Azabul Qabr

[Sardar Miyan]

Salam All To my little knowledge there is no Azabul Qabr after death. What is Barzaq where the dead are supposed to be till the Day of Qiyama ?

[Joseph Islam]

Dear brother Sardar,

Salamun Alaikum.

You are correct. From a Quranic perspective, there is no such concept as Azab-ul Qabar (Punishment in the Grave).

Barzakh mentioned in 23:100 is a transitory state and a barrier between death and resurrection. The soul enters this dormant transitory state where all concept of time is lost. This is 'barzakh'. See how this term is also used to describe a barrier between two waters (25:53 and 55:20). Similarly, barzakh will be a barrier between death and resurrection.

No matter how long the person remains within this state of 'barzakh' (100's or 100 of thousands of years), when he / she is finally awoken from this state, it will feel like only a moment of a day has passed (17:52, 30:55-56, 10:45, 46:35, 79:46).

017:052
"It will be on a Day when He will call you, and you will answer (His call) with (words of) His praise, and you will think that you tarried but a little while!"

We are given a similar experience of this every day, a trial run, where we sleep for hours but when we wake, it feels like we have only slept a few moments. Similar wisdom is imparted in other verses:

- The sleepers of the cave slept for many hundreds of years (God knows best the exact period) but they felt they had only slept for a little while (18:19)
- A man slept for a 100 years but he only felt like that he slept for a part of a day (2:259).

Please see the following article which may assist further.

PUNISHMENT OF THE GRAVE (AZAB-E-QABR)
http://quransmessage.com/articles/grave%20punishment%20FM3.htm

I hope this helps, God willing.
Joseph.

[Sardar Miyan]

Salam JAI I got your Article about Azab-e- Qabr printed long back but while asking about Barzaq I asked about Azab-e-Qabr. I read again now. Thanks