Introduction

What is Iman: “It is to believe in Allah SWT, His angels, His Books, His Messengers and the Last Day, and that you believe in preordainment (destiny), the bad and good thereof” [Muslim]

Belief in the Day of Judgement (Qiyamah) goes hand in hand with belief in the Resurrection. It is a fundamental tenet in Islam. The knowledge that we will all be held to account for our deeds should underpin our actions in this world. The outcome on that Day will determine our eternal destiny.

Proofs for Qiyamah in the Quran

There are hundreds of ayats in the Quran giving details about the Day of Judgement and Resurrection. Some of the general themes of the proofs are described below.

The Word of Allah SWT

The Quran, the speech of Allah SWT, says it is so and describes Qiyamah in multiple surahs either as a portion of or as a main theme of the surah. Examples of the latter include:

• Al Waqiah – The Inevitable Event [56].
• At Taghabun – Mutual Loss and Gain [64].
• Al Mulk – All Authority [67].
• Al Qalam – The Pen [68].
• Al Haaqqah – The Inevitable Hour [69].
• Al Qiyama – The (Rising for) Judgement [75].
• Al Mursalat – Those (Winds) Sent Forth [77].
• An Naziat – Those (Angels) Stripping out (Souls) [79].
• At Takwir – Putting Out (the Sun) [81].
• Al Infitar – The (Sky) Splitting Open [82].
• Al Inshiqaq – The (Sky) Bursting Open [84].
• Al Ghashiyah – The Overwhelming Event [88].
• Az Zalzalah – The Ultimate Quake [99].
• Al Qaria – The Striking Disaster [101].

Bringing Life From the Dead

Allah SWT asks us to ponder over the creation of the heavens and the earth. On our creation and on the specific aspects of the creation around us. How easy is it for Him to recreate us, when He has done so before? He brings forth vegetation from “dead” barren land. This is quite profound in Arabia where there is barren desert which springs forth green vegetation following rain.

• Yet (some) people ask (mockingly), “After I die, will I really be raised to life again?” Do (such) people not remember that We created them before when they were nothing? [19:66-67]
• Do people not see that We have created them from a sperm drop, then – behold! – they openly challenge Us? And they argue with Us – forgetting they were created – saying, “Who will give life to decayed bones?” [36:77-78]
• Have they not realised that Allah, Who created the heavens and the earth, can easily recreate them? [17:99]
• Indeed Allah is the One Who causes seeds and fruit stones to sprout. He brings forth the living from the dead and the dead from the living. That is Allah! How can you then be deluded{from the truth}? [6:95]

From the earth We created you, and into it We will return you and, from it We will bring you back again [20:55]

Moral Argument

This life is inherently unfair so if there is no Judgement Day how could that be Allah SWT’s Justice. Mankind could do whatever they please, there would be no punishment or justice for oppressors, murderers, tyrants and so forth.

Is the one who is a believer equal (before Allah SWT) to the one who is rebellious? [32:18]

Wisdom of Allah SWT

If there is no Judgement, this life is meaningless. We live, we die and nothing comes of it. There is no point to any of our actions in this world. Where is the wisdom in that?

Did you then think that We had created you without purpose and that you would never be returned to Us? [23:115]

Miracles of Allah SWT

Allah SWT has shown miracles to mankind through His Prophets demonstrating His power to bring the dead back to life:

• Ezra AS, who Allah SWT caused to die for 100 years and resurrected him and then his donkey. See how We bring its bones together and clothe them with flesh [2:259].
• Ibrahim AS and the resurrection of the 4 birds which were cut into pieces and scattered on different hilltops [2:260].
• Musa AS and the incident with his people who demanded to see Allah SWT. They were struck by lightning for their insolence and then resurrected [2:55-56].
• Isa AS, who by the will of Allah SWT was able to breathe life into a clay bird and bring the dead back to life [3:49].

Psychological benefits of believing in Qiyamah

• Provides a meaning to life, otherwise what is the point? With the removal of God, morality disappears. If we do not return to Him, what becomes the reason to struggle? A godless life leads to increasing depression, mental disease and suicide.
• Instills our moral compass, our internal sense of accountability. This ensures we act morally and ethically by not taking advantage of others and by avoiding sins. We know that Allah SWT is always watching, even when we are alone.
• A sense of justice and reckoning, helping us to bear with injustices in this world to us and others. How can one person be righteous and another sinful and there be no consequence once they die?
• Motivation and optimism that the Akhira will be better, helping us through the trials and tribulations of this world. One is more readily able to deal with life’s issues, bearing the temporary pain and suffering in return for an eternity of happiness.
• Manifestation of Allah SWT’s wisdom allowing us to remove feelings of envy and jealousy for what others have been given, as the Akhira will be better.
• Increases our belief in other aspects of the unseen (ghayb).

Names for the Day of Judgement

There are numerous names that refer to the Day of Judgement. Some of these are general descriptions about the Day and the events that will occur. Others refer to the overwhelming emotions the disbelievers and sinners will experience.

Arabic	English	Notes
Yawm al Qiyamah	The Day of Standing	Most common name. All of creation will stand up in awe when Allah SWT comes; the witnesses will stand and testify; all of creation will be standing from their graves in panic/anxiety
Yawm al Akhir	The Final Day	After which there will be perpetual light in Jannah or perpetual darkness in Jahannam
Yawm al Aazifah	The Approaching Day	It is almost upon us. I was sent with the Day of Judgement at the same time and I just beat it [hadith]
Yawm al Ba’ith	The Day of bodily resurrections	All of the creation will be resurrected to face Judgement
Yawm at Taghabun	The Day of Mutual Deceiving	Loss for some, gain for others. Mutual Dispossession, religious deceit between people in this world
Yawm at Talaaq	The Day of Meeting	The accuser and accused will meet. The oppressors will meet the oppressed. The Prophets will meet their ummahs. We will meet all our deeds
Yawm at Tanaad	The Day of Calling/Announcement	There will be no veil unless Allah SWT chooses. Each persons sins will be apparent to others, every criminal will be marked, judgements will be public. The righteous will be announced
Yawm al Jam’i	The Day of  Gathering/Congregation	The entire creation, all of existence will be gathered simultaneously (humans, jinns, animals)
Yawm al Khurooj	The Day of Exiting	We will all be coming out from our graves
Yawm al Hisab	The Day of Accounting	All our deeds will be accounted for
Yawm al Deen	The Day of Recompense	Any wrong we have suffered will be righted
Yawm al Haaq	The Day of Truth	Certainty of the Day. Peoples truths will be exposed, their beliefs, their behaviours, their deeds
Yawm al Hasrah	The Day of Infinite Regret	Everyone will have a level of regret. The disbelievers for their actions in the word. The righteous may feel they could have done better
Yawm al Khalud	The Day of Bliss	Blissful eternal life , for the believers
Yawm al Fasl	The Day of Separation	Everyone will be with their own group. The righteous, disbelievers, each ummah, tyrants, oppressors and so forth
Yawm as Saa’ah	The Last Hour	A unit of time. Nothing for Allah SWT. Different for believers and disbelievers
Yawm al Wa’eed	The Day of (Promised) Threat	The threat of punishment promised to the disbelievers
Yawm al Maw’oud	The Day of Promise	Allah SWT’s promise to all of creation
Yawm al Waqi’ah	The Day of Sure Occurrence	A certainty we will all face
Yawm as Sakhkhah	The Day of Terrifying Noise	The blast of the Trumpet
Yawm at Taamma	The Day of Overwhelming Calamity	For those who are sent to Jahannam
Yawm al Ghashia	The Overwhelming Day	It will be the only thing on our mind, we are unable to do or think of anything else
Yawm al Qariah	The Day of Trembling	The fear for many on that Day will be palpable
Yawm al Asir	The Day of Most Difficulty	For the disbeliever
Yawm al Mashood	The Day of Witness	Our own body parts will bear witness to our deeds

Events on the Day of Judgment

The exact chronology of events on the Day of Judgement is unknown, but there is information about the different stages that will occur. From this, we can surmise a logical sequence of events. The ummah (nation) of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ‎ will be the first to have hisab (accounts of our deeds), cross the Sirat and enter Jannah. This is a blessing of being the ummah of last Prophet of Islam.

Each person will have their own timeframe for the events. The Day of Judgement will be many lifetimes for some people, perhaps 1000 years, perhaps 50000 years. There is some evidence indicating relativity for individuals. It will be longer and more difficult for the disbeliever and quick and easy for believer, like the time between Zohr and Asr (midday and afternoon prayers).

The Trumpet

To Him belongs the Kingdom the day the Trumpet is blown [6:73]

The Trumpet is mentioned explicitly 10 times in Quran, and many more times indirectly. Its sounding signifies the end of this world and the beginning of the next and final stage of the journey of our souls. It will sound suddenly, everyone will turn towards the noise and then will die immediately.

There is no specific mention of the angel Isra’eel being the Trumpeter but this is the unanimous consensus amongst scholars. Most evidence suggests that the Trumpet is blown twice, mentioned in several surahs and from hadith. Both blasts will occur on a Friday, he first causing those who are still living to die and the second resurrecting all of humanity. Between the two trumpets is a period of 40 [Bukhari]. The narrator of this hadith could not remember what period of time 40 refers to but it is generally thought to refer to 40 years.

The Trumpet will be blown and all those in the heavens and all those on earth will die except those Allah wills. Then it will be blown again and they will rise up at once, looking on [39:68]

A well known tradition narrates that all the angels will die, one by one, as ordered by Allah SWT until the last remaining angel is the Angel of Death who then takes his own soul. However, this is from a very weak hadith and there is no authentic evidence for this. However, the ayah above and also, Everything is bound to perish except His Face [28:88], suggests that the angels too will die and then be resurrected. Allah SWT knows best.

The Companion of the Trumpet has raised it to his lips, taken his breath, is looking towards Allah SWT awaiting His instructions and has not blinked since, for fear of missing Allah’s SWT decree – his eyes are glazed over [Tirmidhi]

The Hashar

This refers to the gathering of creation, specifically meaning to intentionally gather separated persons for a higher purpose. A gentle and persistent rain will mix with the soil, to form mud then hardening to clay. From this, bodies will be recreated, just like the first creation.

We will be resurrected barefoot, naked, uncircumcised, just as we were created. Aisha RA, the wife of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ‎, was shocked and exclaimed would not people be looking at each other? The Prophet ﷺ replied, “The matter is much more terrifying than that” [Tirmidhi].

For everyone of them that Day will have enough preoccupations of their own [80:37]

The first to be resurrected will be Prophet Muhammad ﷺ‎ then Abu Bakr RA. Prophet Ibrahim AS will be the first to be clothed, thought to be as recompense for being paraded naked as a youth before his people prior to being thrown in the fire. Then will be the other prophets.

The Jinn are also resurrected along with all the animals: And when the wild beasts are gathered together [81:5]. No injustice, even amongst animals, will be unchecked on that Day. The animals will then return to dust and the disbeliever will say, “Oh I wish that I was an animal.”

The Resurrection of People

People will be resurrected in accordance with their deeds:

• On their faces (upside down) as a humiliation for refusing to prostrate in the world.
• Being dragged to Jahannam like “atoms” (smallest objects possible), being trampled over, for those who were pompous and egotistic.
• Face shredded, with no flesh for those with no dignity, who kept asking for money without any need or intention to pay back.
• Without their senses, deaf, dumb and blind, for rejecting Allah SWT’s signs.
• Doing what they constantly used to do, for example zikr, saying adhan, or whatever bad deeds they persisted in doing.
• For the martyrs, their wounds will be showing but smelling like perfume from Jannah, a badge of honour.

The Mawkif

The Mawkif refers to the place of the Gathering. The earth and the heavens will be transformed into another world, completely flat as far as the eye can see, pure white with no markings. Multiple ayats in the Quran describe these changes:

• When the earth will be violently shaken and the mountains crushed to pieces becoming scattered dust [56:4-6].
• On that Day the sky will be like molten brass and the mountains like tufts of wool [70:8].
• But when the sight is stunned and the moon is dimmed and the sun and the moon are brought together [75:7-9].
• So when the stars are put out and the sky is torn apart and the mountains are blown away [81:1-3].
• When the sky splits open and when the stars fall away and when the seas burst forth and when the graves spill out [82:1-4].
• When the sky bursts open obeying its Lord as it must and when the earth is flattened out and ejects all its contents and become empty obeying its Lord as it must [84:1-5].

There will be no way to tell where you are, yet despite this terrain, no one will be able to hide. A person calling out will be heard by all and anyone wanting to see someone else will be able to.

The sun will come very close and the creation will be in a state of fear. People will sweat in accordance with their deeds, some to their ankles, some to shins, some to chests and some will be completely drowned. The righteous will be protected from this terror.

The Howd

This is the fountain/pool/cistern of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ‎. Every Prophet will have a Howd for their ummah which will be the only source of water on the Day of Judgement. The source of the Howd is The Kauther, one of the rivers of Jannah, gifted to the Prophet ﷺ‎.

There will be two spouts coming from Jannah, one of gold and one of silver pouring water into the Howd. Each side will be the distance of one months journey, around 1500 miles and it will be square shaped in order to accommodate the maximum number of people, numbering in the millions. The number of cups will be as many as the number of stars.

Its water will be whiter than milk, sweeter than honey, colder than ice and smell better than perfume. The first taste of Jannah, just one sip and the person will never be thirsty for eternity. This is likely to be before all the events of Judgement, as soon as people exit their graves, so that they are free from the heat and thirst of that Day.

Prophet Muhammad ﷺ‎ will be there, at his pulpit, calling out and inviting the Muslims to drink. They will be recognised by their bright faces and limbs, by virtue of their performing regular wudu (ablution). The first batch of Muslims to come will be those who emigrated from Makkah to Madinah (the poor of the Muhajareen), the Ansar and the people of Yemen. The hypocrites and major sinners, will be prevented from coming by the angels, informing the Prophet SAW, “You do not know how they changed after you.”

The Coming of Allah SWT and the Display of Creation

(The Day) when the earth will be crushed rock upon rock and your Lord will come with the the angels, row upon row. And Hell that Day is brought forth [89:21-23]

The earth will be lit up with the Light of Allah SWT. The believers will be happy and excited with bright shining faces, seeing Allah SWT like they see the moon on a clear night. This will be an initial blessing, a glimpse and not the same as seeing Allah SWT in Jannah.

The disbelievers will be veiled from Allah SWT. The majority opinion is that they will not see Him, or that they may see Him but in a state of fear and terror. All of creation will be displayed clearly in front of Allah SWT, nothing will be hidden, yet individually we will feel alone.

The angels will testify and point out the people who lied against Allah SWT, ascribing something false to Him. Everyone will be placed in groups according to the God/icon/idol they worshipped. People will blame those whom they followed but they will reply, “Its not our fault, we are in this together.”

Allah SWT will say, “To whom does the Kingdom belong? To Allah, the One. I am the King.” The voice of Allah SWT will be heard by the near and the far in the exact same manner. Some opinions suggest Allah SWT will not speak or look at the disbelievers, others that He will not speak or look at them with mercy. It may be that at times He will or will not speak to them which in itself will be a punishment.

Shafa’ah

Shafa’ah or intercession refers to someone who will plead your case, intercede on your behalf, with Allah SWT. It will occur at multiple times and at different locations during and long after the Day of Judgement. The first shafa’ah will be by Prophet Muhammad ﷺ‎. Only the prophets will speak on the Day of Judgement, breaking the silence. 

Every person of power needs an entourage to help him and keep him in that position. Allah SWT is the only One who needs no one and only He can allow intercession by whom He chooses. ALL shafa’ah belongs to Allah SWT, He is the Malik and the Judge. He will decide who’s shafa’ah to accept and who will enter Jannah.

Two conditions must be met for intercession: 

1. Allah SWT must allow the person to speak.
2. Allah SWT must be pleased with the people who intercession is being asked for. Not all intercession will be accepted.

On that day no intercession shall avail, except the one for whom the Most Gracious has given permission and whose word is acceptable to Him [20:109]

So why have Shafa’ah if it is up to Allah SWT to decide overall? Firstly, as an honour to those groups of people who will be allowed to intercede and secondly, to forgive a group of people who He has already decreed. Allah SWT is using the mechanism of Shafa’ah to pardon those who He has willed. We must therefore ensure our friends are righteous and be good and generous to others, lest we need their intercession.

Who can Give Shafa’ah

• Prophet Muhammad ﷺ‎, the greatest number and types of Shafa’ah – see below.
• Other prophets will intercede for their own nations but not to the degree of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ‎.
• Angels, the heavens are full of them. Those carrying and surrounding the Throne of Allah SWT ask for forgiveness and protection for the believers. Angels surround righteous gatherings of people where there is remembrance of Allah SWT and recitation of Quran, racing back to Him to inform Him of these deeds. Thus our chances of the angels interceding on our behalf is increased if we perform good deeds.
• Martyrs on the battlefield will be allowed 70 people to make shafa’ah for.
• Righteous people will be gifted any quantity of shafa’ah as Allah SWT pleases. This includes large groups of people asking for shafa’ah in this world, for example during the jinazah (funeral prayer).
• Children who die before puberty, whose parents are righteous and patient. The children will be told to enter Jannah and they will say in a tantrum, eyes red with anger, “Not until our mothers and fathers come with us.” Allah SWT will allow their parents to enter Jannah.
• One person will have a quota of shaf’ah equivalent to the Banu Tamimi tribe, whose descendants are in Arabia numbering approximately 50 million.
• Non living entities. The Quran will intercede and argue on our behalf, specifically Surah Al Mulk, if recited daily/regularly. Fasting, and by extrapolation other good deeds, will intercede.

Shafa’ah of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ‎

Look for me at the Sirat, the Meezan or the Howd, for indeed I will not me missed at these three locations [Tirmidhi]

In this world, millions of people at any one second of the day are praising and sending blessings upon Prophet Muhammad ﷺ‎. One of the many benefits of this act is that he will then perform shafa’ah for his ummah on several occasions throughout the Day of Judgement:

• General/Grand shaf’ah.
• For those whose balance of deeds is equal.
• For the major sinners of the ummah.
• For people to enter Jannah without hisab.
• To take persons out of Jahannam, either before they enter or before their time in Jahannam has ended.
• To raise the ranks of the persons of Jannah.
• For people to enter through the Gates of Jannah.

Grand Shafa’ah

It may be that your Lord will raise you to a Station of Praise and Glory [17:79]

The majority opinion is that the Grand Shafa’ah is same as Maqam al Mahmood, the highest station of praise, that the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ‎ will be raised to after resurrection. This is one of the most blessed favours that Allah SWT has gifted to Prophet Muhammad ﷺ‎, a sign of his distinction and excellence over all the other Messengers. This shafa’ah will be for the Day of Judgement to begin.

Mankind will be kept waiting for a long time on the Day of Resurrection. The fear, suspense, trepidation and discomfort will make people want to get the Judgement started, so they will say, “Let us find someone to intercede for us to begin the Day of Judgement.”

They will go and ask Prophet Adam AS, “You are the father of all mankind, the one Allah SWT created and taught the names of all things and the one the angels prostrated to. Will you intercede for us?” He will reply, “This is not for me, I made the mistake of eating from the forbidden tree, go ask the first Prophet Nuh.”

They will go to Prophet Nuh AS and praise him. He will say, “I am not worthy, I asked Allah SWT of something when he forbade me to ask (asked about his son to be saved), go ask Ibrahim, the friend of Allah SWT.” They will go to Prophet Ibrahim AS and praise him. He will say, “I am not worthy for I lied 3 times in my life and I need to answer for those things, go and ask Musa.”

They will go to Musa AS and praise him and he will respond, “I am not worthy, I killed an innocent man, go to Isa.” They will go and praise Isa AS who will say, “I am not worthy, go to Muhammad ﷺ‎, the slave whose past and future sins Allah has forgiven.” 

Finally they will go to Prophet Muhammad ﷺ‎ and praise him and he will say, “This is my job, I will make Shafa’ah.” All of mankind will praise him for this. The Prophet ﷺ‎ will go and fall down in prostration to Allah SWT’s Throne and stay for as long as He wills.

Allah SWT will teach the Prophet ﷺ‎ a way to praise Him not taught to anyone before. Allah SWT will say, “O Muhammad, raise your head and speak, for you will be listened to, and intercede, for your intercession will be accepted, and ask, your request will be granted.” The Prophet ﷺ‎ will raise his head and glorify and praise Allah SWT with the phrases He taught him [Bukhari].

Shafa’ah for the Major Sinners of the Ummah

This is the largest category of shafa’ah and is for the major sinners of the ummah who are in Jahannam to be removed before their time is up. These people are referred to as the Jahannam-e-yoon.

Following Prophet Muhammad’s ﷺ‎ praise of Allah SWT, He will tell him which group of people to intercede for and remove from the Fire. The Prophet ﷺ‎ will return to Allah SWT, praise Him again and be told to remove another group of people from the Fire and so forth.

This category of shafa’ah will be for anyone whom Allah SWT wishes, such as prophets, righteous people and angels. There will be several levels of shafa’ah, for example the prophets, siddique, shaheed, righteous, each given different numbers of allocations. The more righteous the person, the higher the number of shafa’ah granted, so make righteous friends.

This category of shafa’ah will occur during and long after the Day of Judgement, as it will also be offered to the people in Jannah. After certain periods of time, people in Jannah will remember that so and so helped me on this day and make shafa’ah for them. In this way the next batches of sinners will be taken out of Jahannam one by one.

Allah SWT will say, “Whoever has a dinars weight of iman go and remove them from Jahannam.” Then, “Whoever has half a dinars weight,” then “Whoever has a mustard seeds weight” and finally, “Whoever has an atoms weight of iman, take them out.”

Thus the sinful believers will be punished in Jahannam for certain periods of time (Hundreds of years? Thousands of years? Eons?) and then allowed to be removed according to the shafa’ah of others. Eventually no believer will remain in Jahannam. All who remain will be those who have absolutely no iman, destined to reside there for eternity.

Then Allah SWT will say, “No one’s shafa’ah is left apart from My shafa’ah” and Allah SWT will remove a handful of people (His Handful) who have never done any good deed but have some element of good only known to Allah SWT. Burnt, scarred and disfigured, this batch will be told to enter the River of Life where they will heal. They will sprout from the river like a seed coming from fertile soil, then they will enter Jannah. Known as the “People whom Allah SWT has freed,” this in itself will be an honour.

Other Shafa’ah of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ‎

• For those who have been given the verdict of Jahannam and are about to be dragged off, shafa’ah will take place and they will be spared and sent to Jannah.

• For a small group of people who will be allowed to enter Jannah without any hisab, the elite of the ummah, those who had perfect tawakkal (trust) in Allah SWT. One batch of these will get there because of the shafa’ah of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ‎. I have been gifted 70000 of my ummah to enter Jannah without hisab – I asked Allah SWT for more and He gifted me another 70000 for each 1000 of those, plus three handfuls of the handfuls of my Lord, may He be glorified [Tirmidhi].

• General shafa’ah, so that no one who believed in Prophet Muhammad ﷺ‎ will remain in Jahannam. Every Prophet was given one dua in this world and every Prophet has used it. I have kept mine and will use it on the Day of Judgement for my ummah to ask for their forgiveness [Muslim].

• To open the Gates of Jannah to allow people to enter. Prophet Muhammad ﷺ‎ will be the first to enter through a special door with a select group of people. The angels will open the door, welcoming the believers to their eternal abode.

• For the people of Madinah. Whoever is patient with the trials of Madinah and whoever dies in Madinah I will intercede for them on the Day of Judgement [Tirmidhi].

• To raise the status of people of Jannah to a higher level. The default for every person of Jannah “whoever you love, you will be with that person”

• For Abu Talib (uncle of Muhammad ﷺ‎) who cared for, protected and stood by the Prophet but died a disbeliever. Because of this he has been removed from the depths of Jahannam to its periphery. This is unique as no one else can make shafa’ah for a disbeliever.

How to Gain Prophet Muhammad’s ﷺ‎ Shafa’ah

• Reciting the dua after hearing the Adhan. If anyone prays al-Wasila for me then my intercession will become halal for him [Muslim]
• Reciting durood sharif to send salawat (blessings) upon the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ‎.
• Recite La illaha illala (There is no God but Allah) with sincerity, constantly and at the time of death.
• Perform lots of salat (prayer) and sajdah (prostration).

Visiting the grave of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ‎ has been reported to gain his intercession but this is not authentic. Rather one should send their salawat upon him as mentioned above.

The Hisab

On that Day eight mighty angels will bear the Throne of your Lord above them. You will then be presented to Him for judgement and none of your secrets will stay hidden [69:17-18]

Hisab refers to the accounting of our deeds, our reckoning. The Scroll of Deeds, the Meezan and Iktisas will all be components of the hisab. Three times on The Day of Judgement, no one will remember anyone else: when the Meezan (scales) are brought out, when the kitab (scrolls of deeds) is brought out and when the Sirat (bridge) is placed over Jahannam. Our preoccupation with our own fate will be overwhelming.

Everyone will meet Allah SWT, one on one. Allah SWT will do the hisab of everyone personally and simultaneously just as He is Al Razaaq and provides/sustains for all of creation simultaneously.

There are two elements to the hisab. The first is between Allah SWT and the person, accounting for sins performed against the command of Allah SWT. The second is for sins committed between people, accounting for injustices done to others.

The Scroll of Deeds

Accounting of Deeds

Woe to us! What kind of record is this that does not leave any sin, small or large, unlisted [18:49]

The scroll will be the main source of evidence for us. These are our good and bad deeds recorded by the two angels constantly at our sides. Not a single word is uttered nor a single step taken, except that it is written.

There are more than just our two assigned angels writing down our deeds. For example at Jummah prayer, angels are writing down who attends and comes early. Angels are writing down our praises and remembrances of Allah SWT. The angels recording our deeds change over at Fajr and Asr. If we pray these salah regularly, the angels will report back to Allah SWT that, “I left your servant praying and found him praying.”

It is certainly We Who resurrect the dead and write what they send forth and what they leave behind. Everything is listed by Us in Perfect Record [36:12]

By the Mercy of Allah SWT, He has made the accounting of our deeds very beneficial for us:

• Any intention to perform a good deed is written as one good deed.
• Performing a good deed is written as 10 or up to 700 good deeds, or as many as Allah SWT wills.
• The intention of performing a bad deed but restraining oneself is written as one good deed.
• Actually performing a bad deed is written as one bad deed.

We are the authors of our books. The scrolls will be opened and we will see our deeds before us.

And it will be said, “Read your record. You alone are sufficient this Day to take account of yourself [17:14]

Testifying for our Deeds

We will testify against ourselves, so no one can accuse Allah SWT of being unfair. Mankind will say on the Day of Judgement, “I will not allow anyone to testify against me, I don’t trust anyone, I will testify for myself.”

The body, the Quran and the Earth will testify for or against the person. Our mouths will be sealed and our hands, feet and skin will speak for us, so that we cannot lie. The earth, trees and rocks will testify for what they have seen and heard or what actions were performed on or near them.

On this Day, We will seal their mouths, their hands will speak to Us, and their feet will testify to what they used to commit [36:65]

Types of Hisab

The prophets will have a unique hisab, otherwise there are 3 types of hisab:

1. None. For those with the highest level of righteousness. They will be handed their scrolls and allowed to enter Jannah.
2. Easy (Hisaban Yasera). For the majority of believers, the righteous person with lots of good deeds. A presentation of deeds, an easy account, glancing over the record. Everything is in order, Allah SWT knows the quality of the person. Private and concealed, covered from others by Allah SWT’s Sittīr. Allah SWT will ask them, “Do you know this sin? Do you have any excuse? I covered your sins in the world and I will forgive you today.” Every time a good deed is read the person will be happy and prostrate to Allah SWT. Every time a bad deed is read the person will become fearful and trembling. This will be their punishment, rather than Jahannam.
3. Difficult. For the believing sinners and disbelievers or one who has not clearly demonstrated their good deeds. Public and humiliating, all mercy will be removed. A detailed examination whereby every action/deed will be examined.

Questions Asked

5 questions will be asked of us:

1. What did you do with your life? We will be asked about our deeds and actions. Did we worship Allah SWT, did we strive and spend in His name, or only live to seek the worldly pleasures?
2. What did you do with your youth? Did we learn about Islam, become educated, cultivate a good character and curb the desire to perform forbidden acts?
3. How did you earn your money? Through halal means by striving hard and fair trade or through haram means such as riba or fraud/deceit?
4. How did you spend your money? In the way of Allah SWT spending on the poor and needy? Or hoarding selfishly or spending on haram activities?
5. What did you do with your knowledge? Did we use our intellect to seek the Truth and act justly or to manipulate and take advantage of others?

Allah SWT will ask:

• Did you believe in Me?
• Did I not give you such and such?
• Did you not believe you would meet Me?
• Just as you forgot about me in this world, I will forget about you today.

categories of hisab

The first category of hisab to be answered for between a person and Allah SWT is salah. If this is in order, the hisab will be easy/overlooked. If any of the fard (obligatory) salah is deficient, Allah SWT will say, “See if My servant has any voluntary prayers that can complete what is insufficient in his obligatory prayers” [Tirmidhi]. This refers to the sunnah and nafl components of salat and is why one should try to read these regularly or as many of them as possible.

The first category of hisab to be answered for between people will be blood (murder). The murdered will drag the murderer in front of Allah SWT by his forelock and say, “Ask him why he killed me.” The murderer will get the whole lifetime’s worth of sin of the murdered, who will die a shaeed (martyr), plus the sin of the murder.

For the heedless, their good deeds will not benefit them. For some, who claim they were generous, or taught Quran or did good deeds for Allah SWT, He will say, “You lie. You did these things to benefit yourself so that others could revere/look up to you” [Muslim].

The hisab and the giving of the scrolls of deeds are likely to be happening simultaneously. The hisab of those who are poor will be shorter than those of wealth as there would be less to account for. The wealthy will have to account for how they spent the money Allah SWT gifted them in the worldly life.

The gentle, merciful and forgiving in this life will be treated accordingly on the Day of Judgement. For those blessed to say La illaha illala at the time of death, their scrolls will be full of light.

The Verdict

There will be three groups of people on Judgement Day: the foremost of believers, the people of the right and the people of the left [56:1-65]. Our scrolls will be handed back to us. If received in our right hand, the Judgement is good. If received in our left hand or behind the back, the Judgement is bad (surahs Haaqqa and Inshiqaq). Each scroll will be different according to the persons deeds and lifespan.

There will be 3 types of register:

1. Allah SWT will never forgive the register of shirk (without repentance), the deed of associating others with Him.
2. Allah SWT will not care about personal sins (if repented). He will overlook and forgive for whoever He wills. If there are minor sins, the good deeds will absolve the bad. If there are major sins, it is up to His Mercy.
3. Allah SWT will not leave anything unaccounted for regarding sins between one another, those that cause harm to others. These may include oppression, theft, backbiting, slander, gossip and so forth. Thus we must always be wary of our treatment of others.

Iktisas

Iktisas refers to the rights of persons for crimes committed against them by others. It is payback for individuals resulting in an exchange of their good and bad deeds.

People of Jahannam have rights against people of Jannah for any injustices done to them. In accordance with the transgression, good deeds will be taken from the people of Jannah and given to the people of Jahannam. For example, harming someone with your tongue (slander, gossip).

Those destined for Jahannam will have iktisas simultaneously with hisab with Allah SWT. Those destined for Jannah will have iktisas on the Qantarah, a perch after the bridge of Sirat. This iktisas will be between the people of Jannah, for the purpose of reshuffling their levels within.

Everything will be accounted for. If your punishment against someone who harmed you was equal in measure, then there will be no consequence, an eye for an eye. But if it was more than the harm you suffered, you will have to payback the difference.

Iktisas is a manifestation of the Ultimate Justice of Allah SWT. Repentance can potentially forgive sins between us and Allah SWT whereas sins between people will be accounted for. Therefore we should err on the side of caution and forgive people for their transgressions against us. Seek forgiveness from or make amends to those we have transgressed against in this world. Any reasonable request made by the wronged should be accommodated, so we are not held accountable in the Akhira potentially risking our place in Jannah. If this is not possible, give charity on behalf of those you have wronged.

The bankrupt person will be him who will come with mountains of good deeds but has also harmed others, until all of his good deeds have been taken from him and the bad deeds of those he has harmed have been given to him and he will go to Jahannam [Ibn Majah]

The Meezan

The Meezan, the Scales of Justice, are explicitly mentioned in the Quran and hadith, but little else is known about them. What will be placed on the Scales: The person? The deeds? The scrolls? How many Scales will there be: One for each individual? One for all mankind? One for each ummah?

There are some hadith that inform us of which deeds are heavy on the Scales:

• Zikr of Allah SWT fills the scales – Subhanallah wa bihamdihi; Alhamdulillah; Allahhu Akbar; La illaha illala.
• Good manners – nothing is heavier than on the Scales.

It seems probable that the Scales are a manifestation of the hisab, displaying the weight of deeds, as a means to demonstrate Allah SWT’s Infinite Justice. They will only be relevant for the believers as all the good deeds of the disbelievers will be invalid.

Shall we inform you of who are the greatest losers? Those whose efforts are in vain in this worldly life, while they think they are doing good! It is they who reject the signs of their Lord and their meeting with Him, rendering their deeds void, so We will not give their deeds any weight on Judgement Day [11:103-106]

The Separation of Mankind

After the hisab, everyone will be gathered and separated according to their (false) gods and leaders. Each group will follow what they used to worship, for example idols, people, celestial bodies, themselves and so forth. Those destined for Jahannam will be dragged there, lead by their leaders or false gods in this world, the prime example being Firaun (Pharaoh at the time of Musa AS).

All who remain will be the believers and some People of the Book, those righteous ones in the time of Musa AS and Isa AS who believed in Allah SWT, not the ones who believed in a son of God. Any believer with even an atoms worth of iman will be left.

There will be 3 categories within the Muslims who remain: the righteous, the evil sinners and the hypocrites.

The Final Test

Allah SWT will come to them in a form that they will not recognise. There will follow a discourse between them:

• Allah SWT will say, “What are you waiting for?”
• “We are waiting for our Lord.”
• “I am your Lord.”
• “No, we never performed shirk in the dunya and will not do so now.” 
• “Is there a sign that you will know your Lord?”
• “Yes, the Shin shall be displayed.” 

Then the Muslims will realise this is their Lord and all who prostrated to Him in this world of their own accord will prostrate before Him. Hypocrites who only bowed to Allah SWT out of fear of being exposed to others will not be able to prostrate, falling on to their backs.

When the Muslims raise their heads again, Allah SWT will appear in the same form as when they saw Him previously and they will recognise their Lord. Separation of the hypocrites and major believing sinners from the righteous will be at the Sirat.

Our primary demarcation amongst ourselves is our God, not skin colour, creed, race, wealth and other differences. The wicked and hypocrites within the believers will enjoy the perks of the believers for a short period, just like in this world, before being separated and punished. Performing Sajdah sincerely to Allah SWT in this world will save us in the Akhira.

Beware of the Day the Shin of Allah will be bared and the wicked will be asked to prostrate, but they will not be able to do so, with eyes downcast, totally covered with disgrace. For they were always called to prostrate in the world when they were fully capable but they chose not to [68:42-43]

The Sirat

Getting to the Sirat

The Sirat is a bridge connecting the Mawkif to Jannah, passing over Jahannam. There will be a stage of darkness immediately before the Sirat. Only those who proclaimed faith will get to this place.

Iman will become a light for the believers to guide them to and across the bridge, according to their deeds. Their bodies will have light emanating from them, as much as a mountain, or as little as a toe. Walking to the masjid to read Fajr and Isha (ie in darkness) will increase our light on the Day of Judgement.

The hypocrites will have their light taken away and be in complete darkness. They will beg the believers for their light but will be mocked and refused. A wall with a gate will then be erected between them, thought to refer to the Araf. On one side of this will be grace and on the other torment [57:13].

The Sirat will be thinner than a hair, sharper than a sword, slippery, with curved hooks covered with multiple thorns on either side. Darkness will surround people, except for the light they are gifted. Crossing is only possible by Allah SWT’s mercy. Even the angels are surprised that anyone could possibly cross. It is the only way to get into Jannah: There is none of you who will not pass over it [19:71].

Crossing the Sirat

Prophet Muhammad ﷺ‎ will be the first to cross and will be asking Allah SWT for, “Peace” for his ummah, to allow the believers across. People will ask Allah SWT for His safety.

Trust and Family will be “helpers” to support the believers across the Sirat, thus we should be trustworthy and not forsake kinship. The believers will pass across unharmed according to their level of piety/deeds. Some will cross at the speed of light, some like the wind, some like fast horses, some like birds and so forth. The least righteous will be crawling across. Others will be scratched by the hooks and scarred but will still make it across. This will be the very final punishment for any misdeeds.

The hooks will catch others and drag them into Jahannam. The hypocrites will be dragged into the lowest depths of Jahannam, for claiming they are Muslims but with absolutely no Iman. Those who fall from the bridge have already been told they are going to Jahannam, so they will be expecting this. However some of these people may be saved or scratched by the hooks and then saved. Their punishment would be thinking that they are going to Jahannam but then they would be saved by Allah SWT’s mercy.

So, the hypocrites will fall and both the righteous and sinful believers will cross. Some of the sinful believers will get across, others will fall. The sinful believers falling from the Sirat into Jahannam do not enter via its gates. This indicates they are punished in a different place of Jahannam compared to the disbelievers, thought to be in the periphery and not as severe as the centre of Jahannam. This concept also lends support to the fact that any believer will eventually be saved from Jahannam. Those who enter Jahannam through its doors will never exit: Enter the gates of Jahannam, you shall dwell therein forever [16:29] [39:72] [40:76].

The Qantarah

Once the believers are across and one step away from Jannah, that is once they know they are safe, they will turn to Allah SWT and ask shafa’ah for those who have fallen. They will plead, “These people would pray with us, fast with us, did good deeds with us.” They will be the most argumentative in front of Allah SWT to save their brethren.

Allah SWT will say to whoever He pleases, “Go and take out those whom you recognise.” Jahannam has been made haram (forbidden) to burn those who ever prostrated to Allah SWT. They will feel the heat but will be protected from the Fire and not burnt. The Fire may have gone to their shins or knees but would not harm their faces. The people will search for their brethren in Jahannam (they will be unharmed) and remove them.

Iktisas

The people will then be stopped at the Qantarah, a perch at the end of the Sirat, where reshuffling of their assigned levels in Jannah will take place according to iktisas. This will be to cleanse and purify them of all sins and issues before entering Jannah.

The smallest of issues will be settled, mockery, belittling, backbiting, sarcasm and so forth. These will be issues that do not deserve Jahannam but will require addressing because only the purest of hearts can enter Jannah. Here, eternal blessings will be removed from individuals and given to those who they hurt or wronged in this world.

Therefore, we should strive to redress any wrong we have done to a person in this world to safeguard our potential blessings in Jannah.

Entry to Jannah

Any traces of jealousy, hatred, envy and so forth will be removed from the people of Jannah. We will remove whatever bitterness they had in their hearts [15:47].

They will be told to enter Jannah and enjoy what is provided. They will know their place in Jannah better than they know their way home in this world [Bukhari].

Allah SWT will say, “I have something better for you. I will give you My pleasure and will never be angry with you.”