Traditions About Paradise and Hell

‘When it is Friday and the people of Paradise are in Paradise while the people of Hell are in the Fire, the inhabitants of Paradise will know that it is Friday due to what they witness of enhanced pleasure and joy, while the denizens of Hell will know that it is Friday because of the [increased] torment by the wardens of Hell.’”

“When the Day of Judgment comes, Paradise will call out to its Lord and say, ‘O Lord, You are the Just, and You have filled Hellwith its inmates as You promised it, yet You have not filed me as You promised me.’ So Allah will create a creation who shall not have seen the world and will fill Paradise with them – blessed shall they be.”

“Abū ʿAbdillāh (a) said, ‘Do not say [there is but] a single garden [of Paradise]. Verily Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, says: [There are] levels, some above others.’”

When the Messenger of Allah (ṣ) was taken [to the heavens] by night, he did not pass by any one of the angels but that he became happy [to see him], until he passed by an angel who did not show happiness upon [seeing] him like the [other] angels did, and he did not say anything to him; rather, he found him morose and frowning. So the Messenger of Allah (ṣ) said, ‘O Jibraʾīl, I did not pass by any of the angels but that he was gladdened by [seeing] me, and I witnessed cheerfulness, graciousness, and joy from him, except this angel. Who is this?’ He replied, ‘O Messenger of Allah, this angel is the warden of Hell, and this is how Allah has made him.’ So the Messenger of Allah (ṣ) said, ‘Ask him to show me the creation of his Lord.’ [Or] he said, ‘I would like you to ask him to show me the Fire.’ Jibraʾīl (a) said to him, ‘O angel, this is Muḥammad, the Messenger of Allah (ṣ), and he has told me that he did not pass by any of the angels but that they expressed their joy at meeting him, except you. So I told him that this is the warden of Hell and that is how Allah has made him. He has now asked me to request you to show it to him.’ So one of its levels was unveiled for him.” Then he (the Imam) said, “After [seeing] that, the Messenger of Allah (ṣ) never smiled laughingly until the day he died.”

“Verily there is a valley in Hell which is called Ghassāq. In it are three hundred and thirty castles. Each castle has three hundred and thirty chambers and in each chamber, there are three hundred and thirty scorpions. Inside the stinger of each of these scorpions there are thirty-three sacs of venom. If a single one of those scorpions were to spray its venom on the inmates of Hell, it would [suffice to] cover them [all] with venom.”

“I do not know of it being mentioned except by Abū Jaʿfar (a) who said, ‘When Allah places the people of Paradise in Paradise and the people of Hell in Hell, death will be brought in the form of a ram until it is kept standing between Paradise and Hell… Then a caller will call out and the inhabitants of both abodes will hear him: “O people of Paradise! O people of Hell!” When they hear the voice, they will come forward. They will be asked, “Do you know what this is? This is the death that you used to fear in the world.” So the people of Paradise will say, “O Allah, do not allow death to enter upon us!” And the people of Hell will say, “O Allah, allow death to enter upon us!” Then it will be slaughtered the way a sheep is slaughtered. A caller will then call out: “There is no [more] death forever! Be certain of eternal life!” So the people of Paradise will rejoice in such a manner that if one could die out of joy, they would die on that day.’ Then he recited these verses: [Then he will ask his fellow believers,] “Are we [truly] never going to die, except our first death, nor suffer punishment [like others]? This is truly the ultimate triumph!” For the likes of this should everyone strive (Q39:58-60). He [then] said, ‘And the people of Hell will moan in such a manner that ifone could die of sorrow, they would die. And this is [referred to in] the verse wherein Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, says: And warn them of the Day of Regret, when all matters will be settled… (Q19:39).’”

“Verily there is a tree in Paradise from the top of which [paradisal] garments come forth, and from the bottom of which come horses of mixed black and white colour, saddled, bridled, and with wings, that neither defecate or urinate. They are mounted by the friends of Allah who fly with them wherever they wish in Paradise, so those who are below them will say, ‘Our Lord, what made these servants of Yours reach such a noble station?’ So Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, will say, ‘They would stand up [to worship] in the night and would not sleep, they would fast during the day and not eat, they would fight the enemy and were not cowardly, and they would give charity and were not miserly.’”

“The Messenger of Allah (ṣ) said, ‘Verily this fire of yours is but one-seventieth of the fire of Hell [in intensity]. It has been extinguished seventy times with water and then rekindled. Were that not so, the human being would not have been able to bear it [or extinguish it] once it is ignited. On the Day of Resurrection, it will be brought and placed in the Fire [of Hell], so it will scream so loudly that there will remain no close angel, nor any sent Prophet, but that he will go down on his knees out of dread from its scream.’”

“The Messenger of Allah (ṣ) said, ‘Verily the lowest of the inhabitants of Paradise in rank among the martyrs [1] is one who will have twelve thousand wives from the wide eyed houris, four thousand virgins, and twelve thousand non-virgins. Each of these wives will be served by seventy thousand servants, but the wide-eyed houris will have something more. He will go around their gatherings every week, and when the day or the hour of one of them comes, they will gather around her singing in voices so sweet and nice that no other voices can compare, until nothing remains in Paradise but that it is swayed by their voices. They will say, “Indeed, we are immortal, so we will never die; and we are [soft and] tender, so we will never become [wrinkled and] hard; and we are satisfied, so we will never get angry.”’”

“When Allah created Paradise, and made its rivers flow, and dangled its fruits and ornaments, He said [to it], ‘[I swear] by My might, a miser will never be allowed into My company within you.’”

“Verily Allah created with His [own] hand a paradise that no eye has seen, and no creature is familiar with. The Blessed and Exalted Lord opens it up every morning and says, ‘Increase in [your sweet smelling] fragrance, increase in [your fresh] breeze!’ So it says, ‘Successful indeed are the believers.’ That is the [interpretation of the] verse wherein Allah, the Exalted, says: No soul can imagine what delights are hidden in store for them as a reward for what they used to do (Q32:17).”

‘Verily the inhabitants of Paradise will have table spreads placed for them upon which will be all that they desire of foods that are incomparable in terms of their deliciousness and goodness, then [once they have partaken of it,] they will be moved from that to another.’”

“If a houri of Paradise were to approach the people of this world and display one of her forelocks, [all] the people of this world would become enthralled, or the people of this world would die [of desire]. And verily when a worshipper prays and does not ask his Lord to marry him with a wide-eyed houri [in Paradise], they say, ‘How abstemious he is regarding us!’”

“Verily in Hell there is a valley for the arrogant ones which is called Saqar. It [once] complained to Allah about the intensity of its heat and asked Him to permit it to respire, so He permitted it and when it exhaled, it burnt [the entirety of] Hell.”

“Paradise will say, ‘O Lord, You filled the Fire just as You promised it, so fill me [as well] just as You promised me!’ So Allah, the Blessed and Exalted, will create a creation and make them enter Paradise.” Then Abū ʿAbdillāh (a) said, “Blessed are they, for they [shall] neither [have] witnessed the sorrows of the world nor its worries.”

A sound [like moaning] will be heard from it due to the intensity of its heat.”

“I asked Abū ʿAbdillāh (a) [and in another version: Abū Jaʿfar (a)], ‘When Allah admits the people of Paradise into Paradise and [throws] the people of Hell into Hell, then what [happens next]?’ So Abū Jaʿfar (a) said, ‘If Allah wishes to create another creation and make a world for them to return to, He will do so – and I am not saying to you that this is what He will [surely] do.’”

I do not make the assertion to you that He, the Exalted, will [surely] create another creation who will worship Him [but if He wills, He may do so].”

“I visited Abū ʿAbdillāh while a group of his companions were with him, so he said to me, ‘O Ibn Abī Yaʿfūr, have you read the Qurʾān?’ I said, ‘Yes, [in] this recitation.’ He said, ‘That is what I was asking you about, not any other.’ I said, ‘Yes, may I be your ransom! Why [do you ask]?’ He said, ‘Because Mūsā (a) spoke to his people about something that they did not accept from him, so they came out against him in Egypt and fought him, so he fought against them and killed them. And because ʿĪsā (a) [also] spoke to his people about something that they did not accept from him, so they came out against him in Takrīt and fought him, so he fought against them and killed them. This is what is being referred to in the verse wherein Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, says: …Then a group from the Banī Isrāʾīl believed while another disbelieved. We supported the believers against their enemies, so they prevailed (Q61:14). And the first Riser who will rise from us, the Ahl al-Bayt, will [also] speak to you about something that you will not accept from him, so you will come out against him at Rumaylah al-Daskarah [1] and fight him, and he will fight you and kill you. That will be the last rebellion to ever take place. Then, O Ibn Abī Yaʿfūr, Allah will gather the first and the last. Then Muḥammad (ṣ) will be brought among the people of his time and he will be told, ‘O Muḥammad, did you convey My message and provide arguments to the people in the way I had instructed you to speak to them?’ So he will reply, ‘Yes, O Lord.’ He will then ask the people, ‘Did he convey to you [the message] and provide arguments [for it] to you?’ But the people will say, ‘No.’ So He will [again] ask Muḥammad (ṣ), and he will reply, ‘Yes [I did], O Lord.’ And Allah, the Blessed and Exalted, will already know that he had done that. He will repeat this [question] three times, after which He will accept the [truthful] answer of Muḥammad and reject the [dishonest] answer of the people. Then they will be driven to the fire of Hell. Then ʿAlī (a) will be brought among the people of his time and he will be asked the same thing that Muḥammad (ṣ) was asked, and his people will lie about him but Allah will accept his reply and reject the lie of the people. He will repeat that thrice. Then [the same will happen with] al- Ḥasan, then al-Ḥusayn, then ʿAlī ibn al-Ḥusayn (a), who had the least number of companions of them all. His companions were Abū Khālid al- Kābulī, Yaḥyā ibn Umm al-Ṭawīl, Saʿīd ibn al-Musayyab, ʿĀmir ibn Wāthilah, and Jābir ibn ʿAbdillāh al-Anṣārī. These are the witnesses who will testify to the arguments he brought [to guide the people]. Then my father will be brought, meaning Muḥammad ibn ʿAlī (a), in the same Way. Subsequently I will be brought along with you, and I will be asked [the same question] as will you. Then see how you will respond [when that happens]. O Ibn Abī Yaʿfūr, verily Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, commands His obedience and the obedience of His Messenger, and the obedience of those in authority who are the legatees of His Messenger. O Ibn Abī Yaʿfūr, we are the proofs of Allah among His servants, His witnesses over His creation, His trustees on His earth, His custodians over His knowledge, the callers towards His path, and those who work with that [goal]. So whoever obeys us obeys Allah, and whoever disobeys us has disobeyed Allah.’”