Hereafter

The afterlife (also referred to as life after death) is the belief that the essential part of an individual's identity or the stream of consciousness continues after the death of the physical body. According to various ideas about the afterlife, the essential aspect of the individual that lives on after death may be some partial element, or the entire soul or spirit, of an individual, which carries with it and may confer personal identity or, on the contrary nirvana. Belief in an afterlife is in contrast to the belief in oblivion after death.

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Hereafter . Forgiveness . Sin . Conversion to Islam

What advice would you give to recent reverts to Islam who feel the weight of their numerous major sins and are really pessimistic about their fate in the hereafter despite saying “I’m sorry my lord” and then moving on?

Sayyed Mohammad Al-Musawi, Sayyed Mohammad al-Musawi is originally from Iraq and heads up the World Ahlul Bayt Islamic League in London. Other than being involved in various humanitarian projects, he frequently responds to... Answered 4 months ago

The best answer is from Allah in Quran : Say O My servants who have transgressed against themselves ( by committing evil deeds and sins) Despair not of the Mercy of Allah. Verily Allah forgives all sins. Truly He is The Oft-forgiving , The Most Merciful) Sura 39, Verse 53.

The Mercy of Allah (SWT) is much greater than our imagination. It includes every thing (My Mercy embraces everything) Sura 7, Verse 156. Special mercy is for sincere servants servants of Allah who left wrong deeds and repented and sincerely decided not to do it again. Allah Love those who repent and purify themselves. Sura 2, Verse 222.

We need to trust The Mercy of Allah and hope to receive His Oft-Forgiveness. He Has Promised every one who repents and sincerely seeks forgiveness to Grant him His Forgiveness.

'It is good to repeat (YA ARHAM ARRAHIMEEN) also to repeat (YA GHAFOUR YA RAHEEM).

Wassalam.

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Hereafter . Paradise . Hell . Qur'an . Surat al-A'araf

The Heights, Al A'araf, is mentioned in Qur'an and Hadith. Will it serve as a permanent abode in the hereafter for those who deserved neither paradise nor hell?

Amina Inloes, Amina Inloes is originally from the US and has a PhD in Islamic Studies from the University of Exeter on Shi'a hadith. She is the program leader for the MA Islamic Studies program at the... Answer updated 7 months ago

The Qur'an mentions "the heights" (a'raf) in the world of the hereafter:

"And between the two there shall be a veil, and on the heights there shall be men who know all by their marks, and they shall call out to the dwellers of the garden: Peace be on you; they shall not have yet entered it, though they hope. [...] And the dwellers of the heights shall call out to men whom they will recognize by their marks, saying: Of no avail were to you your amassing and your behaving haughtily: Are these they about whom you swore that Allah will not bestow mercy on them? Enter the garden; you shall have no fear, nor shall you grieve." (7:46, 48-49)

However, the Qur'an does not specify what "the heights" are or which men are on it. Therefore, scholars and commentators have advanced a number of viewpoints. Narrations also vary somewhat.

In the Twelver Shi'i tradition, one of the most common views is that the men on the heights are the Prophet (S) and the Imams (A). Those who are in harmony with them many enter Paradise, but no one can enter Paradise if they are hostile to or rejected by them.

Some commentators (Sunni and Shi'i) have also put forward the view that it is a holding place for people who deserve neither paradise nor hell (for instance, they have equal good and bad deeds; they did not have religious responsibility due to dying young, mental illness, or never hearing the call to God), and whose judgment is delayed, so they await their final judgment there. This also appears in narrations. Some have also suggested they await the intercession of the Prophet and Imams there.

Other views have also been advanced.

That said, the word a'raf carries the connotation of "knowing" (such as in the word 'arif used for a mystic), and it does lend the sense that the people on the a'raf might also be imbued with special knowledge and insight. The ayat also suggest they have a special form of knowledge, since they recognize people by their marks, even though many things will be made clear to all people in the hereafter. This supports the idea that the men on their heights are the Prophet and Imams; or, at least, people with a sharp spiritual knowledge.

Perhaps several of these views are correct. God knows best.

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Animals . Hereafter . Dog . Pet . Death

What happens to animals such as dogs and cats after they die? Is there a hereafter for them or are they completely gone?

Animals will be resurrected on the Day of Judgement and many animals will be Paradise like the Boraaq of the Prophet Mohammad (SAWA), the Camel-she of prophet Saleh (AS), the dog of the people of the Cave etc.

Wassalam.

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Hereafter . Soul . Suicide

What can we recite to ease the journey in the hereafter for the departed soul of a person who committed suicide?

Sura Al-Fatiha, Sura Yaseen, Sura Al-Mulk, Sura Arrahman and any Quranic Sura beside Sadaqa and Du'a for forgiveness.

Wassalam.

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Fate . Hereafter . Sunni . Muslims . Death

What is the fate in the hereafter of those who die as Sunni Muslims?

Allah (SWT) knows the fate of everyone after death. We are responsible to seek true knowledge about the message of Islam and follow it. Everyone will be asked in the Day of Judgement about his faith and practice. Muslims will be questioned whether they obeyed the Prophetic orders or not. Prophet Muhammad (SAWA) ordered all Muslims to keep following Quran and Ahlul Bayt (AS). This is in the authentic known as Hadeeth al-Thaqalain which is narrated in main Sunni and Shia books of Hadeeth e.g. (Saheeh Muslim, Hadeeth number 4425, Tirmithi; 3718, Musnad Ahmad ibn Hanbal ; 10681, Al-Mustadrak by Al-Nisabouri; 4576, Al-Sunan al-Khubra by Al-Nasaa'ee; 6921 and many other Sunni books.

Those who did not care to search for the truth will be questioned and those who knew but did not follow will face the result of their ignoring the orders of the Prophet (SAWA).

We believe that all Muslims who sincerely believe in Allah and the Messenger will ultimately go to Paradise even after they had to face results of their mistakes.This applies on followers of all Muslim sects except the enemies of Ahlul Bayt (AS).

Wassalam.

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Life . Children . Hereafter . Procreation

In the next life, can a believing male and female procreate and have children in the same way they did in this world?

Edit: There is a narration that says, "When a believer [in heaven] wants a child, Allah will created him or her without pregnancy or birth in whatever form [his parent] wishes, just as He created Adam." (al-Ihtijaj, 2/130, ascribed to a letter from Imam al-Mahdi (A))

I am not sure what else is mentioned on this subject in our sources (perhaps someone can add something.).

However, possibly they will not want to have children there because often our desire to have children in this world is affected by hormones or society, or the desire to procreate is put into our hearts through divine mechanisms to carry out the plan of God for humanity.

God knows best!

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Hereafter . Polytheism

Will a person who used to worship other gods but did not know the religion of Islam be punished in the hereafter?

Allah is The Absolute Just, Merciful and All Knowing. He never punishes those who do not know the religion of Islam. He said in Quran : We never punish any one till We send a messenger وما كنا معذبين حتى نبعث رسولا (Sura 17, verse 15).

Those who did not know the message if Islam and died on that ignorance will be given a full chance in the Day of Judgement to know then will be given full option to think and decide then respond.
The Justice and Mercy of Allah will never allow punishing any one before providing him full chance of knowing and deciding with his free will.

'Wassalam.

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Marriage . Hereafter . God (Allah)

After being forced into a marriage, can I ask God to pair me in the hereafter with the one I had loved and wanted to marry?

Rebecca Masterton, Dr Rebecca Masterton graduated with a BA in Japanese Language and Literature; an MA in Comparative East Asian and African Literature and a PhD in Islamic literature of West Africa. She has been... Answered 2 years ago

Islamically, a marriage is not valid if you have not voluntarily given your consent. The legitimacy of forced marriage is not recognised in Islam; rather you have undergone an injustice for which you are entitled to hold accountable those that forced you into the marriage. If you are not in a position to hold them accountable in this life, you will be able to do that in the next life, at the time of the settling of accounts. The Holy Prophet (s) said that in the next world 'you will be with those that you love.'

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Life . Hereafter . Faith (Iman) . Tribulation

Is it true that the more faith someone has the more God afflicts him with trials and hardships? And is it true that the more one struggles in this life the more reward one will receive in the hereafter?

The believers are purified by hardships and tests to remove their errors and raise their degrees in Paradise. The Hadeeth says: More tests come with more faith كلما زيد في ايمانه زيد في بلائه

More hardships and tests make the believer more remembering Allah and seeking His help and avoid the believer the feeling of pride or arrogance.

There are many Hadeeths that the the believer who struggles in this life for noble cause, will be more rewarded in the hereafter. We read in Quran: Those who face the hardships with patience (Sabr) for the sake of Allah will have countless reward (Sura 39, verse 10).

We also have Hadeeths that the status of Sabr ( patience) from Faith is like the status of the head from the body.

Wassalam.

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Man . Husband . Hereafter . Dunya

Is it permissible to wish to have another man from this world as a husband in the hereafter instead of the actual husband?

It is stated in the Hadeeths that husband and wife who enter Paradise will be completely transformed in Paradise and will be be the best for one another. All negative points will be removed away and every thing they wish in the other will be granted. The wife will be more beautiful in her husband's eyes than the Hoor, and the husband will be the best man in his wife's eyes.

It is good to pray to Allah (SWT) to grant you the best with out suggesting on Him. Allah knows the best and He grants the best to His sincere servants.

Wassalam,

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Planets . Earth . Hereafter . Mankind

Why did Allah create so many other galaxies and planets if Earth and the world of the hereafter are all that is of relevance to mankind?

Allah (SWT) Has the All and Absolute Knowledge and Wisdom, while we have very little knowledge if we have any. He knows the wisdom of creating whatever He created from the nucleus and atom to the galaxies. No doubt , there is a great wisdom which is known to Him, but not to us as our knowledge is very limited. We are in this universe like a small kid who sees huge library with thousands of books and wonders why these books were written.

Wassalam.

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Husband . Hereafter . Predestination

It is mentioned in Quran that the living creatures are created in pairs. Does that mean marrying my husband was predefined and that I will be reunited with the same person in the hereafter?

The general understanding of this verse is that things are generally created in pairs (for instance, positive and negative, matter and antimatter, light and dark, or male and female), and that one of the signs of Allah is that human beings marry and form a pair in order to become more whole than they would be individually.

However, it is not usually taken to mean that all human beings are specifically created with a soulmate or "pair" whom they marry in this world. Indeed, some people have more than one happy marriage in their lifetimes; others are miserable in their marriages!

Marriage can be destined and can be a matter of free choice; matters of destiny are not usually clear. Some people misuse the idea of destiny and marriage to cover up socially unjust practices (for instance, not allowing their children to marry someone of a certain race, culture, family, or profession) and then saying these restrictions are "destiny". At the same time, it does seem that sometimes some people are destined to be together or destined not to be together.

However if you are happy with your husband, I hope you will be able to be together in the Hereafter!