Journey of the Unseen World

Chapter 1b - the Station of the Grave and the Beginning of Barzakh Westward Travel

Actually, "I am the relationship of love and friendship which you had with Imam Ali and the Ahlebait of the Holy Prophet. My meeting and helping a person depends upon the strength of that relationship, that is to say, it depends upon his capability I'm called the Haadi (the guide) because the love of Ahlebait guides a man towards good deeds, but only according to his capability. In other words, I was your guide as far as you are concerned and Ali is the Imam, guide and leader of all the pious people on earth. And the Holy Quran, 'that is the Book, there is no doubt in it, it is a guidance for the pious.' this book and myself we are your guides to the extent of the connections and relations which you had with us And 'One who disowns tempestuousness and believes in God, then verily he has taken hold of the strong rope which is not going to break. And so I am not going to part with you, unless you yourself part with me through following your carnal desires. This is why I am called Abul Wata. The (father of Faithfulness) and Abu Turab (Father of Earth).

(Here who author has embodied the love of Ahlebait to show how this love will come to help in all situations. The famous tradition of the Holy Prophet says; song who dies loving of the Progeny of Mohammed, dies a Martyr". Imam Mohammed Baqir stated to Abu Khalid Kabuli "O, Abu Khalid! By God, the love of Ahlebait illuminates the heart of the faith rut like the sun illuminates the day". Imam shaafai says. "I firmly hold on to the rope (covenant) of Allah, as we have been commanded, and this is the love of Ahlebait". But it should be pointed out that mere vows of love are not sufficient unless one's deeds are also in accordance. The eighth Imam, Raze (A.S.) said: awe do not, have a permit to free any one from the flames of Half. And our intercession cannot overcome Divine Justice. One who is obedient to Allah is our friend, and the one who is disobedient is our foe"'. This shows that a claim of love and friendship of Ahlebait will hold only when backed with deeds which are according to Ahlebait's wishes and desires. Otherwise to continue leading a life bereft of good deeds and even indulging in evil and wrong and then to depend upon the love of Ahlebait is to deceive one self)

In short, my creation is from the light of Ali (A.S.) I was present in your heart in accordance with your capability, that is, to the extent that you acted in accordance with your vows of love of Ali. I could only stay with you when you did good; when you were disobedient, I used to part with you. Similarly, here I will be with you when you are rewarded for your good deeds, but when you are punished for your evil actions, you will not find me present. Allah has stated in the Quran: 'This is because God does not do injustice to his people. but they do injustice to themselves.'

"However. Today was the last day O your tile on earth and is the first day of the Hereafter. I was merely a trust of God given to your for sate keeping. What saddens me most is that you have read the Quran time and again and the Quran is full of my mention, yet today you did not even recognise me. Anyway, I'll leave now and for the present you may rest, 'God be with you."

Haadi went away, leaving me alone. I started contemplating on the events and the fact dawned upon me that it was as if life in the world was a dream and man wakes up after death to find the interpretation of his dream becoming a reality.

"O Pity that I overstepped (the bounds) in the court of Allah" (Soora-e-zarnr verse 53) (that is, I kept sinning, without realising God to be present and a witness to my deeds), but now it was useless to cry and feel pitiful for myself because the door of atonement and repentance was now closed. l was engulfed in these thoughts when I fell asleep, but I was soon awakened by another calamity. This time I felt two men sitting on either side: the one on the right was beautiful, but the one on left was ugly to look at. They were sniffing my body from head to toe and kept entering something in the files which they had in their hands. They had brought along some boxes of various sizes and they kept the body like the heart, the power of thought, power of intention, were subjected time and again to their sniffing whilst they whispered amongst themselves, repeated the sniffing procedure, filled the boxes and sealed them.

I remained still that they might not realise I was awake but I was terrified because I realised that they were judging my deeds and recording them. The good looking man seemed to be a well-wisher because from what little I could overhear it seemed as if he was not allowing those sins for which I had repented to be recorded. At times he would say that such and such sin had been compensated by a certain good deed that I had done, just as the alchemist's elixir turns earth into gold. So I developed a liking for this person because of his kindness towards me. When they finished writing, they folded the sheets and wrapped them around my neck like fetters, and they put the sealed boxes in a bag and placed it by my head.

Then I saw them bringing an iron cage; it had thick iron bars and was about my size. They put me inside and bolted it. Then, as they turned its lever, it started to constrict, tightening on my body. It became so tight that it became difficult to breath, and I felt that I could not even call to anybody for help. They kept turning the lever until the cage which had originally been my size was now no bigger than a small cooking vessel; small and hot. My. bones cracked and brake and quite literally oil oozed out of my body as black as soot. They mopped it up but I had fainted and was unaware of what was going on.

When I became conscious again, I found my head in Haadi's lap I said, "Haadi forgive me. But I am feeling so bad that I cannot even get up. My joints have all broken, and I cannot yet breathe properly." My voice had gone weak and I was crying as if I was reproaching Haadi for not being present when I had needed him so much. This was the first constriction that I had ever faced. Haadi consoled me and told me that what had happened to me was an unavoidable event which everyone had to face in the first stage in the grave. Anyhow, he hoped that I would not have to face similar events in the future. Secondly, he said, all events here were a result of my own past deeds.

(Constriction in the grave and other punishments of the Barzakh, are the result of whose sins which one has not repented for. It has nothing to do with correctness of one's faith. The possibility exists that a person though a (we faithful commits certain mistakes or sins in his life time. and will have to bear the punishment for these in the Hereafter. Therefore man should only sin to a extent that he can bear to be punished for, Saad lbne Maaz was one of the respected companions of the Holy Prophet. When he died, the Holy Prophet accompanied his funeral barefoot and without his cloak to show his grief. The Prophet himself laid Saad in the grave. prayed for him and said that Gabreil and Meekail along with a host of angels were present in the funeral But when Saad's mother said, 'C Saad! You are indeed fortunate that the Holy Prophet has walked barefoot in your funeral and has lowered you in your grave, The Holy Prophet asked her to be quiet and said, You cannot prevent him from suffering the punishment of the grave. Saad did not treat his family members kindly and so is now suffering constriction.)

But the cage that you saw is created by men's own evil traits. It is possible that for some it might be thousand times more painful.

There are three basic vices

1. Avarice and greed.
2. Conceit and arrogance.
3. Jealousy.

The first of these was responsible for the expulsion of Adam from heaven, the second expelled Satan from God's court and the third sent Kane headlong to Hell, From these three stem thousands of branches and depending on lack or excess of these, men possess their individual characters and traits.

Haadi kept on talking and consoling me. Simultaneously, he kept moving his hands gently over my back, sides and other affected parts. and it relieved my pain and gave me renewed strength.

My body appeared to have been purged of all debasements and had become pure and clean. I now understood that the constriction had actually been an act of purifying, so that if man possessed evil traits these debasements would, as a result of the constriction, be squeezed out of him like the black oil which I had seen.

In reply to my questioning. Haadi replied. "The big bag contains your luggage. Open it so that I may also see what you have brought along for your journey.

I opened the bag and found inside the sealed boxes. Some of these contained an inscription that they were meant to be used at certain destinations. There were also packets of rewards and punishments containing labels that they would be opened at specific places. I asked Haadi. 'What do these boxes contain?"

Haadi replied, These are the very moments of the days and nights that you have spent in which you have done good or evil. Whenever an act was committed, the boxes opened like oysters and preserved your acts like valuable gems. These moments are now present in these boxes in front of you."

Then I asked, What is this chain in my neck?" Haadi replied. "This is your Deed Sheet. You will be judged on its basis on the Day of Judgement. For the present (in Barzakh) it is not required. As the. Quran says in Soora-e-Asra, verse 14 'we have made the destiny of every human being cling to his neck and we shall bring forth for him on the Day of Resurrection a book which he will find wide open."

Then he said. "l see that you have very little provision for your life in the Eternal abode. I suggest that you stay here for a few Fridays as your friends and heirs in the world might send some gifts for you, because the Holy Prophet has said, 'The more provision you have in your journey (of Hereafter) the better it is' I will go now and, try to obtain a passport for you from the '(mg of the World and the Hereafter. No orders have been issued in this regard in the past week. On Thursday night, I suggest you. go and visit your family. Maybe they will think of you and pray for your well being and forgiveness."

Haadi left and I sat down to wait for his return. But my stay now was in a pleasant place and the room was well carpeted. Thursday night arrived but there was yet no sign of Haadi. I decided to follow his advice and in the form of a white dove, I alighted on a branch of a tree near my house on earth in order to see my family.

(Allama Majlisi in his book haqqul Yaqeen writes that the spirits came to visit their family weekly. monthly, or annually depending upon their rank. They arrive in the form of a bird, and sit on the wall of the house and watch. If the family members are happy and busy in good deeds, the spirit also becomes happy and if otherwise. the spirit becomes sad- On Thursday nights, these spirits arrive and the spirits at the faithful are accompanied by an angel. If the family members are in any kind of hardship, then the angel shields them from the spirit's view, that he may not be troubled by their plight.)

I saw my family members but I was all the more saddened. They were doing what they considered would prove beneficial for me. My friends and relatives had gathered. Quran was being recited, a Majlis was being addressed, and good food had been prepared. But I could feel that aft this was merely for custom's sake. The sole aim was to put up a good show. The people being served the dinner were all wealthy and not in the least needy. Not a single poor or deprived and deserving soul was to be seen. Of what good was such food for me? One could see that even the guests, who had come to fulfil the customs, were so callous that when by mistake they were not served promptly, they did not hesitate from cursing me and my heirs. My relatives were not even mourning Imam Hussein, some were lamenting that they were now bereft of a guardian.

Others were crying over the loss of their sustainer and worrying for the future. It was clear that they had no thoughts for me, and were only interested in themselves, so much so, that they were even oblivious of their own hereafter. Of what use was all this for me? It saddened me further that they seemed to be complaining as if the Master and the Creator had committed an injustice unto them; they were objecting to the actions of the Wise and All-knowing God. I lost hopes of receiving any good from this quarter and directly returned to my abode. I was close to expressing my anger at and displeasure with, my family, but then I realised that for them the misfortune of being separated from me was calamity enough. When I reached my grave, I found Haadi waiting inside for me. I saw a tray of ripe and fresh apples tying in the centre of the room. I asked, "Where have these come from?" He replied, "Somebody passed by your grave today and recited Soora-e-Fateha for you. Since his was a sincere act, the Merciful decided that you should be promptly rewarded. May God Bless him too." Then Haadi busied himself in decorating my room. He arranged the divans, sofas and the chairs, and hung ornaments on the walls.

A chandelier was also fixed and its light was bright and luminescent as the sun's. I said, "Haadi, you yourself said that this is not my permanent place. Then why are you taking so much pains today in decorating this room?" He replied, "I have received information that the Imam's son whose grave you had visited once, and the religious scholars whom you used to remember in your Night Prayers are coming to visit you in order to thank you for your friendship."

I replied, "This is indeed my good fortune and it compensates for the sadness that! felt after visiting my family."

I kept thinking that such good fortune was indeed more then what a sinner like me could ever have hoped for.

(In Usool e Kafi Imam Sadiq is quoted as saying that in the west there is a beautiful garden. watered by the Furaat. The spirits of the faithful reside here. They recognise each other and visit each other. in the mornings they are free to fly out from here. In the East there is another valley. this one in meant for the wicked and the sinners. Here the spirits are punished for their past deeds. their load is bitter and their water stinks. Probably this description refers to the Valley of Peace and the Valley of Barhoot.)

I told Haadi that my room was small and not fit to accommodate such personalities. He replied that it was small for me but that when the guests would arrive, it would expand accordingly.

Suddenly the guests arrived and seated themselves according to their ranks and station. Their majestic faces shone. The most prominent of them were Hazrat Abbas and Hazrat Ali Akbar. They sat down on a gold divan but I noticed that they were fully dressed for war-helmet, shield, sword etc. I wondered at the need for all this here, but I was so awe-struck that I could not muster the courage to speak.

Haadi, myself and others lined up respectfully in front of Hazrat Abbas and Hazrat Ali Akbar. I was so engrossed in watching my majestic guests of honour that I almost forgot myself:

Suddenly Hazrat Abbas addressed to Haadi, "Have you taken his passport from my father?"

Haadi replied in the affirmative and repeated a verse from Soora-e-Rehman, "O groups of Jinn’s and humans, have you the strength to go out of the bounds of the heavens and the earth? Certainly not, without (God's gifted) strength."

On hearing this verse, Hazrat Abbas turned towards me and said, Your remembering and recalling my father, the King of alt saints, in your life, has proved to be your salvation. I welcome you with the news that you have been pardoned and absolved."

I bowed down and prostrated and kissed the floor, out of respect and gratefulness at being given this honour. I stood up but I was overcome with emotion at being treated so nicely and gently by these revered guests. Tears flowed down my cheek. Hazrat Habib lbne Mazahir who was standing adjacent bent towards me and said softly, ""Don't loose heart. you have been exempted from all hardships which would normally have confronted a traveller in this route. These two and their lather will never forget you. Hazrat Alt helps his friends and believers in this world and it was he who sent his two sons to greet you, so that they may meet you and you may rest assured. And for your information, Hazrat Zainab has sent you her greetings. She says that she can never forget how you went barefoot on pilgrimage to her brother's shrine, shed tears for him and bore hardships including hunger and thirst and sickness on your trip.

I cannot possibly express how I felt on hearing this, All I could say was May God's peace and blessing be on you and on them.

Then I asked Habib , "why are these two dressed in full battle attire, when there is no war going on?"

Hazrat Habib's lace became pale and he started crying. Then he replied. "In Karbala these two could not fight to their heart's content. They had intended to completely destroy the enemy and send them headlong to Hell, but God did not wish this and so their desire could not materialise. They bowed down to God's will, but their intention remained embossed in their hearts and here it has taken this form. They will remain attired in this way until our Twelfth Imam avenges the blood of Hussein (Peace be upon him)."

The guests then left and the room once again returned to its original size. Haadi and I were left alone. I remarked to Haadi, "I will never again visit my family because it only increased my sadness. The deeds which on the face of it are being done for my spirits benefit were actually lust or face saving, for society's sake and to gain acclaim from the relatives. I have lost all hopes of receiving any benefit from them."

I will now rest contented with whatever I already have. As for any potential dangers, I can only hope that, Hazrat Abbas and Hazrat Ali Akbar will come to my rescue.'

Haadi replied "You don't require anything more. The first three steps should prove easy for you. This is because the first stage in the world is from birth to the age of three years when the child's brain is still devoid of sensibility. The next stage is up to fifteen years of age when he is not yet held responsible for his deeds by God. The third stage is up to the age of eighteen years. In these three years though he becomes accountable. his mind is still immature. Man's deeds are judged keeping in view his intelligence.

"When Allah created Intelligence He said, "I will base punishment and reward on you."" The first three stages here correspond to those three stages, so they should prove easy for you. If any problem or danger does befall you, it will soon clear up by itself. So I dont consider it necessary to accompany you through these stages. I'll take your leave now. You'll find me waiting for you at stage four. Take your baggage and start tomorrow morning from here. Take that straight road going in the direction of Ka’ba.

On hearing this I clung to Haadi and said "Haadi you know well I cannot bear to be separated from you Even if the road is straight and wide and spacious, and the journey trouble-free but still, I would be alone, without you and a stranger in an unknown place. This I cannot bear. Even our Prophet (S.A.) has said to search a companion if one wishes to travel".

Haadi replied You have to face these three stages alone, because in the world also I was not your companion during these three stages. I have been with you only since you become mentally mature. I belong to the exalted ones and our duty is to guide to well being and sublimity. Whatever befalls you in these stages will be due to your own actions. So blame yourself, not me".

Then he left, leaving me alone. I began to ponder over what he had said and finally reached the conclusion that he was right. I would indeed have to lace it alone without my friend Haadi, the Abu Turab and Abu Wata.

Allah has said, "You will not find any change in the ways and customs of Allah". The events of the world and the hereafter were inter related and could not be separated. We have understood our earthly life. The hereafter follows a similar pattern and it is useless to dissent.