سهل بن زياد

“Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), has said that if a person keeps his shroud ready, for each time he looks on it he is entitled to one reward.”

“It was said to him (the Imam), ‘I pray to Allah to keep my soul in service for your cause, because of the presence of fear I may not be able to place al-Jaridah (twig of palm tree) as you have told us.’ He (the Imam) said, ‘Place them just as it is possible for you to do.’”

“Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), has said that it is not advisable to cry loudly for a deceased or teardown one’s clothes.”

“I once asked abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), if one who gives Ghusl (bath) to a dead person is required to take Ghusl (bath). He (the Imam) said, ‘Yes, he is required to take Ghusl (bath).’ I then asked if one who places the deceased in the grave is required to take Ghusl (bath). He (the Imam) said, ‘No, he is not required to take Ghusl (bath) because he only touches the cloth.’”

“I once asked abu ‘ Abd Allah (a.s.), about a man who in the state of Ihram dies. He (the Imam) said, ‘He is given Ghusl (bath), shroud and his face is covered, but Hunut (rubbing camphor over the seven parts of the body which one places on the ground for Sajdah (prostration)) is not used for him, nor any other kinds of perfumes.”’

“Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), has said that the only people who are interrogated in the grave are those whose belief or disbelief is absolute and total, and people other than these are left alone.”

Abu Abdullah (asws) said, ‘A strip of the slipper of Abu Abdullah (asws) broke whilst he (asws) was in a funeral. So a man came with his strip for his (asws) slipper (as a replacement). He (asws) said: ‘Hold on to your strip, for patience is foremost for the people in misfortune’.

“I once asked him (the Imam) (a.s.), about performing Salah (prayer) for the dead bodies of men and women. He (the Imam) said, ’The dead bodies of men are placed near men and those of women behind the (dead) men.”’

“I once asked abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), about the case of a woman who dies and the baby moves inside her belly; is it prescribed to cut open to take the baby out. He (the Imam) said, ‘Yes, it must be cut open.’ In the narration of Ibn Abi ‘Umayr it is added that after taking out the baby the cut is stitched to close her belly.”

“Ali ibn al-Husayn, Alayhim al-Salam, would say, ‘Animals, no matter how unintelligent and dubious they may be, are not so in four issues: One is knowing the Lord, death, male and female, and what is a pasture and what is a barren land.’”

“Abu Ja’far (a.s.), has said, ‘The Messenger of Allah has said, ‘A sudden death compensates (for the short comings) of a believing person but it is a regrettable grip for an unbeliever.’”

“Abu ‘Abd Allah from his ancestors (a.s.), has narrated that ’Amir al-Mu’minin (a.s.), has said, ‘The worst water on earth is the water of Barahut which is in Hadramawt where the souls (spirits) of unbelievers camp.’”

“Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), has said that the souls (spirits) of the unbelievers are exposed to hellfire. They say, ‘O Lord, do not make any Day of Judgment for us. Do not allow what You have promised us to come true and do not join the last of us with our first ones.’”

“I asked the Imam (a.s.), ‘Does a believing deceased notice who has visited his grave?’ He replied, ‘Yes, and he continues to take comfort in his visitor as long as he is near his grave. When the visitor stands up and leaves the gravesite he (the deceased) becomes afraid and lonely.’”

“Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), has said, ‘By Allah, even if a worshipper of an idol, in his dying condition, says what you say, fire will never consume anything from his body.’”

“This is a Hadith of abu Ja’far (a.s.). He (the Imam) has said, Tf any believer, when washing the dead body of a believer says, “O Allah, this is the body of Your believing servant from which its spirit has come out and is just separated, please grant him forgiveness, and please grant him forgiveness.’” Allah then forgives his one year’s sins except the major ones.”

“He (the Imam) has said, ‘If you see a dying person’s eyes fixed upon something and tears come out of the left eye, his forehead sweats, his lips shrink and his nostrils expand, then whatever of such things you find with him is sufficient (proof of his salvation).’ In another Hadith it says, ‘And if he laughs also it then is proof.’ He also said, ‘If you find his face frowning and his right eye tear up (shed tears) then you should note that it is (otherwise).”’

“Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), has said that if a man’s clothes come in contact with a dead body after the deceased is given Ghusl (bath), he is not required to wash them. If they become polluted because of such contact before the dead body is given Ghusl (bath) he must wash them.’”

“Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), has said, ‘The souls of the believing people are in a tree of paradise. They eat and drink of fruits and water thereof, and say, “O Lord, make the Day of Judgment to come for us, make what You had promised to come true and allow the last of us to join our first.’””

“Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), has said that the grave has a statement every day. It says, ‘I am the house of loneliness. I am the terrifying house and I am the house of worms. I am the grave. I can be a garden of the gardens of paradise or a pit of the pits of hell.’”