from disease in all parts of the world- yet it shall be of benefit to them. Yet why are those
non-believers not usually tested equally? It is because they have already failed in their test-
Satan needs not spend time with those who are already corrupt. The Prophet peace be
upon him was reported to have said:
“The greater Allah’s love for a person the harder is his test”
Thus there is a hierarchy of misfortune, the greatest being upon the greatest of us, notably
the prophets.
Yet for the disbeliever the hereafter begins to manifest itself in this life. Disease can
be seen as a just punishment brought upon by themselves:
“And whatever misfortune befalls you, is
due to what your own hands have wrought”
A contemporary example of this being the sexually transmitted diseases present in today’s
ever-increasing promiscuous society. Surely AIDS and the like of it were brought about by
‘their own hands’?
However, the above verse does not apply to true Muslims as the following explains:
When Ali, son of Hussein-the grandson of the Prophet, was taken to Yazid to be
tortured by him, Yazid said “And whatever misfortune....hands” Ali replied, “This
verse is not concerning us (me), that which is regarding us is ‘There befalls no
misfortune either in the earth or in your own persons, but it is recorded in a Book
before We bring it into being’ ”
Thus Muslims are expected to be patient and to endure disease. Islam has taken
various measures to help those with disease. The Quran rightly says, “There is no
inconvenience for the sick.” This is reflected in the fact that those who are ill do not need to
fast, those who have a bad leg may sit whilst praying and many other examples. Others with
disease should be treated with sympathy, compassion and kindness.
Yet the disease of physiological bearing is insignificant when compared with the
misfortune that is the spiritual disease. Those who are ‘ill’ from within are thus also suffering
from disease, yet their disease is one of choice. The Quran describes those who are
spiritually sick in the following way:
“In their hearts was a disease, and
Allah has increased their disease.”
Death is an experience that all of us will go through, as Allah reiterates in the holy
Qur’an on three separate occasions:
“Every soul shall taste of death”
Muslims believe that every person on earth is given a specific time in which to live, thus ‘no
person can die except by Allah’s leave- a decree with a fixed term.’ With this in mind,
Muslims should not fear the future. If a person’s time has come, there is no evading Azrai’l,
the angel of death:
“Say, ‘If you had remained in your homes, surely those who on whom
death had been enjoined would have gone forth to their deathbeds.”
With the belief that our lives are not our own possessions and that only Allah has the
right to take life from us, homicide, suicide and euthanasia are forbidden in Islam. Also,
excessive mourning and lavish graves are also forbidden.
Yet how can Muslims believe in life after death? Is it possible that after decaying in
the earth we can be brought back to life? There are many ways in which this belief may be
justified. One way takes the form of an experimental argument entirely based on physical
research, John Hick suggests that “even if we discount the entire range of physical
phenomena it remains true that the best cases of trance utterance are puzzling, and taken at
face value are indicative of survival and communication after death.” There are also
countless philosophical arguments notably in Plato’s Phaedo or in the works of Socrates that
may also account for the practicability of resurrection.
Yet the argument presented in the Quran, in my opinion, is the most direct and
feasible. The argument put forward in surat Yasin is self-explanatory:
“Does not man see that We have created him from a
mere sperm drop? Yet lo! He is an open quarreller....
He says ‘Who can resurrect the bones when they are
decayed?” Say, ‘He who created them the first
time will resurrect them... Verily his command when
he intends a thing is only that He says to it, ‘Be’ and it is.”
Death signifies the end of our worldly life. It is the parting of the material and non-
material forms; the body and the soul. The soul, or al-Nafs, differentiates man from the rest
of creation, constituting humans to be the ‘crown’ of Allah’s creation.
Muslims believe that Allah only gives to us what is just, similarly our dying is a means
of justice; for us and others. Death is a necessity and not just a reality, this is highlighted in
the following hadith:
Prophet Muhammad was reported to have said: “A tribe once approached
the prophet of their time and said, ‘Pray to your Lord that death shall no
longer be bestowed upon us. And so the prophet prayed and Allah no
longer bestowed upon them death. As the years passed, the population
grew until the houses became cramped and the generations many. Men
were no longer able to go out and work as they spent their time feeding, washing
and cleaning their parent, grand parents, great grand parents...... And so the tribe
went back to their prophet and asked that he pray Allah return death and death
was returned”
Death can also be understood on different levels. Let us consider the following
verse:
“Only those who listen can accept. And as for the dead,
Allah will raise them to life, then to Him shall they be
brought back”
Yet is not resurrection the same as being brought back to life? So why has Allah said that
He ‘will raise them to life then to Him shall they be brought back.” The distinction here can
be interpreted as meaning those who do not listen (to Allah), but are physically alive, are
spiritually dead. Similarly those of whom one may think to be dead may also be alive:
“Think not of those, who have been slain in the cause
of Allah as dead. Nay they are living in the presence
of their Lord and are granted gifts from him.”
For the believer, death can be seen as a purification of his sins, it is the last pain that a pious
Muslim shall endure, but for the non-believer it is the first of an eternity of suffering. One
Muslim scholar stated that for the true believer, ‘Death is a journey from a prison to a
palace’, as “the life of this world is nothing but an illusory enjoyment” . Yet death can also
be seen as a mercy for non-believers:
“Death signifies a rest for he who obeyed his desires in this life, for
surely the longer he lived the greater would be his punishment.”
From the countenance of the angel of death, Azra’il, one can tell where he shall
reside. It is said that upon death we are shown our position in heaven or hell. For the
believer the soul will depart easily, however the non-believer says ‘My Lord, send me back
that I may do righteous deeds in the life that I have left behind’ and the soul departs in a
struggle. Yet death is an irrevocable barrier. It is true that our souls leave our bodies every
night when we are asleep, yet ‘He retains those against which he has decreed death, and
sends back the others till an appointed time.’ And so after our death we are unable to
acquire any more reward, except, as the Prophet Muhammad said, “From three things are
we able to obtain reward after our death; A charity, knowledge given to others and noble
offspring.
At death we are in a transition state between this life and the hereafter, known as al-
Barzakh. The Quran describes those in the ‘Barzakh’ as being Sakra or in a state of
stupor. There they will be questioned as to what they did in this life. Punishment or reward
starts in this state yet in a non-material form until the Day of Judgement where both body
and soul will be resurrected.
The practical implications of death to a Muslim are that he must realise that life has a
purpose; the hereafter. And thus Muslims should use their time on this earth as efficiently as
possible, aiming to fulfil this purpose before the toll of death is upon us. This is reiterated by
all the pious men of Islam. The fourth caliph, Ali Ibn Abu Talib’s (peace be upon him)
words should be adhered to by all:
“Live for this life as if you are to live forever, and live for the
hereafter as if you were to die tomorrow.”
To make full use of these implications, death should be constantly in our minds.
To fully understand why Allah allows his servants to suffer from disease, we may
consider other views on this topic. The problem of suffering has lead many to disbelieve In
Allah. There are three main classic theistic views on this matter.
One approach taken by Christian Science, according to its founder himself is that
‘Sin, disease, whatever seems real to material sense is unreal.’ The argument being that
suffering does not really exist. Another approach put forward by Swinburne and Hick
focuses on the notion that all evil is punishment which is justly inflicted by god. Another
view, according to Alvin Platinga says that all suffering comes from the abuse of free will.
With regards to disease he proposes that non-human persons have caused us disease by
abusing their freedom.
Yet all three views can be seen to be flawed. The first view, probably is the most
ridiculous of all, and yet even if ‘one could rationally defend this odd conclusion...even if evil
is an illusion, it is a painful one and it is therefore false that evil is nothing but an illusion.’
The second approach being that all disease or suffering is a just punishment from
God can also be challenged. D.Z. Phillips asks, “What then are we to say of the child that is
dying from cancer?,” surely this cannot be deserved.
The third approach seems much more feasible, and has some grounds in Islam. But
is disease caused by angels who come down to earth and wreak havoc due to their abuse of
free-will? This view by Platinga is one that has no basis in Islam.
Islam has provided us with a synthesis of these views. As stated before, for the
non-believer it can be punishment, for the believer it can be a test of faith or a purification of
sins. It is also true that a world without suffering would render our purpose of life null.
Disease also serves to emphasise, through contrast, good health. Thus it allows us to
appreciate our times of good health more.
Eternal hell is mentioned several times in the Quran and Muslims thus believe that
some people will go to hell for eternity. Yet it is seen that this does not contradict Allah’s
mercy for several key reasons. Allah is the most merciful but only to those who actively go
about seeking his mercy, for Allah only helps those who help themselves. One who
disobeys Allah’s orders cannot be expected to be shown as much mercy as those who are
good Muslims. And yet it is not as if Allah has left us without direction and guidance. Every
man and woman instinctively knows the difference between right and wrong, there are
enough signs leading to Allah for “those who think and reflect” and Allah has sent down
many prophets and scriptures to guide mankind. Any deviation is thus out of man’s own
arrogance and thus should be punished deservingly. Hell for the sinners is also justice to
those who did good in life, for if those that lived for the pleasures of the worldly life too went
to heaven this would be a grave injustice to the pious amongst us. As opposite’s, heaven
and hell serve to emphasise each other. Thus the prospect of hell acts as a deterrent
preventing many from doing wrong and thus making the world a better place. Socrates goes
one step further claiming that heaven comes from hell, “opposites come from opposites in
the case of things which have an opposite.”
Although the words of Socrates seem somewhat extreme, taken in a less literal
sense, what he says has bearing on all that which we have discussed; Death, disease and
hell. We may ask our selves, would there be death without life? Or would there be disease
without good health? Or would there be hell without heaven? All of which Allah has
bestowed upon us creating a perfect natural balance.
Bibliography
An introduction to the philosophy of religion by Brian Davies
Islam by Rosalyn Kendrick
Islamic Teaching Course, volume one by the IPCI
Meezan Al-Hikmah volume 1,4 and 5(in Arabic) by Mohammed
Shahristany
Plato’s Phaedo by Plato
Philosophy of Religion by John Hick
Summa Theologiae by Aquinas
The translation of the Holy Quran by Yusuf Ali
Holy Quran, 9;38
Holy Quran, 67;3
Holy Quran, 2;157
Holy Quran, 42;31
Holy Quran, 57;23
Holy Quran, 24;62
Holy Quran, 2;11
Holy Quran, 3;186, 21;36, 29;58
Holy Quran, 3;155
Hick, J., Philosophy of Religion, p128
Holy Quran, 36;78-83
Holy Quran, 6;37
Holy Quran, 3;170
Holy Quran, 3;186
Holy Quran, 23;100
Holy Quran, 39;43
Aquinas, Summa Theologiae, Ia, 13,5.
Davies, B., An Introduction to the Philosophy of Religion, 37
Ibid,37
Gallop (ed.), Plato’s Phaedo, 17ff
