Wednesday, 27 November 2013

Islam And Paradise | How Would It Be?

Islam And Paradise | How Would It Be?

Bismillah Hir Rehman Ir Raheem
Start In the Name Of Allah The Most Beneficent The Most Merciful

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"Now no person knows what delights of the eye are kept hidden (in reserve) for them - as a reward for their (good) deeds." [Quran 32:17]
The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said, “In paradise there are things that no ear has heard, no eye has seen and no one could contemplate.” [Muslim 2825]

The dwellers of Paradise
"Whoever does good whether male or female and he is a believer, We will most certainly make him live a happy life, and We will most certainly give them their reward for the best of what they did." [Quran 16:97]

People of Paradise will get whatever they desire
"They will have whatever they desire with their Lord. That is the reward of the doers of good" [Quran 39:34]
""We have been your friends in the life of this world and are (so) in the Hereafter. Therein you shall have (all) that your inner-selves desire, and therein you shall have (all) for which you ask for." [43:31]

Shall have partners
"And give good tidings to those who believe and do righteous deeds that they will have gardens [in Paradise] beneath which rivers flow. Whenever they are provided with a provision of fruit therefrom, they will say, "This is what we were provided with before." And it is given to them in likeness. And they will have therein purified spouses, and they will abide therein eternally." [2:25]

"Say: Shall I inform you of something better than that? For those who keep from evil, with their Lord, are Gardens underneath which rivers flow wherein they will abide, and pure companions, and contentment from Allah. Allah is Seer of His bondmen" [3:15]

The Qur'an, while referring to the rewards of the pious in the Hereafter, has categorically stated that:
  1. All persons - men as well as women - shall be fully rewarded for their deeds and shall not be wronged in the least [3:195,  4:124, 16:97, 40: 40]
  2. They shall get all that they may desire and all that they can ask for, as a first gift from God. His blessings would follow subsequently [41: 31];
  3. They - men as well as women - shall have perfected counterparts/spouses as a reward of their deeds [2:25, 3:15, 4: 57]
As should be obvious from the above points, there is absolutely no difference in the reward of men and women, as it is mentioned in the Qur'an. An interesting point to note here is that some people have criticized the Qur'an for appealing to the very basic needs and desires of man, which include his desire for taste in edibles and beauty and chastity in his partner. I really do not understand how can a person with even a cursory knowledge and exposure of human nature criticize this aspect of reward, mentioned in the Qur'an. The Qur'an has simply stated that in the life hereafter, man shall be granted all these things that he very strongly desires to possess in the life of this world and due to which, many a times, he is driven away from the path of his Lord's liking. According to some traditions, the women of this world in Paradise will be far more beautiful than the Hoor because they worshipped Allaah The Almighty.

The Messenger of Allah said
Narrated by Abu Huraira Allah's Messenger (saws) said, "Allah, The High and Exalted He is, said, 'I have prepared for My pious slaves (men and women) things which have never been seen by an eye, or heard by an ear, or imagined by a human being.' [Sahih Al-Bukhari Hadith 4.467]

Abu Hurayra narrated that the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) once said, "Whoever enters Heaven [whether male or female] shall find comfort and no distress; his garments shall not grow threadbare, neither shall his youth ever come to an end. In Heaven there shall be that which no eyes has seen, no ear has heard and which has never occured to mortal mind."
(Ibn Al-Mubarak, 512; Al-Bayhaqi, Ba'th from Remembrance of Death translation by Abdul Hakim Murad p.241)

'O people! We have created you from a man and a woman and made you into peoples and tribes so that you may know each other, verily the most honorable among you in the sight of Allah are the most pious.' [Noble Quran 49:13]

Reward of Pious woman
Narrated 'Ayshah: I did not feel jealous of any of the wives of the Prophet as much as I did of Khadijah (although) she died before he married me, for I often heard him mentioning her, and Allah had told him to give her the good tidings that she would have a palace of Qasab (i.e. pipes of precious stones and pearls in Paradise), and whenever he slaughtered a sheep, he would send her women-friends a good share of it. [Sahih al-Bukhari]

Some FAQ about Paradise
Misconception about 72 or 70 virgins
The idea of 72 virgins in Islam refers to an aspect of paradise. In a collection by Abu `Isa Muhammad ibn `Isa at-Tirmidhi in his Jami` at-Tirmidhi and also quoted by Ibn Kathir in his Tafsir ibn Kathir of sura 55 it is stated:
It was mentioned by Daraj Ibn Abi Hatim, that Abu al-Haytham 'Adullah Ibn Wahb narrated from Abu Sa'id al-Khudhri, who heard Muhammad saying, 'The smallest reward for the people of Heaven is an abode where there are eighty thousand servants and seventy-two houri, over which stands a dome decorated with pearls, aquamarine and ruby, as wide as the distance from al-Jabiyyah to San'a.

However, regarding the above statement Hafiz Salahuddin Yusuf has said:
"The narration, which claims that everyone would have seventy-two wives has a weak chain of narrators."[Salahuddin Yusuf, Riyadhus Salihin, commentary on Nawawi, Chapter 372, Dar-us-Salam Publications] There is also a theory that the promise of 72 virgins is a mistranslation from "72 angels" [Warraq, Ibn]
Further, if the Hadith was meant for man then men would have been specifically refer but the Hadith uses "People of Heaven" which also includes Jinns and females

Why Quran and Sunnah stresses for spouse for man?
Bassam Zawadi writes

First of all it is untrue that Muslim men are the only ones that get companions in heaven. The main reason why the Quran and hadith are stressing the fact that men will get virgin girls is because it more appealing to men than promising virgin men to women. Men are more sexually active and therefore are facing a lot of difficulty (especially in the teenage years) to remain chaste. There are a lot of temptations in this world. That is why that Allah keeps promising these virgin girls who are more superior to the women of this world to those that remain patient and steadfast. That way, this motivates the unmarried men to remain chaste and be patient because they know  they have something better waiting for them in the next life. Because if they do not get it legally in the next life then they would get it illegally in this life. 
Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is only ones. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.

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