question to muslim converts

[n20.]

I have always wondered about the concept of heaven or paradise.

If you believe that by converting to islam and being a righteous muslim will get you into heaven then (if God exists) that is the right path to choose.

However, im sure that you will have family members and friends who are not Muslims. How can you label your afterlife as 'paradise' when, if you get there, you will have family members and frineds who are being tortured in hell for not believing in Allah. How can you possibly label it as 'paradise' ? Im sure you care a great deal about these people and are concerned with their well being. I know if i were to be in heaven and i knew that most of the people i cared about were suffering in hell, I could not begin to reap the benefits of heaven knowing my family were being burnt and tortured at the same time.

 

[ShyHijabi]

Salaam,

Islam is unique from Chrisitianity in that being a Muslim does not gaurantee heaven anymore than being a nonMuslim can guarantee hell. Only Allah knows who will go one place or the other, only He can judge a heart. Just because someone is not Muslim does nto mean they will see the hellfire. The only jobs we Muslims have is to submit to the will of Allah and pray every day for forgiveness as well as strive to live according to the commands of the Quran.

The God of Abraham, Isaac, Ishmael, Jesus and Adam (peace be upon them) is the God we worship. Even if someone is living in the bush somewhere and has never been shown Islam they can see paradise. Allah is not foolish nor cruel, He does not set people up to fail.

 

[Rashadi]

I have always wondered about the concept of heaven or paradise.

If you believe that by converting to islam and being a righteous muslim will get you into heaven then (if God exists) that is the right path to choose.

However, im sure that you will have family members and friends who are not Muslims. How can you label your afterlife as 'paradise' when, if you get there, you will have family members and frineds who are being tortured in hell for not believing in Allah. How can you possibly label it as 'paradise' ? Im sure you care a great deal about these people and are concerned with their well being. I know if i were to be in heaven and i knew that most of the people i cared about were suffering in hell, I could not begin to reap the benefits of heaven knowing my family were being burnt and tortured at the same time.

Greetings, as sister shyhijabi pointed out, our concept is different from Christianity or any religion for that matter. We Muslims do not believe we become "saved" by just accepting Islam but it is for God to ultimately decide. We have a duty, we know Islam is the correct way, but guidance only comes from God and He is the most mercieful and most forgiving. No one will be treated unfairly or unjustly. No one in the end will enter paradise except by God's mercy and only people who deserve it will be punished. However, about your question on paradise in Islam, this is a unique place unlike this world. Before anyone enters paradise, all the regrets, saddness, etc will be removed from that person and one will be in a happy state in paradise, and we also know that God is more mercieful to us than a mother is to her infant but he is also just and fair. If a person is punished, such person deserved it because there is no better judge than God. And anyone to enter paradise does so by submitting to the will of God and it is by His mercy that one will enter paradise.

No matter how good we think we are or how much good we do, no Muslim will ever say "I am saved" and "I know I will go straight to heaven". As an ex Christian, I have known friends of mine who claimed to be "saved" and were church going Christians, yet became disbelievers and have become atheists, Muslim, etc and I ask them so what happened to you being "saved"? And they have no good answer for it but it can be safely admitted that it is only God who really decides and knows how a person is. One could appear good to other but be a total hypocrite in secret and people will assume he is "saved". We don't have such thing in Islam and we do not consider ourselves superior to anyone else nor do we make any silly claims about things which only God knows in the end. We know our part, God has guided us to the correct path, He has shown us what we need to do and we try our best with sincerity and ask for his help and He is the best of helpers.

In my case, I am the only Muslim in my family as of right now and my two brothers are convinced and hopefully they will both embrace Islam soon as possible and if they don't, I am not responsible for them. Of course it is hard to have family, friends, people, etc who do not believe but If I make it to Paradise God willing and they don't, all my sorrows, pains, etc will be removed before I enter it. It is in this life that I worry about them but at the same time I do not decide who goes to paradise and who will be punished because it is up to God alone to decide and I am in no way "saved" because I became a Muslim, but I am thankful that God guided me to the right way and I have submitted myself to the will of my Creator who alone has the right to be worshiped.

 

[miq1]

Praise be to Allah (The Glorified and Exalted).

An individual that enters Heaven will never feel any sorrow or regret. This is mentioned in the following hadith:

The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said, “A caller will call out [i.e. to the people of Paradise] ‘You will be healthy and never fall sick; you will live and never die; you will stay young and never grow old; you will feel joy and never feel sorrow.’” [Narrated by Muslim]

 

[n20.]

so, in other words, ignorance is given to people as a blessing from allah when they reach heaven to stop them worrying about friends and family in hell.

Say you (a muslim convert) were in a car crash with all of your non-muslim family and you were fortunate to be accepted into heaven. Meanwhile your non-muslim family are sent to hell where they will be burnt and tortured. When you reach the gates of heaven, your worries and concerns for your family are cut off and you feel pure happiness. You wont even feel the slightest bit of sadness for your own mother who gave birth to you and raised you. I really cant understand that.

ignorance is bliss ey.

 

[xSharingan01x]

so, in other words, ignorance is given to people as a blessing from allah when they reach heaven to stop them worrying about friends and family in hell.

Say you (a muslim convert) were in a car crash with all of your non-muslim family and you were fortunate to be accepted into heaven. Meanwhile your non-muslim family are sent to hell where they will be burnt and tortured. When you reach the gates of heaven, your worries and concerns for your family are cut off and you feel pure happiness. You wont even feel the slightest bit of sadness for your own mother who gave birth to you and raised you. I really cant understand that.

ignorance is bliss ey.

Why must you label it ignorance? What may appear 'pleasing' to you can be 'displeasing to another. Stick to your relative definition instead of passing judgement. As Muslilms, universal truth comes from God, thus He is the sole giver of definition of what is 'happiness' and what is 'sorrow'.
As Muslims we do not follow our whims and desire concerning such matter, instead we follow the definition Allah has blessed us with.

It was reported in a hadeeth that Allah will take a man who has suffered the most in this world and will place him in paradise for few moments and ask him "
Oh My servant, did you feel any suffering and pain in Dunya?" the man will answer back "Glory be to You, I've not felt any suffereing and pain".

As Muslims we are allowed to maintain good relationship with our nom-Muslim family, however there is a distinction between the community of believers and the community of the disbelievers. Our loyalty lies with the community of the believers, they are our family.

I would do more for brother Rashadi and sister Sarah, than my atheiest sister or a brother. (if I had one, and I seek refuge in Allah from having such siblings). That is not to say that I will 'excommunicate my non Muslim brother/sister' but if I had to pick my loyalty as stated will be with the believers.




This principle is highlighted in the story of Nooh (A.S.).
This is also the same understanding the Sahaba (may Allah be pleased with them) had, and thus they fought against their brothers, fathers, cousins, etc....
"What will convey to you what the Day of Judgement is? Again! What will convey to you what the Day of Judgement is? It is the Day when a soul will have no power to help any other soul in any way. The command that Day will be God’s alone." (82:17-19)


"At length, when there comes the Deafening Noise,-
That Day shall a man flee from his own brother,
And from his mother and his father, And from his wife and his children. Each one of them, that Day, will have enough concern (of his own) to make him indifferent to the others. " (80:33-37)

" And no friend will ask after a friend,Though they will be put in sight of each other,- the sinner's desire will be: Would that he could redeem himself from the Penalty of that Day by (sacrificing) his children,
His wife and his brother,
His kindred who sheltered him
And all, all that is on earth,- so it could deliver him:
By no means! for it would be the Fire of Hell!- " (70:11-15)

as stated above, Allah told us in the Quran that on the day of Judgement, people will be willing to trade anything including his father, mather, sons, daugthers, pretty much the whole earth and everything in it just to escape the torment of the fire. Family relationships will be broekn that day, save the relationship between the righteous servants of our Lord.

Kinship is between Believers and disbelivers is merely a worldy matter.

Funny, one of the reply the disbelievers will give on the day of ressurection is something along the line of "If I had any intelligence, I would have surely believed". They will beg to be returned to Dunya again.

 

[believer`s tear]

In my case, I am the only Muslim in my family as of right now and my two brothers are convinced and hopefully they will both embrace Islam soon as possible and if they don't, I am not responsible for them. Of course it is hard to have family, friends, people, etc who do not believe but If I make it to Paradise God willing and they don't, all my sorrows, pains, etc will be removed before I enter it. It is in this life that I worry about them but at the same time I do not decide who goes to paradise and who will be punished because it is up to God alone to decide and I am in no way "saved" because I became a Muslim


Great answer Rashadi . I assist you in this .
I want to add that everyone of us is going to care only for his own safety because of the terrors of resurrection day . He or She will not even rememeber his father , mother ( even the most loved people suns and daughters ) all of us will pass beside each others as strangers and nothing will be more important for every one of us than where am I in hell or in paradise ?
That day if you need a well and if it is in the hand of your sun or daughter and Allah gives you permission to take it you will take it and through your child into hell and save yourself ( Don`t think it`s like lif`s fire , they are seven hells each one is hotter than the other

أَهْوَن أهل النار عذاباً لَرجلٌ في رجليه نعلان من نار ، يغلي منهما دماغه، كأنه مرجل، مسامعه جمر، وأضراسه جمر،وأشفاره لهب النيران، و تخرج أحشاء بطنه من قدميه ، و إنه لَيَرى أنه أشد أهل النار عذاباً، و إنه مِن أهون أهل النار عذاباً )). Prophet Mohammad ( peace be upon him) said {The least person tormented in hell is the one worn shoes of fire that his brain boils from it`s heat like a boiler ,his ears and teeth are like burning coal and his lips become flames and his Abdominal visceral comes out from his feat and he sees that he is the most one tormented in hell but he is the least one }

 

[abu turaab]

I have always wondered about the concept of heaven or paradise.

If you believe that by converting to islam and being a righteous muslim will get you into heaven then (if God exists) that is the right path to choose.

However, im sure that you will have family members and friends who are not Muslims. How can you label your afterlife as 'paradise' when, if you get there, you will have family members and frineds who are being tortured in hell for not believing in Allah. How can you possibly label it as 'paradise' ? Im sure you care a great deal about these people and are concerned with their well being. I know if i were to be in heaven and i knew that most of the people i cared about were suffering in hell, I could not begin to reap the benefits of heaven knowing my family were being burnt and tortured at the same time.

:salam2: In deen al-Islam the word "ahl"(family/a member of a family /of a family) refers to one unified group of muslims sharing a common purified belief/beliefs(based upon Qur'an and sunnah)called aqeedah (faith) and deeds based upon this aqeedah!!...hence any person living anywhere on the globe who adheres to these beliefs and do deeds based upon them is a member of the same family...and he/she carry the relationship of brothers and sisters in Islam....this is from the fundamentals of faith!!..
In the hereafter only this ahlul-bait (family) will be salvated...and these families will represent all the prophets and the shareas(laws) they came with for a specific time-period in every age since Aadam(a.s.)to Prophet Muhammad(s.a.w.)..."and he who is given his book in his right hand will be taken a very plain and easy reckoning and he will return to his family very happy(al-Inshiqaaq,7-9)"...while others will be doomed in Hell-fire no matter how much they used to be close to one another...this is also of the basics of Islam!!..open the Qur'an and discover it!..
now as for as the family constituting from the boold relations as we know them in this world...the parents and real brothers and sisters and sons and daughters and so forth...these are a part of the test that we all are undergoing in this world...we are ordered to be good to our parents even if they disbelieve and scold Islam and bear their bad behavior and conduct with humbleness and continue trying to make them understand the Islam untill they too become believers...and if they don't accept and die in the state of disbelief then Indeed they have lost!!...not you!!...they have lost the pleasure to see the face of ALLAH!!..same applies with other blood relations but not with as much strictness as with parents!!..And ALLAH will remove the sadness from the hearts of the inhabitants of Jannah(paradise) for their blood relations or friends who end-up in hell...as this sadness will be only because of the fact that..."Alas!..why din't they accept the truth...and followed satan and desires"
By the way both the Prophets mother and father and also his real uncle died on disbelief despite that ALLAH had revealed the truth in entirety to their selves!!...as ALLAH says..."we will surely make them see our signs in the horizons and in their selves too so that it becomes clear to them that this(message of Islam) is from ALLAH!!.."
May ALLAH help us open up our hearts for the truth to dwell in it!!...Aameen!!

 

[abu turaab]

:salam2: the Paradise is for believers who will come with deeds based upon pure sunnah(which is known from authentic hadiths of the Prophet)...Just Qur'an is not at all sufficient following the commandments...besides it doesn't address everything about the commandments of deen al-Islam...The suunah does a lot in elaborating the commandments in everyway...sometimes specifying and precising the generality in the text and sometimes it brings new rulings..(however this subject needs a detailed description...brother Mabsoot or brother islamicfajr can help doing that)!!..
Hell-fire is for disbelievers as well as for those whom bad deeds on that day will outnumber their good ones!..yet they will be taken out of the Hell later after recieving the due punishment and will be allowed to enter paradise out of the vast mercy of their lord!!..
we muslims are told to seek the forever bliss and pleasure of our Lord ALLAH..The Paradise!!...and seek refuge from the most Just and horrible manifestation of His anger...The Hell!!...and the onle way is by doing Righteous deeds based only upon Qur'an and sunnah...by following the Manhaj of As'salf-as'saliheen!!...as we recite in every raka'ae.."show me the right path.(and the definition of path is)...path of the people whom you blessed with(your pleasure)...and not of those upon whom your wrath desend (the Jews) and neither of the astrayed ones(the Christians)...Aameen"