Life on earth is a short period, to be followed by eternity.  Life on earth is just a test or trial period, to see how well we conduct our affairs within the bounds of religion, and how far we can go in carrying out our Islamic directives, the religion of Allah.

    Allah's religion came in its full detail in the form of Islam.  It came to all people, of all nationalities and colors, for all times.  Allah's guidance was sent to man as mercy from Allah, as a favor to man, to show the way for man to follow.  Man is given a measure of freedom to choose his own way, and to go along the path of his choice.

    Each human has an unseen register , where all his deeds during this earthly life, no matter how large or small, are accurately recorded.  Whatever goes on in his or her life will be recorded faithfully and accurately.  This register is of special importance for later use, after the person has died.

WHAT IS THE OTHER LIFE?  

    Allah is All-Knowing, Omnipotent, and Merciful.  In giving us our lives, Allah did not do it haphazardly or in vain.  Allah's actions are always deliberate and well calculated.  By giving us our lives on earth, Allah wanted to test us, to let us go through a life-long test period.  Allah (swt) did that in order to see who would conduct himself or herself along the lines of the Heavenly Guidance, along the dictates of His religion, as preached by His Prophets.

    This life-long test period will not pass in vain unrecorded.  Nay, Allah (swt) does not do anything without an accurate account and precise calculation.  Therefore, the deeds of man, his inner thinking, his intentions, and all his plans and designs are registered in the most accurate way.  This is the case no matter how small or large those deeds, or misdeeds are, and no matter how many they are.  This is called man's register or his special book.  As we will see, this is to be presented at a future time in the Hereafter.

WHAT HAPPENS AFTER MAN DIES?  

    Death is simply a transfer of man from one stage of life to another.  Death introduces man to another stage of life in which either felicity or disappointment awaits him.

    When man dies, his soul will remain preserved.  Of course, having consisted of elements and matter, his body will deteriorate.  But the soul will always remain, because it is not subject to decomposition.

    On the Day of Judgment, all people will be brought back to life again.  Allah (swt), being the Omnipotent, will once more compound the same elements and infuse into them the very souls that belonged to them.  This is the life after death.  This is what is called Ma’ad (the Hereafter)  which also means (the Return).

    The time span between the death of a person and his return during the Hereafter is called the Barzakh . During this time, the soul will remain preserved, having been dealt with in a special manner.

HOW IS THAT?  

    Upon death, the soul will leave the body, but it will account for the deeds and misdeeds of the earthly life.  This is called the Minor Judgment.  The two agents involved are angels by the names of Munkar and Nakeer .  The soul will see all the happenings of the earthly life it went through previously, almost like a movie, and it will have a chance to evaluate it.  After a summary account and judgment, the soul is then subjected to either a pleasant presence or to a wretched one, depending of course on the results of the account and judgment.  In this condition, it will continue until the Day of General Resurrec­tion (Day of Judgment) .

    The soul of man in this intermediate state possesses the same form as in his life in this world.  A man of virtue for instance will live in happiness and ecstasy in the proximity of those who are pure and close to the Divine Presence.  If, on the other hand, the person was a man or woman of evil, he or she will live in affliction and torment, in the company of the evil ones.

    This intermediate period between death and General Resurrection on the Day of Judgment is called Barzakh.

HOW ABOUT THE DAY OF JUDGMENT?  

    On the Day of Judgment, each of us will see himself brought back to life, body and soul.  This Day is extremely important and is mentioned in the Holy Quran numerous times.  The belief in it is fundamental, since anyone who does not believe in it is not a believer.  All the efforts, all the works, all the toil in applying the heavenly directives would be basically meaningless if there were no Hereafter.  Our existence would be meaningless and aimless if there were no Hereafter.  The Hereafter is a consequence of Allah's Adl (Divine Justice).

    On that Great Day, the Day of Judgment we will all be brought to life again, body and soul.  Each of us will account fully and completely for his or her deeds, actions, beliefs, and intentions for every minor and major incident of his or her earthly life.

► The merits and demerits will be evaluated and weighed one against the other precisely.  There will be those with happy cheerful faces, for they will have won the prize of prizes, they will have achieved their aim.  These people will receive their measure in their right hands, they will have been awarded Paradise, the Garden of Bliss, the Eternal Jannah.

    On the other hand, there will be those with gloom on their faces, dispirited and disgraced, with great anguish and dread in their hearts.  They are the ones who will have lost, and they are the ones who had ignored their Islamic work and duty during their earthly lives and preferred to do what they wished and pleased.  These people will receive their measure in their left hands, and they will be doomed to the torture of eternal Hell.

► The Day of Reckoning (Yawm Al-Hisaab) is when every person sees his deeds exposed in their true perspective.  He will see them as they truly are, objectively,  without emotions or exaggeration.  Then the measurement will take place, which is called the Measure of Account (Al-Meezan)  All the above is called the MAJOR JUDGMENT.

WHAT WILL BE AFTERWARD  

    Those who have earned Paradise will go to it with ease by the Path (Al-Siraat) which will be a wide road for them, leading to the Jannah (Garden of Bliss).  As for those who were bad or evil, they will go to Al-Naar (Hell) by the same Path, but it will be very narrow for them and very easy for them to fall from it so that Hell will engulf them.

► Al Jannah (Paradise) will be a place of perfection, people will be there forever.  There will be no concerns and no worry, no demands or demanding commitments.  There will be cool comfort, cheer and good feeling.  Whatever a person wants will be within his reach, and whatever he demands will be at his disposal.  There will be no procreation, but the person will look his or her best as he or she did during his or her earthly life.

► There will be no boredom whatsoever over there, since in Paradise there will be perpetual attractions, things to be involved in when and if a person wants to, things to do to his heart's content.  There will be a quest for knowledge, with its boundless and unlimited degree.  There will be numerous surprises, many completely undreamed of before during our earthly life.

► There will be opportunities to meet great people, people of goodness and piety that history has so often told us about.  There will be a chance to meet the Al-Mu'qarraboon (Favored Ones), Prophets (peace be upon them all) and Ahlul Bayt, the Designated Imams, and to converse with them and learn from them.  Not only will there be a chance to meet with the Favored Ones, but those in Paradise will even be lucky enough to be in their company.

► On the other hand, Hell will be the place of torment, a perpetual torment, an agonizing experience.  It will be full of those who deserve to be there, the hypocrites and liars, the connivers and trespassers, the indecent and obscene, the dictators and bad rulers, all of whom who did many evil things on earth.

► Pain and agony is only part of the story in Hell because there will be many torturous experiences beyond our belief and imagination.  Hunger and thirst, anxiety and fear will be with them constantly.  As for those who denied Allah completely during their earthly life, they will continue to be in Hell forever.