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By Abu Yahya (in Urdu). |
Translated by Fizza Rashid, Abu Anas, Kamran Saeed, Waseem Aslam & Bilal Khan |
Chapter 4: Naimah
As we walked along, we came close to the same door that led to the Plane of Judgement. I inquired from Saleh, “Do we have to go back to the Plain of Judgement now?”
“Why, has your interest to go there been lessened?” he asked in a surprised tone.
“No, it’s not that. I was just thinking that as I’m already here then might as well meet my family. When we came here at the beginning, you took me straight up. By now, may be my family members would have reached the camp of the last prophet’s nation, right?”
“You humans are used to conveying your emotions wrapped in envelopes of civility. Why won’t you say clearly that you want to go to your wife? Why do you keep uttering the words of family members?” Saleh commented chuckling, which made me blush. Then he smiled and said:
“Don’t be embarrassed, my friend. Let’s go to her. This servant is appointed to fulfil your every desire.”
The meanings and connotations of roads, time and places had completely changed in this world. That is why, the moment Saleh uttered these words, I found us near the mountain that had the camps of all the prophets and their nations.
“Perhaps I told you when we came here the first time that the name of this mountain is A’raf. Remember, you went on its summit. And look, there is the camp of the nation of the last prophet.”
The foot of the mountain in the area we were in was quite wide. That’s why it had a lot of capacity to accommodate people but despite that the whole space was jam-packed with countless people. Such a big gathering was nowhere else to see around the mountain.
I said to Saleh:
“It looks like all the Muslims have gathered here.”
“No, in fact, very few are here. The nation of the last prophet is very large in numbers. That’s why the number of the righteous people and the ones close to God is also very large in his nation. But most of the Muslims are still worriedly running around in the Plane of Judgement.”
“So the Muslims of my era are going to be here too?”
“Unfortunately, there are very few people here from your era. There are a large number of people here from the ages close to the demise of the last Prophet. Very few people from the last eras of humanity were able to reach here. Most of the Muslims of your era were either in love with worldly material things or involved in sectarianism. Both of these two types of people are enjoying a tour of the Plane of Judgement presently! That’s why you will find very few of your acquaintances over here. You can meet the ones you know after entering the paradise during the ‘Grand Gathering at the Court’. For the time being, we are only going to meet your ‘family’ to give you peace of mind and then, we’ll go back immediately. The accountability may start at any moment!”
“What is this ‘Grand Gathering at the Court?” I asked.
After the accountability and judgement, when all the people destined for Paradise enter it, they will be presented in the court of the Almighty. That meeting is known as the Grand Gathering at the Court. In this court, the people of Paradise will be awarded their formal titles and entitlements. This will also be an opportunity for the people to meet their Lord as well as an occasion to honour the people who are considered to be close to the Almighty.”
I wanted to inquire more from him but we reached quite near to the camp as we talked. The camp was a vast settlement of tents. In this habitation, the camps were set up in accordance with different time periods. The owners of some of the tents could be seen talking with one another outside their tents. I could see many of my companions and friends who had supported me immensely in spreading the word of God. I felt such joy in my heart on seeing them that I do not have words to describe it. These were the people who never let there youth, careers, families, or wishes onto themselves. They kept all of these to a limit and dedicated the rest of their time, abilities, wealth and passion to the religion of God. It was the reward of these sacrifices that enabled them to achieve the everlasting success they had been promised in the world before everyone else.
We saw many of the distinguished personalities of the history of the Islamic nation. We greeted and said Salam to people as we walked by. All of them invited us to dine with them in their camps but Saleh politely declined each one with gratitude. However, I did promise to meet all of them later on.
On the way, Saleh said:
“Everyone of these people is worthy enough to sit down and have a chat with. It’s good that you have arranged to meet them later on. It won’t be so easy to even make an appointment with some of these people later on.”
He stopped for a second and looking at me compassionately, said:
“The fact is that even taking time for an appointment with you won’t be that easy Abdullah! You can’t appreciate it yet but you are going to be a personality of high stature in this new world. But the truth is that you were always a person of high stature in the scales of the Lord of the worlds.”
As Saleh said this, he embraced me. Then he whispered in my ear, “Abdullah! It’s an honour for me to accompany you.”
I looked towards the sky and gently answered him, “The real honour is to worship God; to invite his people towards his worship. It’s an honour for me that God gave the honour of doing this service to someone as worthless as a tiny grain of sand.”
As I said this, my eyes started to fill with tears of gratitude.
“Yes, you are right, Abdullah. It is the Almighty who allows a grain of sand the privilege of reflecting the glorious sunrise. If you shined like the sun, it was by his grace. But this honour is only reserved for his sincere servants who dedicate their lives to his worship; the rebellious, the instigators of evil and the neglectful people are never given this privilege.”
We started walking again and came close to a beautiful and delicately woven tent.
I could feel my heart beating faster in my chest. Saleh turned towards me and asked:
“Is your wife called Naimah?”
I nodded in affirmative. Saleh pointed towards the tent with his finger and said:
“This is her tent.”
“Does she know that I’m here?” I asked with a pounding heart.
Saleh answered, “No.” Then he gestured towards the tent and said, “This is your destination.”
I slowly ambled towards the tent and, after saying Salam, sought permission to enter. My heart started to pound fiercely when I heard the voice emanating from inside the tent:
“Who are you?”
“Abdullah…”
As soon as I uttered these words, the curtain was pulled up and darkness fell in the entire world. If there was any light in the world, it was emanating from the face in front of me. Time, era, centuries and moments, everything stopped. I just stood there, silently staring at her. The name Naimah means radiance. But that this radiance can be so beautiful, I only realised it at that moment.
The last time when we were together, our association of a lifetime had matured into a comfortable companionship of old age. It was a time in our lives when love doesn’t depend on beauty and youth. But Naimah had sacrificed all the wishes and desires of her youth for my sake. She was by my side even when I chose the thorn-filled ways over an easy life. She supported me through life’s difficult moments and ups and downs to the best of her abilities, until death did us apart. But today, as the transient curtain of death had pulled back, in front of me was a pearly white light of the moon, sparkle of the stars, light of the sun, fragrance of the flowers, delicateness of the buds, freshness of the dew, splendour of the morning light, and beauty of the dusk twilight, all of them emanating from her face. I was trying to analyse a companionship of years in a few moments in my thoughts. Naimah’s eyes were wet as tears ran down her cheeks. I extended my hand to wipe the tears away and taking her hands in mine, said:
“Didn’t I tell you, with a little wait and perseverance, we’ll win this war?”
“I believed in you, and now my faith has turned into reality. It feels like you went out of the house for a little while and then came back. We persevered for a short while and now we have won a great war.”
“We had to win, Naimah. God never loses; and neither do people who fight for his cause. They may have been at the back in the world, but they’ll always be in front of everyone else in the hereafter.”
“What happens now?” Naimah closed her eyes as she asked this as if she was imagining the world of Paradise, which was about to begin.
“We spent our finite life in spreading the message of God. Now, he will recompense us with the ever-lasting life in Paradise.”
As I said this, I closed my eyes too. I could visualise every moment of my life full of toils and struggle. I had dedicated the best years of my youth and adult life in the service of God’s religion. I had even devoted the abilities of my middle age and the diminishing strength of my old age in his way. I was an extra-ordinarily talented and intelligent person and would have easily achieved the highest levels of success and accomplishment if I had made the life of the world as my priority. However, I had decided that if I had to achieve a career, an estate, a high status and a name for my self, I would only do so in the world in the Hereafter. All my life, I not only battled with myself over the desires of life, but I also battled against prejudices and emotions. I never let myself be contaminated by sectarianism, personality-worship or prejudices. I always tried to understand the religion of God with honesty and intellect and then follow it with sincerity and honesty. I spread his religion in the entire world and ignored the rebukes. God blessed me with the love and friendship of Naimah that gave me the fortitude to fight in every situation. And now we had won our war against the Satan. The struggle was over now and it was time to celebrate. We were in the same state when Saleh coughed to make us conscious of his presence. He said:
“You can have an extended meeting later. We have to go right now.”
I returned to the present world on hearing his words. I introduced Saleh to Naimah:
“This is Saleh.” I then added with a laugh, “He never leaves me alone at any time.”
Naimah looked at Saleh and said, “I have met Saleh before. He was the one who brought me here and informed me about you. Otherwise, I would’ve been very worried.”
I turned towards Saleh and said, “When did you leave me to bring Naimah here?”
“You probably don’t remember. When you were up on the summit and quietly praying to the Lord to allow you to proceed to the Plane of Judgement, I left your side. Abdullah, this is your weakness as well as your strength that when you are with your Lord, you are completely oblivious to your surroundings.”
“I was not in my senses a few moments ago either, but you didn’t care to leave my side then!”
“Well, if I had left you two together, then our next meeting would have been after the Day of Judgement! You know, you humans are very ungrateful, and forgetful too. Have you already forgotten where you were supposed to go?”
“Ok, Naimah! We need to go. You should stay here and I’ll be back shortly.”
“But what about our children?” Asked Naimah.
“They’re fine. Why don’t you go and search for them? They will be around, somewhere close by. Otherwise, I’ll bring them along myself in a short while. Right now, I need to return to the Plane of Judgement immediately. We will be able to meet and sit together all our lives afterwards.”
After Naimah’s last question, I could not afford to stay there any longer because then, I would have had to tell her about the two of our offspring who had not managed to make it to here; this would have been very agonizing for Naimah.
Naimah nodded, looking a bit puzzled.
On our way back, I said to Saleh:
“In this life, many families will experience quite a lot of disintegration. Some people will lose their wives and vice versa.”
“Obviously, this will happen” he replied, “People had a chance to excel only in the past life which is gone now. Over here, if someone is left behind, nothing can be done about it. However, no one will be alone over here. No one will wait for the ones left behind. New relationships will come in effect. New relationships will form. People will find new partners. There would be many new marriages.”
“I don’t think we will have same kind of family system here, as we had in our past life” I commented.
“You are correct. Actually, the institution of family was established in the previous world because of some basic flaws in human nature. The basic purpose of a family was to take care of minors and the elders. Men were designated as heads of families to give strength and stability to the family. To keep the family intact, women were made weaker then the men in certain areas whereas on the other hand, men were made dependant on women due to their certain inherent weaknesses. Women were not only a blessing for men, they were also a necessity for them. The system of the world could not have run in the absence of this arrangement. But their paths would separate now. Women will still remain a source of pleasure and happiness for men but women themselves will no longer be dependant on men. For obvious reasons, their worth and importance will increase and so would their sense of importance!”
“So it would be more beneficial to be a woman in this world. A woman would be able to attract a man’s attention whenever she would please to do so however, a man will have no control over her although he would still remain in need of her.”
“Yes, you are right.”
“So us men will be worse off.”
“Yes”, he replied.
“This is a serious problem; is there any solution to it”? I asked.
“In the world of Paradise, there is a solution for every problem. The solution to this problem is the Maidens of Paradise.”
“But the women will be jealous of them.”
“No, this is not going to be like this. When it comes to beauty and status, the Maidens of Paradise can never compete with the women of Paradise, so the issue of jealousy will never arise. On account of their deeds, the women of Paradise will enjoy a very high status and will more beautiful then the Maidens. They would not care about the other activities and interests of their husbands. Also bear in mind that the Paradise is the world of the Almighty and not of humans. Do you know what is the difference between these two worlds?”
I just looked at him with a blank expression. He answered his question himself:
“In the world of humans, one feels jealous of one’s adversary in love. In this world, even the adversary is close to the heart!”
“This looks like a convincing argument but I guess only the women of the Paradise can pass judgement on it.”
“Paradise is a place of abode for the purified people. By the grace of God, their purity will not allow any negative feelings to find space in their hearts.” Instead of responding to my question directly Saleh stated the point in principle and then continued to explain further:
“Actually you are still under the effects of the past world of humans. That was a world of trial. Therefore, negative emotions were also placed in the hearts along with the positive ones. These negative thoughts emanated from within the human personality. It was the responsibility of every pious man and woman to control these negative emotions emanating from within regardless of the adverse surroundings and circumstances they found themselves in. You can understand this by the example of human secretions like sweat, faeces, urine, blood etc. which originated from within the human body but you were instructed to keep your body clean from them by doing ablution or taking a bath. Similarly, the negative emotions were also a filth emanating from within you. You were supposed to wash away these negative emotions like anger, hatred, falsehood, jealousy, arrogance, malice and cruelty etc., with the help of patience and resolve. The pious men and women had to bear this hardship all their lives. But today they will be liberated from all such hardships.”
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“I mean that neither will their bodies produce any unclean secretions nor will they experience any negative thoughts or emotions. Paradise is a beautiful abode for beautiful people to live in. It has no room for any ugly emotions.”
“But I think the learning point from the whole discussion is that the Maidens of Paradise are inferior to the women of Paradise and are just good enough to make do! This is why the women will not be jealous of them.”
I added laughingly, “Poor Muslims were crazy after the Maidens and experienced all sorts of taunts from other people for nothing!”
Saleh responded to my joke in a serious tone and said:
“You are wrong either way. The fact is that in Heaven, men will no longer constitute an asset valuable enough for women to feel jealous about. As far as the Maidens are concerned, do not insult them by calling them ‘inferior’ and ‘just good enough to make do’! Although they are not like the women of Paradise, you still cannot look down upon them.”
“Ok, so tell me how do they look?”
“Ok, let me tell you how they look. They are the ultimate examples of feminine beauty and the last word when it comes to physical beauty. Their unparalleled beauty and elegant appearance do not require any make up, garlands, pearl necklaces or other adornments. The most beautiful ingredients from all parts of the universe are used for their creation. When one combines the colours of flowers, the delicateness of the wind, the drift of the rivers, the steadiness of the earth, the sparkle of the stars, the scent of the blooms, the light of the moon, the rays of the sun, the evenness of the sky, the elevations of the peaks and the depths of the vales only then, one Maiden of the Paradise is created.
Their splendour satisfies the ultimate possible scale of beauty. They are tall and white with a golden complexion. Their skin from top to bottom is flawless and devoid of any defects. Their eyes are dark and big but they change their colour to match any dress. Their eyebrows are smooth and their eyelashes are long. They keep their gaze lowered but when they look up, those looks pass through the heart like an arrow. Their face is worth reading like a book, the forehead is wide, cheeks are a reddish hue, nose is straight, lips are delicate like rose petals, teeth shine like pearls and when they speak words feel like honey. Their hair is shiny and soft like silk, in contrast to their fair colour, is dark, and extends to their calves. Their voice is like sweet and melodious harmonies to the ears, their words are like a shower of pearls and their smile can brighten up a day. They bodies smell of fragrances of modesty while their breaths have a beautiful aroma. The velvet dress on their perfumed bodies and the shinning jewellery that adorns them gives the appearance of the full moon playing hide and seek with the clouds.”
“Have you ever seen them?” I asked.
“No, no one has ever seen them; like others, I have only heard about them which I am passing on to you.”
He then continued his discourse but turned to poetry to further describe their beauty:
“We have learnt that when she speaks, it’s as if flowers are falling out of her mouth
If it is so then come let us go and talk to her
We have learnt that in the night the moon keeps staring at her
That stars descend from their heights to look at her
We have learnt that in the day butterflies annoy her
We have learnt that in the night the fireflies stop to gaze at her
We have learnt that her eyes like a deer are the ultimate limit of beauty
We have learnt that deer from the entire forest come to see her
We have learnt that her black eyes appear like the end of the world
Thus those mascara sellers look at her and say alas!
We have learnt that since she has started wearing necklaces around her neck
The mood of the pearls and diamonds has completely transformed
We have learnt that the shape of her body is such
That the flowers tear off their petals when they look at her
When she stops, movements revolve around her
When she walks then time stops to look at her
These may be fables, these may be exaggerations
If she is a dream lets see it get fulfilled”
Saleh was speaking tirelessly and I was silently watching his face. When he had finished with his poetry then I spoke:
“Your conversation really seems like exaggeration, stories and dreams. But I must say that even if it is a dream it is a very beautiful dream!”
“This dream has not finished yet. Listen! The physical make up of a Maiden of Paradise is like a tortuous brook, which begins its journey in the thick dark clouds in the skies as snow, which falls and stays on mountain tops, then takes the shape of waterfalls and streams that run down the mountain slopes only to slow down on reaching the planes; after caressing the dizzying heights, it flows down towards the depths of this world, flowing over small obstacles, it reaches the vales where at last, it renders its self into the sea of goodness, piety and God-mindedness – that happens to be the person who led his life with steadfastness and consciousness of God. This happens because this brook is not polluted with any filth or impurity in its entire course. It keeps every unrelated gaze away from its sight and touch. It covers a distance of thousands of miles whilst maintaining its purity; for the same reason, it does not accept anyone less than a person who is pure and stainless. And at last, its existence which is a blend of youth's fluctuating waves, merges in its own sea forever."
“I cannot decide whether I should praise the Maidens or the power of your expression." I commented.
" Praise should be solely for God." Saleh replied.
"There is no doubt that praise and glory should be solely for God. But tell me something, will they be humans?"
"Yes they are also humans. Similarly, Ghilma’n, the Boy Servants of the residents of Paradise, are also humans. These are boys who will always remain boys."
"Why will they remain boys? Servants are considered to be better if they are of a more mature age and hence, more knowledgeable? I immediately raised an objection that came to my mind.
“No, that is not the case. Despite being young, they would be extremely good judge of personality. During parties in the Paradise, whenever someone’s glass would become empty of the drink in it, they would just have to look into the eyes of the person to decide how much more of the drink is desired. So, their shrewdness and astuteness would be beyond comparison however, physically they would remain in the form of boys so that they remain active and agile, capable of performing any task in the blink of an eye. Their attire, appearance and looks would be such that it would feel like they are precious pearls scattered around in the gathering. Another reason for them being kept as boys eternally is to avoid the need of any conjugal necessities. However, in contrast the Maidens of Paradise would be completely mature girls, who would become wives of the residents of Paradise.”
“Will the Maidens and the Boy Servants be created especially for the residents of the Paradise?” I asked Saleh.
He replied, “There is a long story behind it.”
“We have lots of time. Go on, tell this story too!” I said.
“Listen! This is not the first time that humans have been presented in front of their Lord.”
“What do you mean? Has there been a Day of Judgement even before?”
“No, there has not been a Day of Judgement before this however, all human beings were created once before this.”
“When did that happen?”
“When you enter the Paradise, you can ask the Almighty your self about when this event took place. All I know is that this happened once. In fact, the trial that human beings were put in was preceded by another incident. The foremost event that took place was an occasion when God offered an opportunity to all of his living creations to enjoy his company eternally in the Paradise. But to be able to do so, they first had to spend some time in the world in a state in which they would be unable see him. All they were supposed to do was to obey his orders, worship him and submit to him without being able to see him. The rule of the world was going to be temporarily handed over to the creation that accepted this challenge then; it had to show that it was going to obey him despite being unable to see him and despite having the authority to do otherwise. Those members of that creation who used this authority and free will correctly were going to be rewarded with the eternal company of God in the Paradise whereas those who failed this test, were going to face punishment in the Hell.’’
‘’What happened next?’’
‘’Well, all the living creatures got scared and stepped back. The reason is that the Heaven may be beautiful but the Hell is equally terrifying! You just witnessed the hardships of the Judgement Day with your own eyes. Who in their right mind, would present himself for such a trial?’’
“And probably, we humans, being the emotional creatures that we happen to be, presented ourselves for this test.” I said.
‘’Yes, that is what happened. But, the decision to take on this godly task was taken by the collective soul of the humanity. However, it was a prerequisite for God’s ultimate justice to create and ask every single human being directly about the extent of the test he or she was ready to participate in.
Abdullah! This happened because your Lord is not unfair to anyone even to the slightest measure. That’s why he first created all human beings. He then placed his complete scheme of the test in front of them. Obviously, the majority of human beings were already prepared to take this test. So, they agreed to it with full awareness of its implications. However, as for those humans who refused to take such a risk, the Almighty decided that they would take up the role of those children that die before reaching maturity. It is the same children who will become the Boy Servants and Maidens of Paradise.’’
‘’Did the rest of the humanity agree to such tough trial?’’
‘’God showed his ultimate mercy even in this matter. You are aware that not everyone was tested in the same manner in the world. Each individual chose his or her trial that day. Those humans that had a lot of resolve chose the times of the prophets for their test. Their test was to believe in and support the prophets during times of widespread ignorance. The real condition for their success was that they had to stand firm even in the face of worst opposition, to remain steadfast despite all sorts of challenges and to pass on the message of their prophets to other people. That’s why there was a very high reward for them in the Hereafter; however, in case of denial and rejection of the prophets, they had to face a severe punishment as they had the benefit of direct guidance from the prophets. Examples of such people include Abu Bakr, may God be pleased with him, on one hand and people like Abu Lahab on the other hand who were the worst enemies of the truth.
The second level of the trial was that in which people chose to become part of the nations of the prophets after the prophets had passed away. Their test was to protect themselves from going astray, sectarianism, deviations and ignorance of later times while holding steadfast to the divine law; they were also expected to promote good deeds and to help stop people from bad deeds. These responsibilities were imposed on them because they had the teachings of the prophets to turn to for guidance, and because they were born as Muslims therefore, they didn’t have to pass through difficult trials to recognise the true path. It meant that they had more guidance available to them compared to other people, so they had more opportunities to reap rewards. But in case of negligence, their accountability was going to be very tough as well.”
“I and other Muslims belonged to this group, did not we?”
“Yes, you are right. The third group comprised of those people who selected an easier test. They were born in circumstances where they did not have access to any direct guidance from the prophets; their test was based on the innate divine guidance present in the nature of every human being, that is, a test based on belief in oneness of God and universal moral values. Unlike other Muslims, they were not subject to the tough trials of following the divine law nor to the companionship of prophets through arduous times. Obviously, their accountability is also going to be quite lenient; their risk of facing dire punishments is also low and the opportunity of attaining great rewards are also low for them.”
“And what about the prophets?”
“They were the ones who decided to take the toughest exams. That’s why they received direct guidance from God and the criteria for their accountability were extremely strict too. You are well aware of what happened to prophet Jonah. He had not committed a sin; he had only reached an incorrect conclusion and acted upon it with out divine approval but look how the Almighty locked him up in the belly of a fish.”
Then he summarised his lengthy conversation in these short words:
“The real principle which is at work in all the groups is the same. Those who received more guidance will face stricter accountability and consequently, will reap either greater reward or worse punishment. Those who received lesser guidance will face lighter accountability and therefore lesser rewards or punishment. However, the decision about which of the three groups each human being belonged to was taken by human beings them selves and was not decided by the Almighty.”
“That implies that if I received more guidance in the world, it was on account of my own request.”
“Yes, you are absolutely right! That’s why you have managed to attain such a high level of success today. If you had not appreciated that guidance, you would have been a candidate for equally severe punishment.”
“Oh my friend, I can’t believe that I took such a huge risk!”
“That was the rule in your world, no risk no gain!”
It was at that moment that I truly realised the real significance of what I had managed to achieve as well as the magnitude of the danger I had managed to avoid. Spontaneously, I fell down on the ground in prostration. I kept thanking my Lord for a long time for helping me pass this test. Then, Saleh tapped me on my back and said:
“Get up, Abdullah!”
I got up and holding Saleh with both my hands, said to him:
“Saleh, I will never die now! I will never experience illness, old age, fear, grief, sadness and hopelessness in my life. I feel like jumping, dancing, laughing and screaming to tell the whole world that I have succeeded! I want to say that today is the day when my rule begins! I want to announce that today is the day when my life begins!”
Saleh just kept looking at me silently with a smile on his face. When I became quite, he said:
“Indeed, life will begin; but before that, we need to go back to the Plane of Judgement. We have to witness the circumstances of many people. God has given you a unique opportunity. Come on, let us go back to the Plane of Judgement.”
Source: http://www.understanding-islam.org.uk/archives/when-life-begins-preface/chapter-4-naimah.html |