Just wanted to share some thing that I recently learned from the Here-After series by Anwar-Awlaki. Some of us probably know about these concepts already and repeating it would be a good reminder for them while others who are not well aware will inshaAllah take some benefit out of it. I will try to convey that message in my own words and per my limited understanding. Please feel free to correct me if you find any mistake in the following writing.
Humanity in general tend to spend its time in this duniya for making the most out of it. In our struggle to do so, we forget the real objective of our existence and instead indulge ourselves in activities that won't at all be beneficial to us in the after life when the day of judgement is established, a day which has the length of 50,000 years. We were instructed by prophet (SAW) to spend our efforts in duniya to the extent of our stay here and likewise to spend our efforts towards akhira to the extent of our stay there. And we all know that our stay in duniya would feel like a small portion just compared to the day of judgment let alone the everlasting and infinite life of akhira.
We humans have the tendency to continuously sin and on the day of judgement when every single deed of ours would be brought in front of us, we will be overwhelmed with the grief and anxiety since, as opposed to our self created perception that such and such act of ours would be overlooked, we will witness every single deed of ours in the book of deed with own eyes, a fact that would send a shiver to us to our very core.
007: Then shall anyone who has done an atom's weight of good, see it! 008: And anyone who has done an atom's weight of evil, shall see it. Surah Al-ZalZala
The reality of 'Yaum-ul-Akhira' is not a simple matter rather it is so serious that we can't even comprehend its severity in this duniya. According to Quran, an infant boy who died in infancy without any sin when raised from death, will have his hair turn grey after witnessing the horrors of that day.
017: Then how shall ye, if ye deny (Allah), guard yourselves against a Day that will make children hoaryheaded?- Surah Al-Muzammil
The sins that we commit in this world can be forgiven by Allah(SWT)'s infinite mercy much easily while we are still alive as compared to when we are dead. The cleansing process after death is much more torcherous and difficult than we can even imagine. All we are required to do here in this duniya is to constantly repent for our sins and make solemn promise with Allah(SWT) not to repeat them with iklhas. We have to remember that no believer will enter in paradise with a single sin and iota of arrogance and that their sins must either be wiped out entirely by the severe punishments he was subjected to earlier or forgiven entirely by Allah(SWT) infinite mercy.
I won't talk about unbelievers since their 'book of deed' won't even be opened on the day of judgement and hence mentioning about them here is futile. However, any believer who lives and dies in the state of Islam will be subjected to various trials both in this duniya and in the akhira from Allah(SWT) that seemingly look harsh, however, in reality they are nothing but the mercy from Allah(SWT) as they help him wipe out his sins and make him eligible for paradise.
1. In duniya, he is subjected to variety of trials and tribulations like sickness, grief, lack of money & resources etc. These trials and problems help him wipe out some of his sins.
2. During 'Sakrat-ul-Maut' or at the time of death when the angels of death is pulling out his soul, a believer will be subjected to agony based on the amount of his remaining bad deeds and some of them will be wiped out while he is going through that difficult trial.
3. The punishment of the grave later is another divine way to purify him from his remaining sins.
4. If his pile of the sin is still intact, he would be subjected to the agony and scare on the day of judgment when there won't be any shade other than the shade of Allah(SWT) and every body will be willing to throw the entire world in the hell-fire including his wife, children, parents, siblings etc. in order to save himself just after glancing at the hell-after fire on the day of judgement.
5. If the sins are still not wiped out entirely for a believer, he will then be put into the hell fire for the duration known only to Allah(SWT) until he becomes purified to the extent of being sinless before he would be allowed to enter into the paradise. However, the likeness of torments of hell fire is not something that anyone of us could even comprehend. It would be unimaginable amount of pain and agony and may Allah(SWT) save us all from it.
The central idea behind this discussion is that we still have time to ask repentance from Allah(SWT) and refrain from those sins in the future so that we don't get exposed to the harsher punishment in the hereafter during the process of purification for the remainder of our sin. If a person stays aware and scared of the day of judgment in this duniya and shape his life accordingly, Allah(SWT) won't agonize and humiliate him on that day rather put him at ease inshaAllah.
One companion of RasullAllah(SAW) use to make dua to Allah(SWT) that was very much liked by the prophet(SAW). The actual dua is pretty long but in essence, he use to say, "O Allah(SWT) make my last deeds of duniya the best of my deeds and make the best day of my life when I meet you on the day of judgment ".
May Allah(SWT) shows us all the right path and save us from the troubles of duniya and akhira, forgive our sins and that of our family while we are still alive in this duniya, forgive the sins of those among us who have passed away, help us iron out our differences and help us hold the rope of Allah(SWT), save us from arrogance, make our deeds especially those of the last ones as the best of all and make the best day of our life when we meet you. Ameen
