Setting
Paradise and Hell debated. Hell said: The tyrants and the proud are in me. Paradise said: The weak and the poor are in me
Paradise and Hell debated. Hell said: The tyrants and the proud are in me. Paradise said: The weak and the poor are in me
Abu Sa‘īd al-Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Paradise and Hell debated. Hell said: 'The tyrants and the arrogant are in me.' Paradise said: 'The weak and the poor are in me.' So Allah judged between them and said to Paradise: 'You are My Mercy. I show mercy through you to whom I will.' And He said to Hell: 'You are My Punishment, I punish through you whom I will. And I guarantee to fill both of you completely.'"
[Authentic hadith] [Narrated by Muslim]
Translations
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Hadīth explanation: Paradise and Hell argued with each other, each mentioning the proof for its claim. This is from the matters of the unseen, which we are obliged to believe in even if our intellects may not understand it. Paradise challenged Hell, and Hell challenged paradise. Hell said that its occupants are the tyrants and the arrogant. The tyrants are those who are oppressive, harsh, and cruel. The arrogant are those who perceive themselves as better than others, and they deprive people of their rights and reject the truth. The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) defined arrogance as: "Rejecting the truth and holding people in contempt." The tyrants and the arrogant are the people of the Hellfire (may Allah save us from it). Perhaps an occupant of the Hellfire might be kind to people and have good manners, but he is a tyrant regarding the truth and arrogantly turns away from it. His kindness and compassion for people do not benefit him in this case, and he will still be described as a tyrant and arrogant. The weak and poor will enter Paradise since they often follow the truth and do not turn away from it arrogantly and contemptuously. Allah, the Almighty, judged between them, saying: "You, Paradise, are my mercy. I bestow My mercy through you upon whomever I will." And He said to Hellfire: "You, Hellfire, are my punishment. Through you, I punish whomever I will." Then Allah said: "I will fill both of you completely." Allah took it as an obligation upon Himself to fill both Paradise and Hell. And yet Allah's mercy is greater and vaster than His wrath. On the Day of Resurrection, the people of Hellfire will be thrown into Hellfire while it keeps calling out: "Are there any more", meaning: Give me more, give me more. Then Allah will place His Leg (or Foot, as in one narration) over Hellfire, whereupon its sundry parts will come together, and it will then say: "Enough, enough," as it will be completely filled by this action. Paradise is vaster and wider than all the heavens and the earth. After its inhabitants enter it, there will still be spaces that will not have been filled. Allah will create special people for these spaces and admit them to Paradise by His grace and mercy, because He guaranteed to paradise that He would fill it.Categories
Descriptions of Paradise and Hell