DEATH OF A BELIEVER AND AN UNBELIEVER

[Taqavi]

What is the difference between the death of a believer and an unbeliever?

 

Death for a believer is blessed and joyful, while for an unbeliever it is an unpleasant and unblessed event; the world is like a prison for a believer, and death for him is like a release from prison, but this world seems like paradise for an unbeliever, and death separates him from his worldly paradise and takes him towards torment.[1]

In this regard, a narration is mentioned that Imam Sadiq (AS) said to one of his companions who had asked him to describe death, saying: Death for a believer is like the best scent that he inhales; because of its pleasant smell, he falls asleep and all hardships and pains end; but for an unbeliever it is like the sting of a viper and the sting of a scorpion or worse; for some unbelievers and sinners it is even worse than being cut with a saw and being torn apart with scissors and a stone hitting him and the grinding wheel turning on his eyeball. The believer who easily surrenders his soul, the reason is that Allah wants him to attain the reward of that world as quickly as possible, and the believer who endures the pangs of death with difficulty, it is because the sins he committed in the world are made up for, so that he may enter that world pure and clean and without any obstacle deserve the eternal reward; the unbeliever who dies easily, this ease is a reward for the good deeds he did in the world until when he dies he has no more requests from Allah and no good deed remains for him except what causes punishment and nothing but his sins exists in his book of deeds; and the unbeliever who endures the pangs of death with difficulty, from that very first moment, his torment and torture begin, and since Allah is just, He does not wrong anyone (even with regard to unbelievers, He executes His justice and does not violate their rights). [2]

But if we want to compare the death of a believer with that of an unbeliever, we can consider the narrations that have been mentioned in this regard.

Description of the death of a believer:

One of the things that happens to a believer when he leaves the world is that the Angel of Death, when he comes to take his soul, comforts him and says: I am more merciful and compassionate to you than your own father; open your eyes and see; when he opens his eyes, he sees that the Prophet (SAW), Amir al-Mu'minin, Imam Hassan, and Imam Hussein and Lady Fatima Zahra (AS) have come to him; he is happy to see them; from the Throne, a voice addresses the believer and says: O reassured soul, return to your Lord, from Muhammad (SAW) and his household (AS), for you are pleased with Him, and He is pleased with you; join My servants and enter My Paradise. [3]

Description of the death of a disbeliever:

Imam Ali (AS) suffered from an eye disease. The Prophet (SAW) visited him, and Ali (AS) was groaning. The Prophet (SAW) said to him: Is it from restlessness or from the severity of the pain? He said: O Messenger of Allah! I have never suffered from a worse pain than this. The Prophet (SAW) said: O Ali! When the Angel of Death comes down to take the soul of a disbeliever, he has a fiery spit with him, and he takes his soul with that spit, as a result of which Hell screams.

Imam Ali (AS) got up and sat down and said: O Messenger of Allah! Repeat your words, for what you said made me forget my pain. Then he said: Does anyone from your nation suffer from such a soul-taking? He said: Yes, the tyrannical ruler, the eater of the orphan's property and the one who gives false witness (they die like this). [4]

Based on the narrations of Ahl al-Bayt (AS), there are several general differences between the death of a believer and a disbeliever, which are:

Seeing the Messenger of Allah (SAW) at the time of death:

At the time of death, both the disbeliever and the believer see the Prophet (SAW) and Imam Ali (AS). The difference is that the enemy and hater of Imam Ali (AS) sees him in a way that is unpleasant to him, but the lover of Imam Ali (AS) sees him in a way that is pleasing to him; [5] the Prophet Muhammad (SAW) and Imam Ali (AS) sit by his head; then the Prophet (SAW) says to him: "What is ahead of you is better than what is behind you, I protect you from what you fear, and what you hoped for has now come to pass; O soul! Go to the mercy and pleasure of Allah; Imam Ali (AS) also says the same things to him".[6]

Seeing the angel of death, Azrael

One of the states of the deceased, whether believer or disbeliever, is encountering the angel of death; however, this meeting does not occur in the same way; the disbeliever sees the angel of death as a black man whose hair is standing on end, with a very bad smell and dark clothes, while fire and smoke come out of his mouth and nose, so that the prophet Abraham (AS), upon seeing this state of the angel of death (which happened at his own request) said to him: "If the sinner only sees this scene, it is enough for his punishment."

But a believer sees the angel of death in the form of a beautiful young man wearing beautiful clothes and having a beautiful appearance, while a pleasant smell reaches his nose; this sight is so pleasing to the believer that Abraham (AS) said to the angel of death: "If the believer only sees this good face of yours as a reward for his good deeds, it is enough for him." [7]

How the soul leaves the body of a believer and a disbeliever:

Imam Baqir (AS), in a description of the believer and the disbeliever when the soul leaves the body, said: "The sign of a believer is that when his death arrives, his face becomes whiter than its natural color, and sweat appears on his forehead, and something like tears comes out of his eyes, which indicates the departure of his soul from his body; but the soul of a disbeliever comes out from the side of his mouth like foam coming out of a camel's mouth, or as the soul of a camel comes out of its body, so the soul of a disbeliever comes out of his body." [8]

Conclusion

In summary, for a believer, the concept of "death" will be very easy and simple and a beginning for the enjoyment of the blessings of the hereafter. In contrast, for a disbeliever, death can be a painful and challenging experience and the beginning of divine punishment for him.

 

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[1] . Tuhaf al-Uqul: Ibn Shuba al-Harrani, p. 53.

[2] . Ma'ani al-Akhbar: Sheikh al-Saduq, p. 287.

[3] . Tafsir Furat al-Kufi: Furat al-Kufi, Furat ibn Ibrahim, p. 554  / Bihar al-Anwar: Allama Majlisi, vol. 6, p. 163.

[4] . Al-Kafi: Sheikh al-Kulayni, vol. 3, p. 253.

[5] . Sahifa Imam Reza (AS): attributed to Ali bin Musa (AS), p. 86 / Bihar al-Anwar: Allama Majlisi, vol. 6, p. 188.

[6] . Tafsir al-Ayyashi: al-Ayyashi, Muhammad ibn Masoud, vol. 2, p. 126.

[7] . Awali al-La'ali: Ibn Abi Jumhur, vol. 1, p. 274.

[8] . Al-Kafi: Sheikh al-Kulayni, vol. 3, p. 134