Belief in angels is as important as belief in Allah, His
Prophets, divine scripts and the Day of Resurrection. Surah al-Baqarah Ayah 177, “Righteousness is not determined by facing
East or West during prayer. Righteousness
consists of the belief in Allah, the Day of Judgment, the angels, the
Books of Allah, His Prophets; to give money for the love of Allah to relatives,
orphans, the destitute, those who are on a journey and in urgent need of money,
and beggars; to set free slaves and to be steadfast in prayer, to pay the
religious tax (zakat), to fulfill one’s promises, and to exercise patience in
poverty, in distress, and in times of war. Such people who do these are truly righteous
and pious.”
Allah has assigned various duties to the innumerable angels
created by Him:
Carriers of the Throne, Angels in the skies, Spiritual
angels who descend on the earth on the Grand Night (Shab-e-Qadr), messenger
angels, angels assigned on the elements-air, water, clouds, plants and animals,
protecting angels for men, writers of deeds on men, angels of death, angels
circumambulating the Throne, angels escorting men to the plane of Hasher,
angels escorting pious to the Paradise and the sinners to the Hell. Angel’s
worship to Allah is an intrinsic part of their existence. Their subservience to
Allah stems from their perception of His greatness.
Some of the names mentioned in the Glorious Qur’an and the
Traditions are; Jib’raeel, Mi’kaeel, Is’rafeel, Iz’raeel, Ruhul Quds, Rizwan,
Munkir Na’keer and Ma’lik
Allah sent the angels to His Prophets in the form of a
perfect human being like Prophet Ibrahim, Prophet Yusuf, Prophet Lute.
Similarly, He sent an angel to Hazrat Mariyam to give her the good news about the
birth of Prophet Isa.
Hazrat Jib’raeel was the messenger of the revelation (Wahey)
to the Noble Prophet (s.a.w.a.s.) bringing the Glorious Qur’an in Makkah and Madinah
and at various places where needed.
Allah created the animals who are led by their instincts deprived
by intellect and created the angels who are free from disobedience and sins.
Allah created the human beings and provided both the instincts and the
intellect. He also provided men with Guidance by sending 124,000 Messengers and
given the conscience who warns every man each time he intends to disobey Allah.
He also sent divine Scriptures; Torah, Injeel and the Glorious Qur’an. This is
the test for a man whether he follows the Guidance and achieves piety or
listens to Shaytan and his instincts and commits sins and proceeds to the Hell
Fire.
If a man follows his intellect and recognizes Allah’s
Guidance and suppresses his wrongful desires, he may excel the angels and Allah
praises such fortunate human being like the Commander of the Faithful, Imam Ali
(a.s.) when he slept on the Noble Prophet (s.a.w.a.s.)’s bed on the Night of
Migration from Makkah to Madinah, when the certain death was eminent. Allah revealed an Ayah 207 Surah
al-Baqarah, “Wa Minana’se Mainyeshri Nafsahubtegha Marza’tilla Wallahu Raufun
Bil’Ibaad.” “There are those among people who give their lives to seek Allah’s
pleasure. Allah is affectionate to His servants.” According to Thalabi, Ahmad
ibn Hambal, Ghazali and others, Allah revealed to Jib’raeel and Mi’kaeel that
He has made them brothers of each other and their ages have been increased,
which one of them will dedicate his
life for the other, none of them agreed. Allah revealed to them, “Why can’t you be like Ali ibn Abi Talib who is
sleeping in his brother Prophet Muhammad’s bed after dedicating his life? So,
go to the earth and protect Ali from his enemies.”
Sources: Sahifa-e-Kamilah
Urdu translation by Allama Mufti Ja’far Husayn (r.a.)
180
questions by Ayatollah Nasir Makarem Shirazi
Faith
and Reason by Ayatollah Mahdi Hadavi Tehrani
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