I would like you to speak about the life of the barzakh (the interval between death and resurrection) as it is mentioned in Surat al-Mu'minun (And behind them is a barzakh until the Day they are resurrected), the verse?
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The questioner : I would like you to speak about the life of the barzakh (the interval between death and resurrection) as it is mentioned in Surat al-Mu'minun: [Al-Mu'minun 23:100].
The Shaykh : The life of the barzakh (the interval between death and resurrection) is the life that exists between a person's death and the Hour. A person may be buried and placed in the ground, or thrown into the sea where fish eat him, or thrown into the ocean where birds and beasts eat him. Nevertheless, each of these people receives what is due to them from the life of the barzakh (the interval between death and resurrection).
It, meaning the life of the barzakh (the interval between death and resurrection), is from the unseen realm. If Allah and His Messenger had not informed us about what happens in it, we would not have known about it. But Allah the Exalted informed us in His Book, and His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) informed us in his Sunnah about matters regarding this affair that we would not otherwise know.
In the life of the barzakh (the interval between death and resurrection), there is punishment and there is bliss, either for the soul alone or connected to the body at times. However, this punishment is not from the realm of witness. Therefore, a person is punished in his grave, and the grave is constricted upon him until his ribs are crushed, or the grave is expanded for him and he is granted bliss in it, and a gate of Paradise is opened for him from which its spirit and bliss reach him. If we were to open the grave, we would find the dead person as we buried him yesterday; his ribs would not be crushed, and we would not find any scent of Paradise or anything of the sort, because this life is a barzakh (the interval between death and resurrection) life that is not known to us and is not from the realm of witness.
I give an example to clarify this: A person sleeping at your place sees in his dream that he goes and comes, buys and sells, prays, visits a relative, and visits a sick person. While he is sleeping, he is lying down at your place, as if he had not seen any of that, and yet he sees it. Similarly, in the life of the barzakh (the interval between death and resurrection), the dead person sees what he sees, enjoys bliss, and is punished, but on the side of physical sensation, we do not witness any of this.
This is because sleep is the brother of death in reality, but death is more severe and deeper in such matters. The soul has a connection to the body in four ways:
The first: its connection to the body during pregnancy.
The second: its connection during the life of this world. Its connection during the life of this world occurs in a state of wakefulness and in a state of sleep, and these two differ from each other.
The third: its connection to the body in the barzakh (the interval between death and resurrection).
The fourth: its connection to the body after the resurrection. This last one is the most complete of the connections. Therefore, the soul does not leave the body, neither by sleep nor by death, for there is no death after the resurrection and no sleep, but rather it is a permanent life, a life of wakefulness. However, it is either in permanent bliss, and I ask Allah to make me and the listeners among these people, or in permanent hellfire, refuge with Allah:[Az-Zukhruf 43:75] the punishment, and they do not look away, refuge with Allah [Az-Zukhruf 43:75].
As for the people of bliss, they are in permanent bliss. These are the types of the soul's connection to the body, and each has a characteristic that is not in the other.
The questioner : May Allah bless you for this blessed guidance.
and behind them is a barrier until the Day they are resurrected.
وَمِنْ وَرَائِهِمْ بَرْزَخٌ إِلَى يَوْمِ يُبْعَثُونَThe Shaykh : The life of the barzakh (the interval between death and resurrection) is the life that exists between a person's death and the Hour. A person may be buried and placed in the ground, or thrown into the sea where fish eat him, or thrown into the ocean where birds and beasts eat him. Nevertheless, each of these people receives what is due to them from the life of the barzakh (the interval between death and resurrection).
It, meaning the life of the barzakh (the interval between death and resurrection), is from the unseen realm. If Allah and His Messenger had not informed us about what happens in it, we would not have known about it. But Allah the Exalted informed us in His Book, and His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) informed us in his Sunnah about matters regarding this affair that we would not otherwise know.
In the life of the barzakh (the interval between death and resurrection), there is punishment and there is bliss, either for the soul alone or connected to the body at times. However, this punishment is not from the realm of witness. Therefore, a person is punished in his grave, and the grave is constricted upon him until his ribs are crushed, or the grave is expanded for him and he is granted bliss in it, and a gate of Paradise is opened for him from which its spirit and bliss reach him. If we were to open the grave, we would find the dead person as we buried him yesterday; his ribs would not be crushed, and we would not find any scent of Paradise or anything of the sort, because this life is a barzakh (the interval between death and resurrection) life that is not known to us and is not from the realm of witness.
I give an example to clarify this: A person sleeping at your place sees in his dream that he goes and comes, buys and sells, prays, visits a relative, and visits a sick person. While he is sleeping, he is lying down at your place, as if he had not seen any of that, and yet he sees it. Similarly, in the life of the barzakh (the interval between death and resurrection), the dead person sees what he sees, enjoys bliss, and is punished, but on the side of physical sensation, we do not witness any of this.
This is because sleep is the brother of death in reality, but death is more severe and deeper in such matters. The soul has a connection to the body in four ways:
The first: its connection to the body during pregnancy.
The second: its connection during the life of this world. Its connection during the life of this world occurs in a state of wakefulness and in a state of sleep, and these two differ from each other.
The third: its connection to the body in the barzakh (the interval between death and resurrection).
The fourth: its connection to the body after the resurrection. This last one is the most complete of the connections. Therefore, the soul does not leave the body, neither by sleep nor by death, for there is no death after the resurrection and no sleep, but rather it is a permanent life, a life of wakefulness. However, it is either in permanent bliss, and I ask Allah to make me and the listeners among these people, or in permanent hellfire, refuge with Allah:
It will not be allowed to subside for them
لا يُفَتَّرُ عَنْهُمْand they, therein, are in despair.
وَهُمْ فِيهِ مُبْلِسُونَAs for the people of bliss, they are in permanent bliss. These are the types of the soul's connection to the body, and each has a characteristic that is not in the other.
The questioner : May Allah bless you for this blessed guidance.