Soul leaving the body

RasulAllah sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam tells us in a long hadith about the story of the soul leaving the body – the trip that the soul takes. He says that when the believer is dying, the angels come down with a coffin from jannah and some scent from jannah. They sit in front of the person. Then the angel of death descends and tells the believer, “Be happy and pleased with the promise of Allah for you. O you tranquil soul, come out to the pleasure that will be provided to you by Allah swt.” RasulAllah said that the soul will come out so easily, like a drop of water that is flowing down from a jug; it slides so easily out of the body. As soon as the angel of death takes that soul, all of the angels will jump – everyone one of them wants to take the honour of holding that soul and wrapping it in the coffin. And then they will carry it to the heavens. Whenever they would pass a group of angels, the angels would smell a beautiful smell and ask, “Whose soul is this?” And the angels would say, “This is the soul of so-and-so” and they would call him by his best names. They would seek permission at the gates of lowest heaven, and then the gates of that heaven will open up. And whenever this soul is being carried through a heaven, the angels of that heaven would accompany it until it reaches Allah swt. Then Allah will deliver the promise of Jannah to that soul and then Allah will say, “Take that soul back to earth, because that is where I created from, and that is where they will return and that is where they will be resurrected from.” So the soul would then descend down to the earth from Allah swt.

Then RasulAllah (SWS)  tells us what happens to the soul of a non-believer, or an evil doer. RasulAllah (SWS) said that the angels come down to him with a coffin from Hell Fire. The angel of death will say to him, “O you evil soul! Come out to the punishment of Allah and His Anger!” So that soul would disperse around the body and cling to every nerve and muscle. That soul doesn’t want to leave the body. So the angel of death is pulling that soul out. RasulAllah said that the pain of that soul is like a branch filled with thorns being pulled out of a wet ball of wool. The person’s nerves and muscles would be tearing. As soon as that soul comes out, all of the angels would jump and cover that soul with the coffin from Hellfire and carry it up. RasulAllah(SWS) said it has a stinking rotten smell. Whenever the soul passes by some angels they would curse that soul and say, “Whose soul is this?” So the angels would call him with his worse names. They would carry the soul to the first heaven and seek permission, but the door of that heaven would not open. Then Allah swt would say, “Throw that soul down to the lowest earth!” So that soul would be thrown down with the disgrace of Allah swt.

Now the soul is in the grave…