Dought & clear - Do the dead visit or feel or see one another in their graves?. - Belief in the Last Day and the Signs of the Hour -

I have been wondering for some time now about the condition of the
grave. I wanted to know if dead people actually visit or see or feel
each other whilst in the grave.
Praise be to Allaah.
Yes, it is proven that the souls of the believers meet and visit one
another. There follow some of the ahaadeeth which indicate that, as
well as some of the fatwas of the scholars onthis matter.
It was narrated from AbuHurayrah that the Prophet (peace and blessings
of Allaah be upon him) said: "When the believer is dying, theangels of
mercy come to him with white silk and say: 'Come out content and with
the pleasure ofAllaah upon you to the mercy of Allaah, fragrance and a
Lord Who is not angry.' So it comes out like the best fragrance of
musk. They pass him from one to another until they bring him to the
gate of heaven, where they say: 'How good is this fragrance that has
come to you from the earth!' Then the souls of the believers come to
him and they rejoice more over him than any one of you rejoices when
his absent loved one comes to him. They ask him: 'What happened to So
and so, what happened to So and so?' They say: 'Let him be, for he was
in the hardship of the world. When he says, 'Did he not come here?'
They say: 'He was taken to the pit (of Hell).' Whenthe kaafir is
dying, the angers of punishment come to him with sackcloth and say:
'Come out discontent and subject to divine wrath to the punishment of
Allaah. So it comes out like the foulest stench of a corpse. They
bring himto the gates of the earth,where they say: 'How foul is this
stench!' Then they bring him to the souls of the kuffaar." Narrated by
al-Nasaa'i, 1833; classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in al-Silsilah
al-Saheehah, 2758.
Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah said: Does his soul meet with the souls
of his family and relatives? According to the hadeeth narrated from
Abu Ayyoob al-Ansaari and others of the salaf, and narrated by Abu
Haatim in al-Saheeh from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him): "When his soul is taken up it is met by the souls who ask
himabout the living and they say to one another: 'Let him rest.' And
they say: 'What happened to So and so?' And he says: 'He did a
righteous deed.' They say: 'What happened to So and so?' and he says:
'Has he not come to you?' They say: 'No.' They say: 'He was taken to
the Pit (of Hell).'"
And because the deeds of the living are shown to the dead,
Abu'l-Darda'used to say: "O Allaah, I seek refuge with You from doing
any deed that would shame me before 'Abd-Allaah ibn Rawaahah." This is
how they meet when he comes and they ask him questions and they answer
him.
With regard to where they settle, that dependson their status before
Allaah. For the one who is among those who are close to Allaah
(al-muqarrabeen - cf. al-Waaqi'ah 56:88), his status will be higher
than those of the Right Hand (cf. al-Waaqi'ah 56:90). The one who is
higher may descend to the one who is lower but the one who is lower
cannot ascend to the one who is higher, thus they will gather when
Allaah wills as theyused to gather in this world, despite their
differences in status, andthey will visit one another.
That will happen whether their places in which they are buried inthis
world are far apart or close together. Souls may meet even though
their places of burial are far apart, or they may beseparated even
though their places of burial are close together. A believer may be
buried beside a kaafir, but the soul of the former will be in Paradise
whilst thesoul of the latter is in Hell. Two men may be sitting or
sleeping in the same place, but the heart of one is blessed and the
heart of the other is tormented, and there is no connection between
the two souls. As the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him) said, "Souls are troops collected together and those who got
along with each other (in the heaven from whence they come) would have
an affinity with one another (in this world) and those amongst themwho
opposed each other(in heaven) would also be divergent (in the world)."
Narrated by Muslim, 2638; Majmoo' al-Fataawa, 24/368.
Ibn al-Qayyim said:
The second issue is whether the souls of the dead meet one another,
visit one another and talk to one another.
This is a good question. The answer is that souls are of two types:
those that are punished and those that are blessed. Those that are
punished are too preoccupied with the torment that they are facing to
visit and meet one another, but the souls that are blessed are free
and are not detained, so they meet one another, visit one another and
talk about what they used to do in this world and what happened to the
people of this world. So each soul will be with itsfriends who did
similar good deeds. The soul of our Prophet Muhammad (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) is with the highest companions.
Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
"And whoso obey Allaah and the Messenger (Muhammad), then they will be
in the company of those on whom Allaahhas bestowed His Grace, of the
Prophets, the Siddeeqoon (those followers of the Prophets who were
first and foremost to believe in them, like Abu Bakr As-Siddeeq), the
martyrs, and the righteous. And how excellent these companions are!"
[al-Nisa' 4:69]
This togetherness is confirmed in this world, in al-Barzakh and in the
abode of reward (Paradise), and "A man will be with those whomhe
loves" in these three realms... Allaah says (interpretation of the
meaning):
"(It will be said to the pious -- believers of Islamic Monotheism): 'O
(you) the one in (complete) rest and satisfaction!
28. 'Come back to your Lord,-- well-pleased (yourself) and
well-pleasing (unto Him)!
29. 'Enter you then among My (honoured) slaves,
30. 'And enter you My Paradise!'"
[al-Fajr 89:27-30]
i.e., enter among them and be one of them. Thisis said to the soul at
the time of death... And Allaah has told us that the martyrs are: "are
alive, with their Lord, and they have provision" [Aal 'Imraan 3:169];
they "rejoice for the sake of those who have not yet joined them, but
are left behind" [Aal 'Imraan 3:170] and "They rejoice in a grace and
a bounty from Allaah" [Aal 'Imraan3:171]. This indicates that they
will meet one another in three ways: (1) they are with their Lord and
are given provision, and if they are alive then they meet one another;
(2) they rejoice at the arrival of their brothers and their meeting
with them; and (3) the word yastabshiroon (translated as "rejoice")
implies that they pass the good news to one another. Al-Rooh, p. 17,
18.
There are ahaadeeth which state that the dead visit one another and we
are commanded to make their shrouds beautiful because of that, but
none of these ahaadeeth are saheeh. For example, the hadeeth of Abu
Qataadah according to which the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah
be upon him) said: "Whoever takes theresponsibility of preparing his
brother for burial, let him make his shroud beautiful, for they visit
one another in them." Shu'ab al-Eemaan, 7/10.
Its isnaad includes Salamibn Ibraaheem al-Warraaq whom Ibn Mu'een and
al-Dhahabi classed as a liar, as did others.
And Allaah knows best.

Dought & clear - Does the Shaytaan call the dying person to become a Jew or Christian? And what is meant by the “trials of death”?. - Belief in the Last Day and the Signs of the Hour -

Is it true that one of the trials of the grave involves the devils
appearing in the form ofone's parents and saying"We followed Judaism
orChristianity and Allaah admitted us to Paradise"? Does that happen
before Munkar and Nakeer come down?.
Praise be to Allaah.
There is no evidence for this from the Qur'aan or Sunnah, rather this
is what some scholars say, but that does not happen in the grave,
rather it happens when a person is dying, beforethe soul is taken.
Some scholars stated that this comes under the heading of "the trials
of life".
Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may Allaah have mercy on him) said:
The presenting of other religions to a person at the time of death
does not happen to everyone,but we cannot say that itdoes not happen
to anyone. Rather some people may not have other religions presented
to them, and some do have them presented to them. All of that is part
of the trials of life from which the Messenger commanded us to seek
refuge when praying. At the time of death, the Shaytaan is most keen
to tempt the sons of Adam. End quote from al-Ikhtiyaaraat, p. 85.
The Shaytaan remains eager to tempt a person so long as his soul is
still in his body, so he comes to him, whispers to him and makes
falsehood appear attractive to him.
It was narrated from AbuSa'eed al-Khudri (may Allaah be pleased with
him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)
said: "Iblees said: 'By Your glory, I will not stoptempting Your
slaves so long as their souls are in their bodies.' [Allaah] said: 'By
My Glory and Majesty, I will continue to forgive them so long as they
ask Me for forgiveness.'"
Narrated by Ahmad, 10974; classed as hasan by al-Albaani in Saheeh
al-Targheeb, 1617.
The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) used to seek
refuge with Allaah from the "trials of life and death," and he
encouraged worshippers to seek refuge from them beforesaying the
salaam at the end of the prayer.
It was narrated that Abu Hurayrah (may Allaah be pleased with him)
said: The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him) said: "When one of you has finished the final tashahhud, let him
seek refuge with Allaah from four things: from the torment of Hell,
from thetorment of the grave, from the trials of life anddeath, and
from the evil of the Dajjaal." Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 1311; Muslim,
588.
Shaykh Muhammad ibn Saalih al-'Uthaymeen (may Allaah have mercy on him) said:
The words "from the trials of life and death" come after the words,
"from the torment of Hell." What is meant by trials (fitnah) here is
the testing of a man with regard to his religious commitment, during
his life and after his death. The trials of life are great and
intense, and very few pass the test except those whom Allaah wills.
They revolvearound two things:
1- Doubts
2- Desires
As for doubts, man is faced with doubts with regard to his knowledge,
so he becomes confused with regard to what is true and what is false,
and hesees falsehood as truth and truth as falsehood. Ifhe sees truth
as falsehood he will avoid it, and if he sees falsehood as truth he
will follow it.
As for desires, he is facedwith them with regard to his will. Because
of hisdesires, he wants something that is forbidden to him. This is a
serious temptation (fitnah); how many are those who see riba as
opportunity and indulgein it; how many are those who see
deceivingpeople as cleverness in buying and selling, and indulge in
deceit; how many are those who see looking at women as pleasure,
enjoyment andfreedom, and they give free rein to their gaze; how many
are those who drink alcohol and itas pleasure and relaxation; how many
are those who watch entertainment and listento music, regarding it as
an art to be studied, for which certificates and awards are to be
given.
As for the trials of death, the scholars differed concerning them and
there are two views:
The first view is that the "trials of death" refers tothe questioning
by the two angels of the deceased in his grave, about his Lord, his
religion and his Prophet,because the Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) said: "It has been revealed to me that you will be
put to trial in your graves like or almost like the tribulation of the
Dajjaal." As for the one whose faith is sincere, it will be easy for
him to answer.
When he is asked: Who is your Lord? He will say: My Lord is Allaah.
Who is your Prophet? He will say: My Prophet is Muhammad.
What is your religion? Hewill say: My religion is Islam – it will be
very easy for him.
As for anyone else – Allaah forbid – when he is asked he will say, Oh,
oh, I do not know; I heard the people saying something so I said it
too.
Think about it, how he will say, "Oh, oh," as if heused to know
somethingbut forgot it. What greater loss can there bethan something
that youlearned then forgot, because the one who is ignorant does not
gain anything, but the one who forgot gained something and then lost
it. The result will be that he will say: I do not know who is my Lord,
what my religion is or who my Prophet is. This is a great fitnah; I
ask Allaah to save me and you from it. In fact it depends on what is
in the heart. If the heart truly believes, and sees matters of the
unseen as if with the eye, then he will answer with ease, but if it is
the opposite, then his answer will be the opposite.
The second view is that what is meant by "the trials of death" is what
happens at the time of death, in the last moments of life. This was
mentioned as such –even though it is one of the trials of life –
because of its seriousness and importance, just as the fitnah of the
Dajjaal is also mentioned even though it is one of the trials of life,
but it is also one of the trials of deathbecause it happens closeto
death, and it is singled out for mention because it is the worst that
can happen. That is because when a person is dying and bidding
farewell, his destiny will be either happiness or doom. The Messenger
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: "One of you may
dothe deeds of the people of Paradise until, when there is nothing
between him and it but a cubit, the decree overtakes him and he does a
deed of the people of Hell." So the fitnah is great indeed.
The Shaytaan is at his most eager to tempt the son of Adam at this
moment, and the one who is truly protected is the one whom Allaah
protects. He comes to him at this crucial moment which no one can
imagine but the one to whom it happens. Allaah says (interpretation of
the meaning):
"Nay, when (the soul) reaches to the collarbone (i.e. up to thethroat
in its exit),
27. And it will be said: Who can cure him (and save him from death)?
28. And he (the dying person) will conclude that it was (the time) of
parting (death);
29. And one leg will be joined with another leg (shrouded).
30. The drive will be on that Day to your Lord (Allaah)!"
[al-Qiyaamah 75:26-30]
It is a critical situation, when a person is weak, lacking in strength
and willpower, feeling anxious, and the shaytaan comes to him to tempt
him, to such a point that it is as the scholars said: he may present
the Jewish, Christian and Islamic religions to a person, appearing the
form of his parents who present the Jewish, Christian andIslamic
religions to him and encourage him to follow Judaism or Christianity.
The Shaytaan may take on the form of anyone except the Prophet (peace
and blessings of Allaah be upon him), andthis is the greatest of
trials.
But this – praise be to Allaah – does not happen to everyone, as was
stated by Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may Allaah have mercy on him).
Even if the Shaytaan is not able to gain control over a person to such
a degree,there is still fear for him.
It was said that when Imam Ahmad was dying, he could be heard saying,
"Not yet, not yet." When he came to, he was asked about that and he
said: The Shaytaan was biting his fingertips and saying, "You got away
from me, O Ahmad." He was biting his fingers out of regret that he had
not deceivedImam Ahmad, and Ahmad said to him, "Not yet, not yet" –
i.e., the soul has not yet departed. So long as the soul is in the
body, anything is possible. "Our Lord! Let not our hearts deviate
(from the truth) after You have guided us" [Aal 'Imraan 3:8]. In this
situation fitnah is great indeed. Hence the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: "… from the trials of life and
death."
Conclusion: There are two interpretations of what is meant by the
trials of death:
1- It is the trials and temptations that happenat the time of death.
2- That they come after death, when the two angels question a man
about his Lord, his religion and his Prophet.
There is no reason why we should not say that itincludes both. It may
refer both to the trials that come before death and at the time of
death,because these are the greatest tribulations thata man ever
faces. Mention is also made of what is feared of a bad end if Allaah
does not save a person from this tribulation.
Based on this, the one who prays for refuge from the trials of death
should bear both situations in mind.
Al-Sharh al-Mumti', 3/185-188
And Allaah knows best.

Islam and Self-Judgment and Self-Control

Ayatulla Agha Haji Mirza Mahdi Pooya says this state of cautiousness
and precaution is Taqwa, the highest form of God mindedness.
Self-Judgment is to call oneself to account every day regarding the
good deeds and wrongdoings. If the scale of acts of obedience
overweighs that of acts of disobedience, we must thank Allah (SWT),
lest wemust discipline ourselves.
Self-Control stands for protecting oneself against breach of the
obligatory religious rites and the commitment of the forbidden.
It is necessary for the rational to train himself on self-judgment and
self-control, since all human souls are susceptible to evil. If
theyare neglected, they go away from the right, but if they are
controlled by means of guidance, they shine with virtues:
"... And (I swear) by the soul and that (Power) which designed it and
inspired it with knowledge of evil and piety, those who purify their
souls will certainly have everlasting happiness and those whocorrupt
their souls will certainly be deprived of happiness." Noble Qur'an
(91:7-10)
Holy Prophet Mohammad (saw) said: "Before you do a matter that you
intend, you should investigate its end result; if it is good, you then
should keep on. If not, you should not do it."
Imam Ali (as) related: When he received the warriors that he had
appointed for a campaign, Holy Prophet Mohammad (saw) said to them:
"Welcome to the people who performed successfully the minor Jihad.
Their mission now is to perform completely the major Jihad. The major
Jihad is self-control. The best form of Jihad isto strive one's
desires and whims."
Self-Confidence that gavehim the power:
A business executive was deep in debt and could see no way out.
Creditors were closing in on him. Suppliers were demanding payment. He
sat on the Park bench, head in hands, wondering if anything could save
his company from bankruptcy.
Suddenly an old man appeared before him. "I can see that something
istroubling you," he said. After listening to the executive's woes,
the old man said, "I believe I can help you." He asked the man his
name, wrote out a check, and pushed it into his hand saying, "Take
this money. Meet me here exactly one year from today, and you can pay
me back at that time." Then he turned and disappeared as quickly as he
had come.
The business executive saw in his hand a check for $500,000, signed by
John D. Rockefeller, then one of the richest men in the world! "I can
erase my money worries in an instant!" he realized. But instead, the
executive decided to put the un-cashed check in his safe. Just knowing
it was there might give him the strength to work out a way to save his
business, he thought.
With renewed optimism, he negotiated better deals and extended termsof
payment. He closed several big sales. Within afew months, he was out
of debt and making money once again. Exactly one year later, he
returned to the park withthe un-cashed check. At the agreed-upon time,
the old man appeared. But just as the executive was about to hand back
the check and share his success story, a nurse came running up and
grabbed the old man.
"I'm so glad I caught him!" she cried. "I hope he hasn't been
botheringyou. He's always escapingfrom the rest home and telling
people he's John D. Rockefeller." And she led the old man away by the
arm. The astonished executive just stood there, stunned. All year long
he had been wheeling and dealing, buying and selling, convinced he had
half a million dollars behind him.
Suddenly, he realized that it wasn't the money, real or imagined, that
had turned his life around. It was his newfound self-confidence that
gavehim the power to achieveanything he went after.

Islam and Self-Appraisal (Muhasebe)

Imam Musa al-Kazim (as)says: Whosoever does not appraise his actions
daily, is not from us. That is, he should evaluate and see that if he
has done a good deed, he should ask more of the same from Allah (SWT),
and if he has done any sin, he should seek forgiveness from Allah
(SWT) and return to Him in penitence.
Holy Prophet Mohammad (saw) said to his companion (Sahabah) Abu Dharr
al-Ghifari (ra):
Oh Abu Dharr! A human being would not be among the God-wary (Muttaqin)
until he appraises himself every day with greater [scrutiny and]
accuracy than [one] appraising hisfinancial partner, and he knows
where his food has come from, the source of his drink, and from where
has he procured his dress; He should know whether they are from lawful
or unlawful means.
Holy Prophet Mohammad (saw) said: "An intelligentperson is the one who
calls himself to account and and does deeds to benefit him after death
and a foolish person is hewho follows his desires and hopes from Allah
(SWT)."
Holy Prophet Mohammad (saw) said: "He whose two days (of life) are the
same (making no spiritual progress) is at loss."
Imam Ali (as) said, If your two days are similar, then you are in loss.
Time for Self-Appraisal (Before final evaluation by immediate/Super Boss):
A little boy went into a drug store, reached for a soda carton and
pulled it over to the telephone. Heclimbed onto the carton so that he
could reach the buttons on the phoneand proceeded to punch in seven
digits (phone numbers).
The Store owner observed and listened to the conversation:
Boy: "Lady, Can you give me the job of cutting your lawn?"
Woman (at the other endof the phone line): "I already have someone to
cut my lawn."
Boy: "Lady, I will cut your lawn for half the price of the person who
cuts yourlawn now."
Woman: "I'm very satisfied with the person who is presently cutting my lawn."
Boy (with more perseverance): "Lady, I'll even sweep your curb and
your sidewalk, so on Sunday you will have the prettiest lawn in all of
Palm beach, Florida."
Woman: "No, thank you."
With a smile on his face, the little boy replaced thephone receiver.
The Storeowner, who was listening to all this, walked over to the boy.
Store owner: "Son... I likeyour attitude; I like that positive spirit
and would like to offer you a job."
Boy: "No thanks."
Store owner: "But you were really pleading for one."
Boy: "No Sir, I was just checking my performance at the job I already
have. I am the one who is working for that lady, I was talking to!"
This is what we call "Self-Appraisal (Muhasebe)", which is highly
recommended, because itencourages you to be proud of your
accomplishments and candid about your weaknesses.
Have you checked the performance of your job, whatever it is? Do you
strive to make it perfect? This is what we call "Self Appraisal". Even
the word'IMPOSSIBLE' says 'I M POSSIBLE'.
Noble Qur'an: "And you see the mountains, whichyou suppose to be
stationery, while they drift like passing clouds. It is the handiwork
of Allah, Who has made everything PERFECT." (An-Naml 27:88)
Holy Prophet Mohammad (saw) said, "May Allah bless the person who
performs a job with precision and perfects it".Allah is Perfect and
likes those who strive to makethings perfect.