pleading is in vain.

"Until, when death comes to one of them, he says, ‘O my Lord. Send me back to life. In order that I may do good deeds in the things that I neglected.’ By no means! It is but a word he says. And before them is a barzakh until the day they are raised up." (Qur'an, Surah Al Mu’minun: 99-100)

The journey of the soul from the earth to heaven where it meets its Lord is described vividly in the following hadith:

Al-Bara b. ‘Azib said: We went out with the Prophet (sallAllahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) to the funeral of a man of the Ansar and came to the grave. It had not yet been dug, so Allah’s Messenger (sallAllahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) sat down and we sat down around him quietly. He had in his hand a stick with which he was making marks on the round. Then he raised his head and said, "Seek refuge in Allah from the punishment of the grave;” saying it twice or thrice. He then said, "When a believer is about to leave the world and go forward to the next world, angels with faces white as the sun come down to him from heaven with one of the shrouds of paradise and some of the perfume of paradise and sit away from him as far as the eye can see. Then the angel of death comes and sits at his head and says, ‘Good soul, come out to forgiveness and acceptance from Allah.’ It then comes out as a drop flows from a water-skin and he seizes it; and when he does so they do not leave it in his hand for an instant, but take it and place it in that shroud and that perfume, and from it there comes forth a fragrance like that of the sweetest musk found on the face of the earth. They then take it up and do not bring it past a company of angels without their asking, "Who is this good soul?’ to which they reply, ‘So and so, the son of so and so’, using the best names by which people called him on the earth. They then bring him to the lowest heaven and ask that the gate should be opened for him. This is done, and from every heaven its archangels escort him to the next heaven until it is brought to the seventh heaven, and Allah who is great and glorious says, ‘Record the book of my servant in Illiyyun and take him back to earth, for I created mankind from it, I shall return them into it, and from it I shall bring them forth another time.’ His soul is then restored to his body, two angels come to him, and making him sits up say to him, ‘Who is our Lord’ He replies, ‘My Lord is Allah.’ They ask, ‘What is your religion?’ and he replies, ‘My religion is Islam.’ They ask, ‘Who is this man who was sent among you?’ and he replies, ‘He is Allah’s Messenger.’ They ask, ‘What is your [source of] knowledge?’ and he replies, ‘I have read Allah’s Book, believed in it and declared it to be true.’ Then one cries from heaven, ‘My servant has spoken the truth, so spread out carpets for him from paradise, and open a gate for him into paradise.’ Then some of its joy and its fragrance comes to him, his grave is made spacious for him as far as the eye can see, and a man with a beautiful face, beautiful garments and a sweet odor comes to him and says, ‘Rejoice in what pleases you for this is your day which you have been promised.’ He asks, ‘Who are you, for your face is perfectly beautiful and brings good?" He replies, ‘I am your good deeds.’ He then says, ‘My Lord, bring the last hour; my Lord, bring the last hour, so that I may return to my people and my property.’

But when an infidel is about to leave the world and proceed to the next world, angels with black faces come down to him from heaven with hair-cloth and sit away from him as far as the eye can see. Then the angel of death comes and sits at his head and says, ‘Wicked soul, come out to displeasure from Allah.’ Then it becomes dissipated in his body, and he draws it out as a spit is drawn out from moistened wool. He then seizes it, and when he does so they do not leave it in his hand for an instant, but put it in that hair-cloth and from it comes forth a stench like the most offensive corpse found on the face of the earth. They then take it up and do not bring it past a company of angels without their saying, ‘Who is this wicked soul?’ to which they reply, ‘So and so, the son of so and so’, using the worst names that he was called in the world. When he is brought to the lowest heaven request is made that the gate be opened for him, but it is not opened for him. (Allah’s Messenger (sallAllahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) then recited, ‘The gates of heaven will not be opened for them and they will not enter paradise until a camel can pass through the eye of a needle.’ Allah who is most Great and Glorious then says, ‘Record his book in Sijjin in the lowest earth,’ and his soul is thrown down. (He (sallAllahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) then recited, ‘He who assigns partners to Allah is as if he had fallen down from heaven and been snatched up by the birds, or made to fall by the wind in a place far distant.’ His soul is then restored to his body, two angels come to him, and making him sit up say to him, ‘Who is your Lord?’ He replies, ‘Alas, alas, I do not know.’ They ask, ‘What is your religion?’ He replies, ‘Alas, alas, I do not know.’ They ask ‘Who is this man who was sent among you?’ He replies, Alas, alas, I do not know.’ Then one cries out from heaven, ‘He has lied, so spread out carpets from hell for him, and open a gate for him into hell.’ Then some of its heat and hot air comes to him, his grave is made narrow for him so that his ribs are pressed together in it and a man with an ugly face, ugly garments and an offensive odor come to him and says, Be grieved with what displeases you, for this is your day which you have been promised.’ He asks ‘Who are you, for your face is most ugly and brings evil?’ He replies, ‘l am your wicked deeds.’ He then says, My Lord, do not bring the last hour.’

In a version there is something similar containing this addition:
"When his soul comes out every angel between heaven and earth and every angel in heaven invoke blessings on him, and the gates of heaven are opened for him, no guardians of a gate failing to supplicate God that his soul may be taken up beyond them. But his soul, i.e., the infidel’s, is pulled out along with the veins and every angel between heaven and earth and every angel in heaven curse him, and the gates of heaven are locked, no guardians of a gate failing to supplicate God that his soul may not be taken up beyond them." (Ahmad transmitted it)

The person who answers the questions correctly and is destined for paradise will feel that his grave is expanding and becoming a garden of paradise. The angels will tell him gently, "Sleep like the sleep of a bride."

But the person who fails to answer the questions correctly will feel the grave closing in on him and a door into hell will be opened for him. His mortal body will decompose and eventually disappear into the ground, but his soul will continue to feel the punishment it earned in its life on earth. The punishment of the grave is the first hurdle the person has to overcome after death, and if he overcomes it easily, the rest of his trial on the Day of Judgement will be similarly easy. For this reason, the Messenger of Allah (sallAllahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) used to recite the following du’aa frequently:

"My Lord, I seek refuge in You from the punishment of the grave, and seek refuge in You from the torture of the hell fire, and I seek refuge in You from the trials of the false messiah, and I seek refuge in You from the trials of living and dying."

Zaid b. Thabit narrated that the Messenger of Allah (sallAllahu ‘alaihi wa-sallam) and his Companions were passing through a belonging to the Banu An Najjar when the Prophet (sallAllahu ‘alaihi wa-sallam) mount shied and almost unseated him. They were close to a few graves in which Polytheist were buried, so the Prophet (sallAllahu ‘alaihi wa-sallam) said,

"These people are being tortured in their graves, and were it not that you would stop burying your dead, I would ask Allah to let you hear the punishment in the grave which I can hear." (Reported by Saheeh Muslim)