Judgement Day in Islam

{{Short description|Eschatalogical concept in Islam}} {{Islam}} In Islam, "the promise and threat" ({{Lang|ar-latn|waʿd wa-waʿīd}})<ref name="Taylor-1968-59">{{cite journal |last1=Taylor |first1=John B. |title=Some Aspects of Islamic Eschatology |journal=Religious Studies |date=October 1968 |volume=4 |issue=1 |page=59 |doi=10.1017/S0034412500003395 |s2cid=155073079 |url=http://www.jstor.com/stable/20000089 |access-date=2 May 2022|url-access=subscription }}</ref> of '''Judgement Day''' ({{langx|ar|یوم القيامة|Yawm al-qiyāmah|Day of Resurrection}} or {{langx|ar|یوم الدین|italic=no| Yawm ad-din|Day of Judgement}}), is when "all bodies will be resurrected" from the dead, and "all people" are "called to account" for their deeds and their faith during their life on Earth. It has been called "the dominant message" of the holy book of Islam, the Quran,{{#tag:ref| "as it is presented in the context" of monotheism|group=Note}}<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:63>Smith & Haddad, ''Islamic Understanding'', 1981: p.63</ref> and resurrection and judgement the two themes "central to the understanding of Islamic eschatology."<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:64>Smith & Haddad, ''Islamic Understanding'', 1981: p.64</ref> Judgement Day is considered a fundamental tenet of faith by all Muslims, and one of the six articles of Islamic faith.

The trials, tribulations, and details associated with it are detailed in the Quran and the Hadith (sayings of Muhammad); these have been elaborated on in creeds, Quranic commentaries (tafsịrs), theological writing,<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:vii>Smith & Haddad, ''Islamic Understanding'', 1981: p.vii</ref> eschatological manuals to provide more details and a sequence of events on the Day.<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:63/> Islamic expositors and scholarly authorities who have explained the subject in detail include al-Ghazali, Ibn Kathir, Ibn Majah, Muhammad al-Bukhari, and Ibn Khuzaymah.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2025-10-05 |title=পশ্চিম আকাশে সূর্যোদয় হবে - Islampidia |url=https://islampidia.org/%E0%A6%AA%E0%A6%B6%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%9A%E0%A6%BF%E0%A6%AE-%E0%A6%86%E0%A6%95%E0%A6%BE%E0%A6%B6%E0%A7%87-%E0%A6%B8%E0%A7%82%E0%A6%B0%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%AF%E0%A7%8B%E0%A6%A6%E0%A6%AF%E0%A6%BC-%E0%A6%B9/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251009130806/https://islampidia.org/%E0%A6%AA%E0%A6%B6%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%9A%E0%A6%BF%E0%A6%AE-%E0%A6%86%E0%A6%95%E0%A6%BE%E0%A6%B6%E0%A7%87-%E0%A6%B8%E0%A7%82%E0%A6%B0%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%AF%E0%A7%8B%E0%A6%A6%E0%A6%AF%E0%A6%BC-%E0%A6%B9/ |archive-date=2025-10-09 |access-date=2025-10-17 |work=Islampidia |language=en-US}}</ref>

== Names == Among the names of the Day of Resurrection/Judgement used in the Qur'an are:<ref name="Siddiqui-2014">{{cite web |last1=Siddiqui |first1=Abdur Rashid |title=Akhirah (The Hereafter) |url=http://en.alukah.net/Shariah/0/4877/ |website=Alukah |access-date=16 April 2022 |date=25 November 2014}}</ref> *{{Lang|ar-latn|al-Qari'ah}}—the Calamity;<ref name="Siddiqui-2014"/> ({{langx|ar| ٱلۡقَارِعَةُ }}), Chapter (surah) 101 is named ''al-Qari'ah''; the word is found in Q.69:4, 101:1, 101:2, 101:3 *{{Lang|ar-latn|al-Zalzalah}}—the Earthquake;<ref name="Siddiqui-2014"/> ({{langx|ar| الزَّلْزَلَة}}) Surah 99 is name ''al-Zalzalah''; the word is found in Q.99.1 *{{Lang|ar-latn|al-Sa'iqah}}—the Blast;<ref name="Siddiqui-2014"/> *{{Lang|ar-latn|Yawm an Thaqila}}—the Hard Day;<ref name="Siddiqui-2014"/> *{{Lang|ar-latn|Al-Yawm al-Muhit}}—the Encompassing Day;<ref name="Siddiqui-2014"/> *{{Lang|ar-latn|Yawm al-Fasl}}—the Day of Separation;<ref name="Siddiqui-2014"/> *{{Lang|ar-latn|al-Tammah al-Kubra}}—the Great Disaster;<ref name="Siddiqui-2014"/> *{{Lang|ar-latn|al-Haqqah}}—the Reality;<ref name="Siddiqui-2014"/> *{{Lang|ar-latn|Yawm al-Din}}—the Day of Judgement;<ref name="Siddiqui-2014"/> *{{Lang|ar-latn|Yawm al-Haqq}}—the True (inevitable) Day;<ref name="Siddiqui-2014"/> *{{Lang|ar-latn|Yawm al-Ḥisāb}}—the Day of Reckoning;<ref name="Siddiqui-2014"/> *{{Lang|ar-latn|Yawm al-Khuruj}}—the Day of Exodus (from the graves);<ref name="Siddiqui-2014"/> *{{Lang|ar-latn|as-sa’a}}—the [Last] Hour<ref name="GCSE"/> ({{langx|ar|ٱلسَّاعَةُ}}) is reportedly mentioned 39 times in the Qur’an{{#tag:ref|from translation of the corresponding article in Arabic |group=Note}} (54:46, 25:11, 33:63, 30:55, 45:32, 69:2, 79:42, 30:12, 54:1, 43:66, 21:49, 30:14, 22:1, 22:7, 20:15, 40:59, 43:61, 42:17, 12:107, 15:85, 18:36, 45:27, 22:55, 43:85, 47:18, 6:40, 40:46, 42:18, 6:31, 16:77, etc.) *{{Lang|ar-latn|Yawm al-Qiyamah}}—Day of Resurrection;<ref name="GCSE">{{cite web |title=Afterlife (akhirah) |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/guides/ztyvxfr/revision/2#:~:text=Muslims%20believe%20that%20on%20a,will%20face%20judgement%20by%20Allah. |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210311055344/https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/guides/ztyvxfr/revision/2#:~:text=Muslims%20believe%20that%20on%20a,will%20face%20judgement%20by%20Allah. |url-status=dead |archive-date=March 11, 2021 |website=BBC. GCSE WJEC |access-date=16 April 2022}}</ref> ({{langx|ar|يَوْمَ ٱلْقِيَـٰمَةِ }}) Literally means the "rising up at the resurrection" although it "has come to signify the entire series of events to take place" on Judgement day, "although technically "{{Lang|ar-latn|al-sā'a}} means the actual hour", according to scholars Jane Smith and Yvonne Haddad;<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:214-215/> *On the Day of Resurrection (Nay! I do swear by the Day of Resurrection) it is mentioned 70 times in the Qur’an.{{#tag:ref|from translation of the corresponding article in Arabic |group=Note}}

Related terms include (according to scholars Jane Smith and Yvonne Haddad), * {{Lang|ar-latn|al-Ṣūr}}—"The Trumpet";<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:214-215>Smith & Haddad, ''Islamic Understanding'', 1981: p.214-215, note 26</ref> * {{Lang|ar-latn|fanāʾ}}—the "extinction of all save God".<ref name="JISYYHIU1981:71">Smith & Haddad, ''Islamic Understanding'', 1981: p.71</ref> * {{Lang|ar-latn|al-ḥashr}} "means the specific gathering together" of resurrected for their judging;<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:214-215/> * {{Lang|ar-latn|baʿth}} "signifies the calling forth for judgement";<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:214-215/> * {{Lang|ar-latn|al-maʿād}}—"the return", "the general term used by theologians for the entire process" of resurrection, judgement and consignment to heaven or hell.<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:214-215/> * {{Lang|ar-latn|al-maḥshar}}—the terror of the place of assembly;<ref name="JISYYHIU1981:75">Smith & Haddad, ''Islamic Understanding'', 1981: p.75</ref> * {{Lang|ar-latn|al-mawqūf}}—the time of standing before God before being judged by God.<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:75/>

== Events ==

The events prophesied for the day of resurrection and judgement "are numerous and presented in varying ways", but "a sequence of the events" for the day can be made based on both the many details "suggested by the Qur'an" and also on "the elaborations and additions provided as usual by the hadiths, the manuals, and the interpretations of theologians".<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:63/> Four segments of end times in Islam can be presented: #the signs/portents of "The Hour" ({{Lang|ar-latn|as-sa’a}}) and other events heralding the imminent end of the world; #the soundings of the trumpet, the resurrection ({{Lang|ar-latn|qiyāma}}) of the dead, and the gathering together of all living beings ({{Lang|ar-latn|ḥashr}}); #the reckoning ({{Lang|ar-latn|ḥisāb}}) where the resurrected are judged; #the preparation for final consignment to heaven or hell, the crossing of the bridge ({{Lang|ar-latn|ṣirāṭ}}) that the damned fall off of to hell below, and the saved reach the other side, the possibility of intercession (''shafā'a'') to save sinners from hell.

=== Portents === {{main|Signs of the coming of Judgement Day}} Many verses of the Quran, especially the earlier ones, are dominated by the idea of the nearing of the Day of Resurrection.<ref name="EoQ">Isaac Hasson, ''Last Judgment'', Encyclopaedia of the Qur'an</ref><ref name="EoI">L. Gardet, ''Qiyama'', Encyclopaedia of the Qur'an</ref> In Islam the signs of the coming of Judgement Day are described as "major"<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.inter-islam.org/faith/Majorsigns.html|title=Major Signs before the Day of Judgement (Qiyamah)|work=inter-islam.org|access-date=4 February 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160710214058/http://www.inter-islam.org/faith/Majorsigns.html|archive-date=10 July 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref> and "minor".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.inter-islam.org/faith/Signs-Of-Qiyaamah.htm|title=Signs Of Qiyaamah|work=inter-islam.org|access-date=4 February 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160623002119/http://www.inter-islam.org/faith/Signs-Of-Qiyaamah.htm|archive-date=23 June 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref> The Al-Masih ad-Dajjal will appear, deceiving the foolish and killing Muslims until killed by either the Mahdi or Jesus.<ref name="Farhang 2017">{{cite encyclopedia |author-last=Farhang |author-first=Mehrvash |title=Dajjāl |year=2017 |encyclopedia=Encyclopaedia Islamica |location=Leiden and Boston |publisher=Brill Publishers |doi=10.1163/1875-9831_isla_COM_035982 |issn=1875-9823}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Sunan Ibn Majah 4072 - Tribulations - كتاب الفتن - Sunnah.com - Sayings and Teachings of Prophet Muhammad (صلى الله عليه و سلم)|url=https://sunnah.com/ibnmajah:4072|access-date=2021-03-13|website=sunnah.com}}</ref> Following him, two dangerous, evil tribes of subhumans with vast numbers called ''Yajooj'' and ''Majooj'' will be released from where they have been imprisoned inside a mountain since Roman times.<ref name="strangers-258"/> And according to some narratives, a murderous tyrant called the Sufyani will spread corruption and mischief,<ref name="rising of as-Sufyani">{{Cite web|date=2015-07-23|title=Chapter 18: The rising of as-Sufyani|url=https://www.al-islam.org/kitab-al-ghayba-book-occultation-sheikh-an-numani/chapter-18-rising-sufyani|access-date=2021-08-14|website=Al-Islam.org|language=en}}</ref> killing women, children and descendants of Muhammad. To save believers from these horrors, the Mahdi will appear and Isa bin Maryam (Jesus) will descend from heaven to assist him. The sun will rise from the west.<ref name="sun will rise from the west">{{cite web |website=sunnah.com |title=Sahih al-Bukhari. Prophetic Commentary on the Qur'an (Tafseer of the Prophet (pbuh)) (10)"The day that some of the signs of your Lord do come, no good will it do to a person to believe..." (V.6:158) |url=https://sunnah.com/bukhari:4636</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.islamweb.net/media/index.php?page=article&lang=A&id=17726|language=ar|script-title=ar:طلوع الشمس من مغربها |trans-title=Rising of the sun from the west}}</ref> A breeze will blow causing all believers to inhale it and die peacefully.<ref group=Note>Sahih Muslim, Book 001: 0273</ref><ref name="48 signs">{{cite web |last1=Anwaar |first1=Amna |title=48 signs of Qiyamah |url=https://www.islamicfinder.org/news/48-signs-of-qiyamah/ |website=islamic finder |access-date=17 May 2022}}</ref>

=== Destruction and resurrection === {{redirect|Day of Resurrection|other uses|Resurrection}} Following these portents, the Earth will be destroyed. (In surah Al-Haqqah) <blockquote> When the trumpet is blown with a single blast and the earth and the mountains are lifted up and crushed with a single blow, then, on that day, the terror shall come to pass, and heaven shall be split, for upon that day it shall be very frail. ... " (Q.69:13–16){{#tag:ref|(Arberry translation) see also Q.39:68|group=Note}}<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:71/></blockquote> Verses from another surah (At-Takwir) describe <blockquote> When the sun shall be darkened When the stars shall be thrown down When the seas shall be set boiling When the souls shall be coupled, ... When the scrolls shall be unrolled When heavens shall be stripped off, When Hell shall be set blazing, When Paradise shall be brought nigh Then shall a soul know what it has produced. (Q.81:1,2,6,7,10-14){{#tag:ref|(Arberry translation)|group=Note}}<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:71/></blockquote>

A second trumpet blast will signal a "final cataclysm" ({{Lang|ar-latn|fanāʼ}}), the extinction of all living creatures – even the angel of death himself – save God.<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:71/> God will then ask three times, "'To whom belongs the Kingdom this day?' No one answers Him so He answers Himself, saying, 'To God who is one alone, victorious!'"<ref name=Durra-39 >al-Ghazālī, Abū Ḥāmid Muḥammad ibn Muḥammad. ''al-Durra al-fākhira''. Ed. M. Gautier. Leipzig, 1877. MS pp. 39. quoted in Smith & Haddad, ''Islamic Understanding'', 1981: p.72</ref> Numerous Qur'ānic mentions that every soul will taste death during "the hour" are thought to underscore the absolute power and ''tawḥīd'' of God while the resurrection of life demonstrates "His justice and mercy".<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:72>Smith & Haddad, ''Islamic Understanding'', 1981: p.72</ref> The time between annihilation of all life and its resurrection is both "beyond all human time constructs" and generally estimated by many commentators to be forty years.<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:72/>

====Resurrection==== The Afterlife will commence with a trumpet blast (different sources give different numbers of trumpet blasts),{{#tag:ref| *one trumpet blast Q.69:13 *two blasts in Q.39:68, *"some eschatological manuals" expand this to three (a belief also expressed in some Jewish traditions).<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:71/> the Qur'an itself "does not make explicit the chronology" involved with the blowing(s) of the horn" and "the traditions do not present a consistent picture"; but "The general understanding seems to be" that Isrāfīl will be the first of creation to be resurrected and he will give the blast that brings the dead back to life.<ref name="JISYYHIU1981:73">Smith & Haddad, ''Islamic Understanding'', 1981: p.73</ref> |group=Note}} signaling the "Day of the Arising", according to the classical Islamic scholar and theologian al-Ghazali.<ref>{{cite book|last=Al-Ghazali |title=The Remembrance of Death and the Afterlife |year=1989|pages=173–177}}</ref>

The sounding of the trumpet is mentioned at least two times in the Qur'ān, but "the Qur'an itself does not make explicit the chronology involved with the blowing(s) of the horn"<ref name="JISYYHIU1981:73"/> and "it has been for the followers of the Prophet to determine for themselves the exact sequence of events after that."<ref name="JISYYHIU1981:71"/>

<blockquote>Know that Isrāfīl is the master of the horn [{{Lang|ar-latn|al-qarn}}]. God created the preserved tablet [{{Lang|ar-latn|al-lawḥ al-maḥfuz}}] of white pearl. Its length is seven times the distance between the heaven and the earth and it is connected to the Throne. All that exists until the day of resurrection is written on it. Isrāfīl has four wings—one in the East, one in the West, one covering his legs and one shielding his head and face in fear of God. His head is inclined toward the Throne .... No angel is nearer to the throne than Isrāfīl. Seven veils are between him and the Throne, each veil five hundred years distance from the next ...<ref>''Kitāb aḥwāl al-qiyāma'', pp. 49–50. quoted in Smith & Haddad, ''Islamic Understanding'', 1981: p.70</ref></blockquote>

This will wake the dead from their graves. Bodies will be resurrected and reunited with their spirits to form "whole, cognizant, and responsible persons".<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:64/> The first to arise will be the members of the Muslim community, according to "an often-quoted saying" of Muhammad, but will be "subdivided into categories" based on their sins while on earth. The classification of the resurrected into groups comes from "certain narratives" about Judgement Day that "suggest" the grouping, and are based on "a number of scattered verses in the Qur'an indicating the woeful condition" of resurrected sinners.<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:74>Smith & Haddad, ''Islamic Understanding'', 1981: p.74</ref>

In the time between resurrection and judgement will be an agonizing wait (Q.21:103, Q.37:20) at the place of assembly [{{Lang|ar-latn|al-maḥshar}}], or the time of standing before God [{{Lang|ar-latn|al-mawqūf}}], giving sinners "ample opportunity to contemplate the imminent recompense for his past faults" (just as sinners suffer in the grave before Resurrection Day).<ref name="JISYYHIU1981:75"/> The resurrected will gather for "The Perspiration"<ref>{{cite book|last=Al-Ghazali|title=The Remembrance of Death and the Afterlife |year=1989 |pages=180–181}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Al-Ghazali|title=The Remembrance of Death and the Afterlife|year=1989 |pages=182–188}}</ref> — a time when all created beings, including men, angels, jinn, devils and animals will sweat, unshaded from the sun, awaiting their fate.<ref>{{cite book|last=Al-Ghazali|title=The Remembrance of Death and the Afterlife|year=1989|pages=181}}</ref> Sinners and nonbelievers will suffer and sweat longer on this day, which some say will last for "50,000 years" (based on Q.70:4) and others only 1000 (based on Q.32:5).<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:75/>

=== Judgment === The final judgment (Reckoning, {{Lang|ar-latn|ḥisāb}}) where God judges each soul for their lives lived on earth,<ref name=quran>{{cite book|last=Yusuf Ali |first=Abdullah |title=Quran |chapter=99:6 |url=http://www.islam101.com/quran/quranYusuf/099.q}}</ref> will be "carried out with absolute justice" accepting no excuses, and examine every act and intention—no matter how small,<ref>{{cite book |last=Al-Ghazali |title=The Remembrance of Death and the Afterlife |year=1989|pages=195–197}}</ref> but "through the prerogative of God's merciful will".<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:64/>

Quran verses in Al-Haqqah (surah 69) are thought to refer to the reckoning on Judgement Day: <blockquote> As for the one who is given his book in his right hand, he will say: Take and read my book. I knew that I would be called to account. And he will be in a blissful condition (Q.69:19–21) .... But as for him who is given his book in his left hand, he will say: Would that my book had not been given to me and that I did not know my reckoning! (Q.69:25-26) ... [And it will be said] Seize him and bind him and expose him to the burning Fire!(Q.69:30-31)<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:76/></blockquote>

"The book" is thought to refer to an account each person has, chronicling the deeds of their life, good and bad.<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:76/> Commentators reports "affirm" that each day in a person's life, "one or two angels" begin a new page, inscribing deeds, and that upon completion, the pages are assembled "in some fashion ... into a full scroll or record".<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:76/> On Judgement Day the book is presented to the right hand of the resurrected person if they are going to Jannah, and left if they are to be sent to ''Jahannam''.<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:76>Smith & Haddad, ''Islamic Understanding'', 1981: p.76</ref>

Another version of how the resurrected are judged ("particular elements that make up the occasion of the reckoning" in the Quran are not ordered or grouped and are called "modalities of judgement")<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:77>Smith & Haddad, ''Islamic Understanding'', 1981: p.77</ref> involves several references in the Quran to {{Lang|ar-latn|mīzān}} (balance), which some commentators believe refers to a way of balancing the weight of an individual's good deeds and bad on Judgement day, to see which is heavier, as the occurrence stated in {{Lang|ar-latn|Kitāb aḥwāl al-qiyāma}}, which will span in fifty thousand years.<ref>''Kitāb Aḥwāl al-Qiyāma'', p.81, quoted in {{cite book |last1=Smith|first1= Jane I. |first2= Yvonne Y. |last2=Haddad |date=1981 |title=The Islamic Understanding of Death and Resurrection |location=Albany, NY |publisher=SUNY Press |url=https://vdoc.pub/download/the-islamic-understanding-of-death-and-resurrection-1fa354cla15g |pages=77–78|ref=JISYYHIU1981}}</ref>

It is believed those whose good deeds outweigh their bad will be assigned to ''Jannah'' (heaven), and those whose bad deeds outweigh the good, ''Jahannam'' (hell).<ref>{{cite book|last=Yusuf Ali |first=Abdullah |title=Quran |year=1947 |url=https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.324073 |at=102:4–8}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Yusuf Ali |first=Abudllah |title=Quran |at=page 1576, verse 67:1}}</ref> How much weight is given to internal and how much to external ''iman'', how much to piety and how much to obedience to Islamic law (the two being intertwined, of course), in the tabulation of good deeds and earning salvation, varies according to the interpretation of scholars.<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:79>Smith & Haddad, ''Islamic Understanding'', 1981: p.79</ref> In one manual ({{Lang|ar-latn|Kitāb aḥwāl al-qiyāma}}), hopeful humans are questioned about their behaviour not before they head on the path/bridge ({{Lang|ar-latn|aṣ-ṣirāṭ}}; see below) to heaven, but during. As they walk the bridge, said to have seven arches, "each 3,000 years in length"; they are interrogated at each arch about a specific religious duty prescribed by the shari'a -- their īmān, their prayer ''ṣalāt'', almsgiving ''zakāt'', pilgrimage ''ḥajj'', ritual washings ''wudū''', ''ghusl'', and responsibility to their relatives", respectively.<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:79/>

While there is no Original Sin in Islam, the Quran does mention the many inherent flaws in the personalities of human beings – weakness, greed, stinginess, pride, etc. {{#tag:ref| * God created man in the best of molds (Q.15:4), yet * Man has been created weak, (Q.4:28. Q.90:4); * Truly man is ungrateful to his Lord, and he bears witness to that; (Q.100:6–7); * Even though humankind has been given authority in the earth and provided with every means for life's fulfillment, thanks are not rendered (Q.7:10); * As well as being ungrateful, he is also impatient, fretful, and stingy (Q.70:19–21); * greedy (Q.74:15); * violent in his pursuit of wealth (Q.100:8); * Full of pride and self-conceit, he forgets that his position and all things afforded to him are by the grace of God and in rebelling against God thinks of himself as self-sufficient (Q.96:6–7).<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:15>Smith & Haddad, ''Islamic Understanding'', 1981: p.15</ref>|group=Note}}

What the common order is of Judgement Day at this point is unclear based on hadith as they disagree on the way God reveals to "the various categories of individuals what their fate is to be".<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:76/>

There are special conditions to those who did not receive teachings of Islam during their life accordingly, the people of the period are judged differently on the Day of Judgement. There is a difference of opinion between scholars of Islam on their afterlife. The rationalist Mu'tazilites believed that every accountable person ({{langx|ar|مكلف}}, ''{{Transliteration|ar|ALA|mukallaf}}'') must reject polytheism and idolatry and believe in an All-Powerful God. Failure to meet these requirements would result in eternal punishment.

On the other hand, the Ash'aris believed that those who did not receive the message would be forgiven, even idolaters. Their premise was that good and evil is based upon revelation; in other words, good and evil are defined by God. Therefore, in the absence of revelation, they cannot be held accountable.<ref name="qadhi">{{Cite book|title=Between heaven and hell : Islam, salvation, and the fate of others|date=2013|publisher=Oxford University Press|editor=Khalil, Mohammad Hassan|isbn=9780199945412|location=Oxford|pages=111|oclc=793726652}}</ref>

Abu Hamid al-Ghazali categorized non-Muslims into three categories:

* 1. People who never heard of the message, who live in far away lands, such as the Byzantines ("Romans"). These will be forgiven. * 2. People who were exposed to a distorted understanding of Islam and have no recourse to correct that information. These too will be forgiven. * 3. People who heard of Islam because they live in neighboring lands and mix with Muslims. These have no hope of salvation.<ref name="qadhi" />

He also wrote about non-Muslims who have heard a distorted message: "The name of Muhammad has indeed reached their ears, but they do not know his true description and his character. Instead, they heard from the time they were young that a deceitful liar named Muhammad claimed to be a prophet. As far as I am concerned, such people are [excused] like those who the call of Islam has not reached, for while they have heard of the Prophet’s name, they heard the opposite of his true qualities. And hearing such things would never arouse one’s desire to find out who he was."<ref name="tmv">{{cite web |last1=Nazimi |first1=Hassan |title=Is there really such thing as a "kuffar", or "non-believer" in our world today? |url=https://themuslimvibe.com/faith-islam/is-there-really-such-thing-as-a-kuffar-or-non-believer-in-our-world-today |website=The Muslim Vibe |date=10 July 2019 |accessdate=25 March 2020}}</ref>

Imam Nawawi said in his commentary Sharh Sahih Muslim that those who are born into idolatrous families and die without a message reaching them are granted paradise based upon the Qur'anic verse {{cite Quran|17|15|s=ns|b=n}}: ''"We do not punish a people until a messenger comes to them."''. According to ibn Taymiyyah, these people who did not receive the message in this world will be tested in the afterlife, or Barzakh.<ref name="qadhi" /> This view also shared and accepted by Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyya, Abu Hasan al-Ash'ari, and Ibn Kathir, as they all based this ruling according to Hadith about the fates of four kinds of peoples:

# Those who never received the call or teaching to Islam during their life # Those who suffered deafness before the teaching of Islam reached them # Those with mental illness and severe insanity (in another Hadith with similar narration also those with mental deficiency or low intelligence disabilities which prevent them to understand Islam properly) # Those who had suffered senility or dementia when the words of Islam reached them{{#tag:ref|These hadiths were narrated with the chains of narration ended by Abu Hurairah and Al-Aswad bin Sari and graded as ''hasan'' (sound) hadith according to Shuaib Al Arna'ut, while Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Al-Albani, and Al-Tabarani grade it as ''saheeh''.<ref name="KonsultasiSyariah">{{cite web |author1=Yulian Purnama |title=KafirkahOrang yang Belum Kenal Islam? |url=https://konsultasisyariah.com/537-kafirkah-orang-yang-belum-kenal-islam.html |website=Konsultasi Syariah |publisher=KonsultasiSyariah.com |access-date=26 November 2023 |language=Id |date=Dec 29, 2009}}</ref><ref name="Did not reach">{{cite web |author1=Muhammad Al-Munajjid|author-link=Muhammad Al-Munajjid |title=Whoever the call did not reach, due to a disability such as deafness, will be examined on the Day of Resurrection, and those of them whom it reached were not examined./من لم تبلغه الدعوة ، بسبب عاهة كالصمم فإنه يمتحن يوم القيامة ، ومن بلغته منهم لم يمتحن |url=https://islamqa.info/ar/answers/222051/%D9%85%D9%86-%D9%84%D9%85-%D8%AA%D8%A8%D9%84%D8%BA%D9%87-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AF%D8%B9%D9%88%D8%A9-%D8%A8%D8%B3%D8%A8%D8%A8-%D8%B9%D8%A7%D9%87%D8%A9-%D9%83%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B5%D9%85%D9%85-%D9%81%D8%A7%D9%86%D9%87-%D9%8A%D9%85%D8%AA%D8%AD%D9%86-%D9%8A%D9%88%D9%85-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%82%D9%8A%D8%A7%D9%85%D8%A9-%D9%88%D9%85%D9%86-%D8%A8%D9%84%D8%BA%D8%AA%D9%87-%D9%85%D9%86%D9%87%D9%85-%D9%84%D9%85-%D9%8A%D9%85%D8%AA%D8%AD%D9%86 |website=IslamQa |access-date=26 November 2023 |language=ar |date=9 June 2015 |quote=أَرْبَعَةٌ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ: رَجُلٌ أَصَمُّ لَا يَسْمَعُ شَيْئًا، وَرَجُلٌ أَحْمَقُ، وَرَجُلٌ هَرَمٌ، وَرَجُلٌ مَاتَ فِي فَتْرَةٍ، فَأَمَّا الْأَصَمُّ فَيَقُولُ: رَبِّ، لَقَدْ جَاءَ الْإِسْلَامُ وَمَا أَسْمَعُ شَيْئًا، وَأَمَّا الْأَحْمَقُ فَيَقُولُ: رَبِّ، لَقَدْ جَاءَ الْإِسْلَامُ وَالصِّبْيَانُ يَحْذِفُونِي بِالْبَعْرِ، وَأَمَّا الْهَرَمُ فَيَقُولُ: رَبِّ، لَقَدْ جَاءَ الْإِسْلَامُ وَمَا أَعْقِلُ شَيْئًا، وَأَمَّا الَّذِي مَاتَ فِي الْفَتْرَةِ فَيَقُولُ: رَبِّ، مَا أَتَانِي لَكَ رَسُولٌ، فَيَأْخُذُ مَوَاثِيقَهُمْ لَيُطِيعُنَّهُ، فَيُرْسِلُ إِلَيْهِمْ أَنْ ادْخُلُوا النَّارَ، قَالَ: فَوَالَّذِي نَفْسُ مُحَمَّدٍ بِيَدِهِ، لَوْ دَخَلُوهَا لَكَانَتْ عَلَيْهِمْ بَرْدًا وَسَلَامًا}}</ref> Meanwhile, another Hadith with similar narration from Anas ibn Malik also used for this ruling.<ref name="Those who will be tested on the Day of Resurrection">{{cite web |title=Those who will be tested on the Day of Resurrection/الذين يمتحنون يوم القيامة |url=https://www.islamweb.net/ar/fatwa/61635/%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B0%D9%8A%D9%86-%D9%8A%D9%85%D8%AA%D8%AD%D9%86%D9%88%D9%86-%D9%8A%D9%88%D9%85-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%82%D9%8A%D8%A7%D9%85%D8%A9 |website=Islamweb |access-date=26 November 2023 |language=ar |date=1 May 2005}}</ref> |group="Notes"}}

According to Ibn Qayyim, Ibn Taymiyya, and other Islamic scholars who agreed on this Hadiths, this means those four type of peoples would be further examined by Allah in Barzakh, where these four type of person will be tested in the state where their senses and their minds in perfect condition, so they can understand they are being tested examined by God.<ref name="Those who will be tested on the Day of Resurrection" /><ref name="Did not reach" />

Muhammad Nasiruddin al-Albani, a Salafi scholar, stated on this matter: “The term Ahl al-Fatrah refers to everyone whom the dawah (message of Islam) has not reached in a correct manner as it came in the Shariah… Such people will not be punished on the Day of Judgement [for their disbelief in this world]. It is quite possible for People of the Interval to exist in every time period, whether before [the revelation of the final message of] Islam or after. The message has to have reached them in its pristine purity, without any distortions. In cases where the dawah reaches people in a mutilated form in which its essential components; its fundamental principles of belief, have been substituted, I am the first to say that the dawah has not reached them.” {{Citation needed|reason=Needs a citation|date=March 2022}}

===The crossing of the Bridge=== {{further|As-Sirāt}} The saved and the damned now being clearly distinguished, the souls will traverse over hellfire<ref>{{cite book|last=Al-Ghazali |title=The Remembrance of Death and the Afterlife |year=1989 |pages=205–210}}</ref> via the bridge of sirat. <blockquote> ˹They will be told,˺ "This is the Day of ˹Final˺ Decision which you used to deny." ˹Allah will say to the angels,˺ "Gather ˹all˺ the wrongdoers along with their peers, and whatever they used to worship instead of Allah, then lead them ˹all˺ to the path of Hell [{{Lang|ar-latn|ṣirāṭ al-jahīm}}]. And detain them, for they must be questioned." ˹Then they will be asked,˺ "What is the matter with you that you can no longer help each other?" (Q.37:21–25)<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://quran.com/as-saffat/21-27|title=Surah As-Saffat - 21-27|website=Quran.com}}</ref></blockquote>

Muhammad, leading the Muslim Ummah, will be first across the bridge.<ref name="JISYYHIU1981:80">Smith & Haddad, ''Islamic Understanding'', 1981: p.80</ref> For sinners, the bridge will be thinner than hair and sharper than the sharpest sword, impossible to walk on without falling below to arrive at their fiery destination,<ref name=Leviton>{{cite book |last1=Leviton |first1=Richard |title=The Mertowney Mountain Interviews|date=16 July 2014 |publisher=iUniverse|page=59 |isbn=9781491741290 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IhhOBAAAQBAJ&q=sirat+as+thin+as+a+hair+and+as+sharp+as+the+sharpest+knife&pg=PA59 |access-date=2 January 2014}}</ref> while for the righteous, the bridge will be as wide as a highway, so they can easily run across. This way, the righteous will proceed across the bridge to paradise (''Jannah'').

This story is based on verses in the Quran (Q.36:66, Q.37:23–24), both of which "are rather indefinite". Only Q.37:23–24 mentioning hell in the form of {{Lang|ar-latn|al-jahīm}} with {{Lang|ar-latn|ṣirāṭ}} at least sometimes being translated as 'path' rather than 'bridge'.<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:78>Smith & Haddad, ''Islamic Understanding'', 1981: p.78</ref> {{Lang|ar-latn|ṣirāṭ al-jahīm}} "was adopted into Islamic tradition to signify the span over ''jahannam'', the top layer of the Fire".<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:78/> {{#tag:ref|"The idea of a bridge crossing to the underworld has found expression in a number of different religious traditions"<ref>(Knight, "Bridge," ERE, II, 852); quoted in {{cite book |last1=Smith|first1= Jane I. |first2= Yvonne Y. |last2=Haddad |date=1981 |title=The Islamic Understanding of Death and Resurrection |location=Albany, NY |publisher=SUNY Press |url=https://vdoc.pub/download/the-islamic-understanding-of-death-and-resurrection-1fa354cla15g |page=215, note 50|ref=JISYYHIU1981}}</ref>|group=Note}}

=== Intercession === {{further|Shafa'a}} Not everyone consigned to hell will remain there. Somewhat like the Catholic concept of purgatory, sinful Muslims will stay in hell until purified of their sins. According to the scholar Al-Subki (and others), "God will take out of the Fire everyone who has said the testimony" (i.e. the ''shahāda'' testimony made by all Muslims, "There is no God but God, Muhammad is his prophet")<ref>al-Subki, Taqi al-Din. ''Shifāʿ al-saqamft ziyara khayr al-anam''. Cairo, A.H.1315, 163; quoted in {{cite book |last1=Smith|first1= Jane I. |first2= Yvonne Y. |last2=Haddad |date=1981 |title=The Islamic Understanding of Death and Resurrection |location=Albany, NY |publisher=SUNY Press |url=https://vdoc.pub/download/the-islamic-understanding-of-death-and-resurrection-1fa354cla15g |page=81|ref=JISYYHIU1981}}</ref> "all but the ''mushrikun'', those who have committed the worst sin of impugning the ''tawḥīd'' of God, have the possibility of being saved."<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:81>Smith & Haddad, ''Islamic Understanding'', 1981: p.81</ref>

The possibility of intercession on behalf of sinners (''shafaʿa'') on Judgement Day to save them from hellfire, is a "major theme" in the eschatological expectations of the Muslim community and in stories told about the events of Judgement Day.<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:25>Smith & Haddad, ''Islamic Understanding'', 1981: p.25</ref>

While Quran "is both generally and clearly negative" in regard to the possibility of intercession on behalf of sinners (''shafaʿa'') on the last day" to save them from hellfire, {{#tag:ref|The Quran mentions ''shafaʿa'' in some form 29 times. Some examples are: * "Protect yourselves against a day when no soul will be able to recompense another in any way and no intercession will be accepted ... (Q.2:48); * "Warn those who fear that they will be gathered to their Lord; there will be for them no friend and no intercessor aside from Him ... (Q.6:51).<ref name="JISYYHIU1981:26">Smith & Haddad, ''Islamic Understanding'', 1981: p.26</ref> |group=Note}} (the idea being every individual must take responsibility for their own deeds and acts of faith). In the 20+ occurrences of {{Lang|ar-latn|shafa'a}} in the Quran none mention Muhammad or the office of prophethood. However this principle was "modified in the ensuing understanding of the community, and the Prophet Muhammad was invested with the function of intervening on behalf of the Muslims on the day of judgement".<ref name="JISYYHIU1981:80"/> Verse Q.43:86 authorizes "true witnesses" to grant intercession, and in this category "has been found for the inclusion" of Muhammad "as an intercessor for the Muslim community.<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:26/>

"One of the most popular and often-cited" stories about Muḥammad as intercessor ("validating" his ability to intercede) revolves around sinners turning to him after being turned down for intercession by all the other prophets. In {{Lang|ar-latn|al-Durra}} by al-Ghazali, this happens "between the two soundings of the trumpet".<ref name=Durra-59>al-Ghazālī, Abū Ḥāmid Muḥammad ibn Muḥammad. ''al-Durra al-fākhira''. Ed. M. Gautier. Leipzig, 1877. MS pp. 59–65. quoted in Smith & Haddad, ''Islamic Understanding'', 1981: p.80</ref>

Another story found in {{Lang|ar-latn|Kitāb Aḥwāl al-Qiyāma}} relates <blockquote>[The Prophet Muḥammad] will come with the prophets and will bring out from the Fire all who used to say "There is no God but God and Muḥammad is the Messenger of God. ... " He will then bring them out all together, charred from the Fire having eaten at them. Then he will hurry with them to a river near the gate of the Garden, called [the river of] life. There they will bathe and emerge from it as beardless youths, with kohled eyes and faces like the moon.<ref>''Kitāb aḥwāl al-qiyāma'', pp.101–102. quoted in Smith & Haddad, ''Islamic Understanding'', 1981: p.82</ref></blockquote>

===Paradise and Hellfire=== The "events" of "the judgement process" are concluded with the arrival of resurrected at their final "abode of recompense": either paradise for the saved or hell for the damned.<ref name="JISYYHIU1981:26"/> The Quran describes habitation within the abodes in "exquisite detail",<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:vii/> while "a wealth of picturesque specifics" (their shapes, structures, etc.) are elaborated on by hadith and other Islamic literature. Much of Islamic cosmology comes from "earlier world views" (the circles of damnation, seven layers of heaven above the earth, fires of purgation below of Mesopotamian and/or Jewish belief) with Quranic verses interpreted to harmonize with these.<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:9>Smith & Haddad, ''Islamic Understanding'', 1981: p.9</ref>

While critics have charged that the concept of afterlife in Islam is "very materialistic", the afterlife punishment of hell and pleasure of heaven are all not only physical, but psychic and spiritual.<ref name="Britannica-Eschatology">{{cite web |title=Eschatology (doctrine of last things) |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Islam/Eschatology-doctrine-of-last-things |website=Britannica |access-date=18 April 2022}}</ref> Their characteristics having matching features or direct parallels with each other. The pleasure and delights of ''Jannah'' described in the Quran, are matched by the excruciating pain and horror of ''Jahannam'',<ref name=ETISN2009:405>Thomassen, "Islamic Hell", Numen, 56, 2009: p.405</ref><ref name=JISYYHIU1981:86>Smith & Haddad, ''Islamic Understanding'', 1981: p.86</ref> Both are commonly believed to have seven levels, in both cases, the higher the level, the more desirable<ref name="Lange-2016">{{cite book |last= Lange|first= Christian|author-link= |date= 2016|title= Paradise and Hell in Islamic Traditions|url= |location= Cambridge United Kingdom|publisher= Cambridge University Press|page= |isbn=978-0-521-50637-3}}</ref>{{rp|p=131}}—in ''Jannah'' the higher the prestige and pleasure, in ''Jahannam'' the less the suffering.<ref name="RFIBA">{{cite web|title=Islamic Beliefs about the Afterlife|url=http://www.religionfacts.com/islam/beliefs/afterlife.htm|access-date=23 December 2014|website=Religion Facts}}</ref> Both feature prominent trees – the Zaqqum tree of hell opposite the lote tree of paradise. The common belief among Muslims holds that both abodes coexists with the temporal world,<ref name="Islamic Traditions p. 12">{{cite book|first1= Christian |last1=Lange |title=Locating Hell in Islamic Traditions |chapter=Introducing Hell in Islamic Studies |year=2016 |publisher= BRILL | isbn=978-90-04-30121-4 |page=12|jstor=10.1163/j.ctt1w8h1w3.7 | url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.1163/j.ctt1w8h1w3.7}}</ref> rather than being created after Judgement Day. ====Paradise==== {{main|Jannah}}

Paradise, ''Jannah'' ({{langx|ar|جَنّة|janna}}, or 'the garden'),{{citation needed|date=July 2022}} is the final abode of the righteous.<ref>Joseph Hell ''Die Religion des Islam'' Motilal Banarsidass Publishers 1915</ref> Jannah is described with physical pleasures such as gardens, rivers, fountains; lovely houris that no man has touched before, wine that does not make drunk, and "divine pleasure".<ref name="Britannica-Eschatology"/> Their reward of pleasure will vary according to the righteousness of the person.<ref name=idiot>{{cite book |last1=Emerick|first1=Yahiya|title=The Complete Idiot's Guide to Islam |date=2011 |publisher=Penguin |isbn=9781101558812 |edition=3rd |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Y6LQJWalzQkC&q=hell+in+islam&pg=PT97}}</ref><ref name="ReferenceB">Tom Fulks, ''Heresy? The Five Lost Commandments'', Strategic Book Publishing 2010 {{ISBN|978-1-609-11406-0}} p. 74</ref>

====Hellfire==== {{main|Jahannam}}

Punishment and suffering in hell in mainstream Islam varies according to the sins of the condemned person.<ref name=idiot/><ref name="ReferenceB"/> It is commonly believed by Muslims that confinement to hell is temporary for Muslims but not for others.<ref name="ReferenceA">A F Klein ''Religion Of Islam'' Routledge 2013 {{ISBN|978-1-136-09954-0}} page 92</ref><ref name="IQA200252">{{cite web|last1=Saalih al-Munajjid (Supervisor)|first1=Muhammad|title=200252: Is there any mention in the Islamic texts of a minimum period that sinners among the people of Tawheed will spend in Hell?|url=https://islamqa.info/en/200252 |website=Islam Question and Answer |access-date=7 May 2018}}</ref>{{#tag:ref|"One should note there was a near consensus among Muslim theologians of the later periods that punishment for Muslim grave sinners would only be temporary; eventually after a purgatory sojourn in hell's top layer they would be admitted into paradise."<ref name=CLLHiIT2016:7>Lange, "Introducing Hell in Islamic Studies", 2016: p.7</ref>|group=Note}}

Physically hell is described in different ways by different Quranic verses, hadith, and other Islamic literature. It is enormous in size,<ref name=discover>{{cite web |last1=Elias |first1=Afzal Hoosen |title=Conditions and Stages of Jahannam (Hell) |url=http://www.discoveringislam.org/jahannam.pdf |website=discoveringIslam.org |access-date=25 December 2014}}</ref><ref name=500-years>Qurṭubī, ''Tadhkira'', 93; quoted in "Christian Lange, p.14"</ref><ref name=CLLHiIT2016:14>Lange, "Introducing Hell in Islamic Studies", 2016: p.14</ref> and located below heaven.<ref name=AYAli-7:50>{{cite book|last=Ali|first=Abdullah Yusuf|title=The Qur'an|year=2001|publisher=Tahrike Tarsile Qur'an, Inc.|location=Elmhurst, New York|pages=353–4}}</ref> It has seven levels<ref name="RFIBA"/> but it is also said to be a huge pit over which the bridge of As-Sirāt crosses;<ref name="Bukhārī p.12">Bukhārī, Ṣaḥīḥ, k. al-riqāq 52; Muslim, Ṣaḥīḥ, k. al-īmān 299; quoted in |Lange, "Introducing Hell in Islamic Studies", 2016]]: p.12</ref> it has mountains, rivers, valleys and "even oceans" filled with disgusting fluids;<ref name=CLLHiIT2016:15>Lange, "Introducing Hell in Islamic Studies", 2016: p.15</ref> but like a sentient being, is also to be able to walk (controlled by reins),<ref name=reins-Qurtubi>{{cite book |author1=Ford, Khadija |author2=Reda Bedeir |title=Paradise and Hell-fire in Imâm Al-Qurtubî |year=1425 |publisher=Dar Al-Manarah|location=El-Mansoura Egypt |url=https://ia600204.us.archive.org/27/items/ParadiseAndHellFireQurtubi/Paradise%20and%20hell%20fire_Qurtubi_text.pdf |page=147}}</ref> and ask questions.<ref name=qaf-50:30-AYAli>{{cite book|last=Ali|first=Abdullah Yusuf|title=The Meaning of the Glorious Qur'an|date=n.d.|publisher=Dar al-Kitab|volume=2 |location=Cairo Egypt|pages=1415}}</ref>

==Literal or figurative interpretation== While early Muslims debated whether scripture on Judgement day should be interpreted literally or figuratively, the school of thought that prevailed (Ashʿarī) "affirmed that such things as" connected with Judgement day as "the individual records of deeds (including the paper, pen, and ink with which they are inscribed), the bridge, the balance, and the pond" are "realities", and "to be understood in a concrete and literal sense."<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:65>Smith & Haddad, ''Islamic Understanding'', 1981: p.65</ref> Regarding heaven and hell, today, "the vast majority of believers", (according to Smith and Haddad), understand verses of the Quran on Jannah (and hellfire) "to be real and specific, anticipating them" with joy or terror,<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:84>Smith & Haddad, ''Islamic Understanding'', 1981: p.84</ref> although this view "has generally not insisted that the realities of the next world will be identical with those of this world".<ref name=JISYYHIU1981:84/> On the other hand, since "the time and chronology are less important than the ultimate significance of resurrection and judgement "as a whole", the point of stories of Judgement day in the eschatological manuals is to be "didactic" not accurate,<ref name="JISYYHIU1981:75"/> i.e. to raise awareness of "the threat and promise" of the message of Islam even if most of the story is based not on the verses of the Quran but on the author's imagination. The eschatological manual {{Lang|ar-latn|Kitāb aḥwāl al-qiyāma}}, for example, describes the Fire/Hell terrifyingly but implausibly as having "four legs (between each leg 1000 years), thirty heads with 30,000 mouths each, lips like 1000 mountains, and so on".<ref>''Kitāb aḥwāl al-qiyāma'', pp. 90. quoted in Smith & Haddad, ''Islamic Understanding'', 1981: p.85</ref>

==Similarities to the Judgement Day of Christianity== {{Original research section|date=May 2025}} Islamic and Christian eschatology both have a "Day of Resurrection" of the dead ({{Lang|ar-latn|yawm al-qiyāmah}}), followed by a "Day of Judgement" ({{Lang|ar-latn|yawm ad-din}}) where all human beings who have ever lived will be held accountable for their deeds by being judged by God. Depending on the verdict of the judgement, they will be sent for eternity to either the reward of paradise (''Jannah'') or the punishment of hell (''Jahannam'').<ref name="Ahmed">{{cite journal |last1=Ahmed |first1=Jafor |title=Similarities and Dissimilarities between Islam and Christianity |url=https://www.academia.edu/3716864 |website=Academia |access-date=19 April 2022}}</ref>

Some of the similarities between Christian and Islamic eschatology include: when exactly Judgement day will occur will be known only to God;<ref>"People will ask you about the Hour. Say, Knowledge of it is only with God ... " [Q.33:63]. quoted in {{cite book |last1=Smith|first1= Jane I. |first2= Yvonne Y. |last2=Haddad |date=1981 |title=The Islamic Understanding of Death and Resurrection |location=Albany, NY |publisher=SUNY Press |url=https://vdoc.pub/download/the-islamic-understanding-of-death-and-resurrection-1fa354cla15g |page=65|ref=JISYYHIU1981}}</ref> it will be announced by a trumpet blast;<ref name="Amini-trumpet">{{cite book |last1=Amini |first1=Ibrahim |title=Resurrection in the Quran |publisher=Al-Islam.org |url=https://www.al-islam.org/resurrection-maad-quran-ibrahim-amini/signs-judgment-day |access-date=19 April 2022 |chapter=Signs of Judgement Day, Blowing of the Trumpet|date=13 January 2015 }}</ref> it will be preceded by strange and terrible events serving as portents; Jesus will return to earth (but in different roles); battles will be fought with an Antichrist and Gog and Magog; righteous believers will not be among the living when the world ends.

As in the First and Second Epistle of John<ref name="1-2John">1 John {{Bibleverse-nb||1 John|2:18–22|NRSV}}; {{Bibleverse-nb||1 John|4:1–6|NRSV}}. 2 John {{Bibleverse-nb||2 John|1:7–11|NRSV}}.</ref> of the New Testament, an "Antichrist" figure appears in Islam, known (in Islam) as ({{Langx|ar|دجّال|}}) {{Lang|ar-latn|Al-Masīḥ ad-Dajjāl}}, literally "Deceitful Messiah".<ref name="Farhang Dajjal 2017">{{cite encyclopedia |author-last=Farhang |author-first=Mehrvash |year=2017 |title=Dajjāl |translator-last=Negahban |translator-first=Farzin |editor1-last=Madelung |editor1-first=Wilferd |editor2-last=Daftary |editor2-first=Farhad |encyclopedia=Encyclopaedia Islamica |location=Leiden and Boston |publisher=Brill Publishers |doi=10.1163/1875-9831_isla_COM_035982 |issn=1875-9823}}</ref> The {{Lang|ar-latn|Dajjal}}, like the Antichrist, performs miracles, or at least what appear to be miracles.<ref name="strangers-255">{{cite book|last1=Wood|first1=Graeme|title=The Way of the Strangers: Encounters with the Islamic State|date=2016|publisher=Random House|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bPoOCwAAQBAJ&q=al-Bahrumi&pg=PT132|chapter=The War of the End of Time|pages=255|isbn=9780812988765}}</ref> (In Islam, the {{Lang|ar-latn|Dajjal}} and many of his followers are prophesied to be killed by Jesus's breath,<ref name="strangers-257">{{cite book|last1=Wood|first1=Graeme|title=The Way of the Strangers: Encounters with the Islamic State|date=2016|publisher=Random House|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bPoOCwAAQBAJ&q=al-Bahrumi&pg=PT132|chapter=The War of the End of Time|page=257|isbn=9780812988765}}</ref> just as in the second chapter of 2 Thessalonians it says "Jesus will destroy with the breath of his mouth, annihilating him by the manifestation of his coming", some unnamed "lawless" figure.<ref>{{cite book|first1=Jeffrey Alan David|last1=Weima|author-link1=Jeffrey A. D. Weima|first2=Stanley E.|last2=Porter|author-link2=Stanley E. Porter|title=Annotated Bibliography of 1 & 2 Thessalonians|publisher=Brill Publishers|location=Leiden, Netherlands|page=263|date=1998|quote=(2) Does the New Testament support the notion of an individual Antichrist in whom all the anti-Christian strife of all ages will be concentrated? 2 Thess 2 answers the second question in the affirmative: an individual Antichrist will bring evil to its ...}}</ref>

As in the Christian Book of Revelation<ref name=stuckenbruck>{{Cite book|last1=Stuckenbruck |first1=Loren T. |chapter=Revelation |editor1-last=Dunn |editor1-first=James D. G. |editor2-last=Rogerson |editor2-first=John William |title=Eerdmans Commentary on the Bible |publisher=Eerdmans |year=2003 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2Vo-11umIZQC&pg=PA1536|isbn=9780802837110 |pages=1535–36}} </ref> (where they are to fight a "final battle with Christ and his saints"),<ref name=mounce>{{Cite book |last=Mounce |first=Robert H |title=The Book of Revelation |publisher=Eerdmans |year=1998 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=06VR1JzzLNsC&pg=PP4|isbn=9780802825377}}</ref> Gog and Magog will be released, after being imprisoned for thousands of years in a mountain, to wage war against the righteous.<ref name="strangers-258">{{cite book|last1=Wood|first1=Graeme|title=The Way of the Strangers: Encounters with the Islamic State|date=2016|publisher=Random House|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bPoOCwAAQBAJ&q=al-Bahrumi&pg=PT132|chapter=The War of the End of Time|page=258|isbn=9780812988765}}</ref> In an event somewhat similar to the Rapture concept in Christianity{{#tag:ref|(A version of the Rapture occurring in end times)||group=Note}}—where at some time near the end of the world all Christian believers disappear and are carried off to heaven—in Islam one of the very last signs of the imminent arrival of the end of the world will be a "pleasant"<ref name="Mahdi22">{{cite book|title=Clarity Amidst Confusion: Imam Mahdi and the End of Time|last=Yahya|first=Harun|date=1 January 2008|publisher=Global Publishing. Kindle Edition.|page=64}}</ref> or "cold" wind,<ref>Hava Lazarus-Yafeh ''Some Religious Aspects of Islam: A Collection of Articles'' Brill Archive 1981 {{ISBN|9789004063297}} p. 52</ref> that brings a peaceful death to all Muslim believers,{{citation needed|date=July 2022}} leaving only unbelievers alive to face the end of the world. Jesus (known in Islam as Isa) will make a second coming in Islam, but not to preside over Last Judgement. Instead he will help another Islamic saviour figure ("The Mahdi"), crush evildoers and restore order and justice before the end of the world, including (according to some Islamic hadiths) correcting the erring ways of the world's Christians by converting them to Islam.<ref name="WARREN LARSON p. 335">WARREN LARSON ''Jesus in Islam and Christianity: Discussing the Similarities and the Differences'' p. 335</ref>

Muslims believe that similarities between Abrahamic religions of Judaism, Christianity and Islam are because they're all the same "Word of God" as sent by his prophets throughout history. The differences (most notably Muhammad's absence) from the first two are said to be corruptions incurred by those books throughout history, with Islam claiming it cannot be corrupted and it therefore being the "final word".<ref name="IC-proof">{{cite web |title=Is There Any Proof That the Bible Was Corrupted? |url=https://islamcompass.com/is-there-any-proof-that-the-bible-was-corrupted/ |website=Islam Compass |date=27 February 2022 |access-date=19 April 2022}}</ref><ref name="IW-disrespecting">{{cite web |last1=The Fatwa Center at Islamweb |title=187555 Disrespecting the Bible and the churches |url=https://www.islamweb.net/emainpage/PrintFatwa.php?lang=E&Id=187555 |website=Islamweb |access-date=19 April 2022 |date=10 February 2012}}</ref>

== References == === Notes === {{reflist|group=Notes}} {{reflist|group=Note}}

===Citations=== {{reflist}}

===Bibliography=== * {{Cite journal |last=Arjomand |first=Saïd Amir |author-link=Saïd Amir Arjomand |date=2000 |title=Origins and Development of Apocalypticism and Messianism in Early Islam: 610–750 CE |url=https://www.oslo2000.uio.no/program/mt2b.htm |journal=Oslo: Congress of the International Committee of the Historical Sciences}} * {{cite encyclopedia |last = Arjomand |first = Saïd Amir |encyclopedia = Encyclopaedia Iranica |title = The Concept of Mahdi in Sunni Islam |url = http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/islam-in-iran-vi-the-concept-of-mahdi-in-sunni-islam |year = 2007 |publisher = Encyclopædia Iranica Foundation |volume = 14, Fasc. 2 |access-date = 11 March 2022 }} * {{cite book |last= Bashir |first= Shahzad |author-link= Shahzad Bashir (scholar) |year= 2003 |title= Messianic Hopes and Mystical Visions: The Nūrbakhshīya Between Medieval and Modern Islam |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uom79HNFPGgC |publisher= University of South Carolina Press |location= Columbia, SC |isbn= 1-57003-495-8}} * {{cite book |last1= Bentlage |first1= Björn |year= 2016 |title= Religious Dynamics under the Impact of Imperialism and Colonialism: A Sourcebook |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZtY6DQAAQBAJ |publisher= Brill |isbn= 9789004329003|last2=Eggert|first2=Marion|first3=Hans-Martin|last3=Krämer|last4=Reichmuth|first4=Stefan|author4-link=Stefan Reichmuth (academic)}} * {{cite book |last = Blichfeldt |first = Jan-Olaf |title = Early Mahdism: Politics and Religion in the Formative Period of Islam |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=hATYAAAAMAAJ |year = 1985 |publisher = E. J. Brill |location = Leiden |isbn = 978-90-04-07643-3}} * {{cite book |last = Cook |first = David |author-link = David Cook (historian) |title = Studies in Muslim Apocalyptic |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=DxfYAAAAMAAJ |year = 2002a |publisher = The Darwin Press |location = Princeton |isbn = 9780878501427}} * {{Cite journal|last=Cook|first=David|title=Ḥadīth, Authority and the End of the World: Traditions in Modern Muslim Apocalyptic Literature|journal=Oriente Moderno|volume=82|number=1|pages=31–53|year=2002b|doi=10.1163/22138617-08201004|url=https://hdl.handle.net/1911/70538|jstor=25817811|hdl=1911/70538|hdl-access=free}}  * {{cite book |last = Cook |first = Michael |author-link = Michael Cook (historian) |chapter = Eschatology and the Dating of Traditions |editor-last = Motzki |editor-first = Harald |title = Ḥadīth: Origins and Developments |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=MjqoDQAAQBAJ |year = 2016 |publisher = Routledge |location = London and New York |isbn = 9781138247796}} * {{cite book |last=Daftary |first=Farhad |author-link=Farhad Daftary |year=2013 |title=A History of Shi'i Islam |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Cvr5ngEACAAJ |publisher= I.B. Tauris |location=London |isbn= 978-1-78076-841-0}} * {{Cite journal|last=Doi|first=A. R. I.|title=The Yoruba Mahdī|journal=Journal of Religion in Africa|volume=4|issue=2|pages=119–136|year=1971|jstor=1594738|doi=10.1163/157006671x00070}} * {{cite book |last=Esposito |first=John L. |year=1998 |title=Islam and Politics |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SlhxoTHLxeMC |edition=4th |publisher= Syracuse University Press |location=Syracuse |isbn=0-8156-2774-2}} * {{cite journal |last = Filiu |first = Jean-Pierre |author-link = Jean-Pierre Filiu |title = The Return of Political Mahdism |journal = Current Trends in Islamist Ideology |year = 2009 |volume = 8 |pages = 26–38 |url = https://www.hudson.org/content/researchattachments/attachment/1316/current_trends_volume_8 |issn = 1940-834X |access-date = 2022-04-25 |archive-date = 2022-05-20 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20220520112534/https://www.hudson.org/content/researchattachments/attachment/1316/current_trends_volume_8 |url-status = dead }} * {{cite book |last = Filiu |first = Jean-Pierre |translator-last = DeBevoise |translator-first = M. B. |title = Apocalypse in Islam |url = https://archive.org/details/apocalypseinisla0852fili_W3CSK |year = 2011 |publisher = University of California Press |location = Berkely |isbn = 978-0-520-26431-1}} * {{cite journal |last1=Fishman |first1=Jason Eric |last2=Soage |first2=Ana Belén |title=The Nation of Islam and the Muslim World: Theologically Divorced and Politically United |journal=Religion Compass |volume=7 |issue=2 |year=2013 |pages=59–68 |doi=10.1111/rec3.12032}} * {{cite book |last = Friedmann |first = Yohanan |author-link = Yohanan Friedmann |title = Prophecy Continuous: Aspects of Ahmadi Religious Thought and its Medieval Background |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=NjzbzQEACAAJ |year = 1989 |publisher = University of California Press |location = Berkeley and Los Angeles |isbn = 0-520-05772-4}} * {{cite book |last = Furnish |first = Timothy R. |title = Holiest Wars: Islamic Mahdis, Jihad and Osama Bin Laden |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=lGjMWnS5yK8C |year = 2005 |publisher = Praeger |location = Westport, CT |isbn = 0-275-98383-8}} * {{cite book|last=Halm|first=Heinz|author-link=Heinz Halm|year=1997|title=Shi'a Islam: From Religion to Revolution|translator-last= Brown|translator-first= Allison|publisher=Markus Wiener Publishers|location=Princeton|isbn=1-55876-134-9|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/shiaislamfromrel0000halm}} * {{cite book |last = Halm |first = Heinz |translator1-last = Watson |translator1-first = Janet |translator2-last = Hill |translator2-first = Marian |title = Shi'ism |url = https://archive.org/details/shiism0000halm_l8s2 |edition = 2nd|year = 2004 |publisher = Edinburgh University Press |location = Edinburgh |isbn = 0-7486-1888-0}} * {{cite book |last1=Halverson |first1=Jeffry R. |last2=Goodall |first2=H. L. Jr. |last3=Corman |first3=Steven R. |year=2011 |title=Master Narratives of Islamist Extremism |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xQ9dAQAAQBAJ |publisher= Palgrave Macmillan |location=New York |isbn=978-0-230-10896-7}} *{{cite book |last1=Ibn Warraq |title=Why I Am Not a Muslim | url=https://archive.org/details/WhyIAmNotAMuslimIbnWarraq |publisher=Prometheus Books |year=1995 |pages=123–127 |ref=iWWINaM1995}} * {{cite journal |last=Klemm |first=Verena |title=Die vier sufarā' des Zwölften Imām: Zur formativen Periode der Zwölferšīʽa |journal=Die Welt des Orients |volume=15|pages=126–143 |date=1984 |jstor=25683146}} * {{cite book|first1= Christian |last1=Lange |editor=Christian Lange |title= Locating Hell in Islamic Traditions |chapter=Introducing Hell in Islamic Studies |publisher= BRILL |isbn=978-90-04-30121-4 |date=2016 |pages=1–28 |jstor=10.1163/j.ctt1w8h1w3.7 | url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.1163/j.ctt1w8h1w3.7 |ref=CLLHiIT2016}} * {{cite book |last=Leirvik |first=Oddbjørn |year=2010 |title=Images of Jesus Christ in Islam |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Gzd_I2AFswwC |edition=2nd |publisher=Continuum International Publishing Group |location=London |isbn=978-1-4411-7739-1}} * {{cite journal |last = Madelung |first = Wilferd |author-link=Wilferd Madelung|title = ʿAbd Allāh b. al-Zubayr and the Mahdi |journal = Journal of Near Eastern Studies |year = 1981 |volume = 40 |number = 4 |pages = 291–305 |doi = 10.1086/372899 |s2cid = 161061748 }} * {{EI2 |last = Madelung |first = Wilferd |title = Al–Mahdi |volume = 5 |pages = 1230–1238 }} * {{cite book |author-last=Momen |author-first=Moojan |title=An Introduction to Shi'i Islam: the history and doctrines of Twelver Shiʻism |publisher=Yale University Press |year=1985 |isbn=9780300034998}} * {{cite book|last1=Rustomji|first1=Nerina|title=The Garden and the Fire: Heaven and Hell in Islamic Culture|date=2009|publisher=Columbia University Press |isbn=9780231140850|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YVasAgAAQBAJ&q=Al-Ghazali+on+jahannam&pg=PT143|access-date=25 December 2014|ref=NRGF2009}} * {{cite journal |last=Sachedina |first=Abdulaziz A. |author-link = Abdulaziz Sachedina |title=A Treatise on the Occultation of the Twelfth Imāmite Imam |journal=Studia Islamica |number=48|pages=109–124 |date=1978 |doi=10.2307/1595355 |jstor=1595355}} * {{cite book |last = Sachedina |first = Abdulaziz A. |title = Islamic Messianism: The Idea of Mahdi in Twelver Shi'ism |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=5zUIYGQT4DwC |year = 1981 |publisher = State University of New York Press |location = Albany, NY |isbn = 9780873954426}} * {{cite book |last1=Smith|first1= Jane I. |first2= Yvonne Y. |last2=Haddad |date=1981 |title=The Islamic Understanding of Death and Resurrection |location=Albany, N Y |publisher=SUNY Press |url=https://vdoc.pub/download/the-islamic-understanding-of-death-and-resurrection-1fa354cla15g |ref=JISYYHIU1981}} * {{cite book|last=Sonn |first=Tamarra |title=A Brief History of Islam |publisher=Blackwell Publishing|year=2004|isbn=978-1-4051-2174-3|url=https://archive.org/details/briefhistoryofis0000sonn|url-access=registration}} * {{cite journal |last1=Thomassen |first1=Einar |title=Islamic Hell |journal=Numen |date=2009 |volume=56 |issue=2–3 |pages=401–416 |doi=10.1163/156852709X405062 |jstor=27793798 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/27793798 |access-date=6 January 2022 |ref=ETISN2009|url-access=subscription }} * {{cite book |last = Valentine |first = Simon Ross |title = Islam and the Ahmadiyya Jama'at: History, Belief, Practice |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=MdRth02Q6nAC |year = 2008 |publisher = Columbia University Press |location = New York |isbn = 978-0-231-70094-8}}

==Further reading== * "''Fath al-Bari''" (from ''Sahih al-Bukhari'' by ibn Hajar al-Asqalani). * Esposito, John, ''The Oxford Dictionary of Islam'', Oxford University Press, 2003, {{ISBN|0-19-512558-4}}. * Richard C. Martin, Said Amir Arjomand, Marcia Hermansen, Abdulkader Tayob, Rochelle Davis, John Obert Voll, ''Encyclopedia of Islam and the Muslim World'', MacMillan Reference Books, 2003, {{ISBN|978-0028656038}}. * Lawson, Todd (1999). ''[https://www.academia.edu/3679569/Duality_Opposition_and_Typology_in_the_Quran_The_Apocalyptic_Substrate Duality, Opposition and Typology in the Qur'an: The Apocalyptic Substrate]''. Journal of Quranic Studies. 10: 23–49.

* Category:Last Judgment