They will question us in stern voices. Ah! If we fail to answer correctly, if we do not succeed in the examination of the grave, the fire of Hell will be kindled within it, and torment will be inflicted! What will become of us then? Where will we go? Whom will we call for help?

The Horrifying Scenes of the Grave’s Punishments

Dear Islamic brothers! The affair of the grave is complicated. Fortunate is the one who remains at peace in his grave, but the one who is seized there is truly ruined. Let us listen to some narrations describing the intense punishments of sinners in the realm of Barzakh, so that we may take heed.

Depiction of the Punishments for Sins

The fourth Caliph of the Muslims Sayyiduna ‘Ali al-Murtaza رَضِىَ اللّٰهُ عَـنْهُ, narrated: One day, after leading the Fajr Salah, the Beloved Prophetصَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم  turned towards us and said: “Last night, two angels came to me and took me towards the sky of the world. I saw an angel holding a large stone in his hand, and before him was a man. The angel was striking his skull with a stone, causing the brain to spill out to one side and the stone to tumble to the other. I asked, ‘Who is this?’ The angels said, ‘Please move ahead!’ Then I saw another angel ahead, an angel who was tearing at the man lying before him, rending his jaw—sometimes on the right, sometimes on the left—with an iron rod, right up to the ear. I asked, ‘Who is this?’ They said, ‘Please move ahead!’

As I moved forward, I saw a river of blood, boiling like a cauldron. Naked people were inside it, and angels stood on its banks holding lumps of clay. Whenever anyone peered out of the canal, they would strike him with a clod of earth, sending him tumbling back into the water until he landed at the bottom. I asked, ‘Who are these?’ They said, ‘Please move ahead!’ I then saw a house whose lower part was narrower than its upper part. Inside were naked people, and beneath them a blazing fire. The stench was unbearable. I held my nose and asked, ‘Who are these?’ They said, ‘Please move ahead!’ Next, I saw a black hill on which some mad men stood. Fire was being blown into their rears, coming out of their mouths, nostrils, eyes, and ears. I asked, ‘Who are they?’ The angels replied, ‘Please move ahead!’ Then I saw an underground prison