Dought & clear, - Authentic Descriptions of Munkar and Nakeer.

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What is narrated about the questioning of the two angels Munkar and Nakeer in the grave, and about their appearance? Is the hadeeth (narration) about them, in which the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) told ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) about them, saheeh (authentic)? Is it true that they drag their hair behind them and their eyes are like lightening and their voices like thunder and they strike the grave with their eyeteeth and say: “Who is your Lord? What is your religion? And who is the Prophet who was sent amongst you?”
Praise be to Allah.
Firstly:
It is narrated in saheeh reports that the two angels whose task it is to question the deceased are black and blue, and one is called al-Munkar and the other is called al-Nakeer.
Al-Tirmidhi narrated that Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “When the deceased – or one of you – is buried, there come to him two black and blue angels, one of whom is called al-Munkar and the other al-Nakeer. They say: ‘What did you say about this man?’ and he says what he used to say: ‘He is the slave of Allah and His Messenger. I bear witness that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger.’ They say: ‘We knew that you would say that.’ Then his grave is made spacious for him, seventy cubits by seventy, and it is illuminated for him. Then it is said to him: ‘Sleep,’ and he says: ‘May I go back to my family and tell them?’ They say: ‘Sleep like the bridegroom who will be woken by none but the dearest of his family to him,’ until Allah raises him from that resting-place of his.”
But if he is a hypocrite he says: ‘I heard the people saying something so I said something like what they said. I do not know.’ They say: ‘We knew that you would say that.’ Then it is said to the earth: ‘Squeeze him.’ So it squeezes him until his ribs interlock, and he will continue to be tormented therein until Allah raises him from that resting-place of his.”
This hadeeth was classed as hasan (sound) by al-Albani in Saheeh al-Tirmidhi.
With regard to the hadeeth of ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) to which you refer, it was narrated via da’eef (weak) isnads (chains of narration), such as the mursal (one whose chain stops at before reaching the companions) report narrated by ‘Abd al-Razzaq in his Musannaf from ‘Amr ibn Dinar, according to which the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said to ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him): “How will you deal, O ‘Umar, with the two testers in the grave, when they come to you digging the earth with their eyeteeth, stepping on their hair (because it is so long), their eyes like dazzling lightning and their voices like deafening thunder, with a whip so heavy that if the whole world were to gather together to lift it, they would not be able?” ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: “I will be as I am today”. He said: “As you are today?” He said: “Then I shall take care of them for you, in sha Allah.”
Al-‘Iraqi said in Takhreej al-Ihya: This was narrated like this, as a mursal report, by Ibn Abi’l-Dunya in Kitab al-Quboor, and its men are thiqat (trustworthy). Al-Bayhaqi said in al-I’tiqad: We have narrated it via a saheeh isnad in a mursal report from ‘Ata’ ibn Yasar.
I say: Ibn Battah narrated it in a mawsool report (reaching the Prophet) in al-Ibanah, from the hadeeth of Ibn ‘Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him), and it was narrated by al-Bayhaqi in al-I’tiqad from the hadeeth of ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him), but he said it is ghareeb (strange) with this isnaad, which was narrated only by Mufaddal. Ahmad and Ibn Hibban also narrated from the hadeeth of ‘Abd-Allah ibn ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) that ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: “Will our awareness be restored to us?” He said: “Yes, just as you are today.” ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: “Then I will throw a stone in his mouth.” end quote.
Professor Fareej ibn Salih al-Bahlal said in his commentary on al-I’tiqad by al-Bayhaqi, after referring to the da’eef isnad (weak chain of narration): Perhaps by virtue of these isnads and corroborating reports its isnad may be hasan. End quote.
Secondly:
The questions which the angels put to the deceased in his grave are: Who is your Lord? What is your religion? Who is this man who was sent among you?
And Allah knows best.

- PUBLISHERNajimudeeN M

Dought & clear, - Gender of Angels and Do They Die?.

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About the angels – will they die? Are there male and female angels? Can they reproduce?
Praise be to Allah.
What most people believe is that the angels will die and that the Angel of Death will die, but there is no clear text concerning this. Rather there are texts which may indicate this, and there is the well known hadeeth (narration) about the ”trumpet”, which is a munkar hadeeth (rejected report). See: Da’eef al-Targheeb wa’l-Tarheeb.
Among the texts that have been narrated concerning this is the verse in which Allah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“Everything will perish save His Face.” [28:88].
Ibn Kathir (may Allah have mercy on him) said: Allah tells us that all the inhabitants of the earth will depart and die, as will the inhabitants of the heavens, except those whom Allah wills, and nothing will be left but His noble Countenance, for the Lord, may He be exalted and sanctified, will not die, rather He is the Ever-Living Who will never die. Tafsir al-Quran il-‘Azeem.
And Allah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“And the trumpet will be blown, and all who are in the heavens and all who are on the earth will swoon away, except him whom Allah wills. Then it will be blown a second time, and behold they will be standing, looking on (waiting).” [39:68].
Al-Bukhari and Muslim narrated from Ibn ‘Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) used to say: “O Allah, I seek refuge in Your glory – there is no god but You – from Your sending me astray, for You are the Ever-Living Who does not die, but jinn and men die.”
Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may Allah have mercy on him) was asked: Will all of creation, even the angels, die?
He replied: What most of the people believe is that all of creation will die, even the angels, and even the Angel of Death. There is a hadeeth concerning that which is marfoo’ i.e., attributed to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him).
The Muslims, Jews and Christians all agree that this is possible and that Allah is able to cause it to happen. It is only some groups of philosophers, the followers of Aristotle and the like, who differed concerning this, and those so-called Muslims, Jews and Christians who joined them in this, such as the authors of the Ikhwan al-Suffa letters and their ilk who claimed that the angels are minds and souls and that they cannot die under any circumstances; rather, in their view they are gods and the lords of this world.
The Quran and all other scriptures state that the angels are slaves of Allah who are subject to His command as Allah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“The Messiah will never be proud to reject to be a slave of Allah, nor the angels who are near (to Allah). And whosoever rejects His worship and is proud, then He will gather them all together unto Himself.” [4:172]
“And they say: 'The Most Gracious (Allah) has begotten a son (or children)'. Glory to Him! They [whom they call children of Allah i.e. the angels, ‘Ia, son of Maryam, ‘Uzayr], are but honoured slaves.” [21:26]
“And there are many angels in the heavens, whose intercession will avail nothing except after Allah has given leave for whom He wills and is pleased with.” [53:26]
Allah is able to cause them to die then bring them back to life, just as He is able to cause mankind and the jinn to die then bring them back to life. Allah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“And He it is Who originates the creation, then He will repeat it (after it has been perished); and this is easier for Him.” [30:27].
It is proven in a saheeh hadeeth (authentic narration) from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), via more than one isnad (chain of narration) and via more than one of the sahabah (companions), that he said: “When Allah speaks the Revelation, the angels swoon”. According to another report, “When the angels hear His words, they swoon.” Another report states: “The angels hear something like a chain dragging on a rock and they swoon, then when the fear leaves their hearts, they say: ‘What did your Lord say?’ They say: ‘The truth.’ Then they call out: ‘The truth, the truth.’”
In these saheeh ahadeeth (authentic narrations) we are told that they can swoon, so if it is possible for them to swoon, it is possible for them to die.
As for the exception (in the verse “except him whom Allah wills”), this applies to those who have been admitted to Paradise of the hoor al-‘iyn (maidens of Paradise), for there is no death in Paradise; and it applies to others, but we cannot be certain about who is exempted. It is proven in al-Saheeh that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “The people will swoon on the Day of Resurrection and I will be the first one to wake up, and I will see Moosa holding onto the leg of the Throne and I will not know whether he awoke before me or whether he was one of those whom Allah exempted.” If the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) was not told of everyone who will be exempted by Allah, then we cannot be certain of that. This is like knowing when the (final) hour will begin or the names of all the prophets, and other things that we have not been told, and this knowledge cannot be attained except by being told. And Allah knows best. End quote from Majmoo’ al-Fataawa.
Al-Suyuti (may Allah have mercy on him) said: I was asked: Will the angels die when the trumpet is blown and will they come to life when the trumpet-blast for resurrection is sounded? The answer is: Yes. Allah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“And the trumpet will be blown, and all who are in the heavens and all who are on the earth will swoon away, except him whom Allah wills.” [39:68]
We have stated above at the beginning of this book that those who are exempted will be the bearers of the Throne, Jibril, Israfeel, Mikail and the Angel of Death, but they will die after that.
It was narrated from Wahb that these four angels were the first creatures to be created by Allah, and they will be the last of them to die, and the first to be brought back to life.
Then he supported his words with the texts that speak of the death of the people of heaven and the people of earth, even Jibril, Mikail, Israfeel and the bearers of the Throne, then the Angel of Death will be the last one to die.
See: al-Habaik fi Akhbar al-Malaik.
But the text referred to, which was quoted by al-Suyuti, is the same hadeeth of the Trumpet that we have already seen is classed as da’eef (weak) and munkar (odd).
The Standing Committee was asked: Please tell us about the two angels, Raqeeb and ‘Ateed who are appointed to record man’s deeds during his life. Do these two angels die, or where do they go after the man dies?
They replied: The affairs of the angels are unseen matters which cannot be known except through texts. There is no text which speaks of the death of those who record good and bad deeds when the person whose good and bad deeds they record dies. There is no text which says whether they remain alive, or what happens to them. This is known only to Allah, and what you have asked about is not something that we are required to believe and no deeds are connected to it. Asking about this comes under the heading of things that we should not be concerned with. Hence we advise the questioner not to bother with things that do not concern him, and to devote his efforts to asking about things that will benefit him and the Muslims in their religious and worldly affairs. End quote. Fataawa al-Lajnah al-Daa’imah.
Secondly:
The angels are not regarded as either male or female. As for being female, Allah has stated that they are not female, as He says (interpretation of the meaning):
“And they make the angels who themselves are slaves of the Most Gracious (Allah) females. Did they witness their creation? Their testimony will be recorded, and they will be questioned.”
[43:19]
“Or did We create the angels female while they were witnesses?” [37:150].
As for describing them as male, no such thing has been narrated.
Al-Haleemi said in al-Minhaj, then al-Qawnawi said in the abridged version thereof: It was said that the people of al-A’araf are angels who love the people of Paradise and reproach the people of Hell. But this is farfetched for two reasons: the first is the verse in which Allah says (interpretation of the meaning): “and on Al‑A‘araf (a wall with elevated places) will be men.” [7:46]. Men are males of sound mind, but the angels are not divided into male and female. The second is the fact that Allah tells us that they will want to enter Paradise, but the angels are not prevented from entering it, because preventing one who longs for something from attaining his desire is a punishment for him, but on that Day no angel will be punished. End quote. Narrated by al-Suyuti in al-Habaik.
Dr Muhammad ibn ‘Abd al-Rahman al-Khamees said: We say that the one who says that they are female is committing an act of kufr (disbelief) because he has gone against the Book of Allah. And it cannot be said that they are male, because there is no saheeh text to that effect. End quote from I’tiqad Ahl al-Sunnah.
Thirdly:
The angels do not get married or reproduce, and it is narrated that there is consensus on this point.
Al-Razi (may Allah have mercy on him) said in his Tafsir: They are unanimously agreed that the angels do not eat, drink or get married. They glorify Allah night and day without ceasing.
And Allah knows best.

- PUBLISHERNajimudeeN M

Dought & clear, - Who Can See Angels in Their True Form?.

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Is it true that children can see the angels?
Praise be to Allah.
Allah created man from dust, He created the jinn from fire and He created the angels from light. It is proven by the definitive texts that it is not possible for humans to see the jinn unless they appear in a different form, such as in the form of humans and animals. The angels cannot be seen in their original form by most people unless they appear in human form.
In the answer to question no. 70364we have explained in detail that it is impossible for most people to see the angels in their original form, and that this was not granted to anyone of this ummah (Muslim nation) except the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him).
As for the angels appearing in human form, this is proven in the Quran and saheeh sunnah (authentic prophetic teachings). If an angel appears in human form, it is possible for everyone to see him and there is no difference between males and females, or old and young. But no one can be certain that a person he is seeing is an angel, because proof that they are angels is dependent on wahy (revelation) from Allah, and how can that happen after the death of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him)?
The angels appeared in human form and came to Ibrahim and Loot (peace be upon them), but they did not know who they really were until the angels told them, so it is more likely that other people cannot have any knowledge of that.
Among the evidence that the angels can appear in human form and that they can be seen in this form is the following:
1-
Allah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“And mention in the Book, the Quran, O Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) Maryam, when she withdrew in seclusion from her family to a place facing east.
She placed a screen (to screen herself) from them; then We sent to her Our Ruh [angel Jibreel], and he appeared before her in the form of a man in all respects.
She said: ‘Verily, I seek refuge with the Most Gracious (Allah) from you, if you do fear Allah.’
(The angel) said: ‘I am only a messenger from your Lord, (to announce) to you the gift of a righteous son.’” [19:16-19]
2-
Allah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“Has the story reached you, of the honoured guests [three angels; Jibreel along with another two] of Ibrahim?
When they came in to him and said: ‘Salam, (peace be upon you)!’ He answered: ‘Salam, (peace be upon you ),’ and said: ‘You are a people unknown to me.’
Then he turned to his household, and brought out a roasted calf [as the property of Ibrahim (Abraham) was mainly cows].
And placed it before them (saying): ‘Will you not eat?’
Then he conceived fear of them (when they ate not). They said: ‘Fear not.’ And they gave him glad tidings of a son having knowledge (about Allah and His religion of true Monotheism).” [51:24-28]
3-
Allah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“And when Our messengers came to Loot, he was grieved on account of them and felt himself straitened for them (lest the town people should approach them to commit sodomy with them). He said: ‘This is a distressful day.’” [11:77]
4-
It was narrated that ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) said: Whilst we were with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) one day, a man came to us whose garment was exceedingly white and whose hair was exceedingly black, and there were no signs of travel on him, and none of us knew who he was. He came and sat before the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), resting his knees against his and placing his hands on his thighs. He said: O Muhammad, tell me about Islam. … He [‘Umar] said: Then he went away. I stayed there for a while, then he (the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him)) said to me: “O ‘Umar, do you know who that questioner was?” I said: Allah and His Messenger know best. He said: “That was Jibreel, who came to you to teach you your religion.” [al-Bukhaari].
5-
The story of the trial of the leper, bald man and blind man among the Children of Israel, in which it says that Allah sent an angel in human form to test them. [al-Bukhaari and Muslim].
6.
It was narrated from Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) that “A man visited a brother of his in another town, and Allah sent an angel to wait for him on the road. When he came to him, he said: Where are you headed? He said: I am headed to a brother of mine in this town. He said: Have you done him any favour for which you hope to be recompensed? He said: No, but I love him for the sake of Allah. He said: I am a messenger from Allah to you, to tell you that Allah loves you as you love him for His sake.” [Muslim]
And there is other saheeh (authentic) evidence from which it is clear that the angels can be seen, but only in the form in which Allah commands them to appear; and then everyone that Allah decrees should see them will see them.
The one who claims that he sees the angels in their original form is a liar or is delusional. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) saw Jibreel in his true form, filling the horizon with six hundred wings. Who can claim that he saw him at that time? Thus it is clear that there is no one among this ummah who can see the angels in their true form except the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). As for children, they are like other people – they cannot see them unless they appear in human form.
Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
Hence humans are unable to see an angel in his true form unless Allah helps them, as He helped our Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). Allah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“And they say: ‘Why has not an angel been sent down to him?’ Had We sent down an angel, the matter would have been judged at once, and no respite would be granted to them.
And had We appointed him an angel, We indeed would have made him a man, and We would have certainly confused them in which they are already confused (i.e. the Message of Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him)).” [6:8-9]
More than one of the salaf (pious predecessors) said: They are not able to see an angel in his true form. If We sent an angel down to them, We would make him appear in human form, and in that case they would be confused as to whether he was an angel or a man. So what benefit would it be if We sent an angel to them? So We sent to them a man of their own kind, whom they could see and learn from, and this was perfect kindness and mercy to mankind. [Minhaaj al-Sunnah al-Nabawiyyah]
And Allah knows best.

- PUBLISHERNajimudeeN M