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When Life Begins (Chapter 10: Accountability and The Inmates of Hell )
Posted By:peer On 6/11/2012

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By Abu Yahya (in Urdu).
Translated by Mahmud Ansari, Kamran Saeed, Fizza Rashid, Waseem Aslam & Bilal Khan

 

Chapter 10: Accountability and The Inmates of Hell


I had become miserable after witnessing those who had changed their religion being thrashed. My misery had compounded as I had also found quite a few acquaintances amongst them. Saleh took me back to the pond of Kauthar to soothe me. I felt better after I had spent some time in its pleasant environment all by myself. Thereafter, Saleh brought me back to the Plain of Judgement.

On our way back, he informed me that in our absence testimony of the remaining messengers of God had been completed and the stage of general accountability had commenced. This stage had also started with the followers of the last Prophet. Most people of this group had already heard Almighty’s verdict after going through the accountability process.

“It means that I missed a very important part of the accountability process.” I said.

“Yes you did, but don’t worry.  In Heaven, you will be able to watch its audio-video recording whenever you wish to do so.”  He laughingly responded to my question.

“But that is no match for watching it in real time!” I responded with a smile.

“Let me tell you something very interesting, though. When the polytheists within the followers of the last Prophet were taken to task for indulging in polytheism and idol worship, a large number denied that they had ever indulged in this heinous practice. Interestingly, they included people not only from the later eras but also those idol worshippers of Mecca who had directly benefitted from the presence of the last Prophet.”

“And what was the reason for their denial?” I asked.

“That was because today, everyone has seen with his own eyes that no one has any power apart from the Almighty. Initially, these people tried to call and find their gods, goddesses and idols. Obviously, there was no one who could answer their prayers. The angels and the pious human beings they used to worship and call for help instead of God denied having anything to do with what they did. Hence, they had no option but to deny their actions. However, this was of no use obviously and they were sentenced to a lifetime in Hell.”

“Who is going through the accountability process at this time?” I asked.

“Right now, it is the people from your era. That is the reason I have brought you here. As you can see, one by one, people are being presented before the Almighty for accountability. Two Angels accompany each person during this process. One of them walks behind him, escorting him to the Throne while the second walks along with him, carrying his book of deeds. The angel who is at the back is called ‘Saiq’ and the one who has the book of deeds is known as ‘Shaheed’.  Saiq is responsible for escorting each person from the Plane of Judgement to the Throne whereas Shaheed gives testimony about his deeds as written in the record. In fact, they are the same Angels who were present with every human being in the previous life. The one on the right had the job of noting down good deeds whereas the one on the left was tasked with documenting the bad deeds. They were referred to as ‘the honourable recorders’ in the Qur’an.”

“But over here, who is given the role of Saiq and who gets the responsibility of being a Shaheed?” I enquired.

“Only God knows it. He delegates them their responsibilities just before an individual is presented before him.”

When we reached there, we saw a civil servant who was in the dock. The Almighty asked him:

“What did you accomplish in the world?”

Trembling, he replied, “Oh God, no doubt I committed some mistakes.  However, afterwards I worshipped you at lot.  I dedicated the rest of my life for your religion.”

The angel standing by him said, following a cue by the Almighty. “He has told the truth, my Lord.”

He was asked again:

“You were a civil servant. Did you accept bribes? Did you force people to offer you bribes? Did you illegitimately enforce the law too harshly so that people were forced to offer you bribes?”

He admitted, “Yes I did. But I repented afterwards.”

The Almighty thundered,  “You repented! Did you?”

He could not utter a single word in reply.

The angel moved forward and started to read out aloud from his book of deeds. According to the record, he had constructed a house with his ill-gotten money and lived in that house all his life. He invested the money to increase his net worth, and then used it to pay for the higher education of his children.  He bought lots of ornaments and jewellery for his wife using the same illegitimate income. He continued to benefit from this wealth until his death. However, he did repent verbally and after retirement, he adopted the usual religious practices and appearance of a typical Muslim, such as keeping a beard, wearing a cap, praying regularly, etc.

As soon as the angel stopped speaking, the Almighty said.

“Put his book of deeds in the scale of justice.”

The angel on the right (Shaheed) took out his good deeds and placed them in the scale. Then the angel on the left side (Saiq) took out his bad deeds and placed them in the other arm of the scale. The civil servant watched all this with total helplessness and fear.

As soon as the angels finished their task, the result was obvious. Left arm of the scale had completely out-weighed the right arm. What he had earned through bribery, injustice and abuse of power completely overshadowed his good deeds. He started weeping and begged for mercy.

Almighty’s voice boomed. Did you ever feel pity for the people you used to extort money from and abuse? See. All that you had earned is of no use to you today. You are destined to Hell.

At that, the angel placed the book of deeds in his left hand.

The man started to lament even louder.  I did not do anything for myself. Whatever I did was for the sake of my wife and children. For God’s sake, let me go! Punish my family instead.

The angels replied, “They will be dealt with at their turn. For now, move on to your cursed destination!

The two angels dragged him away towards Hell, beating him heartlessly.

 



Next person to appear before the Almighty was a senior police officer. The Almighty Lord did not even address him directly. He asked the angel standing next to him about the contents of his book of deeds. In response, the angel narrated all the crimes that he had committed during his life. They included heinous crimes such as cruelty against public, murder of innocent people, patronage of gambling dens and brothels, adultery, drinking, corruption, and pleasure mongering etc. On the other hand, his good deeds were only those Eid prayers that he had attended half-heartedly to please his superiors.

The Almighty said to him, “Do you have anything to say in your defence?”

He replied, “My Lord! My objectionable conduct was due to the times I lived in. Bribery prevailed all around. I was forced to do these things due to the pressures of society as well as my superiors.”

The Almighty thundered,  “So you were forced to resort to this despicable life style?”

He then ordered a junior Police officer who had worked under him in the previous life, to be called in. In a short while, a very good-looking man, dressed in fine clothes, appeared. The Almighty addressed him:

“You served in the police force as well. Why did you not choose the path of oppression and corruption despite the prevailing atmosphere?”

He replied, “My Lord, it was the fear of being produced in front of you today that kept me away from these things. I refused to take bribes despite pressures from my colleagues to do so. Even though I spent my life in abject poverty, yet I never resorted to corruption.”

“You are right! This is the reason I have given a lot of weight to the small number of your good deeds and have awarded you with the life in the everlasting Paradise.”

He then addressed the first police officer, “The choice that you had was not about whether to get rich by choosing corruption, oppression and injustice, or to live a life of poverty. Rather, the choice you had was to choose a life of righteousness and go to paradise, or choose oppression and go to Hell; you chose to go to Hell. Now, this is your fate for the rest of your life!”

The police officer was not willing to give up so easily; he started to weep and said. My Lord, Satan misled me.

“No! In reality, you were yourself a devil! Even though, for me, you were more helpless than even an insignificant ant. You are a worthless man. Even when you oppressed other human beings, I was watching you. However, I gave you time to correct yourself. You did not avail it! You were under the impression that you would not have to face me in this court. Now you can see that you were wrong.”

As these words, full of wrath & fury, were being delivered, the sound of the roaring flames from Hell was getting progressively louder from the left side of the Plane of Judgement. The hearts of people in the Plane of Judgement were trembling with horror due to this roar & thunder. People were petrified to death! Everyone seemed extremely tense. Their eyes had a blank look and the faces had darkened with misery. The hearts were beating so fast that it felt that they would pop out of the chests. However, today, there was nowhere to run to, and no place to hide. As each wrongdoer received the verdict, other offenders felt increasingly worse. There were all sorts of people waiting for their turn. They included emperors, extremely powerful leaders, wheeler-dealers, dictators, billionaires, famous celebrities and power brokers. All of them were waiting helplessly for their fate to be decided, like slaves, perhaps more like a flock of sheep. Today there was no one who could save them.

Record of deeds of the police officer was put in the scale of justice; as expected, the left arm was significantly lower. The angel tried to hand over his record and place it in his left hand but he pulled it back. Obviously, he was nothing in strength as compared to the angel, who tied his hands at the back and then shoved the record in his left hand. Thereafter, both angels started thrashing him and dragged him away towards the roaring flames of hell where a much worse fate awaited him.


 

The person brought in next was a fabulously rich man.

He was asked, “You left behind mounds of wealth. Say, how did you earn it and how did you spend it?”

He submitted, “My Lord, I earned my wealth through trade. Whatever I earned, I spent on the poor.”

The Lord signalled to the angel standing next to him. He started to narrate the details. The man earned billions. Initially he had a small business. He earned huge profits through adulteration and hoarding of essential items like, sugar, flour etc. His business expanded rapidly due to these despicable practices. Later on, he expanded in to other businesses. However, this time he formed a cartel of criminal minded Businessmen. The basic purpose of this cartel was to manipulate the market in order to inflate prices for various commodities. This cartel included influential people who used their political connections as well as bribery to fix favourable prices. As a result, the common man suffered while the profits of these Businessmen increased from millions to billions and then to trillions. In order to project a good image of himself in the society, he used to donate small sums to charity from time to time and ear praise for it.

Once the angel had completed his statement, there was not much left to say. However, the Businessman was quite cunning. He started to shout and claimed that what had just been said was not true and that he was innocent. He claimed that he did everything according to the prevalent law and in response to the requirements of the marketplace. He alleged that the angel was lying and that there was no proof against him. He was wailing relentlessly.

The Almighty replied, “So you need proof? That shall be provided!”

With these words, his ability to speak was taken away. Suddenly, his hands started talking. They narrated more or less the same statement as was brought forward by the angel. A similar testimony was provided by his feet, and by the rest of his body. Finally, his heart started talking and brought forward hitherto unknown intentions that were not even recorded in the angel’s ledger.

After this account, there was not much left to say. The only additional misery ordained on him was that the angels were ordered to heat up all his wealth and sear his body with the same. This was in addition to the regular sufferings of the hell. The angels dragged him away mercilessly towards his final abode.


 
One by one, people were being brought in and their cases were being decided. Some of those cases were horrible to watch.

A person was brought in. It looked like he had tons of good deeds to his credit. Prayers, Pilgrimages to Mecca, Fasting, Nawafils and all kind of prayers one could think of. However, once the angel started mentioning his relations with other human beings, it became obvious that there were people against whom he had used foul language, some he had deprived of their belongings, others he had wrongfully accused, and a few he had beaten up badly and so on. All of his victims were called in. His good deeds were divided amongst them in proportion to the grievances caused to them.  This went on until he ran out of good deeds. However, there were some more victims still in the queue. To compensate them, their bad deeds were transferred to his account. When it came down to weighing, the left side of the scale weighed a lot more. The man started to cry, but in vain.  The angels mercilessly dragged him away towards the Hell.

Watching some of them got me worried about my own fate. One of them was a scholar. Having been reminded of the blessings bestowed upon him, he was asked what he had done to show his gratefulness to God. He boasted about his educational achievements and preaching efforts. He was told that he was lying.  He had done whatever he had only to be known as a great scholar.  This reward had already been given to him in the world; he had become known as a renowned scholar.

The decision was obvious. Angels dragged him away face downwards towards hell. A martyr and a generous person met the same fate. When questioned, they boasted about their good deeds, but they were given the same verdict. All they had done was to earn fame and a name in the world, which they had already received. They did not do anything for God. Hence, today God did not have anything good to offer to them. They were also sent to hell.

While watching these scenes, I was trying to visualize those of my deeds that I had performed solely for God and those that I did to earn a place in the hearts of people in the world.




During this process of judgement and accountability, some strange and hitherto unknown things were being brought to light. They included facts about conspiracies, assassination of famous personalities, events that took place at homes, in offices and at local or international level. The factors behind those events, the people involved, details of secret & closed doors meetings, how the things started and then reached their culmination came out as they had actually happened.  Everything had become clear as daylight today. Honourable were becoming dis-honourable. Noble were coming out as ignoble. God witnessed each & every moment of the lives of people who lived their lives totally oblivious of him. Neither a word was uttered, nor did a thought or intent come to mind without being noticed by Him. Every act, even smaller than the smallest particle, had been recorded. Today, the truth was being brought to surface for all to see in such a way that every person felt denuded.

I was witnessing these scenes and thinking about my own sins & shortcomings. I was afraid for my own fate. What would happen if my sins and misdeeds were revealed? Even without punishment, the awareness that everyone would come to know about my misdeeds would itself be the greatest and most humiliating punishment of the day.

Saleh had probably read my mind. Patting me on the back, he said. “God will never humiliate his pious beings. His exalted benevolence will conceal their bad deeds. Nobody will come to know about their weaknesses, faltering or sins. Do not worry.  You won’t find anyone more benevolent and magnanimous than your Lord.”

“I have no doubt about it. However, right now I am witnessing the grasp of the Almighty. The façade of nobility is also being torn away from the faces of evildoers prior to their departure to eternal torture,” I muttered worriedly.

Saleh consoled me, “this treatment is being meted out to the criminals only. Before subjecting them to physical punishment, they are also being put through the mental torture of humiliation."

Meanwhile another person was brought in. As soon as he approached the Almighty, he lamented. “O God! I was born in a very poor family. I spent my childhood in extreme poverty. I made some mistakes during my youth. Please forgive me!”

He asked an angel, “ Did I test him through poverty?”

The Angel replied respectfully, “O God, he is right about poverty. However, what he calls “some mistakes” were actually crimes of the most heinous nature. He chose to be a bandit. To grab a little cash, a mobile phone and such other petty things, he not only injured a lot of human beings but also killed many.”

“So this is what the truth is!” These words were uttered with such rage and ferocity that the future of the man became crystal-clear.

“O despicable creature! No doubt, I destined you to be born in a poor family. Yet I gave you a chance to progress by endowing you with a healthy body and lot of capabilities. If you had endeavoured in the right way, I would have given you your share of livelihood that had already been destined for you. However, you got the very same share by looting and killing humans. Now, you have to face the consequences of your misdeeds by taking over sins of all those people you either killed or harmed.

The verdict is that you will burn in eternal hell and you shall live through that torture forever. You are cursed! You have to face endless pain.”

As soon as the verdict was finalized, the angels pounced on him and, thrashing him mercilessly, dragged him to hell.

 


 

When I saw the next person who was presented for accountability, I felt miserable. It was no one else but Aasmah, my daughter’s friend. She was in a state even worse than what I had seen her in, the last time. She was presented in front of the Lord.

The first question was asked, “Did you pray five times a day?”

Aasmah stood silent. She was asked again, “Were you paralyzed? Did you not believe in God? Did you think you were God? Did you have no time for me? Or was it someone else besides me who had bestowed worldly blessings upon you?”

Aasmah could not find the words to say in her defence. An angel replied instead of her.

“Lord, she used to say: God does not need our prayers.”

“She was correct.  By now, she would have understood that I did not need her worship. She was the one who needed to pray. Prayer is the key to Heaven. How can anyone enter Heaven without it?”

Thereafter, Aasmah was asked a few more questions. How did she spend her life? How did she spend her youth? How did she earn money and where did she spend it? How much knowledge did she acquire and how much of it she actually put in practice? Questions about obligatory charity, helping other people, fasting, Hajj etc. and other questions were asked one by one. However, these questions only increased her misery and humiliation. At last, she started to wail loudly. She said; “My Lord, I was oblivious to this day. I spent my entire life like an animal. I spent my days in pursuit of money, fashion, friendships, worldly relations and enjoyment. I had forgotten about this Day of Judgement and your might. My Lord! Forgive me. Send me back to the Earth once again. I will spend my whole life in praising you and in prayer. I will never disobey your commands! Please grant me one more chance.”

“If I send you back once more, you will still do the same deeds as you did the first time. Even if I grant you one more chance, your behaviour will not change. I had conveyed my message to you but your eyes were closed. You had become blind. That is why you shall be thrown in the dark chasm of Hell. There is neither forgiveness for you, nor a second chance!”

Aasmah faced the same horrible fate that was meted out to other criminals prior to her.

 




Having witnessed Aasmah’s fate, I became extremely disturbed. Subconsciously, I was afraid that if the same horrible punishment was meted out to my son Jamshaid, perhaps I will not be able to witness it. I said to Saleh:

"I do not have the strength to stay here anymore. Please take me away from here."

Saleh understood my condition. Without a word, he held my hand and started moving in a certain direction. All along the way, there were horrible scenes. There were people who were in the last stages of extreme suffering after being exposed to the severest hardships in the plane of Judgement for unfathomable centuries. People who had possessed all sorts of abilities in various fields were moving round in a pitiable condition; they included the wealthy, the powerful, the influential, the intelligent, the beautiful and the people who had authority in the world. They had everything in the world. What they did not have was faith and abundance of good deeds. They were the most deprived today. The wealthy were the saddest. Those who were free of all worries in the world were in the worst shape here. Those who had been made to suffer for thousands of years were praying for death, hoping for mercy, seeking intercession or favour. They were wandering around in a miserable state and being randomly beaten up by the angels. Forlorn and completely exhausted with hunger and thirst, their condition was pitiable. The intensity of heat was taking its toll and they were prepared to do anything to gain respite, no matter how brief. They were even willing to sacrifice their children, wives and families, their entire wealth and previous possessions in return for an escape from their predicament. However, it was not possible. The opportunity of being eligible to receive the gift of paradise in return for spending a little money or time in the way of God was now lost. These people had spent their entire lives on their careers, children and property. Alas, if only they had also spent a portion of their time in the service of God and to prepare for this day, they would not have been in such a dire state.

On the plane of Accountability, names of people were being called regularly. When a name was called, two angels would quickly move in his direction and present him in front of the exalted Creator. It seemed that the angels had their targets in sight and from a crowd of millions; they could find the required person in no time. My eyes searched for Jamshaid subconsciously, but I could not locate him anywhere. Saleh saw my predicament and said:

“I am not taking you to him deliberately. A verdict for Hell has already been announced for his wife, children and in-laws.  No one knows what will be his fate. It would be best if you do not meet him till such time God decides something for him."

On hearing his opinion, I should have become gloomy and despondent. However, somehow, and for an unknown reason, a different feeling overtook me. I said to Saleh:

“Whatever be the decision of my God, it will be entirely acceptable to me. I may love my son a lot, but God loves him and all of his creatures thousands of time more than anyone else. In fact, if the affection of all beings is taken collectively, my creator loves his beings even more than that. Even if there is one per cent chance of being forgiven, he will be forgiven! On the other hand, if he is not worthy of forgiveness under any circumstances, then I have no sympathy for someone who is a criminal of such magnitude in the eyes of my Creator, even if he is my son."

On hearing this, Saleh smiled and said:

“You are so different, so very different!”

"No. I am neither different, nor better. In fact, my Creator is supreme. He has filled my heart with peace & tranquillity. I am not concerned about anything now.”

"That’s the right way to think. Now you have taken a turn for better. You have again become Abdullah, a servant of God rather than being merely a father. I can tell you that even now there is a chance of Jamshaid being forgiven. God Almighty is using hardships suffered in the plane of Accountability as redemption of sins for many, and taking into account their good deeds, he is forgiving them. It was a coincidence that you witnessed the accountability of the convicted. Even now, some people are still being forgiven as according to the exalted standards of justice of God, no truly good deed is ignored.”

I replied. "No doubt! God values all good deeds. Where are we heading now?"

"We are going to visit the Hell. I would like you to meet the inmates of Hell."

"Do we have to be actually inside the Hell to do that?"

"No, it is not so. The condemned have now been moved to close proximity of Hell. On the left where you can see flat ground, there is a path that progressively gets deeper and ultimately becomes a ditch. The seven doors leading to Hell are located in it. As you read in the Qur’an, there are seven different types of convicts. Each enters through one of the seven doors."

While Saleh was explaining these details, I saw a path that was sloping downwards in the flat field. We did not go down that path but started to walk on the higher ground adjacent to it. In a short while, the lower path narrowed and took the shape of a ditch. Since we were on high ground, we could see the scene down below clearly. Angels were positioned all along the path; they were bringing the convicts, beating and dragging them in the process.

A little farther on, there was a huge crowd on the narrow path and in the ditch. Ugly, wretched men and women were jam packed there like sardines in a can. They were cruel, lewd sinners whose fate had already been announced; they were being held there like animals in a pen prior to being sent to Hell.

Every now and then flames of hellfire rose and reached skywards. The impact of these flames had coloured the sky red. Noise of the fire burning with ferocity was shaking the hearts of these convicts. Every once a while a stray spark, as big as a palace, would fall in this ditch and would cause a huge commotion. In order to avoid this ball of fire, people would run trampling and jumping over others. The frequency of this increased whenever a major convict was brought towards this group.  A ball of fire would welcome him, enhancing the anguish and suffering of the sinners.

Saleh pointed in a certain direction and said to me:

"Look there!"

When I looked in that direction, I could suddenly hear all the voices coming from there clearly.

These were leaders and their followers arguing amongst themselves. The followers were saying to their leaders, “we opposed the truth at your behest. You promised to save us if we are to face any punishment in the hereafter. Can you now take over some of our punishment from us or at least show us a way out of it? After all, you were all very intelligent and had a solution for every problem.”

The leaders were saying, “If we knew a way, we would have saved ourselves first. In addition, we did not say that you must follow us. We did not force you to do. You followed our way as it was in your interest. We will have to face the music together.”

On hearing this, the followers said, “O God! These leaders led us astray. Therefore, make them suffer twice the punishment we receive.” The leaders replied, “How would cursing us help you?”

Witnessing this, Saleh commented, “There will be double punishment for all of them. This is because the followers became the leaders of those that came thereafter and thus lead them astray. Look over there! More of their followers are arriving.”

When I looked in that direction, I saw that the commotion had increased. Fervent pushing and shoving had started in the crowd as more sinners were brought in to the already overcrowded space. The leaders lamented that the place was already packed and still more of the wretched and condemned were being brought in. On receiving such an unwelcome reception, the new comers also lost their cool. Verbal abuses flew in the air; scuffles soon ensued.  It was not possible for me to truly appreciate the condition of these miserable people just by watching them and listening to them in this suffocating environment of kicking, punching, pushing, shoving and shouting; one had to personally experience such misery to fathom its true extent. However, I was sure that these people must have been remembering their previous lives with utmost regret where, they had every opportunity to strive for paradise but sadly, they chose hell in preference to it. They earned eternal misery just for the sake of a few days of pleasure, benefits, desires and prejudices.

Saleh said to me:

"These people have not even been sent to hell yet. The punishment over there will be significantly more severe. They will have a yoke placed around their necks as a mark of slavery and disgrace. Their clothes will be inflammable, made from sulphur and coal tar that would catch fire from a distance. The fire would scald their faces and bodies. They will writhe in pain but no one will come to their help nor will anybody have mercy on them. Their skin, once totally burnt, will be replaced by new skin that will develop a severe itch. They will scratch themselves so strenuously that they will bleed from everywhere but the itch would neither go, nor decrease in severity.

Whenever they are hungry, they will have thorn-covered bushes and fruit of bitter poisonous Zaqqum trees. For drinking, there will be pungent and smelly sediment of pus, boiling water and bubbling hot oil. It will burn the innards of stomach and will boil inside their bellies.  The intensity of their thirst would be such that like a camel that is dying of thirst, they would be forced to drink whatever is available to them. These boiling liquids will burn and destroy their intestines, pushing them out of their bodies.

In Hell, angels will bludgeon them with mammoth hammers. Their bodies will be severely wounded. The blood and pus that will ooze from their wounds will be given to other convicts to drink. Thereafter, they will be tied by chains and will be thrown in a tight place. Death will approach them from every side yet they will not die. At that time, the best news for them will be to die but they will not die. At short intervals, they will continue to suffer these tortures and punishments forever.

On hearing these horrendous details, I was shaken up. Saleh added more to his earlier discourse:

“The condemned, prior to being sent to hell, will be brought here and made to sit on their knees around the corners of Hell. Thus, the first punishment for them would be to witness the entire process with their own eyes. Then, in groups, they will be rammed into the narrow and dark crevices in Hell and the process of punishment I just described shall commence.”

“So, will all dwellers of Hell be subjected to the same treatment?” I asked.

“No. What I have narrated will be the fate of major sinners. Others will receive a somewhat lighter punishment. However, even that lighter treatment will be beyond endurance!”

Saleh then pointed in another direction. I noticed some hideous and ugly characters. Saleh started to point out their identities explaining to me as to who had denied the message of which messenger of God and opposed him. I particularly took a good look at Nimrod and Pharaoh as I had heard a lot about them. Along with them were Abu-Jehl, Abu-Lahab and other leaders of the tribe of Quraish. Their condition was so horrible that it was beyond words to describe. These so-called powerful leaders of their times were in condition worse than that of even the lowliest slaves. Their crime was that truth was revealed to them in its ultimate state but they did not accept it. They chose to be defiant against God and chose the path of being unjust and cruel against his creatures.

While I was lost in the scene, Saleh brought a very strange scene to my attention. A giant man was standing in the middle of this commotion. Flames were emanating from his body and he was enslaved in chains. He was addressing the condemned in these words:

“See! What God promised you was true, and the promises I made to you were all lies. Do not curse me today! I am not responsible for any of your deeds. It is not my fault. I had no control over you. Whatever you did was of your own free will and accord. If you listened to me, how could that be my fault? Do not blame me; blame yourselves! Today, neither I can do anything for you, nor you can do anything for me.”

I could guess from the contents of his speech as to who he was. To confirm it, I turned towards Saleh.  He said:

“You have guessed correctly. He is Satan, the one who was the most disobedient towards God. Today, the harshest punishment will also be for him. However, other people will also receive punishment for their doings."

I was witnessing this scene from a vantage point, and was offering my gratitude to God Almighty in my heart for having protected me from the deceptions and evils of Satan. Even though this disgraced character had tried on numerous occasions in my life to mislead me from the right path, but God had always kept me in his protection. It was my routine to seek God’s protection from the accursed Satan often. Thus, my God had kept my dignity intact. Yet, those who followed their carnal desires and befriended Satan had met the worst end.

At that moment, Saleh turned towards me and said:

"Abdullah lets go. You are being called."

“Why?” I asked.

"Jamshaid is about to be presented for is accountability. Your testimony is required."

"My testimony?"

"Yes, your testimony.”

"Will I be a witness for him or against him?”

"Listen! If God has decided to forgive him, he will ask you something whose answer will go in his favour. On the other hand, if he has decided to punish him on account of his sins, he will ask you something that will go against him. It is also possible that the Almighty decides to deal with it in a totally different way. Only God knows the final outcome."

My nerves that had calmed down by now started to play up again. With a trembling heart and unsteady steps, I accompanied Saleh.

 


 << Chapter 9: The Nation of Noah and The Ones who distorted their Faith Chapter 11: At Last..  >> 

 

Source: http://www.understanding-islam.org.uk/archives/when-life-begins-preface/chapter-4-naimah/941-when-life-begins-chapter-10.html




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