Christian asks about the nature and definition of the soul
Praise be to Allaah.
Allaah is the Creator of all things, and the soul is something that has
been created just like everything else. The knowledge about its true
essence is something that belongs exclusively to Allaah, may He be
glorified and exalted. Allaah has kept this knowledge exclusively to
Himself, as is stated in the hadeeth of ‘Abd-Allaah ibn Mas’ood (may
Allaah be pleased with him), who said: “Whilst I was with the Prophet
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) on a farm, and he was
resting on a palm branch stripped of its leaves, the Jews passed by,
and some of them said to others, ‘Ask him about the soul.’ Some of them
said, ‘What urges you to ask him about it?’ Others of them said, ‘Don’t
ask him in case he says something you dislike.’ But they said, ‘Ask
him,’ so they asked him about the soul. The Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) kept quiet and did not respond to
them, and I knew that he was receiving Revelation, so I stayed where I
was. When the Revelation of the aayah was complete, he said
(interpretation of the meaning): ‘And they ask you [O Muhammad]
concerning the rooh [the spirit]. Say: ‘The rooh: it is one of the
things, the knowledge of which is only with my Lord. And of knowledge,
you (mankind) have been given only a little.’ [al-Isra’ 17:85]”
(Reported by al-Bukhaari). The rooh (soul or spirit) has been described
by Allaah in His Book and by the Messenger (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) in his Sunnah, and various verbs and adjectives
have been used in conjunction with the word ‘rooh’, such as seizing or
grasping, taking (as in death), it may be fettered or shrouded, it
comes and goes, it goes up and comes down, it may be pulled out like a
hair being pulled out of dough… It is obligatory (in Islam) to believe
in these attributes which are narrated in the “two Revelations” (i.e.,
the Qur’aan and Sunnah), and also to realize that the soul is not like
the body.
Allaah created Adam and breathed the soul into him, as is stated in the
Qur’aan and in the hadeeth of the Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him): “When Allaah created Adam and breathed the soul
into him, he sneezed and said ‘Al-hamdu-Lillah (Praise be to Allaah).’
He praised Allaah by His permission. Then his Lord said to him, ‘May
Allaah have mercy on you, O Adam. Go to those angels, to a group of
them who are sitting, and say, ‘As-salaamu ‘alaykum (peace be upon
you).’ They said, ‘Wa ‘alayka al-salaam wa rahmat-Allaah (and upon you
be peace and the Mercy of Allaah).’ Then he went back to his Lord, who
said, ‘This is your greeting and the greeting of your descendants
amongst themselves.’” (Reported and classed as hasan by al-Tirmidhi.
Sunan al-Tirmidhi, 3290).
Allaah sends the angel to breathe the soul into the foetus as was
reported by ‘Abd-Allaah ibn Mas’ood, who said: “The Messenger of Allaah
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), who is the most truthful
(of human beings) and his being truthful (is a fact) told us: ‘The
constituents of one of you is gathered in his mother’s womb for forty
days, then it becomes a clot of blood within another period of forty
days. Then it becomes a lump of flesh, and forty days later, Allaah
sends His angel to it to breathe into it the soul. The angel comes with
instructions concerning four things, so the angel writes down his
livelihood, his death, his deeds and whether he will doomed or
blessed.” (Reported by Muslim, 1528).
The soul of the deceased is taken from the ends of the toes towards the
top of the body, and when it reaches the throat, the death rattle
sounds in the throat of the person who is about to die, and his eyes
glaze over and roll upwards. Um Salamah said: “The Messenger of Allaah
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) entered upon Abu Salamah
(after he had died) and his eyes were open, so he closed them then
said, ‘When the soul is taken, the eyes follow it.’” (Reported by
Muslim, 1528).
The soul is met by the angels. The Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) said: “The angels met the soul of a man from among
the people who came before you, and said, ‘Did you do anything good?’
He said, 'I used to tell my employees to postpone
lection of payment or to let off anyone who was in difficulty.’ So it was said, ‘Let him off.’” (Reported by al-Bukhaari, 1935).
The soul is taken up to heaven by two angels after it is taken (i.e.,
after a person dies), as was reported in the hadeeth of Abu Hurayrah
who said: “When the soul of the believer is taken, it is met by two
angels who take it up…” (The narrator said: then he mentioned its good
fragrance and scent of musk). The people of heaven say, ‘A good soul
that has come from earth, may Allaah bless you and the body in which
you used to dwell. Then they take it up to its Lord, may He be
glorified and exalted, then He says, ‘Roam with it until the end of the
world.’ When the disbeliever’s soul comes out… (the narrator mentioned
its putrid smell and curses). The people of heaven say, ‘An evil soul
that has come from earth,’ then it is said, ‘Roam with it until the end
of the world.’ Abu Hurayrah said: then the Messenger of Allaah (peace
and blessings of Allaah be upon him) put a piece of cloth over his
nose, like this. (Reported by Muslim, 5119).
More information about how the soul comes out (at death) was reported
in the hadeeth of Imaam Ahmad (may Allaah have mercy on him) from
al-Bara’ ibn ‘Aazib who said: “We went out with the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) for the funeral of a man from among
the Ansaar, and we reached the grave whilst it was still being dug. The
Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) sat
down and we sat down around him, and it was as if we had birds on our
heads. In his hand was a stick with which he was scratching in the
earth. He raised his head and said, ‘Seek refuge with Allaah from the
punishment of the grave,’ two or three times. Then he said, ‘Verily,
when the believing slave is about to depart this world and enter the
Hereafter, there come down to him angels from heaven with white faces,
as if their faces are the sun. They bring with them one of the shrouds
of Paradise and some of the perfume of Paradise. They sit with him as
far as the eye can see. Then the Angel of Death (peace be upon him)
comes to him and sits by his head and says, ‘O pure soul, come out to
the forgiveness and pleasure of Allaah.’ Then his soul comes flowing
out like a drop of water flowing from a
.
Then he takes the soul, and no sooner does he seize it but they take it
and place it in that shroud and perfume. Then out of it comes the most
excellent fragrance of musk to be found on the face of the earth. Then
they ascend with it and they do not pass by any group of angels but the
angels ask, ‘Who is this pure soul?’ and they reply, ‘It is So and so
the son of So and so’ – using the best names by which he was known on
earth. Then they bring it to the lowest heaven, and ask for it to be
opened, and it is opened for him. Those who are of high rank in each
heaven accompany it until they approach the next heaven, and so it goes
until it reaches the seventh heaven. Then Allaah, may He be glorified
and exalted, says: ‘Record the book of My slave in ‘Illiyoon (the
highest heaven) and take him back to the earth, for I created them from
it, and I shall return them to it, then I shall take them out from it
again.’ Then his soul is returned to his body and two angels come and
make him sit up, and ask him, ‘Who is your Lord.’ He says, ‘Allaah.’
They ask, ‘What is your religion?’ He says, ‘My religion is Islam.’
They ask, ‘Who is this man that was sent amongst you?’ He says, ‘He is
the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him.’
They ask him, ‘What knowledge do you have?’ He says, 'I read the Book
of Allaah and I believed in it.’ Then a voice will call out from
heaven, ‘My slave has spoken the truth. Prepare for him a bed from
Paradise and give him clothes from Paradise, and open for him a door to
Paradise.’ And he will feel its breeze and smell its fragrance, and his
grave will be widened for him as far as his eye can see. Then a man
with a handsome face, beautiful clothes and a pleasant fragrance will
come to him and say, ‘Good news! This is the day that you were
promised.’ He will say, ‘Who are you? You face looks as if it brings
good news.’ He will say, 'I am your good deeds.’ (The deceased) will
say, ‘O Lord, let the Hour come so that I may see my family and my
wealth again.’
When the disbelieving slave is about to depart this world and enter the
Hereafter, there come down to him angels from heaven with black faces,
bringing with them sackcloth. They sit with him as far as the eye can
see. Then the Angel of Death comes to him and sits by his head and
says, ‘O evil soul, come out to the wrath and anger of Allaah.’ Then
his soul disperses in his body and is dragged out like a skewer being
pulled out of wet wool. Then he takes the soul, and no sooner does he
seize it but they take it and place it in that sackcloth. Then out of
it comes the most putrid stench of rotten flesh to be found on the face
of the earth. Then they ascend with it and they do not pass by any
group of angels but the angels ask, ‘Who is this evil soul?’ and they
reply, ‘It is So and so the son of So and so’ – using the worst names
by which he was known on earth. Then they bring it to the lowest
heaven, and ask for it to be opened, and it is not opened for him.”
Then the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him) recited (interpretation of the meaning): “… For them the gates of
heaven will not be opened, and they will not enter Paradise until the
camel goes through the eye of the needle” [al-A’raaf 7:40]. Then he
said, “Then Allaah, may He be glorified and exalted, says: ‘Record the
book of My slave in Sijjeen (the lowest Hell) in the lowest earth. Then
his soul is cast down.” Then he recited (interpretation of the
meaning): “… and whoever assigns partners to Allaah, it is as if he had
fallen from the sky, and the birds had snatched him, or the wind had
thrown him to a far off place.” [al-Hajj 22:31]. He said, “Then his
soul is returned to his body and two angels come and make him sit up,
and ask him, ‘Who is your Lord.’ He says, ‘Oh, oh, I don’t know.’ They
ask, ‘What is your religion?’ He says, ‘Oh, oh, I don’t know.’ They
ask, ‘Who is this man that was sent amongst you?’ He says, ‘Oh, oh, I
don’t know.’ Then a voice will call out from heaven, ‘He is lying.
Prepare for him a bed from Hell and open for him a door to Hell.’ And
he will feel its hot winds and smell its stench, and his grave will be
constricted for him until his ribs interlock. Then a man with an ugly
face, ugly clothes and a horrible stench will come to him and say, ‘Bad
news! This is the day that you were warned about.’ He will say, ‘Who
are you? You face looks as if it brings bad news.’ He will say, 'I am
your evil deeds.’ (The deceased) will say, ‘O Lord, do not let the Hour
come!’” (Musnad al-Imaam Ahmad, 17803; this is a saheeh hadeeth).
At the end of time, Allaah will send a wind which will take the soul of
every believer, as was reported in the hadeeth of al-Nawwaas ibn
Sam’aan, who said: “The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) mentioned … (the coming of the Dajjaal [Antichrist]
and the descent of ‘Eesa [Jesus], peace be upon him, and the good life
and happiness of mankind at the time of Jesus and afterwards). He said,
‘And whilst the people are living like that, Allaah will send a good
wind which will seize them under the armpits and will take the soul of
every believer and every Muslim. The evil people will remain and they
will behave like donkeys, then the Hour will come upon them.’”
(Reported by Muslim, 5228).
When people sleep (and sleep is the “lesser death”), the soul is taken,
but not completely, so the sleeper is still alive. Allaah says
(interpretation of the meaning): “It is Allaah Who takes away the souls
at the time of their death, and those that die not during their sleep,
He keeps those (souls) for which He has ordained death and sends the
rest for a term appointed. Verily, in this are signs for a people who
think deeply.” [al-Zumar 39:42]
The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)
advised the Muslim, when he lies down to sleep, to say: “Bismika Rabbee
wada’tu janbi wa bika arfa’uhu wa in amsakta nafsi farhamhaa wa in
arsaltahaa fahfazhaa bimaa tuhfaz bihi ‘ibaadika al-saaliheen ( In Your
name, my Lord, I lie down, and in Your name I rise. If You should take
my soul then have mercy on it, and if You should return my soul then
protect it as You protect Your righteous slaves).” When the Muslim
wakes up, he should say, “Al-hamdu Lillaah alladhi ‘aafaani fi jasadi
wa radda ‘alayya roohi wa adhina li bi dhikrihi (Praise be to Allaah
Who has restored to me my health and returned my soul and has allowed
me to remember Him ).” (Reported by al-Tirmidhi, 3323’ He said, a hasan
hadeeth).
These are a few of the aayaat and saheeh ahaadeeth which describe the
soul. Maybe you will find in them information that will guide you to
the way of truth, the Religion of Islam. Thank you for your question.
Islam Q&A
Sheikh Muhammed Salih Al-Munajj
عدد مشآرڪآتي
