Grave: Punishments ( Part 2 )
"Success and happiness, often blinds people to the trials of life."
"He who enters the grave without any provisions is as though he wishes to sail the sea without a ship."
The punishments of the grave arent only for the non believers and hypocrites but also for some of the believers, because of their sins or short commings in their deeds.
Allah is the best Judge. He will, no doubt, give everyone a fair trial in the hereafter.
Why should a person who went around ruining peoples lives, murdering, raping, stealing, cheating, doing sorcery, spreading lies and gossips, etc etc, so easily be freed, just because he died?
Its easy to say sorry but its hard to forgive.
Whenever we think of forgiving that person, his betrayal flashes in our head everytime.
But whenever the flash of betrayal by that person enters our mind and we can't find the strength to forgive him, then lets just remember our betrayals ( with a 's' in the end ) when it comes to our religion and think of what we would do if Allah doesnt let go of our betrayals and doesn't forgive us..
Remember forgive a person who wronged you, the way you want Allah to forgive you.
And if that person genuinely regrets it while still alive, then thats justice in itself.
However rest assured, because if that person isnt sorry for his acts, then surely he will be punished and justice will either way be ours.
Allah ta'ala knows whats in the heart's of His slaves.
And so, let us, find it in our hearts to forgive those who have wronged us, because it is an act loved by Allah and when we cant even forgive someone how can we expect Allah to forgive us?
Few reasons for punishment of the grave:
1. Stealing/ taking something that doesnt belong to you/ cheating:
[Al-Bukhaari (4234) and Muslim (115)] narrated that Abu Hurayrah said: "We went out with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) to Khaybar, and Allah granted us victory. We did not take gold or silver as booty, but we seized goods, food and clothes, then we set out for the valley. Along with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) there was a slave called Rifaa'ah ibn Zayd. When we camped in the valley, the slave of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) stood up and began to unpack his saddlebag, when he was struck by a (stray) arrow which proved fatal. We said, 'Congratulations to him, for he is a martyr, O Messenger of Allah.' The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: 'Not so, by the One in Whose hand is the soul of Muhammad, for the small garment that he stole from the booty on the day of Khaybar and which was not part of his share is burning like fire on him.'
That was just a piece a cloth that the boy stole, think about what would happen to people who cheat others and rob them of their money.
Be honest in your business and dont take advantage of the people you deal with, because if you do, then there would be a punishment much much more fierce than that on earth, waiting for you in the grave.
2. Slander and causing disruption.
And
3. Not purifying oneself:
The people who urinate and not purified themselves will be punished in their graves.
[Bukhari and Muslim report from Ibn Abbas]
that the Prophet (saws) passed by two graves and said, "Both of them are being tortured in their graves, and they are not being tortured for a major sin. This one did not use to save himself from being soiled with his urine, and the other used to slander (among the people to rouse hostilities, e.g., one goes to a person and tells him that so-and-so says about him such-and-such evil things)."
4,5,6 and 7 :
[Al-Bukhaari (1386, 7047)] narrated that Samurah ibn Jundub said:
The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) often used to ask his companions, "Has any one of you had a dream?" Then those whom Allah willed would tell him (about their dreams). One morning he said,
"Last night, two people came to me (in a dream), and woke me up and said, 'Let's go!' I set out with them, and we came across a man who was lying down, with another man standing over him, holding a big rock. He threw the rock at the man's head, smashing it. The rock rolled away, and the one who had thrown it followed it, and picked it up. By the time he came back to the man, his head had been restored to its former state. Then he (the one who had thrown the rock) did the same as he had done before. I said to my two companions, 'Subhaan Allah! Who are these two persons?' They said, 'Move on!' So we went on, and came to a man who was lying flat on his back, with another man standing over him, holding an iron hook. He put the hook in the man's mouth and tore off that side of his face to the back (of his neck), and he tore his nose and his eye from front to back in a similar manner. Then he turned to the other side of the man's face and did likewise. No sooner had he finished the second side but the first side was restored to its former state, then he went back and did the same thing again. I said to my two companions, 'Subhaan Allah! Who are these two persons?' They said, 'Move on!' So we went on, and came to something like a tannoor (a kind of oven, lined with clay, usually used for baking bread). - I think the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said, in that oven there was much noise and voices. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) added: - We looked into it and saw naked men and women. A flame of fire was reaching them from underneath, and when it reached them, they cried out loudly. I asked them, 'Who are these?' They said to me, 'Move on!' So we went on and came to a river - I think he said, red like blood. - In the river there was a man swimming, and on the bank there was a man who had gathered many stones. Whilst the swimmer was swimming, the man who had gathered the stones approached him. The swimmer opened his mouth and the man on the bank threw a stone into it, then the swimmer carried on swimming. Each time he came back, he opened his mouth again, and the man on the bank threw another stone into his mouth. I said to my two companions, 'Who are these two persons?' They said, 'Move on, move on!' ...
I said to them, I have seen many wonders this night. What do all these things mean that I have seen?' They said: 'We will tell you. The first man you came across, whose head was being smashed with the rock, is the man who studies the Qur'aan then he neither recites it nor acts upon it, and he goes to sleep, neglecting the obligatory prayers ( if i remember well then i think that this means that a person goes and sleeps even when he knows that he has to pray, thereby giveing importance to sleep over prayers). The man you came across whose mouth, nose and ears were being torn from front to back, is the man who goes out of his house in the morning and tells a lie that is so serious that it spreads all over the world. The naked men and women whom you saw in a structure that resembled an oven are the adulterers and adulteresses. The man you saw swimming in the river with rocks being thrown into his mouth is the one who consumed riba (usury)."
8. Enjoining righteousness upon others and forgetting oneself:
It was narrated that Anas ibn Maalik (may Allah be pleased with him) said: The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: "On the night on which I was taken on the Night Journey (Isra'), I saw men whose lips were being cut off with scissors of fire. I said: 'Who are these, O Jibreel (Gabriel) ?' He said: 'These are the khateebs from among your ummah (people) who used to enjoin righteousness on the people and forget themselves, and they used to recite the Book but they did not understand.'
( this for example is for me, i am telling all of you all reading this to be righteous but if i myself dont follow the things that i am telling you all to follow then this will be my punishment. Khudana khasta ( may Allah forbid) because it is wrong to tell others to do something, while you yourself arent doing it. So one should make a habit of listening, learning and applying the Qur'an and hadith in ones life before spreading it to others.)
9. Breaking the fast in Ramadaan with no excuse:
It was narrated that Abu Umaamah al-Baahili (may Allah have mercy on him) said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) say: "Whilst I was sleeping, two men came to me and took me by the arms, and they brought me to a mountain and said: 'Climb up.' I said: 'I cannot.' They said: 'We will make it easy for you.' So I climbed up until, when I was at the top of the mountain, I heard loud voices. I said: 'What are these voices?' He said: 'These are the cries of the people of Hell.' Then they took me on, and I saw some people hanging by their heels, with the sides of their mouths torn, and the sides of their mouths were flowing with blood. I said: 'Who are these?' He said: 'They are the ones who broke the fast before it was permissible for them to do so.
10. When a relative cries too much for the dead person.
[Sahih Al-Bukhari Hadith 2.379] Narrated by Ibn Umar
The Prophet (saws) said, "The deceased is tortured in his grave for the wailing done over him (by his relatives and friends)."
( this basically means he is tortured by their crying and weeping. Allah has allotted 3 days period to mourn the dead but however for a women who lost her husband it is 4 months and 10 days mourning )
11. The changing of the religion of Allah or innovations in the religion. (adding new things to the religion which aren't given in the Qur'an neither in the Hadiths, for example going to a dargah or asking the dead to make dua for you or forbidding something which is not forbidden, for example marriage among cousins)
[Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 4623.]
the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him): "I saw 'Amr ibn 'Aamir al-Khuzaa'i dragging his intestines in Hell. He was the first one to introduce the institution of al-saa'ibah."
13. Debt
If one takes on a debt and tries his best to repay the debt, but dies before settling his debt and has left behind no wealth, Allah Subhanah will pay the debt on his behalf on the Day of Judgement.
Abu Hurayrah said that the Prophet (saws) said: "If anyone takes other people's money with the intention to repay it and then he or she should die without settling the debt, Allah will pay the debt on his behalf. And if anyone takes money or property (of others) with the intention of destroying it, Allah will destroy him."
[Bukhari, Narrated by Ahmad (16776) and Ibn Maajah (2/82); classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh al-Jaami' (1550).]
But if one takes on a debt and has no intention or bothers to pay it back, and dies before settling his debt and has left no wealth behind, he will have to settle the debt on the Day of Judgement in the 'currency' of the Hereafter! And the currency of the Hereafter is deeds: thus he will have to pay his good deeds to the person he owed the debt to, and if he does not have enough good deeds to pay, he will take on the evil deeds of the person he owed the debt to, and will be thrown in the Hell Fire as a result!
14. The backbiters:
They will have nails of copper that will scratch at their faces till the day of Judgement. Their copper nails will rip their skins and their eyes and the insides of their mouth until there is nothing left.
Their faces will restore again and the punishment will begin again.
15. Music (string/blowing instrument music)
has been specifically mentioned in the many ahaadiths of the Messenger of Allah (saws) and has been termed the 'handiwork of Shaitaan'.
Music/songs that stir or arouse ones sexual desires or propagate shirk are absolutely illegal and forbidden in Islam.
[Sahih Muslim Hadith 6251 Narrated by Abu Hurayrah]
The Messenger of Allah (saws) said: "Do you know who is a 'muflis'?" They (the Companions of the Prophet) said: "A poor man amongst us is one who has neither dirham with him nor wealth." The Prophet (saws) said: "The 'muflis' (ardently poor) of my Ummah would be he who would come on the Day of Resurrection with prayers, and fasts, and Zakat but (he would find himself bankrupt on that day as he would have exhausted his funds of virtues) since he hurled abuses upon others, brought calumny against others, and unlawfully consumed the wealth of others, and shed the blood of others, and beat others, and his virtues would be credited to the account of one (who suffered at his hand). And if his good deeds fall short to clear the account, then the sins of the one who suffered at his hands would be entered in (his account), and he would be thrown in the Hell-Fire."
So let us not forget the fact that
'To err is human....' ...is indeed a saying of this world, but the Messenger of Allah (saws) has said: "All of you (mankind) are sinners! And the best (or most loved) of the sinners by Allah, are those who constantly seek forgiveness from Him."
->[Al-Tirmidhi Hadith 2338]
Allahs Messenger (saws) said: "Allah accepts a servants repentance till he gives up his spirit in death."
->[Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 798; Muslim, 589]
According to the hadeeth of 'Aa'ishah (may Allah be pleased with her), the wife of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) used to pray in his salaah (prayer), "Allah umma inni a'oodhu bika min 'adhaab il-qabr, wa a'oodhu bika min fitnat il-maseeh il-dajjaal, wa a'oodhu bika min fitnat il-mahyaa wa fitnat il-mamaat, Allah umma ini a'oodhu bika min al-ma'tham wa'l-maghram (O Allah , I seek refuge in You from the torment of the grave, I seek refuge in You from the tribulation of the Dajjaal, I seek refuge in You from the trials of life and death, O Allah , I seek refuge in You from sin and loss)."
->Surah Al-Mulk protects the person who used to read/recite it from the punishments of the grave. It is said to plead for its owner.
And now let us end with a dua:
Prophet Mohammad pbuh has told this beautiful dua -
"O Allah, You are my Lord, there is none worthy of worship but You. You created me and i am Your slave. I keep Your covenant and my pledge to You, as far as i am able.
I seek refuge in You from the evil of what i have done. I admit to Your blessings upon me, and i admit to my misdeeds. Forgive me for there is none who may forgive sins but You."
Ameen
Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only due to Allah's Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is of me. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.