Punishment of the Grave II (Ahadith 1153 – 1161)

Bismillah.

Volume 2, Book 23, Number 454:

Narrated Masruq:

‘Aisha said that a Jewess came to her and mentioned the punishment in the grave, saying to her, “May Allah protect you from the punishment of the grave.” ‘Aisha then asked Allah’s Apostle about the punishment of the grave. He said, “Yes, (there is) punishment in the grave.” ‘Aisha added, “After that I never saw Allah’s Apostle but seeking refuge with Allah from the punishment in the grave in every prayer he prayed.”

Already covered here.

Volume 2, Book 23, Number 455:

Narrated Asma’ bint Abi Bakr :

Allah’s Apostle once stood up delivering a sermon and mentioned the trial which people will face in the grave. When he mentioned that, the Muslims started shouting [crying] loudly.

Must have been some sermon!

Volume 2, Book 23, Number 456:

Narrated Anas bin Malik:

Allah’s Apostle said, “When (Allah’s) slave is put in his grave and his companions return and he even hears their footsteps, two angels come to him and make him sit and ask, ‘What did you use to say about this man (i.e. Muhammad)?’ The faithful Believer will say, ‘I testify that he is Allah’s slave and His Apostle.’ Then they will say to him, ‘Look at your place in the Hell Fire; Allah has given you a place in Paradise instead of it.’ So he will see both his places.” (Qatada said, “We were informed that his grave would be made spacious.” Then Qatada went back to the narration of Anas who said;) Whereas a hypocrite or a non-believer will be asked, “What did you use to say about this man.” He will reply, “I do not know; but I used to say what the people used to say.” So they will say to him, “Neither did you know nor did you take the guidance (by reciting the Quran).” Then he will be hit with iron hammers once, that he will send such a cry as everything near to him will hear, except Jinns and human beings.

Already covered here.

Volume 2, Book 23, Number 457:

Narrated Abi Aiyub:

Once the Prophet went out after sunset and heard a dreadful voice, and said, “The Jews are being punished in their graves.”

Prophet (SAW) was made to hear that voice. Generally humans are incapable of hearing the dead [while they cry out in pain due to punishment]. Refer to the last Hadith on this post.

Volume 2, Book 23, Number 458:

Narrated Musa bin ‘Uqba:

(From the daughter of Khalid bin Sa id bin Al-‘Asi) who said that she had heard the Prophet seeking refuge with Allah from the punishment in the grave.

Volume 2, Book 23, Number 459:

Narrated Abu Huraira :

Allah’s Apostle used to invoke (Allah): “Allahumma ini a’udhu bika min ‘adhabi-l-Qabr, wa min ‘adhabi-nnar, wa min fitnati-l-mahya wa-lmamat, wa min fitnati-l-masih ad-dajjal. (O Allah! I seek refuge with you from the punishment in the grave and from the punishment in the Hell fire and from the afflictions of life and death, and the afflictions of Al-Masih Ad-Dajjal.”

Volume 2, Book 23, Number 460:

Narrated Ibn Abbas:

The Prophet once passed by two graves and said, “They (the deceased persons in those graves) are being tortured not for a great thing to avoid.” And then added, “Yes, (they are being punished for a big sin), for one of them used to go about with calumnies while the other never saved himself from being soiled with his urine.” (Ibn Abbas added): Then he took a green leaf of a date-palm) and split it into two pieces and fixed one piece on each grave and said, “May their punishment be abated till these (two pieces) get dry.”

Already covered here.

Volume 2, Book 23, Number 461:

Narrated ‘Abdullah bin ‘Umar :

Allah’s Apostle said, “When anyone of you dies, he is shown his place both in the morning and in the evening. If he is one of the people of Paradise; he is shown his place in it, and if he is from the people of the Hell-Fire; he is shown his place there-in. Then it is said to him, ‘This is your place till Allah resurrect you on the Day of Resurrection.”

Volume 2, Book 23, Number 462:

Narrated Abu Sa’id Al-Khudri :

Allah’s Apostle said, “When the funeral is ready (for its burial) and the people lift it on their shoulders, then if the deceased is a righteous person he says, ‘Take me ahead,’ and if he is not a righteous one then he says, ‘Woe to it (me)! Where are you taking it (me)?’ And his voice is audible to everything except human beings; and if they heard it they would fall down unconscious . “

May Allah make us from the people of Paradise. May we get to see our grand palaces in Jannah morning and evening in our grave. May we be the ones asking people to hurry up while burying us, so we can meet our Lord as soon as possible. May we be among the fortunate ones.

So if the dead get punished in their graves for the sins they committed, and they actually cry out in pain although human beings can’t hear them, is it the soul that’s being punished, or is the torture inflicted upon the body as well?

According to the most correct scholarly view, the torment of the grave befalls both the soul and the body.

Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may Allaah have mercy on him) said:

“The view of the salaf (earliest generations) of this ummah and its imams is that the torment or blessing (of the grave) happens to the soul of the deceased and his body. After it departs from the body, the soul continues to be blessed or punished, and it is also connected to the body from time to time, so that the blessing or torment befalls the body as well as the soul.”

So we must believe in that which Allaah has told us.

(al-Ikhtiyaaraat al-Fiqhiyyah, p. 94)

Ibn al-Qayyim said:

Shaykh al-Islam (Ibn Taymiyah) was asked about this matter, and we will quote his reply in full:

“Indeed, the torment and blessing happen to both the soul and the body, according to the consensus of the Ahl al-Sunnah wa’l-Jamaa’ah. The soul is blessed or tormented separately from the body, and it is blessed or tormented in connection with the body. The body is connected to it, so in this case the blessing or torment happens to them both, and it may happen to the soul separately from the body.

The view of the salaf and imams of this ummah is that when a person dies, he will be in a state of blessing or torment, and that happens to his soul and his body. After the soul has departed from the body, it remains in a state of blessing or torment, and that is sometimes connected to the body and the blessing or torment happens to them both. Then when the Day of Resurrection comes, the souls will be returned to their bodies and they will rise from their graves to meet the Lord of the Worlds. The physical resurrection is a matter upon which the Muslims, Jews and Christians are agreed.”

(al-Rooh, p. 51, 52)

The scholars likened that to dreams when one is asleep, for a person may dream that he is going and traveling, and he may feel happiness or grief and sorrow while he is sleeping, and that is when he is in his place and in this world. So it is more apt that things should be different in the life of al-barzakh which is completely different from the life of this world and the life of the Hereafter.

Al-Nawawi said:

“If it is said, we see the deceased and how he is in his grave, so how can he be questioned, made to sit up and beaten with iron rods, when no mark is left on him? The answer is that this is not impossible, and indeed there is a similar case in our regular lives, that of the sleeper who feels joy or pain of which we feel nothing.  A person who is awake may also feel joy or pain because of something he hears or thinks about, and those who are sitting with him feel nothing of that. Similarly, Jibreel used to come to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and tell him of the Wahy (Revelation), and the people present were unaware of it. All of that is clear and evident.”

(Sharh Muslim, 17/201)

Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah said:

“When a person sleeps, he may feel joy or pain, and that happens to his soul and his body. He may dream that someone is beating him and wake up with pain in his body, or he may dream that he is being fed some good food, then wake up with the food in his mouth. This is something that really happens. If the body and soul of a sleeping person can experience joy and pain that are not felt by the person next to him, and a sleeper may even cry out because of the intensity of pain or fear of what is happening to him, and those who are awake can hear him, and he may speak, reciting Qur’aan or dhikr, or talking to someone, and those who are awake can hear that, even though he is asleep with his eyes closed, and he does not hear them if they speak to him – then how can we deny that the one who is buried in his grave also feels things, when the Messenger (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) has told us that he “hears the sound of their footsteps” and “You do not hear what I say any better than they do”?

The heart is akin to the grave, hence the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said, when he missed ‘Asr on the day of al-Khandaq: “May Allaah fill their hearts and graves with fire.” And Allaah differentiated between them (graves and hearts) in the aayah (interpretation of the meaning):

“Knows he not that when the contents of the graves are poured forth (all mankind is resurrected)?

And that which is in the hearts (of men) shall be made known?”

[al-‘Aadiyaat 100:9-10]

This is just to explain that this could happen.
We cannot say that the blessing or torment that the dead experience is like that which a sleeper experiences when he dreams, rather that blessing or torment is more complete and more far-reaching; it is a real blessing and a real torment. But this example is given to show that this is possible. If someone were to say that the dead person does not move in his grave, and the soil does not change, and so on, this matter may be explained in more detail, but that would take too long to explain here. And Allaah knows best. May Allaah bless our Prophet Muhammad and his family and companions.

(Majmoo’ al-Fataawa, 4/275, 276)

And Allaah knows best.

[IslamQA]

Wassalam.