The root of Ma’ad is Aud which means to return or come back.
As on the Day of Resurrection, the souls will be made to return to their
bodies. Hereafter or Qiamat is one of the Roots of Islam and to have faith in
that is essential or obligatory. It is that everyone will, after his death,
become alive again and would be rewarded or punished according to ones belief
and deeds. Ma’ad encompasses four stages; death, grave, Barzakh, Resurrection
and ends with either Paradise or Hell. Man in this world is like a baby in the
womb who has no idea about the outside world. The only sources of comprehension of Ma’ad are the Glorious Qur’an, the
Noble Prophet (s.a.w.a.s) and his Ahlul Bayt (a.s.).
Death- The First
Station: The breaking of the relation between the body and the soul is
called death. The relation between body and soul may be explained as a lamp in
the dark house of the body which shows through eyes, ears and other organ. When
death occurs, the lamp is removed and the body is left in darkness. It is just
to explain the relationship, but in reality the soul neither enters nor leaves
the body. Allah is the only bestower of life and death as mentioned in Surah Zumar Ayah 49 which says: “Allah
gives life and only Allah causes death.”
In the Glorious Qur’an, Surah Nisa Ayah 97 says: “Angels collect the souls.” Surah Sajdah Ayah
11: “The angel of death takes away the souls.” In reality it is Allah who
causes death.
At the time of death, the angels as well as Shaitan come
to the dying person. Shaitan tries even at the last moment to mislead. A man’s
feelings at the time of death will be the same as he had it during his life
time and will be the same on the Day of Resurrection.
People who did
good deeds will die peacefully as stated in Surah Nahl Ayah 32: “Those whom
angels cause to die in good state, saying: “Peace be on you: enter the Garden
for what you did.”
The Noble Prophet
(s.a.w.a.s) said: “Even in Muslims there are three groups of people whose souls
will be taken away in a harsh way; a tyrant ruler, one who usurps orphan’s
property, and the one who gives false testimony.”
Love for this world is an attribute of infidels and a
source of sins. In Usool al-Kafi, the
Noble Prophet (s.a.w.a.s) said: “The root of all evils is the love for this
world.”
The condition of a man regarding death should be like a
man in the service of a king for a few days. In the meanwhile he gets a word
from the king that you will be, at an unexpected time, be made to stand in
front of the king so that you be rewarded and honored by the king for good
service and loyalty.
Similarly, a faithful person, though he feels happy at
his death, which is the door to the place of rewards and gifts, also like and
wishes that the said hour may be delayed so that he may perform more worship.
It is mentioned in many traditions that the Noble Prophet
(s.a.w.a.s.) and the Commander of the Faithful, Imam Ali (a.s.) arrive at the
head of the dying person. It is stated in some other traditions that the Pure
Panjetan (a.s.) come by the side of the dying person. According to the famous
tradition by Haris-e-Hamadani, Imam Ali
(a.s.) said: “Everyone sees me on his or her death bed and will do so in future
also, be he a believer or non-believer.”
After death, the soul remains near the body, it watches
who is washing and shrouding the body, it listens to the talk of the people.
After the burial, the soul is reconnected to the body. The first good news
given to the faithful in the grave is: “The
Most Merciful Allah has forgiven you and all those who participated in your
burial.” According to the Shia faith, the deceased person has to face the
questioning in the grave by the angels; Munkir and Nakir. And also believe that
the grave squeezes the body. The questioning is about God, the Prophet, and the
Imams. If the deceased gives correct answers, a door is opened near the head
and his grave is widened. If he fails to give correct answers, a door of Hell
is opened near the head. It is reported that questions may be put for certain
deeds also. Deeds are in the form of companions remain in the grave with the
dead till the Day of Resurrection.
Sa’ad bin Mua’az Ansari, was a pious companion of the Noble
Prophet (s.a.w.a.s.). When he died, rows of angels attended his funeral; the
Prophet himself lowered his body in the grave. Seeing all this, his mother
congratulated Sa’ad for the Paradise. The Noble Prophet (s.a.w.a.s.) asked her
from where she knew that his son has reached Paradise. He said that Sa’ad is
undergoing squeeze of the grave. He gave the reason for this squeeze was that
his behavior with his wife was not good! Other reasons for grave squeeze are;
back-biting, not purifying one after urinating, making false allegations etc.
Sources used:
Bihar-ul-Anwar by
Allama Majlisi (r.a.)
The Book Hereafter by
Ayatullah DasteGhaib (r.a.)
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