Do Souls of the Dead Return Back to this World? ________________________________________________ ________________________________________________ A POPULAR THEME OF MANY HORROR AND THRILLER NOVELS, MOVIES AND TELEVISION PROGRAMS CENTERS AROUND THE FALSE BELIEF THAT WHEN SOMEONE IS KILLED UNJUSTLY, HIS SOUL RETURNS IN ORDER TO SEEK JUSTICE, OR IT KEEPS WANDERING UNTIL JUSTICE IS DONE TO IT. REPEATED EXPOSURE TO THIS FALSE CONCEPT FROM EVERY FORM OF MEDIA HAS LEAD MANY TO UNKNOWINGLY BELIEVE IN IT... Whilst some take this concept very seriously, and make use of un-Islamic measures, like the hanging of amulets and pagan rituals to protect themselves from the revengeful soul, others simply consider these issues to be unimportant and do not bother to seek knowledge about it. But the fact remains, that not only do many people fear the souls, but entire religions are focused around ancestor and soul worship. Large amount of wealth is spent on making offerings to the souls and many rituals and festivals are held in this regard, for example, many people believe that the deceased visit this world on the 15th of Shabaan (8th month of the Islamic Calendar) and they call it Eid of the Dead. Some even go to the extreme of preparing the foods that the deceased liked! It is therefore essential that the Muslims be informed about the gravity of this call and be educated about the correct Islamic Aqeedah (belief). This article is specifically aimed to expose the falsity of these beliefs and bring to the reader authentic proofs from the Quraan and the Sunnah, which undoubtedly reject the souls return. We hope that this article will dispel doubts and confusion around the subject. And with Allah lies all success. Islamic Concept of the Soul: Soul is from the matters of the unseen and nothing can be said in its explanation without established proofs from the Book and the Sunnah. The knowledge required for our welfare in this world and the Hereafter has been conveyed to us by the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alaihe wa-sallam), and there is no need to seek any goodness beyond that. The Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alaihe wa-sallam) said:There is nothing that will take you closer to Paradise but that I have enjoined it upon you, and there is nothing that will take you closer to Hell but that I have warned you from it.[Musnad ash-Shafie and others] The Jews asked Allahs Messenger (sallallahu alaihe wa-sallam) about the soul and in reply the Quraan said:They ask you concerning the soul. Say that the soul is from Allah and you have not been given knowledge of it except a little.[Soorah al-Isra (17): 85] The Soul is a creation of Allah, whose function is to bring life to the human body. It remains with the human body throughout the life and departs at death. After which the souls are either held in Paradise or punishment. There is no returning back of the souls of the righteous people from Paradise, and no escaping of the souls of evildoers from the punishment of the grave. Therefore, pious or evil, the souls do not return to this world, neither to take revenge nor to assist the living. Neither is there any concept in Islam, which explains that justice is dependant upon the souls coming back and setting things aright. Islam teaches that Allah is responsible to see that every being gets its due right and injustice does not go unpunished. Journey of the Soul after Death Death Death occurs when the soul separates from the human body and enters the realm of Barzakh, which is the period between ones death and the Hereafter. Appearing of the Angels (a)The Believing Soul:Angels with faces shining bright like the sun descend from the Heavens, carrying a shroud and fragrance of Paradise and sit away from him as far as the eye can see. The Angel of Death then approaches and says: O good soul, come out to Allahs forgiveness and pleasure. The soul then comes out as gently as a drop from a water-skin, and he seizes it. Within the blinking of an eye, the other Angels take the soul and put it in the shroud and fragrance. There will then come from the soul, a fragrance like that of the sweetest musk found on the face of Earth. (b)The Disbelieving Soul:Angels with black faces come down to him from the Heaven with hair-cloth and sit away from him as far as an eye can see. The Angel of death comes to him and says: O wicked soul, come out to the displeasure from Allah. The soul becomes scattered in the body, and the Angel of Death draws it out as violently as a spit is drawn out from moistened wool. He then seizes it, and when he does so, the other Angels do not leave the disbelieving soul in his hand for an instant, but put it in that hair-cloth and from it comes forth a smell like the most offensive corpse found on the Earth.
Posted on: Tue, 15 Oct 2013 03:47:28 +0000