All Muslims agree on the questioning in the grave by angels called, Nakirain, compression by the grave and the period of atonement (Barzakh), with the exception of atheists and polytheists, who deny it altogether, and say that we are alive and we shall die, none other than time causes us to expire. Amir Al-Mu’minin (‘a) says in one of his couplets:

“If it was so that we are to be left alone after death, then death might have been a pleasurable entity for all living people, but it is not like that; when we die, we will be revived in the grave, and then there will be a session of question answer with Nakirain.”

There was no doubt that the moment of death was very critical but the stages that were to follow death were even more critical and dangerous. Amir Al-Mu’minin (‘a) said:

“O, the servants of God - remember a person who has not been pardoned. The thing that follows death is more atrocious than the death itself. The first stage (of this journey) is the grave; beware of its constriction and darkness. Grave, calls and says that she is a house of isolation, fear and perplexity. She is the abode of insects and bacteria. Remember, grave was either a garden among the Gardens of Paradise or a ditch among the troughs of the Hell.”

The Period Of Atonement And Its Associated Difficulties

In the linguistic approach, any boundary that existed between two objects was called Barzakh. God had said in Surah Al-Rahman:

مَرَجَ الْبَحْرَيْنِ يَلْتَقِيَانِ ‎

“He has made the two seas to flow freely (so that) they meet together” (55:19).

بَيْنَهُمَا بَرْزَخٌ لَّا يَبْغِيَانِ

“Between them is a barrier which they cannot pass” (55:20).

In similar context, the time period between this life and the hereafter was called Barzakh, or the phase of atonement. People had given various names to this chapter of life such as Aalam al-Zalal (obscure phase), Aalam al-Ashbah (period of objects) and Aalam al-Misal (period of virtual reality) and this stage of life is very troublesome.

Our Imams have warned us about the severity of this time, and asked us to store up as much of good deeds as we could in this life. Imam Ja’far As-Sadiq (‘a) said, “I only worry about Barzakh regarding you, but when the Day of Judgement will be established, and the situation is in our control, we are then the best intercessors for you.”

There was another tradition in Usul Al-Kafi. A narrator said that he had heard Imam Ja’far As-Sadiq (‘a) saying that all of their Shi’as would go to paradise, irrespective of their deeds and he asked him to validate the statement. Imam replied that he had definitely said that. The narrator said, “O Master, how is it possible, when many of your followers had committed grave sins”? Imam replied, “So far as Qiyamah (Day of Judgement) was concerned you will all go to Paradise due to the intercession of the Prophet and his appointed successors. Yes, if I had any worry, it was about the period of Barzakh”. The narrator asked, “What is Barzakh? Imam replied, “It was the time period between death and the Day of Judgement”.

What Happens In Barzakh?

This being a wide-ranging topic, a summary from the statements of the Imams has been provided here. It was said that when a soul left its earthly abode, it stayed with the corpse. It was then readmitted into the body at burial. The length to which it penetrated the body was questionable, but one thing was certain that the corpse could not answer any query unless soul had entered its body.

Two Angels called Munkir and Nakeer, whose sound was sharper than electrical energy, entered the grave with very stern looks to question the deceased. There were certain traditions, which suggested that the Angels, which entered the grave of a practicing believer were different from Nakirain, and their names were Mobusher and Bashir. They possessed very melodious voices. They gave good tiding to the deceased, about his place in the Gardens of Paradise.

On the other hand, all those who failed to answer their questions were punished with metal hammers. They then departed and the person was once again dead. His body now stayed in the grave, but his soul departed to the dominion of Barzakh, where it was either blessed or condemned.

There was debate among the scholars about whether this punishment or blessing was awarded to the pure soul or to its virtual body. Most reliable reports suggest that it was the virtual body that went through this routine. It was reported that the spirits of the believers resided in the valley of Salam, in Iraq and that of the sinners in the valley of Barhoot, a place in Yemen. Compression of the grave (fishar al-Qabr) was other than this.

Why There Had To Be Questioning By The Nakirain Despite God’s Knowledge?

In the above discussion, there were certain points which need further elucidation.

When God was fully aware of human deeds, why was there a need to appoint Angels for questioning?

The answer to this query was that God undoubtedly knew the behaviour of every particle in the universe. Therefore, He had not introduced this system to upgrade His knowledge, but He had appointed this as an act of worship for certain Angels, just as Karam-ul-Katibeen were advised to inscribe the deeds of the people and some were appointed to protect humans. There were certain Angels, who were chosen just to praise Him and some of them remained in the bowing and prostration modes forever. This was His system and He could distribute the responsibilities the way He wanted.

There was no doubt that the answer to the questions of Nakirain was one of the fundamentals of our religion. Imam Ja’far As-Sadiq (‘a) said that whoever denied these three things, he was not one of us. These were - the physical Ascension of the Prophet to the Heavens (Mi’raj), questioning in the grave and the intercession of the Prophet and the Imams.

Another important thing was to know whether the questioning in the grave was done with everyone, or with a few select ones, and the rest were spared on the whole. The information that reached us from the Ma’sumin stated that the interrogation was done with pure Mu’mins and pure hypocrites, including the Nasbis and Kharjites. The remainder together with the children and middle group of Muslims were altogether spared. They would remain untouched, as if they are in a deep sleep in Barzakh. That is why when on the Day of Judgement, they would be raised from their graves they would call out, “who has disturbed us in our place of sleep?” The one who was better among them would say that they had remained in the period of Barzakh only for a day or two.

There were a few narrations available on this topic. Some of those were quoted in the following text. Abu Bakr Hazrami quoted from Imam Muhammad Al-Baqir (‘a), who said, “No one will be questioned in the grave other than those who are pure Mu’mins or a pure Kafirs.”

The narrator asked, what would the state of those, who were in between these groups of people. Imam replied that they would be left in an indeterminate state. Similarly, Abdullah Ibn Sanan narrated from Imam As-Sadiq (‘a) who said, “Only those will be questioned in the grave who are either pure Mu’mins or absolute infidels, and the rest will be ignored.”

Allama Al-Majlisi wrote in Bihar, “Whatever we have learned from numerous reports is that after death the Nafs remained alive, either in the state of bliss or punishment according to his status of faith. If he is among the weak, then he is completely ignored.”

Allama Shaykh Al-Mufid has also favoured this approach but he tried to prove that the souls of this frail faction were destroyed. However, none of the traditions from the Imams have proved this point of view.

Mohaddas Jazairi said this fragile group was mostly composed of mentally handicapped, unwise, geriatric and the people who had lived in the period between two Prophets. However, on the Day of Judgement, they would be mentally corrected and then subjected to the trial by asking them to walk through a burning fire. If they walked through in obedience, then the fire would be turned into a blooming garden of Paradise, as it was earlier done for Abraham, and if they refused then they would be pushed into it. Allama Al-Majlisi preferred this approach.

It was also important to know the nature of the topics that would be questioned from the people in their graves. According to the reports, questioning would be done on issues related to the principles of the faith and some of its practices. There was a long narration from Imam Ja’far as-Sadiq, and we present here a summary of that recount. Imam said, “The Angels ask the deceased, who is your Lord, what is your religion, who is your Prophet and who is your Imam? If the person replies correctly then the Angels open a door of Paradise towards his grave on the other hand, if he failed then they sternly open a door of Hell in the grave and leave. Although, proper return will be given on the Day of Judgement but the chain of events has commenced from the grave. So far as practices were concerned the questions might be on Salat, Fasting, Hajj, Zakat and the love of Ahl al-Bayt.”

It was reported from Imam Zayn Al-’Abidin (‘a) that apart from the standard questions, the deceased would also be asked about the pattern of life, accumulation of wealth, its sources and the modes of its expenditure. It was also reported that when a believer (Mu’min) died, six images also entered the grave with him. All of these were beautiful but one was exceptionally stunning. They surrounded the Mu’min from all sides, and if compression of the grave started, they would try to prevent it.

When this situation was over, the one which was the most beautiful figure asked the others for their introduction. The shape that was standing on the right-hand side of the deceased would say that she was his Salat, the left side figure would say that she was his Zakat, the one in front of him would introduce herself as his Fasting and the rear one would say that she was his Hajj or Umra, the one facing his feet would say that she was his Akhlaq (good behaviour) with friends and relations. When all of them would have introduced themselves, then they would ask the one which was most beautiful, to present her credentials as well. She would reply that she was the Wilayat of Aali Muhammad.

It should not remain without notice that this narration argued for the materialisation of deeds, and we shall discuss this in the chapter reserved for the Day of Judgement. It must be remembered that Wilayat al-Aali Muhammad was there to rectify some of the shortcomings that were left in one’s deeds, but alone it could not become a replacement for other essential acts. Moreover, Imam Muhammad Al-Baqir (‘a) had said, “Our friend is the one who is a friend of God, and the one who disobeys God cannot be our friend.”

All the topics, including compression of the grave that were related to the period of Barzakh, belonged to the section of Iman bi ’l-Ghaib, or to the belief of the unseen, which was an essential part of our faith, as suggested by the Qur’an in Surah Al-Baqara,

يُؤْمِنُونَ بِالْغَيْبِ

“[They] believe in the unseen...” (2:3).

All Muslims submitted to this command. The elucidator of Al-Maqasid said, “All Muslims agree on the questioning by the Nakirain and punishment of some sinners in the grave.” This being a very difficult stage and we would pray that God might save all believers from this test, because on paper, only a few will remain untouched from this check.

It was narrated by Abu Baseer that he asked Imam Ja’far As-Sadiq (‘a) if anyone could be spared from the compression of the grave. Imam replied, “We seek God’s protection, only a handful might be spared.” There was no logical hindrance for the believers to dispute this issue, especially when the true reporters (Prophet and the Imams) had confirmed its authenticity, and if anyone still had some reservations on the subject, then that might be classed as their infirmity in the religion. Mohaqiq At-Tusi also used the same argument in support of this subject.

Criticism Of The Attitude Of Westernised Muslims

It was extremely sad to note that today among Muslims, a group of people have evolved who think, visualize and hear things through western speculations. They say that they were free people, but in practice they were enslaved to the western values. Evidently, they would oppose all other freedom models, as long as they were shackled to these western values. May God help Muslims to free them from this mental slavery. Today their proviso was such that whenever they heard about these concepts, they tried to reinterpret it, even if their explanation was absurd.

Although, a group influenced by the Greek Philosophy was always active among Muslims, whose key efforts were to redefine basic Islamic teachings, but today it had become a fashion to refuse such salient features of religion that were related to sensitive issue of unseen, under the guise of progress and modernization.

We would admit that if a scientific idea that had leaped from theoretical concepts and progressed to the experimental stage, and it was supported by some legal religious precursors then there was no reason to defy it, but to enter a blind alley under the pretext of science was dangerous, particularly when we all knew that scientific ideas changed very quickly and scientists were not loyal to their hypothesis. If we made scientific results as a yardstick of our religious norms then entire Shariah would have defaced long ago. It was the grace of God that during all times, we had people, who with their knowledge and expertise, had defended Islamic principles and saved Shariah from collapsing in front of this pseudo rational innuendo.

Rebuttal Of Some Objections Raised By The Western Minds In Connection With Our Belief Of Fishar Al-Qabr

First Objection

Bodies have been exhumed and no change was observed in their position and there was no sign of any interrogation being carried out, or the happening of Fishar al-Qabr. This question could be addressed in the following manner

• It was only a conjecture that had been presented, and on the basis of conjectures we could not deny issues that had been addressed by the Qur’an and Sunnah of the Prophet.

• Another state of existence started after death, and its parameters could not be determined by material components. We need to enter the relevant domain to recognize it. The same was true for the period of Barzakh.

• This problem could also be addressed in the following manner. Suppose a few people were sitting somewhere together, and one of them was fast asleep. He, in his dream saw a horrible view and felt that he was burning in a fire or just going to be swallowed by a fierce dragon. He cried and shouted for help but his friends who were sitting close to him, were completely inattentive. They did not see any signs of fire or a dragon around them. When the individual concerned awoke and mentioned his experience to his friends, they showed no inclination to accept his verdict.

The same could be applied to explain the state of grave and Barzakh. We might not have the sense to recognize what the deceased was experiencing in their burial place. Therefore, the ignorance showed by the people at large on this subject, was not unusual for us to understand. This example had been given only to comprehend the problem; one must not assume that the events of grave and Barzakh were all in the state of dream.

Mohaqiq Shaykh Bahai wrote in his book Arbaeen, “The thing that is compulsory for us is to believe in the overall concept that Barzakh is definite before the Day of Judgment, and its description is not required for us to know, and nor our minds can evaluate its reality”

Second Objection

Sometimes a person did not get a chance to be buried. He would either be a victim of a carnivore or would drown in a river or at sea. How could such a person be affected by the compression of the grave? This was a superficial objection and it was a contraption of a mind, which had no understanding of the grave and the capabilities of the Creator of the universe.

Those who believed in the Omnipotence of God knew that grave was a place where one’s body rested after death. It might be in the air, or in a river or a belly of a carnivore. A similar question was once asked from Imam Ar-Ridha (‘a). A person named Yunus asked the Imam, “Does a person who is hanged or crucified suffer from the compression of the grave?

Imam replied, “Yes, God commands the air to perform the task of fishar.”

It was known through these realities that graves were actually the realm of Barzakh, and it was not a specific name given to the pit in which a corpse was laid down. This was supplemented by the Qur’anic Verse:

وَأَنَّ اللَّهَ يَبْعَثُ مَن فِي الْقُبُورِ

“...God will resurrect all those who are in the graves” (22:7).

As this was the field of Barzakh, therefore it resembled the dominion at hand and the realm of hereafter, therefore, its punishment and reward had some similarity with the retribution and recompense of the hereafter.

Qur’anic Evidence Of Barzakh

Before the major Qiyamah, good and evil souls were rewarded or punished according to their deeds. It was reported about the hypocrites,

سَنُعَذِّبُهُم مَّرَّتَيْنِ ثُمَّ يُرَدُّونَ إِلَىٰ عَذَابٍ عَظِيمٍ ‎

“We shall punish them twice and then they would be returned to the foremost chastisement” (9:101).

Evidently, the foremost chastisement was the punishment of Hell, which would be after Qiyamah and the two punishments that have preceded it, could be referred to the mundane castigations and Barzakh. Regarding the family of Pharaoh, the Qur’an said:

وَحَاقَ بِآلِ فِرْعَوْنَ سُوءُ الْعَذَابِ

“...The punishment has reverted on the family of Pharaohs” (40:45).

النَّارُ يُعْرَضُونَ عَلَيْهَا غُدُوًّا وَعَشِيًّا وَيَوْمَ تَقُومُ السَّاعَةُ أَدْخِلُوا آلَ فِرْعَوْنَ أَشَدَّ الْعَذَابِ

“They are presented to a fire during every morning and evening, and when Qiyamah will be established, it will be said that Aali Fir’awn must be sent to even tougher punishment” (40:46).

It was said about the Ummah of Noah (‘a):

مِّمَّا خَطِيئَاتِهِمْ أُغْرِقُوا فَأُدْخِلُوا نَارًا فَلَمْ يَجِدُوا لَهُم مِّن دُونِ اللَّهِ أَنصَارًا

“Because of their wrongs they were drowned, then made to enter fire, so they did not find any helpers besides Allah” (71:25).

In Arabic language, the phrase ‘Fa’ was used when there was no periodic gap. This showed that the Nation of Noah was sent to the fire of Barzakh immediately after drowning. These Qur’anic Verses showed that evil doers and sinners would be given the taste of a minor punishment (of Barzakh) before the Qiyamah. Similarly, pure believers will also be provided with the taste of God’s blessing before their final abode in the Paradise. The Qur’an thus spoke about the martyrs:

وَلَا تَحْسَبَنَّ الَّذِينَ قُتِلُوا فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ أَمْوَاتًا بَلْ أَحْيَاءٌ عِندَ رَبِّهِمْ يُرْزَقُونَ

“Do not consider them dead, who have laid down their lives in the path of God. They are alive, and receive their sustenance from their Lord” (3:169).

فَرِحِينَ بِمَا آتَاهُمُ اللَّهُ مِن فَضْلِهِ وَيَسْتَبْشِرُونَ بِالَّذِينَ لَمْ يَلْحَقُوا بِهِم مِّنْ خَلْفِهِمْ أَلَّا خَوْفٌ عَلَيْهِمْ وَلَا هُمْ يَحْزَنُونَ

“They are happy and they are hopeful about those, who have not yet joined them that they will also not suffer any pain and distress” (3:170).

If a man possessed the wealth of faith, he could visualize all these events with his inner sight.

What Sins Are Responsible For Fishar Al-Qabr

The author illustrated some points that were responsible for Fishar al-Qabr (constriction of the grave), which were supported by several other narrations. It was recorded in Bihar on the authority of Ibn Abbas, who said,

“There are three shares of Fishar al-Qabr. One share is for useless complaining (about friends and relations), the second share is for spitefulness or backbiting and the third is for not caring about cleanliness after urination.”

Some reports suggested that ill treatment of the family also becomes a reason for fishar. The incident of Saad Ibn Maaz was famous in the Islamic history. The summary of the event was that at his burial, the Prophet of God, especially arranged washing and shrouding of his body in his presence. When the coffin was moved to the site of his burial, the Prophet accompanied the procession bare footed and shouldered the coffin sequentially from all four sides, and then personally laid him in the grave and placed soil over his grave.

At this moment Saad’s mother addressed his son that paradise might greet him, the Prophet censured her and said, “With what certainty you can confirm Paradise for your son. Don’t you realize that your son is going through the compression of grave at this moment.” When the Prophet returned, companions asked him that the way he had treated Saad, especially when he removed his shoes while accompanying the procession, had not been observed when in his behaviour related to any other companion. The Prophet replied that the Angels who escorted the convoy were bare footed, so he had opted to be barefoot too.

They asked that they noticed him holding the coffin sometimes from the left and sometimes from the right - what was the reason for this change of sides? The Prophet replied that he followed Gabriel in that routine.

They asked him again that when he had personally washed his body, shrouded him individually and performed his last prayers, then why should the compression of grave be there for him? The Prophet replied that it was because he was ill tempered and harsh with his family.

In this moment, we must take heed and realize that how lowly it was to be indecorous in our behaviour. This minor slip could throw a person from the height of excellence to the depths of disgrace and infamy that even the favours of Prophets could not save him from the punishment of God. It was also known from various other reports that if a believer (he or she) died on Thursday night or Friday morning, God spared him or her from Fishar al-Qabr.

It was narrated from Imam Muhammad Al-Baqir (‘a) that the Prophet of God said,

“Any believer who dies during Thursday night or Friday morning is spared from the punishment of grave (fishar).”

Some of these narrations also included the time beyond Friday morning i.e. up to afternoon. Similarly, some other reports also suggest that burial in sacred places also relieve people from compression of the grave.

The State Of Souls In The Realm Of Barzakh

Whatever, we have mentioned so far, happens with the body and the soul together. After this point in time the soul departed from the body and the corpse was left in the grave.

On the Day of Judgement, the same body would be resurrected with its soul (to answer for his or her deeds). The thing that sought attention now was to find the state of spirits in the period that was to follow the grave i.e. Barzakh, whose span extended to the Day of Judgement, where souls were either recompensed or punished. One would like to know, whether this punishment or award was given alone to the soul or to its virtual frame that has been discussed earlier.

There were two points of view. The author of this book seemed to prefer the first scenario but his conclusions were not very clear, although Shaykh Mufeed, after accepting the two possibilities declared his preference for the first set-up. Some of the authentic reports of Ma’sumin and the findings of researchers have concluded that soul would enter into a virtual body and then would soar to the realm of spirits.

If the spirit belonged to a Mu’min, it would find its place in the Valley of Salam, near Najaf, in Iraq or in certain cases would remain close to its place of burial or move to the closest gardens of paradise. If it belonged to a non-believer then it would depart for the valley of Barhoot. There were many reports on this topic. We have presented here a few reports to enhance our reader’s belief (in God).

It was reported from Imam As-Sadiq (‘a) that he asked one of his companions, Yunus about people’s opinion regarding spirits of the believers. He replied that people thought that they lived in the abdomens of green birds, under the chandeliers of the throne of God. Imam replied, Glory be to God. A believer was much dearer to God than that He would keep his soul in the belly of a bird. He then continued,

“When a believer is at the point of departing, he is approached by the five Holy personalities and the Angels of highest ranks. When his soul is withdrawn then God transfers it to a body that is very similar to his mundane frame. If a newly deceased person reaches him, he can identify him by his face accurately. It is also stated that spirits ask the new arrival about the well-being of their dependents. If the newcomer replies that they are still alive, then they say that they will meet them soon with the permission of God, after their death. And, if He says: they are dead then they feel sorry about them and say - since they had not reached us, they must be under the punishment of God.”

Allama Jazairi says that there were several authentic reports about the dwellings of Barzakh. Allama Al-Majlisi summed up this discussion when he wrote,

“After the interrogation of grave, souls are transferred into virtual bodies, which are delicate like the body frames of Angels and Jinns, but very similar to their appearance on the earth. Any punishment or reward that is to be given to the souls is given through these bodies. Individual spirits can fly with these frames, without any difficulty and travel to distant places within a blink of an eye.”

Allama Al-Majlisi was also of the opinion that spirits use this virtual frame in dreams to travel from place to place, and such a relationship was not impossible.

Answering Doubts On The Hypothesis Of Virtual Body

Some doubts have been cast on this subject and its negation is essential.

The idea crosses boundary with the concept of transmigration of soul (Tanasukh), which was not acceptable in Islam. The answer to this objection would be that we have misunderstood the concept of Tanasukh.

The objectors remembered correctly that transmigration of soul required migration of soul from one body to another, but they completely ignored that there are some other important considerations as well. The transfer needed to take place in the present material realm. It also needed to take place for the purpose of recompense or retribution. Allama Shaykh Bahai answered this doubt by saying, “This misgiving is baseless, because Muslims are unanimous in the futility of such a Tanasukh, which envisaged the transfer of soul from one body to another, after the corruption of original body in this material confine, but this concept that in Barzakh these souls is relocated in a virtual body until the Day of Judgement and then returned to the same body with the permission of their Lord on the Day of Qiyamah is by no means Tanasukh, as we speak of it.”

It was therefore, proven that for Tanasukh, an alternative body was required in this world and not in any another domain. However, as we all know Barzakh was totally different from the present realm and the virtual body was totally different in composition from a material corpse.

Spirit had done good and evil in the existing body, therefore, punishment or return should be given to this body instead of a virtual frame, which had not performed any act of defiance or submission. Such an approach was against God’s justice. This question could be addressed in several ways.

The initial reply would be that these virtual bodies were exact replicas of the existing outline and had some linkage with their counterparts in the present time frame, as suggested by Allama Al-Majlisi. Therefore, objectively it was not out of place to carry out a punishment or recompense through the virtual bodies.

A second reply would be that it was possible that these virtual bodies might have been created from some of the material components that were the constituents of our existing bodies, and that might equate the process of reward or punishment. This suggestion was in line with the Qur’anic text which stated:

كُلَّمَا نَضِجَتْ جُلُودُهُم بَدَّلْنَاهُمْ جُلُودًا غَيْرَهَا

“When coverings of the residents of Hell will deteriorate, We shall replace those with new skins” (4:56).

The third reply would be that it was possible that in the realm of Barzakh, souls itself might materialize in the form of a virtual body, and this answer became even more feasible when we studied the concept of soul also having some sort of a material component. If it was true then the original objection would be removed. The writer of Khazinat ul-Jawahar also provided some examples in support of this view, which neutralised every possible objection against the virtual frame.

Final Word

The narration that was quoted above by the author regarding the burial of Fatimah Bint Asad suggested that all people would be resurrected naked. While, there were some narrations in support of this view, there were a number of reports that suggested that people would be raised in their shrouds. For this reason, it was also highly recommended in these reports that we must cover the dead in expensive cloaks. These narrations were apparently contradictory and so our great masters tried to reconcile the narrations on the following basis.

• It was possible that the difference might be due to differentials in the state of their belief i.e. those who were Mu’mins would be resurrected in the shrouds and the infidels would be raised naked. Since the percentage of the Mu’minin was far less than the disbelievers therefore, due to statistical reasons, the phrase that all the people will be resurrected naked was used.

• It was possible that on the Day of Judgement people might be in different state of affairs at different places. They might be shrouded at one place and naked at another. It was stated that a single day of Qiyamah would be equivalent to one thousand earthly years. Therefore, shrouds might dissolve due to corrosion of the threaded material.

• It was possible that people might be treated according to their standards of modesty i.e. all those who were humble in front of their Lord would remain clothed while, others would be naked. Also, on the Day of Judgement, everyone would be so engrossed in their own affairs that they would have no time to gaze at the others.