Anecdotes for Reflection Part 4

74. The Day of Judgment =======================

Allah, the Wise, has said:

“And you shall only be paid fully your reward on the resurrection day”[^1]

Imam Ali (peace be upon him) said:

“For the people, there is no escape from Qiyaamah”[^2]

Short Explanation

After the Purgatory (Barzakh), all the people shall gather together on a Day in which they would either be rewarded or punished and it would be God, Who would be the Judge over them.

Those who had rejected and denied the truth would be led by the angels towards torture and chastisement, while those who had endured hardships in the way of religion and refrained themselves from sins would be heralded towards Paradise.

That day is the Qiyaamah in which none shall be able to object or protest; this is because in that angelic realm, all the deeds committed in the world would be found recorded in a manner such that not a single deed would be concealed or hidden for anyone to register a protest.

1. The Plaintiff of the Day of Judgment

Ja’far Tayyaar, the brother of Amirul Mu'mineen (peace be upon him), together with eighty two other Muslims, emigrated to Ethiopia in the fifth year after the proclamation of the Prophethood by the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him and his holy progeny) so that not only would they remain safe from the persecutions of the polytheists, but they would also be able to propagate Islam there.

These emigrants stayed there for around twelve years, returning to Medinah in the year 7 A.H., that is, around the time when the Muslims had emerged victorious in the battle of Khaibar.

It has been reported that the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him and his holy progeny) asked Ja'far: During your stay in Ethiopia, what strange thing did you witness there?

He replied: I witnessed a black Ethiopian woman passing by, carrying a large basket on her head. An eve-teaser elbowed her causing her to fall down, as a result of which the basket on her head fell to the ground as well. The woman turned to the person and said: “Woe unto you from the Judge of the Day of Judgment, Who shall grant justice to the oppressed from the oppressor.”

The Holy Prophet (peace be upon him and his holy progeny) hearing this, was also overcome with great astonishment over this startling speech of the woman.[^3]

2. The Most Wicked of the People on the Day of Judgment

Abdullah Ibn Ubayy Salool (one of the most obstinate hypocrites of early Islam and a staunch enemy of the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him and his holy progeny) sought permission to arrive in his (peace be upon him and his holy progeny) presence.

When the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him and his holy progeny) came to realize who had come, he expressed his displeasure at the thought of having to meet him; however, he ordered: Allow him to enter.

When he had entered, the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him and his holy progeny) seated him and spoke to him in a warm and friendly manner. When Abdullah had departed, A’aishah queried: O’ Prophet of God! You had not spoken well of him before his entry, however, after he had entered, you spoke to him in a very cordial manner.

The Holy Prophet (peace be upon him and his holy progeny) stated: O’ A’aishah! The most iniquitous of all people on the Day of Judgment shall be one, whom the people respect in order that they may remain safe from his evils.[^4]

3. Fear of the Day of Judgment

Whenever the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him and his holy progeny) would leave for a battle, he would make it a point to establish a bond of brotherhood between two of his companions; he did so between Sa’eed Ibn A'bd al-Rahmaan and Tha’labah Ansaari before he left for the battle of Tabuk.

Sa’eed accompanied the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him and his holy progeny) for jihad while Tha’labah stayed back and was responsible for looking after his family.

One day when Tha'labah went to Sa’eed’s house for arranging food provisions for his family, the Satan tempted him to look at Sa’eed’s wife, and before long, he was soon overcome with lust. Approaching near, he placed his hand upon her, at which point she cried out: Is it appropriate that while your brother has gone on jihad, you intend to violate the chastity of his wife?

These words affected him so drastically that he set out into the wilderness and upon reaching the base of a mountain, fell onto the ground and began weeping day and night - remorseful of his evil action.

When the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him and his holy progeny) and his companions returned from battle, all the people from the city thronged to welcome their brothers, except Tha'labah. Sa’eed went to his house and questioned his wife about Tha'labah, whereupon she informed him of what had transpired.

Sa’eed came out of his house and began to search for Tha'labah till he eventually found him seated near a stone and repentantly slapping his head and wailing out loudly: Woe from the shame and humiliation of the Day of Judgment.

Sa’eed took him in his arms, consoled him and sought to take him to the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him and his holy progeny) to find out a way for his forgiveness, but Tha'labah said: Tie my hands and place a rope around my neck in an appearance similar to that of slaves who have attempted to run away.

When Sa'eed brought him before the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him and his holy progeny), he (peace be upon him and his holy progeny) said to him: You have indeed committed a grave offence. Go away from me, seek forgiveness from God and await His orders.

After a period of time, when the verse of Forgiveness and Repentance[^5] was revealed at the time of the A'sr prayers, the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him and his holy progeny) sent Ali (peace be upon him) and Salman to bring Tha'labah.

They set out into the desert in search of him, eventually finding him conversing with his Lord and seeking His forgiveness. Witnessing his state, Amirul Mu'mineen’s (peace be upon him) eyes filled up with tears and he (peace be upon him) gave him the good news that God had forgiven him!

It was night when they brought him to Medinah; the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him and his holy progeny) was reciting the chapter al-Takaathur in the Maghribain prayers. No sooner did Tha'labah hear the first verse[^6], he gave out a cry; hearing the second verse[^7], he shrieked loudly and when he heard the third verse[^8], he fell down unconscious; after the prayers, people found that he had died.

The Holy Prophet (peace be upon him and his holy progeny) and the companions began to weep. He (peace be upon him and his holy progeny) instructed that Tha'labah be given the ablutions and prayers offered over him. As he (peace be upon him and his holy progeny) accompanied Tha’labah’s funeral procession, he was seen to be walking on the tips of his toes. When the people sought to know the reason for it, he (peace be upon him and his holy progeny) said: The angels who had come to participate in his prayers and join his funeral procession were so great in number that I had to walk upon my toes![^9]

4. Imam al-Mujtaba

When Imam Hasan (peace be upon him) was about to die, those around him observed that he (peace be upon him) was weeping and so they asked: O’ Son of the Prophet of God! Despite your relationship with the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him and his holy progeny) and the rank and status that the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him and his holy progeny) has mentioned about you do you still weep? Twenty times you have performed Hajj on foot; on three occasions you have given one half of all your wealth in the way of God, and yet you weep?

The Imam (peace be upon him) said: I weep due to fear of Qiyaamah and separation from my friends.[^10]

5. Taubah Ibn Summah

There lived a person by the name of Taubah Ibn Summah, who spent most of the time of his day and night in vigilance and self-examination of his soul.

One day he sat to count the number of days he had lived and calculated the figure to be 21,500. When the enormity of the figure struck him, he said: Woe unto me! Would I be meeting the Exalted God on the Day of Judgment with this figure? If I were to have committed even one sin per day, I would have 21,500 sins; what then would be my state? Having said this, he fell down unconscious.

When the people approached him, they found that he had died in that state of unconsciousness; it was only the thought and fear of the reckoning of the Day of Judgment that brought about his death.[^11]

[^1]: Holy Qur'an, ch. Aale I’mraan (3), vs. 185.

[^2]: Nahjul Balaghah (Faidh), pg. 488.

[^3]: Hikaayat-ha-e-Shanidani, vol. 2, pg. 12; Aa’laam al-Waraa, pg. 21.

[^4]: Baa Mardum In Guneh Barkhord Koneem, pg. 129; Mustadrak al-Wasaail, vol. 2, pg. 92.

[^5]: Holy Qur'an, ch. Aale I’mraan (3), vs.135.

[^6]: أَلْهاكُمُ التَّكاثُرُ

[^7]: حَتَّى زُرْتُمُ الْمَقابِرَ

[^8]: كَلاَّ سَوْفَ تَعْلَمُونَ

[^9]: Khazinah al-Jawaahir, pg. 315; Raudhah al-Anwaar of Sabzwaari.

[^10]: Pand-e-Taareekh, vol. 4, pg. 208.

[^11]: Sarmaayeh-e-Sa’adat, pg. 39.