Eschatology

[أحمد الشامي]

The Qur’an discussed the issue of eschatology in many of its verses. Eschatology was described in a way that keeps each individual alert for his deeds. Apocalypse will occur and erase all creations from the face of earth. Everything will vanish except for God himself. It is the final day of humanity, where there is no recovery after that day. It is followed by the Day of Judgment, where each individual is going to get a return for his work in Donya. There will be a reward for those who obeyed God and followed his doctrine and a punishment for those who disobeyed God and denied him. The reward is going to be the pleasure of paradise and its facilities. And the punishment is going to be hell fire and all its grosses. The final decision will be determined by God, and it is going to be fair for everyone.

There is no certain day for the apocalypse. It is going to happen suddenly in an unexpected time. It was named with several names in the Qur’an, like Alsa’a, AlQare’ah, Alqyamah, Altamah…etc. Everything will be destroyed on earth and off earth. The mountains will melt, the start will fall, and human bodies are going to be like small pieces of cotton. Surat Al-Takwir mentioned what is going to happen after blowing the horn by the angel. God said: “When the sun shall be darkened and the stars fall; and when mountains move, and when she-camels with mature fetuses are abandoned… and when the seas boil… etc.” (81:1-14) This moment is a very scary moment, especially when everybody is brought back alive lonely and naked. Everybody will forget about others and care about himself. Parents will leave their children and close friends won’t know each other. They will all be waiting for the final judgment.

On the Day of Judgment, each individual will represent himself. Nothing can help him except his good deeds and God’s mercy. On the time of judgment, our hands and feet will talk on their behalf. They will be witnesses of our sins. The moment of judgment will determine whether a person is going to heaven or hell. The Qur’an described the situation of getting the good news or bad news by getting the books of our deeds. It mentions that whoever gets the book on his right hand is a winner and will go to heaven, and whoever gets the book on his left hand is a loser and will go to hell. The meanings of the books should not be literarily taken, although they might be literal too. The main goal behind this description, whether it is literarily or not, is that the final judgment will be taken and everybody is going to get what he/she deserves.

Heaven (The Garden) is the reward for those who worshiped God and believed that he is the only God. It is a reward for those who did good deeds in donya and didn’t commit bad sins. The Qur’an said that it would give the rewarded people all what they ask for. God said: “… they will be in Jannat and in happiness, rejoicing in the bliss which their Lord has bestowed on them… eat and drink… seated upon couches...” (52:17-28) They will receive what God promised them in the Qur’an and through his messengers. God said: “…receive the glad tidings of aljanna which you were promised.” (41:30) They were gifted this because of their sacrifice and patience. They would have the best dishes of food, the best gardens, best houses… etc, all what they dreamed about will be given to them. They will have Hur (very beautiful woman in paradise) as their mates. Each individual is going to be on his best picture and youth age.

On the other hand, there is a punishment for those who disobeyed God and didn’t follow the right tactics. They will go to hell, because of the harm the brought to humanity back in the Donya. They disbelieved in God, and did not thank him for his gifts and creation. People who go to hell will be starved to death, and will be treated very bad. They will only eat spines and thorns, and they will drink boiling water that will melt their stomachs. Their skin is going to be grilled on fire until it is gone, and then they will be replaced with new skin, so that they taste pain and torment. God will never talk to them and he will forget them just like they forgot him.

The meanings of the verses that described heaven and hell can be understood symbolically. Notice that most of the description about hell and heaven were described similarly to the life style of people in that era. People at that time used to dream of gardens and fruits, because they use to live in a desert. There were some beautiful gardens in Europe, and their kings used to enjoy their time in beautiful places similar to the description of the Qur’an. Even the way they used to torment prisoners was also similar, even though the description on the Qur’an was harsher and more violent. Nowadays, the fantasies of people changed, and there are different imaginations on viewing the world. Some people may find gardens boring, and they want to live in a world like “Star Wars” or something like that. Maybe the Qur’an would describe heaven for this generation as beautiful cars and planes and the food would be pizzas and burgers, because that is what they like nowadays. And the same thing with hell, it would be described as electric shocks and bombs! I am not trying to deny the fact of the literarily description, because it will defiantly be there, but there a lot of additional descriptions in heaven and hell that we still do not know, and we might not know them, until we face them.

The Qur’an warned humanity about the Alsa’a and it already asked people to be prepared. The Day of Judgment will determine who is the righteous and who is immoral and wicked. It will be fair for every human being. Whoever believed in God and made good deeds in his life, will be rewarded heaven, and whoever did the opposite will be punished in hell. The Qur’an already warned us, and God gave us free-will, so we should use it the right way.

[Talib Ali]

salaamz Br. Ahmed! Please allow me to comment on your essay.

Masha-Allah, it was a good essay and there are times where I wondered about the afterlife and if the descriptions were metaphorical (majaz).

Point#1- One thing I would say is that when it comes to metaphor in the Qur'an, one has to be careful in regards to what is metaphor and what is not. From what i know, it is proper to interpret something literally unless one has strong reason and proof to interpret it metaphorically. For example, if we encounter a verse that mentions Allah's wajh, yad, etc. we do not interpret such phrases literally (unlike our buddies in Saudi Arabia) because of the other verse "Laysa kamithlihi shay'un" --"There's no likeness to Him" However, if we read "...wash your faces and hands to the elbows..." we have no reason to interpret it metaphorically, so it is literal.

Point#2- Also, if we interpret something metaphorically we are forced to then say what it is a metaphor of. The whole reality of metaphor is: what is said and what it represents. One cannot say that something is metaphor without saying or knowing what it represents. It wouldn't be metaphor at that point. It would be difficult to say what the different desires of paradise represent just as it would be difficult to say what the different horrors of hell represents without explicit statements by someone with wahi.

Otherwise it would be conjecture. And if it is conjecture, we are dealing with an unknown and we thus, are back to what I stated above in Point #2. For example, if I said that the word "arm" is a metaphor in a line of poetry, and I don't know or say what it is a metaphor of, that would contradict the idea of it being metaphor.

Point #3- There are things in the Qur'an and ahadith that seem to outwardly appeal to a person in a desert setting; for example, visions of lush plants, waterfalls, etc. However, there are other descriptions that seem to carry a more universal appeal too. For example, the Qur'an also mentions perpetual, pure virgins (Hurr) as the brother pointed out. I think that idea of perpetual virgins could appeal to a man in the desert just as it could appeal to a man in the arctic!

Also, keep in mind that the lives that we live could close our eyes to the simple things of beauty around us. For example, I may come from a tropical climate, grow up on a beautiful beach, but still be amazed at a description of a tropical paradise with rivers flowing! It doesn't lose its appeal through the ages. Especially in a modern setting where we have come to disregard nature altogether! That's the beauty of the Qur'an, it appeals to people of all times and places!

Also remember, the Qur'an also says that "eyes have not seen,..." all of the literal, physical desires that await the one in paradise! May Allah make us amongst them! So the descriptions in the Qur'an are just a taste!

Anyways, just my opinion.

T

[أحمد الشامي]

Thanks brother Talib for your reply.

First, the Quran never said ... "EYES DIDN"T SEE and ears didn't hear...etc" and this Hadith has doubts with some scholars.

From what I understood is that you are agreeing with me in most of the points.

anyways, Thank you very much.

and if you have more comments, please list them... I will be more than happy to read them.

thanks again

Ahmed Alshami