Belief in
the Life Hereafter
The core of this Islamic belief lies in the assertion that the present terrestrial existence of man does not constitute his total life; rather, it is a short preamble of the everlasting life in the Hereafter, a very brief preface of the long life-book. Life in this world is merely a trial or examination period, the rewards or punishments of which will be enjoyed or suffered in the Hereafter (Al-Aakhira).
Physical death experienced by man in this world does not represent the annihilation of the individual person; rather it is only his transportation from this world to the eternal life in the next world. Immediately after death is the Barzakh, a brief halting station on the way to the Hereafter, and the ever-lasting life will begin after the Day of Judgement (the final accounting of deeds).
Resurrection of the dead, final reckoning, weighing of deed-records, torments of the hell-fire and joys of the Paradise — all are essential parts of the Qur’anic eschatology which fully elaborate the Islamic belief in the Hereafter. Al-Aakhira or the ‘end’ is the moment of truth. Thus “that day man will recall what he had been striving for” (Al-Naaziat 79:35) is a typical statement of this phenomenon. It is an Hour when all veils between the subjective perceptions of man and the objective moral reality will be rent:
You were
in deep heedlessness about this (Hour of self-awareness), but now We have rent
your veil, so your sight today is keen.
(Qaaf
50:22)
Indeed,
the essence of the Hereafter (Al-Aakhira) consists in the long-range results or
consequences of man’s endeavours during his earthly life. Ad-Dunya, or the
immediate objectives and the here-and-now of life, on the contrary, represents
the lower values, the baser pursuits which appear so tempting that most men run
after them most of the time, at the expense of the higher and long-range ends.
The Holy Prophet (SAW) has elaborated this in one of his moving sermons thus:
I swear by Allah that all of you will certainly die, just as you go to sleep at night. Then surely you will all be raised again as you wake up in the morning. Then you will definitely be judged for the deeds you had been doing. You will get rewards for good deeds and punishment for the evil ones; it will either be the everlasting life of Paradise or the endless torment of Hell-fire.
(Cf. Sermons
of the Holy Prophet, reproduced in Nahjul Balagha)
To Be Continued ....
No comments:
Post a Comment