Analysis of Surah Al Rahman with Mufti Abdul Wahab Waheed | Session 4

أَعُوذُ بِاللَّهِ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيمِ. بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ.

Introduction: The People of the Akhirah

Allah continues after speaking about the first category of the people of the Akhirah, which is وَمِنْهُمْ مَنْ ظَالِمٌ لِّنَفْسِهِ — those who oppress themselves.

Ayah 44: The Punishment of Jahannam

When they would circle back and forth from the fire of Jahannam to the boiling water of Jahannam. They would think that they can get refuge from the boiling water, and when they get to the boiling water it will burn up their insides, so they will run back to the fire of Jahannam, and that will burn up their outsides. And then they will go back to the water and it will burn up their insides. So they would keep going back and forth in this punishment of the hot boiling water and the hot fire of Jahannam. That is what that ayah refers to.

The Description of Jannah

Before we go into the people of Jannah, let's understand that Jannah has whatever we want. The most conclusive and the most inclusive description of Jannah is where Allah says:

Jannah will have everything that you desire. Jannah will have everything that you want.

They will be living in complete bliss. عَيْش — even in Urdu means عَيْش — means to have a life without any struggle or without any concerns. Allah doesn't describe the life of this world with the word عَيْش. Allah describes the life of this world with the word حَيَاة, because حَيَاة is life that has difficulties. But عَيْش is the life of the Akhirah which has no difficulties.

So we believe that everything that we want will be in Jannah. It is not limited to what is being described in these verses. But what is being described in these verses are those details and those blessings that we all want in this world. So Allah speaks about them in regards to Jannah.

How Do We Get to Jannah? The Three-Step Process

Step One: Our Own A'mal

In order for us to get to Jannah, there has to be some form of effort that we make ourselves.

Those that make effort — when they make effort, we give them Jannah.

Allah explains to us in many verses of the Quran that a part of Jannah being earned is that we make effort and we perform our own a'mal. But our a'mal alone do not give us Jannah. That is the first step — that we are making a'mal. But a'mal are not enough. That is just the beginning part.

Step Two: The Shafa'ah of the Prophet ﷺ

The next step is we get the shafa'ah of the Prophet ﷺ. Without the intercession of the Prophet, we cannot get Jannah. So our a'mal lead towards the intercession of the Prophet, because on that day no one will be able to speak except for those that Allah allows to speak and those that Allah allows to give shafa'ah. Allah speaks about this in Ayatul Kursi:

Only those will be able to intercede on the behalf of others that Allah has given permission to. And we believe — part of Ahlus Sunnah wal Jama'ah — that there is something called shafa'ah. And shafa'atul kubra, which is the greatest shafa'ah, is preserved for the Prophet ﷺ. And shafa'atul sughra can be given to anyone — scholars, pious predecessors, children, shuhadah, and people that Allah has given a special status to.

Step Three: Allah's Mercy

The shafa'ah of the Prophet leads towards Allah's mercy, because we believe that no one can enter Jannah without Allah's mercy. And Allah's mercy is brought because of our a'mal and the Prophet's shafa'ah. So these come hand in hand. If we have a'mal, it creates the Prophet's shafa'ah. And the Prophet's shafa'ah leads towards the mercy of Allah. And that is how we reach Jannah.

The Entrance Into Jannah

Before even going over the verses of these ayahs, let me try to describe the actual entrance to Jannah. Because the entrance into a wedding is pretty dramatic. The entrance into a beautiful hotel is supposed to be special. The entrance into a large banquet has its own feel — the lobby creates that feeling. So how is the entrance into Jannah? Before we even get into the blessings of Jannah, let's reflect upon what people will experience while waiting to enter.

Allah speaks about this in regards to the people that will pass the Sirat and get their book of deeds in their right hand. When they will move forward, they will come into what we call the waiting lounge of Jannah. What does the waiting lounge of Jannah look like?

They will be relaxing on high sofas, couches, and carpets. There will be no heat and there will be no coldness. When it is summer, we want the A.C. When it is winter, we want the heat. In Jannah, the weather will be perfect. There will be no need for heat, there will be no need for A.C., because what Allah has preserved for us in the weather of Jannah is what the human being truly needs to be happy.

So we will sit outside waiting for Jannah to open. When we sit there, there will be cups and goblets of different types of drinks brought to us. And when we will be drinking from those goblets, Allah tells us that we will be reunited with our family members.

This entire journey of Hashr, Sirat, and Hisab will be a very difficult journey. We will be struggling and scared for our family members. It is like, for example, if a house is burning and you get out, or if there is a tsunami — a natural disaster — and you are saved, and then later you are looking for your family members. You do not feel like you have been saved until you see that your loved ones have also been saved. That is a reality. There is a term for this — what they call "suicide by guilt" — how was I saved but my family member was not saved.

So Allah says that when they reach Al-Kawthar and drink from it, they will never be thirsty again. Now they will be relaxing with a nice wind coming to them, enjoying it. And now they start meeting Sahabah, the prophets, and other pious predecessors. Then they start thinking — where are my family members? Allah says that He will reunite them مع آبائهم وأزواجهم وذرياتهم — with their family members, their parents, their spouses, and their children — and they will be relaxing in the lounges of Jannah.

And while we are relaxing in the lounges of Jannah, the Prophet ﷺ will walk forward. When he knocks on the doors of Jannah, the gatekeeper of Jannah, Ridwan, will say: "Who is knocking on the doors of Jannah?" And the Prophet ﷺ will respond: أنا مُحَمَّد — "I am the Prophet of Allah." And the gatekeeper will reply:

(Sahih Muslim, Book 1, Hadith 197)

"I have been ordered not to open the doors of Jannah until you come knocking on them."

And for us — how will the doors of Jannah look? The Prophet ﷺ describes that the doors of Jannah will be such that if a horse is running from one side of the doors to the opposite side, it will take him 50,000 years — hypothetically explaining how great and how large the doors of Jannah will be. He explains that the handle used to knock on the doors of Jannah will be made from gold.

These doors will be so large. And this also psychologically explains the greatness of that which is hidden inside. When we enter into a very large palace or a very large hotel, they have big gates and large entrances. And those large entrances tell us about the greatness of that which is hidden inside. If we cannot get inside, just the doors themselves tell us how beautiful those things hidden inside can be.

Then the doors will be opened. And as people enter into Jannah, they will know exactly where to go, because they will be informed through divine revelation where their palaces are.

There will be no anger, no jealousy, no envy, because everyone will be happy with their own palace. We only have envy and jealousy in this world because we do not have what other people have. We will rush towards our Jannah.

But before we go to our Jannah — when we enter into a five-star hotel or a five-star restaurant, the first thing that happens is people come to greet us. Guess what? When we enter into Jannah, there will be the angels.

They will rush to us, and when they come to us they will say:

"You've made it. Congratulations. You've passed." It is like when a person graduates from medical school and when they finish, people come, hug them, kiss them, and cry over happiness. Imagine on that day when we are entering into Jannah together as a family and as an ummah, and angels are coming to us, hugging us, meeting us and telling us: "You made it. You came out successful." Imagine the happiness we will feel.

And as we enter into the gates of Jannah — how will the floor look? The Prophet ﷺ describes that the floor of Jannah will look like you are walking on water, but you are not walking on water — you are walking on glass beneath which there is water that you can see. The floor of Jannah is beautiful. Just as the psychology of a human being is that when you walk into a beautiful building, the tiles are shiny — if the tiles are not clean, you think it is dirty. The tiles in Jannah will be shiny and beautiful.

And how will the ceiling of Jannah look? The ceiling of Jannah will be none other than the Arsh of Allah. Then the angels will escort us towards our Jannah and towards our palace.

This, my dear brothers and sisters, is just the entrance into Jannah. And how Allah explains Jannah in the Quran is exactly how the logic of a believer or a human being is. These are the things that we absolutely want and desire in life.

Jannataan: The Two Gardens

Whosoever has fear of Allah — and what is خَافَ مَقَامَ رَبِّهِ? It means they have fear of standing in front of Allah on the Day of Judgment — they will be given Jannataan. جَنَّتَانِ can mean there will be a Jannah for the humans and a Jannah for the jinn. جَنَّتَانِ can also mean there will be different levels of Jannah. We do not believe that there are only two Jannahs — we believe that there will be different levels.

The Prophet ﷺ says:

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 4879; Sahih Muslim, Hadith 180)

Some Jannahs will be made of gold and some Jannahs will be made of silver. But the opinion that I incline towards the most is the opinion of Imam Fakhruddin Al-Razi and Imam Al-Luski رحمه الله, where they explain that جَنَّتَانِ doesn't necessarily mean that there are two Jannahs. What it really means is there are multiples — various types. The word is تَثْنِيَة, the dual, because Allah has been using dual words throughout this surah. But in reality جَنَّتَانِ means multiples, various types — not really meaning that there are exactly two types but that there are various and multiple types of Jannah. And that is what I incline towards.

It is said that this ayah was revealed about Abu Bakr رضي الله عنه. When he heard about the punishment of Jahannam, he started to weep and said, "Ya Rasulallah, I wish I was just a blade of grass that could never have hisab — I wish I was a petal, a leaf on a tree that I would never be reckoned." And when he said this, Allah revealed: وَلِمَنْ خَافَ مَقَامَ رَبِّهِ جَنَّتَانِ — that whosoever has any fear of Allah will be given Jannah. So if we have fear, that is a positive thing and it will get us Jannah.

What Awaits Us in Jannah: Greenery and Water

What do we like in this world? The two elements that every human being is attracted to are: number one, greenery, and number two, water. Everyone likes greenery and water. Doesn't matter who we are — everyone likes greenery. Why do we go for picnics? Why do people go out to places in nature? We like the feeling of nature. And secondly, we love water. As Muslims, anyone that comes to visit us from foreign countries — where do we take them? Niagara Falls. We have gone there ten times but every time we go it looks as beautiful and as marveling, because we love water. The sound of waterfalls brings solace and peace to the heart.

When we enter into big mansions they have beautiful greenery outside — flowers, nice trees, nice gardens — and on top of that some of them have water fountains. What is that water fountain doing? It is not helping you practically. That pond doesn't give you water, you can't swim in that pond, but the only thing it gives you is a feeling of beauty. It allows you to enjoy the sight of it. What is the most expensive room in a hotel? The waterfront room — the room that is in front of the ocean or in front of the lake. Why does that make a difference? Because Allah knows us better than we know ourselves.

"I know you better than you know yourself. And I know that human beings — every single human regardless of who they are — enjoy water. They enjoy greenery. They look forward to these things."

So when you enter into Jannah — first of all you are given this grand welcome: these huge eight doors of Jannah, massive, massive doors. Everyone will be able to enter and when we enter we have the angels coming to us saying salam and giving us appetizers. The person serving us the water of the Hawd-e-Kawthar isn't a server or a bartender — the person serving us is none other than our Habib ﷺ. Imagine taking water from him and drinking it and looking at him, saying "Wow, this feels so good. I don't get thirsty after this. I get to see my Prophet!" SubhanAllah.

Then when we enter into Jannah it is beautiful. Allah is talking about the privacy of your Jannah:

ذَوَاتَا أَفْنَانٍ means there will be trees which are very large and green, flushed with greenery, so you will look and enjoy the sight of the trees around you — and it will have some privacy. And when you move forward you realize that it is not only trees:

You also have عَيْنَانِ — عَيْن means water. There will be streams of water, waterfalls. Allah says that there are different types of streams in Jannah:

Some of the streams of Jannah will be from honey; some will be of alcohol — but not alcohol of this world, rather alcohol of the Akhirah:

It will not get us drunk and will not give us headaches. People drink alcohol in this world to forget about their difficulties, but in the Akhirah we will drink it just to enjoy it. There will be absolutely no headaches or foul talk or foul language that comes from it. And there will be rivers of milk whose taste will never change.

When people read these ayaat about these rivers we are like, oh wow — why does Allah speak about rivers of honey and rivers of milk? Allah is just describing to us some of the blessings of Jannah. Orientalists speak about these descriptions saying that they are backdated or they are not for us. That is completely wrong. Those descriptions still make sense today because those are things that we absolutely need to survive. And whatever we want we will find in Jannah — these are just some of the blessings described.

The greatest description of Jannah by the Prophet ﷺ that I understand and believe in is where the Prophet would say:

No eye has ever seen it — how can you describe it? No ear has ever heard of such beauty. And no human being will ever be able to completely understand the greatness and the beauty of Jannah. But these are snippets of Jannah that you should understand — like a preview of a great event. That preview in itself makes you say, "Wow, I want that." All you got was a preview but that preview was so good that you are attracted towards it and ready to put money on it without even seeing or touching it. Similarly, Allah is giving us a preview of Jannah.

The Palace, the Food, and the Fruits of Jannah

So we get into Jannah — we have the green garden in the entrance, then the streams and waterfalls. And the first thing that a human wants is their own house — the American dream. Allah says when you get into Jannah you will have your own palace. Your palace will be such:

That you could see the inside from the outside and the outside from the inside. This does not mean that there will be no privacy, but what it means is that it will already be covered by trees, so even the people that are in your yard are your own family members. The way I look at it is those penthouses that are made of glass so you can see the outside from the inside and the inside from the outside — like beachfront homes. So Allah is saying your house will be like this. There will be rivers outside of it, there will be waterfalls outside of it, there will be greenery outside of it — everything will be inside of this palace.

Now Allah goes on and says — after you have this beautiful palace — what is a home without food? Imagine coming inside of a house and you are hungry. So what's next?

All types of fruits and all types of foods. Some scholars explain this as referring to the fact that there will be fruits that are juicy and fruits that are not juicy — i.e., dry fruits. Secondly, it refers to the fact that the fruits that were sweet in this world will be even sweeter in the Akhirah. And the fruits that were bitter in this world will become sweet in the Akhirah as well, and they will all be available to you. Every time you eat a fruit it will taste better.

Imagine the fruits that we eat in this world being even sweeter in the Akhirah. And every bite you take will taste better than the previous bite — unlike the food of this world. It does not matter how great of a cook the person is, it does not matter how great the dish is — if you eat it too much you get tired of it. That is how human beings are.

For example, in our school the students love having pizza, so we decided to give them pizza every Sunday. And after some time, guess what happens? They are tired of pizza. Because human beings get tired of food even if it is good. But Allah says this food of Jannah — you will never get tired of it. Rather, every bite you take will taste better than the previous bite. And in Jannah you do not have to relieve yourself. You do not have to go to the washroom to come back and eat more. You are just indulging, just enjoying the foods and the fruits of Jannah, and you never get tired of them because there are unlimited amounts of them and there is always something new.

It is like walking into a buffet — what do you fill up first and how much do you eat? Imagine if you walk into the buffet of Jannah and you never get full. You have fruits all scattered there for you and you eat this one and that one and you never get full.

Reclining on the Sofas of Jannah

After you eat your food, what do we want? We want to chill, we want to recline, we want to rest. Allah said — that is what happens:

After you eat, you will just relax. You will sit down on فُرُش — on beautiful couches. The outside of the palace is beautiful, and how about the inside? Allah says we will have these beautiful lounges, these beautiful sofas and carpets. بَطَائِنُهَا مِنْ إِسْتَبْرَقٍ — and we will recline. Allah says when we are reclining we will be sitting facing each other. The inside of these pillows and couches will be made of silk.

Ibn Abbas says that if the inside is mentioned, the inside is always less beautiful than the outside. If the inside is made of silk, we can only imagine what the outside is made of. And in Surah Al-Waqi'ah Allah says that the thread of the outside of them will be made from gold. So we can imagine — the inside is made from silk, the outside is made from gold. These are no ordinary sofas and couches.

And at this point, what you want is entertainment. So Allah says: you want entertainment? It is coming. وَجَنَى الْجَنَّتَيْنِ دَانٍ — those Jannahs will come close to you, i.e., whatever you want from Jannah will come to you. You do not have to move. A five-star service is when we sit down and do not have to move — someone is there waiting for us to order, bringing everything to us. This is Allah's Jannah — also a five-star service:

Everything will come to us — the fruits will lower themselves for us and we will pick them and grab them. We do not have to move. It is the epitome of relaxation. And every single person will feel special in Jannah.

Allah says there will be servants of Jannah. And I want to make this clear — the servants of Jannah are not necessarily human beings. The servants of Jannah are creations that Allah made to serve us in Jannah, and their honor is in serving us. They are not humans that feel bad about serving each other. Rather, that is what they are made for — they are created to serve us. So when they serve us they feel like they are fulfilling their purpose.

The Prophet ﷺ said:

(Recorded in various collections; see Al-Bayhaqi, Shu'ab al-Iman, Hadith 8362)

The server of his nation is the leader of the nation. Allah refers to these servants as وِلْدَانٌ — young. Who works in McDonald's, who works in Tim Hortons? Generally they are young people, people that are still in college or still looking for jobs. People that serve are normally at a younger age. So Allah says that those He created for this service will also be young in age. It has nothing to do with anything other than this — these servants are not necessarily human beings. Some say the وِلْدَان are the children of non-Muslim parents who passed away before they reached the age of puberty. But we understand this is not any form of negativity — rather it is a fulfillment of their purpose.

Reuniting with Family in Jannah

We get into Jannah — we have our palace, our grand welcome, the greenery, the water, the food, the fruits, and we are reclining. And at this point what you want is your family. And this is not even the highest point of Jannah yet.

I always say — what is Jannah without having your family with you? Because we struggle in this world as an ummah, as a family — one's father is struggling, another person's brother is struggling, one son or daughter is born sick. So what gives us relief is knowing that we will be in Jannah together. That is what gives us relief.

Someone came and asked Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal: when does ease come to a human being? He said that a human being will only be at ease when they enter Jannah with the right footing. Until then they will not be at ease. Allah says you will continue struggling in this world until you actually leave this world. And that is what we have seen in the life of the Prophet ﷺ. The struggle we face is not a sign of our weakness but rather a sign of our strength. Allah does not test a person except based upon their capability and their ability to take on that difficulty.

Nonetheless, we have this Jannah. And now we sit down and say: where is my family at? And this is where Jannah really becomes Jannah. Allah says in Surah At-Tur:

Those that believe — when they enter into Jannah, the children will say, "Oh Allah, where are our parents? Where are our siblings, where are our spouses, where is our family? What is Jannah without my parents? I went through the struggle of this world knowing that one day I will be able to enjoy Jannah with my family." And Allah will say, "Well, your family is lower than you — you are higher." So the children will say, "Oh Allah, can You allow us to be with our family members?" And the beauty is that Allah says أَلْحَقْنَا بِهِمْ ذُرِّيَّتَهُمْ وَمَا أَلَتْنَاهُم مِّنْ عَمَلِهِم مِّن شَيْءٍ — Allah will take those that were lower and bring them higher, without reducing anything from the children's own deeds.

Unlike the dunya — if I was flying once with my older brother and he somehow got business class and I was stuck in economy, and I said to him, "It would be better if we sit together," he said: "I love you, but I don't love you that much. I got business class, I am not coming back." Generally whenever you want to be together, someone has to drop back. Allah says no — in the Akhirah, if the children are above, because of them the parents can also get there. So we believe as children that we have the capacity and the strength to bring our parents higher in the Akhirah.

May Allah make us amongst those children that become a means of our parents' levels of Jannah being higher because of our struggle and our a'mal. And may He not make us amongst those who depend upon our parents in the Akhirah but rather allow us to bring our parents above. And yes, of course, it is not only limited to children bringing up their parents — it is also for siblings, family members, wives, and spouses.

Imagine when you get to Jannah, you are sitting on that couch and you say to Allah: bring my family to me. And they will be lower than you and Allah will bring them up. And when the family comes together, Allah speaks about that conversation in Surah At-Tur — where Allah says the people will say, "Remember once upon a time we were dreaming of this Jannah? Remember once upon a time we were sitting together in our home and said, 'I wish I can get to Jannah?' Remember that time? And now we are finally here. We used to make dua for this, we used to pray for this, we used to work for this, and now Allah has given it to us." It is like a family where the siblings were struggling and struggling and finally they make it as successful people and they sit back and say, "Remember once upon a time we were stuck, we had no money in our family — but now we have something."

Now that question that multiple people ask — what about people that are in Jahannam? If the person is a believer, a family member can do shafa'ah for them — 100%. A family member can do shafa'ah for them. Shafa'ah will only work as long as the other person is also a believer. But yes, shafa'ah can work for those that are in Jahannam as well. The Prophet ﷺ says — and this is the hadith which is the most hopeful hadith for believers:

(Sunan Abu Dawud, Hadith 4739; Sunan al-Tirmidhi, Hadith 2435)

"My intercession is preserved for the major sinners of my Ummah." Because the minor sinners will get through the shafa'ah of other people, but the major sinners the Prophet ﷺ will take care of. Shafa'ah can be for anyone as long as they are believers.

The Prophet ﷺ also says:

(Sahih Muslim, Hadith 1631)

When someone passes away, the a'mal stop except from three ways: some form of continuing goodness — a sadaqah jariyah; or a pious child that is making dua for them; or knowledge that they left behind that people can benefit from. This increases their reward.

We believe that shafa'ah — intercession — is part of the belief of Ahlus Sunnah wal Jama'ah. We believe that children, even if they do a'mal without thinking of giving the reward to their parents, it automatically goes to their parents. So our parents can truly increase their levels of Jannah in the Akhirah because of what we do. But our sins do not harm them. So it is like a one-way street — our sins do not harm them but our good deeds can benefit them. That is why I say, wallah, make us amongst those children that can be a source of the ascension of our parents' levels in Jannah — even if we were a headache for them in this dunya — but let them be proud of us in Jannah.

That is why the Prophet ﷺ says that on the Day of Judgment, parents will be given a crown of such a nature that if it were above our homes, it would be brighter than the sun. If you have children, make them حُفَّاظ — make them scholars — but also make them pious, because those parents will be given a great reward. Parents will be given reward because of their children's actions even though they did not do it themselves.

Companionship in Jannah

So now we have our family — that is the second greatest reward in Jannah — and within our family of course we will have our wives and spouses. Allah speaks about this in the ayah, speaking about the companionship of the people of Jannah — that there will be those people that lower their eyes, that no man had ever touched them before and no jinn had ever touched them before.

So that is companionship. First we had our palaces — the external beauty. Then we went inside and had the food of our palace. Then we had companionship — our parents and family members — then our spouses. And then we go ahead — and this is the best part of this surah.

The Greatest Reward of Jannah: Seeing Allah

What can be the consequence or the reward for goodness except for goodness? Some say: what is the reward of good deeds except Jannah — that if you did good in this world, Allah will give us Jannah in the Akhirah. Others say: those that did good in this world will be given Jannah and they will be given the sight of Allah.

And this brings me to the hadith where Allah will say to the people of Jannah: "Are you not happy?" And we will reply: "Oh Allah, we are so happy — You saved us from Jahannam, You gave us Jannah, You reunited our families and we are together — we are happy, we are enjoying. Why would we not be happy?" And Allah will say: "Should I not give you something else?" And the people of Jannah will say: "Oh Allah, how can You bless us more than You have already blessed us? There can be nothing that You can bless us with that we do not already have — we are overwhelmed with blessings." Then the curtains between the people of Jannah and Allah will be removed, and at that moment they will be given the greatest blessing a human can ever be given — the blessing of actually seeing Allah.

We have heard about Him for so long, we have thought about Him for so long, we have respected Him for so long, we feared Him for so long, we loved Him for so long. It is like a long-term relationship. But then finally — finally — Allah removes His hijab, removes His curtains, and exposes Himself to us. And the people of Jannah will look at Allah and will say: "Ya Allah — it was as if we never had any blessings before this day. SubhanAllah. It was as if we were never blessed before this day — because now we are actually seeing You." Because in this world we cannot see Allah — we can only see Allah in Jannah.

The Sahabah asked, "Ya Rasulallah, how can we see Allah when there are so many of us in Jannah?" The Prophet ﷺ said: "Don't worry. You will see Allah like you see a full moon on the 14th night — everyone will be able to see Allah." And one narration comes that every Friday we will go and we will visit Allah. Imagine — if in this world we see a celebrity we say, "Oh my God, I saw LeBron James, I can't believe it, it's unreal — pinch me, am I dreaming?" On that day we will see Allah!

We believe that the greatest blessing of Jannah is seeing Allah. So we can constantly see Him whenever we want. Allah will continue blessing us with His ziyarah — with His closeness and His appearance. So we can see Him, enjoy His sight, and speak to Him. Everyone in Jannah on that day will be Kaleemullah — will be able to have a conversation with Allah. SubhanAllah.

One is to make it to a high worldly place. One is to meet the leader of that place. But one is to make it to Jannah — and one is to meet الْعَلِيُّ الْعَظِيمُ الْعَزِيزُ الْوَهَّابُ الرَّحْمَٰنُ الرَّحِيمُ الْحَكِيمُ الْوَدُودُ — to meet Allah Himself. That is a different level.

The way that I look at this ayah — which is really profound — is what is Ihsan in this world? When Jibreel عليه السلام asked the Prophet ﷺ "What is Ihsan?" he replied:

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 50; Sahih Muslim, Hadith 8)

"Ihsan is to worship Allah like you can see Him — but if you cannot see Him, then know that He sees you." We cannot see Allah in this world. But from this ayah we understand that if we are people of Ihsan in this world — that we worship Allah with our best ability — we will also be people given Ihsan in the Akhirah, which will be the actual Ru'yah of Allah. If we worship Allah with Ihsan in this world, we will be given Ihsan in the Akhirah — which is the ability to see Allah. May Allah make us amongst those people.

And that is the height of the reward of Jannah. You have the palace, you have the food, you have the companionship, you have the family, and then you have Allah in front of you. And of course you have the Prophet ﷺ and the Sahabah with you.

A Sahabi was once there when the Prophet ﷺ was speaking about the blessings of Jannah and he started to weep — which was very strange, like why are you crying when we are speaking about Jannah? And it happens sometimes because we are overwhelmed with joy. The Sahabi said: "Ya Rasulallah, I am crying because I think of you — and you will be much higher than me. You will be at the top, and I will be lower. Oh Prophet of Allah, how will we see you? What is Jannah without you?" And the Prophet ﷺ said:

"You will be with those whom you love." And we will also have the ability to be with the Prophet ﷺ if we exemplify the Sunnah in our own lives. The importance of closeness to the Prophet ﷺ in the Akhirah is through the Sunnah that we have alive in our lives. Doesn't matter how easy or how difficult the Sunnah is — the more Sunnah we have alive in our lives, the closer we will be to the Prophet ﷺ.

The Second Jannah: As-Sabiqoon — The Front Runners

The next Jannah is the same thing — a similar description — but this second Jannah is a higher Jannah. And that Jannah is of As-Sabiqoon, the front runners. So Ashab al-Shimal are the people of Jahannam, Ashab al-Yameen are the people of Jannah A, and As-Sabiqoon Al-Muqarraboon are Jannah B — their Jannah will be of a higher level with more blessings, similar blessings but in different and greater ways.

Who are the Muqarraboon? Who are the Sabiqoon? We believe the Sabiqoon are those people that make effort in every generation. It is like the Hall of Fame — everyone can be a part of it. They just have to make sure they are the best of their era. Not just the Sahabah, not just the Prophets — Sabiqoon can be us if we make effort in our lives right now. We can be amongst the Hall of Fame of the people of Jannah.

And who are the Sabiqoon? The Sabiqoon are those that come to Yawm al-Hashr and pass by everything — like the express lane between Asr and Maghrib — they have no Hisab and they go straight to the waiting lounge of Jannah to wait for the Prophet ﷺ to come. That is what the Sabiqoon are.

Closing Remarks

Your brothers and sisters, I have a few moments left and I just want to say JazakAllah Khair for tuning in. I appreciate all of you coming. I really enjoyed the class and I wish I could go for longer. The weakness is our weakness of time — that we cannot go for longer. JazakAllah Khair. Thank you so much for tuning in. If you have any questions or reflections please ask us by emailing us, inshAllahu Ta'ala.

JazakAllah Khair. Assalamu Alaikum Warahmatullahi Wabarakatuh.