[Umm Mohammad]

To have Faith in the punishment of the grave : 18

To have faith in the punishment of the grave and Munkar and Nakeer -1

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NOTES

1. To have Faith (Eemaan) in the punishment of the grave has the consensus (ijmaa’) of Ahlus-Sunnah wal-Jamaa’ah, as has been declared by Abul-Hasan al-Ash’aree (Risaalah ilaa Ahlith-Thaghr, p.279), being denied only by the Khawaarij and some of the Mu’tazilah

Allah, the Most High, says

In front of the Fire will they be brought, morning and evening, and on the Day when the Hour will be established (it will be said to the angels), ‘Cause Pharaoh’s people to enter the severest torment!’ Soorah Ghaafir (40): 46

Ibn Abbas said, “Allah’s Messenger passed by two graves and said, ‘Indeed, they are being punished, but they are not being punished for something major.’ Then he said, ‘Rather it is so: one of them did not protect himself from being soiled with his urine; the other used to go about telling stories (to cause enmity)....’ ” Reported by al-Bukhaaree (Eng. trans. 1/141/no.215), Ahmad and the compilers of the four Sunan

Abu Hurairah reports that Allah’s Messenger said, “When the deceased (or ‘one of you’) is put in the grave, two black angels having blue eyes come to him. One of them is called al-Munkar and the other an-Nakeer and they will say.....” Reported by at-Tirmidhee and declared hasan by Shaikh al-Albaanee in Saheeh al-Jaam’i.

There are many ahaadeeth concerning the punishment of the grave. Al-Baihaqee wrote a whole treatise entitled Ithbaat ‘Adhaab al-Qabr, consisting of some 240 narrations

Imam ash-Shaafi’ee (d.204H) said, “The punishment of the grave is true, the questioning of those in the graves is true, the Resurrection is true, the Day of Judgement is true, and Paradise and the Fire are true. Whatever else is reported in the Sunnah and so mentioned by the scholars and their followers throughout the lands of the Muslims are true.” Reported by al-Baihaqee in Manaaqib ash-Shaafi’ee - 1/415

Imaam Ahmad ibn Hanbal (d.241H) said, “The principles of the Sunnah according to us are: to cling to that which the Companions of Allah’s Messenger were upon and to follow them...to have Faith in the punishment of the grave and that this Ummah will be tested in their graves and asked about Faith and Islaam, who is his Lord and who is his Prophet. Munkar and Nakeer will come to him as Allah wills and however Allah wishes.” From Usool us-Sunnah of Imaam Ahmad

Imaam Ahmad said, “Punishment of the grave is true. No-one denies it except one who is misguided and astray and leading others astray.” Reported by Ibn Abee Ya’laa in Tabaqaatul-Hanaabilah - 1/174

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19: To have Faith in the Pool (Hawd) of Allah's Messenger

To have Faith in the Pool (Hawd) of Allah's Messenger. Every Prophet has a Pool, except Saalih (alaihis-salaam) because his Pool was the udder of his she-camel - 1

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NOTES

1. The explainer of at-Tahaawiyyah said, “The ahaadeeth reported about the Pool reach the level of mutawaatir, being reported by more than thirty Companions

Anas ibn Maalik (radiallaahu anhu) reports that Allah’s Messenger said, “The size of my Pool is like what is between Jerusalem and San’aa in Yemen and it has drinking cups like the number of stars in the sky.” Reported by al-Bukhaaree (Eng. trans. 8/380/no.582), Ahmad and at-Tirmidhee.

Samurah reports that Allah’s Messenger said, “There will be a Pool for every Prophet. They vie with regards to who has the greater number of people coming to it. I hope from Allah that I will have the greater number.” Reported by at-Tirmidhee and others. Shaikh al-Albaanee declared it saheeh in as-Saheehah - no.1589

As regards the exception quoted for Saalih (alaihis salaam), the narrations about that are not authentic

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20: To have Faith in the Intercession of Allah’s Messenger

To have Faith in the Intercession (Shafaa'ah) of Allah's Messenger on the Day of Resurrection for those guilty of sins, those upon the bridge and to cause them to come out from within the Fire. There is intercession for every Prophet, likewise for their eminently truthful and sincere followers, the martyrs and the pious. After that, Allah bestows His grace abundantly upon those whom He pleases and people are taken out of the Fire, after having been burnt and reduced to charcoal-1

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NOTES

The long hadeeth of the Intercession is reported by al-Bukhaaree (Eng. trans., vol. 6, no. 236) and Muslim - Eng. trans., vol. 1, pp.122-135

Concerning the types of intercession, Shaikh Abdul-Azeez ibn (rahimahullaah) says, in his notes on al-Aqeedah al-Waasitiyyah (p.73), ''The different intercessions that will occur on the Day of Resurrection are six and are well-known from the Sharee'ah proofs. From them, three are particular to the Prophet. The six types are

1) The Major Intercession, which is for judgement to commence for those gathered for it; 2) Intercession for the People of Paradise to enter it; 3) His intercession for the punishment to be lightened for his uncle, Abu Taalib, so that he is placed in a shallow part of Hell-Fire. This form of intercession is particular to the Prophet for his uncle Abu Taalib. As for other disbelievers, there is no intercession for them. He, the Most High, said

So no intercession of intercessors will be of any use to them. Soorah al-Mudathir (74): 48

4) Intercession for some of those who deserve the Fire not to enter it; 5) Intercession for those who enter the Fire to come out of it; 6) His intercession for the raising of the ranks of the people of Paradise. This last intercession is general for the Prophet and other Prophets, the righteous, the angels and for Muslim children who died whilst they were young

All of these are only for the people who were upon Tawheed. As regards the sinful from the people of Tawheed who enter the Fire, they will not remain in it, but will be brought out after being purified. It is established in the Saheeh from the Prophet that the sinful will die in it, and then they will be brought out like charcoal. Then, they will sprout (in Paradise) like shoots upon a riverbank