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WHAT
DOES THE SPIRIT DO IN THE GRAVE?
Following
death, the spirit is taken to the
Presence of God. If it led a good,
virtuous life and refined itself, the
angels charged with taking it to the
Presence of God wrap it in a piece of
satin and take it, through the heavens
and all inner dimensions of existence,
to His Presence. During this journey,
angels welcome it in every mansion or
station it passes and ask: “Whose
spirit is this? How beautiful it is!”
The angels conveying it introduce it
with the most beautiful titles it had
while in the world, and answer: “This
is the spirit of the one who, for
example, prayed, fasted, gave alms, and
bore all kinds of hardship for God’s
sake.” Finally, God Almighty welcomes
it and tells the angels: “Take it back
to the grave where its body is buried,
so that it can answer the questions of
Munkar and Nakir, the interrogating
angels.”
Whatever
misfortune we experience is the result
of our own sins. If believers are
sincere but cannot always refrain from
sin, God, out of His Mercy, allows
misfortune to strike so that they may be
purified. God may subject them to great
agony during death either to forgive
their still unpardoned sins or to
promote them to higher (spiritual)
ranks, but then takes their spirit very
gently. If, despite all misfortunes and
death agonies there are still some sins
that have not been forgiven, these
people are somehow punished in the grave
and are thus freed from punishment in
Hell. In addition, since the grave is
the first station on the journey toward
eternal life, where everyone will be
rewarded based on their words and deeds,
it also features a preliminary
interrogation by two angels into the
what kind of life the deceased lead. And
almost everyone, except Prophets, is
subjected to some suffering.
It
is recorded in reliable books that ‘Abbas,
the uncle of the Prophet, upon him be
peace and blessings, desired very much
to see ‘Umar in his dream after the
latter had died. When he saw him 6
months later, he asked him: “Where
were you until now?” ‘Umar replied:
“Do not ask me that! I have just
finished accounting (for my life).”
Sa‘d
ibn Mu‘adh was among the greatest of
the Prophet’s Companions, may God be
pleased with them all. When he died, the
Archangel Gabriel, upon him be peace,
told God’s Messenger, upon him be
peace and blessings: “The Divine
Throne trembled when Sa‘d died.”
Innumerable angels took part in his
funeral. After Sa‘d, may God be
pleased with him, was buried, the
Messenger said in amazement: “Glory to
God! What (will happen to others) if the
grave squeezes (even such people like)
Sa‘d?’”
In
the grave, everyone is questioned by the
angels Munkar and Nakir. They ask: “Who
is your Lord? Who is your Prophet? What
is your religion?” and many other
questions. If the deceased believed in
God and His Prophets, upon them be
peace, and in the other essentials of
belief, they can answer these questions.
Otherwise, they cannot. The questions
continue with their deeds in the world.
The
spirit’s relationship with the body
differs according to which world it
inhabits. In this world the spirit is
confined within the prison of the body.
If the evil-commanding self and bodily
desires dominate it, the spirit
inevitably deteriorates and spell the
person’s final doom. If the person
uses his or her will-power in the way
taught by God and disciplines the
evil-commanding self and “nourishes”
the spirit through belief, worship, and
good conduct, and is not enslaved by
bodily desires, the spirit is refined,
purified, and furnished with laudable
qualities. This will bring happiness to
the person in both worlds.
After
burial, the spirit waits in the
intermediate world between this one and
the Hereafter. Although the body
decomposes, its essential
particles-called in a hadith ajb al-dhanab,
which literally means coccyx-do not rot.
We do not know whether ajb al-thanab
is a person’s genes or something else.
Whatever it is, however, the spirit
continues its relations with the body
through it. This part also serves as a
foundation upon which God will rebuild
or re-create us on the Day of Judgment.
God will make this part, which is formed
of the body’s essential particles or
atoms or all of its other particles that
have already mixed into the soil,
conducive to eternal life during the
final destruction and rebuilding of the
universe, and will use it to re-create
us on the Day of Resurrection.
The
intermediate world is the realm where
the spirit feels the “breath” of the
bliss of Paradise or the punishment of
Hell. If we led a virtuous life in the
world, our good deeds (e.g., prayers,
recitations, acts of charity) will
appear as amiable fellows. Also, windows
onto heavenly scenes will be opened for
us and, as stated in a hadith, our grave
will become like one of the gardens of
Paradise. However, if some of our sins
still remain unpardoned, regardless of
how virtuous we were, we may suffer some
punishment in the intermediate world so
that these final sins will be forgiven
and we can deserve Paradise. If we did
not believe and indulged in sin, these
facts will assume the forms of bad
fellows and vermin. We will see scenes
of Hell, and our grave will become like
one of the pits of Hell.
Can
any information be taken from a dead
person?
When
we are alive, our spirit suffers pain
and feels joy and happiness. Although
the spirit feels pain apparently through
the nervous system and uses this
extremely complicated system to
communicate with all parts of the body,
scientists still do not understand the
interaction between the spirit and the
body, especially the brain. Any bodily
failure that causes death can make the
nervous system stop operating. However,
it has been established scientifically
that certain brain cells live on for
some time after death. Scientists try to
receive signals from these cells after
the person has died. If they succeed in
doing so and can decipher those signals,
it will be useful, especially in
criminology, in solving unsolved crimes.
For example, the Quran tell us how,
during the time of Prophet Moses, upon
him be peace, God revived a dead person,
who identified his killer:
When
Moses said to his people: “God
commands you to sacrifice a cow”
... they sacrificed her, a thing
they had scarcely done. And when you
killed a living soul, and disputed
thereon-God disclosed what you were
hiding-so We said: “Smite him with
part of it”; even so He brings to
life the dead, and He shows you His
signs, that haply you may have
understanding. (2:67, 72-3)
Torments
of the grave and Hell
As
the spirit suffers pain and feels happy,
and as it continues its relation with
the body (via those essential bodily
particles that do not rot) in the
intermediate world, it is meaningless to
discuss whether the spirit, the body, or
both will enjoy Paradise or suffer Hell.
Since
the spirit lives the worldly life
together with the body and shares all
its joys and sorrows, God will resurrect
people both bodily and spiritually. The Ahl
al-Sunna wa al-Jama‘a agree that
the spirit and the body will go either
to Paradise or Hell together. God will
build bodies in forms unique to the
Hereafter, where everything will be
alive: This life of the world is but
a pastime and a game. Lo! the home of
the Hereafter, that is life if they but
knew (29:64).
What
gifts can we send to the spirit after
death?
Spirits
in the intermediate world will see and
hear us, provided God allows this. If He
does, He may permit some saintly people
to see, and hear, and communicate with
us.
Our
account is not closed after we die. If
we leave behind good, virtuous children,
books or institutions from which people
continue to benefit, or if we have
raised or contributed to raising those
who benefit others, our reward continues
to increase. If we leave evil behind,
our sins continue to multiply as long as
our evil continues to harm others.
Therefore, if we want to help our
beloved ones who have gone to the other
world, we should do good deeds. If we
help the poor, take part in Islamic
services, lead a good and virtuous life,
and especially spend to promote Islam
and the good of Muslims and humanity at
large, we will cause their reward to
increase.
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