The Hadith of the Grave’s Embrace
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The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: (The grave has an embrace, and if anyone were to be saved from it, Sa'd ibn Mu'adh would be saved from it)?
This hadith is well known among the scholars.And assuming its authenticity: The embrace of the earth for the believer is an embrace of mercy and compassion, like a mother embracing her child to her chest.
As for its embrace of the disbeliever, it is an embrace of punishment, may Allah protect us from it. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) informed us that when a person is buried, two angels come to him and ask him about three fundamentals: Who is your Lord? What is your religion? And who is your Prophet?So the believer says: My Lord is Allah, my religion is Islam, and my Prophet is Muhammad. I ask Allah to make my answer and your answer this. As for the hypocrite or the apostate, may Allah protect us and you from this, he says: Ah, ah, I do not know. I heard people saying something, so I said it. Then the grave is squeezed tight around him until his ribs are crushed, may Allah protect us from it. Some of them enter into others due to the intensity of the squeezing. So there is a difference between the embrace of the earth for the disbeliever or apostate and its embrace for the believer.
The questioner: Why was Sa'd ibn Mu'adh specifically mentioned in the hadith?The Shaykh: Because Sa'd ibn Mu'adh informed the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that the Throne of Allah the Exalted trembled at his death.As Hassan ibn Thabit said:
And the Throne of Allah did not tremble for any deceased person we have heard of except for Sa'd, the father of 'Umar.
And Sa'd ibn Mu'adh (may Allah be pleased with him) had great stations. He was the leader of the Aws, and the Banu Qurayzah were his allies. When the Banu Qurayzah surrendered on the condition that they would submit to the judgment of Sa'd ibn Mu'adh, thinking that Sa'd ibn Mu'adh would be like the head of the hypocrites, Abdullah ibn Ubayy, who had given safe conduct to their Jewish allies,They said: we looked to Sa'd ibn Mu'adh. And Sa'd ibn Mu'adh (may Allah be pleased with him) had been wounded in his elbow during the Battle of the Trench. So the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) set up a tent for him in the mosque so he could visit him from close by, because he was highly esteemed by the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). Sa'd (may Allah be pleased with him) said: [O Allah, do not take my soul until You satisfy my eyes with the Banu Qurayzah] (may Allah be pleased with him). When they accepted his judgment -I mean: the Jews - the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) sent for him, and he was brought from the Prophet's Mosque on a donkey. When he approached, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said to the Companions: (Rise to your leader) So they rose to him and helped him down from the donkey. Then he sat for the trial. When he sat, with the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and the Companions on his right and the Banu Qurayzah on his left, he said: Is my judgment binding on these people?He was pointing to the Banu Qurayzah. They said: Yes, your judgment is binding.So he said: And on these people? He was gesturing while lowering his gaze out of respect for the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him). They said: Yes.So he said: I judge that their fighters be killed, their wealth be taken as spoils, and their children be taken captive. It was a strict judgment, even though they were his allies, but he judged with what pleases Allah (Mighty and Majestic).So the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: (You have judged them with the judgment of Allah from above seven heavens) And this judgment was carried out against them. They were killed in the city. About seven hundred of the Jews were killed. After that, blood flowed from Sa'd ibn Mu'adh's wound and he passed away. Glory be to Allah! Allah answered his supplication, so he did not die until Allah satisfied his eyes with the Banu Qurayzah and they returned to his judgment.Therefore, he said, if the hadith is authentic: (If anyone were to be saved from it, Sa'd ibn Mu'adh would be saved from it). And with this, this session ends. Until the next meeting, if Allah wills. And Glory be to You, O Allah, and praise be to You. I bear witness that there is no deity but You. I seek Your forgiveness and turn to You in repentance.
This hadith is well known among the scholars.And assuming its authenticity: The embrace of the earth for the believer is an embrace of mercy and compassion, like a mother embracing her child to her chest.
As for its embrace of the disbeliever, it is an embrace of punishment, may Allah protect us from it. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) informed us that when a person is buried, two angels come to him and ask him about three fundamentals: Who is your Lord? What is your religion? And who is your Prophet?So the believer says: My Lord is Allah, my religion is Islam, and my Prophet is Muhammad. I ask Allah to make my answer and your answer this. As for the hypocrite or the apostate, may Allah protect us and you from this, he says: Ah, ah, I do not know. I heard people saying something, so I said it. Then the grave is squeezed tight around him until his ribs are crushed, may Allah protect us from it. Some of them enter into others due to the intensity of the squeezing. So there is a difference between the embrace of the earth for the disbeliever or apostate and its embrace for the believer.
The questioner: Why was Sa'd ibn Mu'adh specifically mentioned in the hadith?The Shaykh: Because Sa'd ibn Mu'adh informed the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that the Throne of Allah the Exalted trembled at his death.As Hassan ibn Thabit said:
And the Throne of Allah did not tremble for any deceased person we have heard of except for Sa'd, the father of 'Umar.
And Sa'd ibn Mu'adh (may Allah be pleased with him) had great stations. He was the leader of the Aws, and the Banu Qurayzah were his allies. When the Banu Qurayzah surrendered on the condition that they would submit to the judgment of Sa'd ibn Mu'adh, thinking that Sa'd ibn Mu'adh would be like the head of the hypocrites, Abdullah ibn Ubayy, who had given safe conduct to their Jewish allies,They said: we looked to Sa'd ibn Mu'adh. And Sa'd ibn Mu'adh (may Allah be pleased with him) had been wounded in his elbow during the Battle of the Trench. So the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) set up a tent for him in the mosque so he could visit him from close by, because he was highly esteemed by the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). Sa'd (may Allah be pleased with him) said: [O Allah, do not take my soul until You satisfy my eyes with the Banu Qurayzah] (may Allah be pleased with him). When they accepted his judgment -I mean: the Jews - the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) sent for him, and he was brought from the Prophet's Mosque on a donkey. When he approached, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said to the Companions: (Rise to your leader) So they rose to him and helped him down from the donkey. Then he sat for the trial. When he sat, with the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and the Companions on his right and the Banu Qurayzah on his left, he said: Is my judgment binding on these people?He was pointing to the Banu Qurayzah. They said: Yes, your judgment is binding.So he said: And on these people? He was gesturing while lowering his gaze out of respect for the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him). They said: Yes.So he said: I judge that their fighters be killed, their wealth be taken as spoils, and their children be taken captive. It was a strict judgment, even though they were his allies, but he judged with what pleases Allah (Mighty and Majestic).So the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: (You have judged them with the judgment of Allah from above seven heavens) And this judgment was carried out against them. They were killed in the city. About seven hundred of the Jews were killed. After that, blood flowed from Sa'd ibn Mu'adh's wound and he passed away. Glory be to Allah! Allah answered his supplication, so he did not die until Allah satisfied his eyes with the Banu Qurayzah and they returned to his judgment.Therefore, he said, if the hadith is authentic: (If anyone were to be saved from it, Sa'd ibn Mu'adh would be saved from it). And with this, this session ends. Until the next meeting, if Allah wills. And Glory be to You, O Allah, and praise be to You. I bear witness that there is no deity but You. I seek Your forgiveness and turn to You in repentance.