Meeting the Angel of Death
Everyone breathing today will eventually die – an accepted fact of life – but despite being intimately aware of death, our understanding of what happens after it is fairly limited.
An estimated 7 billion people are alive today and it is interesting to think only a handful of them may be alive a hundred years from now. Death is a strange phenomenon that begins our transition into the next life while our current one ends. The explanation from science of what happens after death is severely restricted because no one has been able to rise from the grave and record a detailed account. There are a multitude of explanations available from various faiths trying to tackle the question of what happens when we die, but when we consider the cycle of life, how it begins at birth and how it ends when death catches up, we see exactly the same process faced by all of mankind, in the past and in the future. One can logically deduce that our experiences after death will also be similar to one another and conclude that amongst the multitude of explanations only one can be correct.
Search it, want it
The correct understanding can only be acquired by conducting our own research and deriving thoughtful conclusions. It involves scrutinizing the different religious messages and books out there, including the Quran, and verify it is the one from God. Searching for the correct understanding is an endeavor all of us should take because without doubt we will face death, and the only way we can be prepared for what’s to come is first by knowing what to expect. Waiting till we die to prepare for the hereafter would be too late; similar to preparations we take before travelling, we should make preparation for the journey that begins after death.
Following is a brief account from the Prophet (peace be upon him) describing what happens at the moments of death:
The Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) was once attending a funeral of a man with his companions. He proceeded to sit down and his companions gathered around him, and looked toward the sky, then toward the earth, raising and lowering his eyes three times. He said to them a couple of times, "Seek refuge in Allah (one of God’s name) from the punishment of the grave." He similarly acted upon his advice and said three times:
He then continued to give the following account of what happens when a person is at the final moments of his life:
Events for a Believing Soul
Verily when a believing and righteous person is at the point of departure from this worldly life, and is about to enter the next life (i.e. close to death), angels descend from heaven. Their faces are white (and bright) like the sun. They carry with them a shroud from the clothes of Paradise, and embalmment from the fragrance of Paradise. They sit away from him at the limit of his eyesight. The Angel of Death then arrives, sits by this head, and says:
On hearing this, the soul leaves the body (as easily) as water flows from the spout of a water skin, and the Angel of Death takes it. When the soul leaves the body, all angels between the heavens and the earth, and all angels in the heavens, pronounce salah on him (i.e. ask for the soul’s forgiveness). All gates of the heavens open for him; the guardians of every gate implore Allah that this soul ascends in their direction. When the Angel of Death takes the soul, the other angels do no leave it in his hands for as little as the blinking of an eye. They take it and place it in their shroud and embalmment. To this they apply Allah’s words:
Our messengers [the angels] take his soul, and they do not fail [in their duties]... [Quran 6:61]
There emanates then from the soul the best smelling scent of musk that ever existed on the surface of the earth.And what can make you know what is 'Illiyyun? It is [their destination recorded in] a register inscribed. Which is witnessed by those brought near [to Allah – among the angels]. [Quran 83:19-21] The angels then ascent with it. As they pass by gatherings of angels, they ask them, “What is this good soul?” They (angels holding it) reply, “He is the so and so, son of so and so,” using the best names with which he had been addressed in the first life.
When they reach the lowest heaven they ask for permission to enter; and the gates open for them. The most elite angels of each heaven escort him to the next one, until he reaches the seventh heaven. Allah then says, "Write My servant’s records in ‘Illiyyun." Thus, his records are inscribed in ‘Illiyyun, and the angels are told:
Take him back to the earth, because I promised them that from it I create them, into it I return them, and from it I resurrect them once again. [Quran 20:55]
He is then returned to earth; and his soul is returned to his body, so that he hears the thumping of his companions’ shoes as they walk away from his grave…
The narration continues to expand talking about events that will happen in the grave. For brevity let’s jump to a section that describes the events for a wicked soul, but suffice it to say the righteous soul will receive provisions from paradise and be able to view his final abode.
The World of the Ghayb (Unseen)
A couple of things need to be explained to help guide our understanding. There are two types of worlds cohabiting harmoniously with one another and can be best understood with examples. One world (this life) is where we observe the objects we know of and where our physical laws are applicable, e.g. our bodies, houses, planets, and the other is called the Ghayb (Unseen), which applies to for example our souls, angels, paradise and hell. Ghayb is a world different from this life with a different set of laws applicable to it, and as the name suggests it is a life we are unable to ‘see’ and is best explained by the One who created it as illustrated in the account above. When a person dies the soul enters a stage called Barzakh. It is a transitory stage where the soul resides until processions for the Final Day begin. Now to continue with the narration:
Events for a Disbelieving Soul
And verily when a disbelieving or wicked person is at the point of departure from the worldly life, and is about to enter the hereafter, strong hulking angels with dark faces descend to him from the heavens. They bring with them tough fabrics from the Fire. They sit away from him at the limit of his eyesight. The Angel of Death arrives, sits by his head, and says:
On hearing this, the soul becomes terrified, and clings to the body; but the angel extracts it by force, like a wet sheet of wool being pulled over thorns, causing the veins and nerves to burst. Every angel between the heavens and the earth, and every angel in the heavens, curses him. They gates of the heaven are shut; the guardians of every gate implore Allah that this soul does not ascend in their direction.
When the Angel of Death takes the soul, the other angels do not leave it in his hand for as little as the blinking of an eye.For them the gates of heaven will not be opened; and they will not enter Paradise until the camel goes through the eye of the needle. [Quran 7:40] They put it in the fabric that they have from the Fire; and from it emanates the most repugnant odor of a decaying cadaver that ever existed on the surface of the earth. The angels then ascend with it. As they pass by gatherings of angels, they ask them, “What is this malicious soul?” The angels holding it respond, “He is so and so, the son of so and so,” using the worst names with which he had been addressed in the first life. When they reach the lowest heaven, they ask for permission to enter; but the gates are not opened for him.
Allah then says, "Write his record in Sijjin (a place most low) in the lowest earth.” And they are told:
Take him back to the earth, because I promised them that from it I created them, into it I return them, and from it I will resurrect them once again. [Quran 20:55]
His soul is then cast down from the heavens without regard, and it falls into his body:
And he who associates with Allah - it is as though he had fallen from the sky and was snatched by the birds or the wind carried him down into a remote place [from Allah’s mercy]... [Quran 22:31]
His soul is restored to his body, so that he hears the thumping of his companions’ shoes as they walk away from his grave…
The narration continues talking about events happening in the grave and ending with, “A door is opened for Him to the Fire; and he is given the furnishings from the Fire. He (the soul) then pleads, “O my Lord! Do not establish the Hour.”
Life is a Choice
The two experiences outlined are two ends of a range where people reside. You may ponder as to why the second account gives a very harsh view of death. Keep in mind we are free to choose what type of life we would like to pursue and by denying what has been recorded does not mean the events will not occur, instead we should use these accounts as a learning experience to further educate ourselves and be the best people that we can be while being cognizant of the ephemeral nature of this worldly life.
If life was simply about living and then turning to dust then one will wonder why we are so fearful of death. We inherently understand there is more to life than we may want to accept and fortunately God has given a model guideline of how we should live our life, maintain our relationship with Him and one another, and prepare for the hereafter via the teachings of the Quran and His Messenger Muhammad (peace be upon him). We only have one life in this world and one experience of death, and would therefore be a shame for us not to use our faculties during our time on earth to try and approach the correct understanding and integrate it how we want to live. The same could be said about our understanding on the purpose of life, but that is a discussion for another time.