Alam al-Ghayb: The Hidden Realm PDF

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,~~~-,--- --,r-' r.-s-.a- ' I 80 rner"ties is appa "'~at rent t is oni.. a lls 'Y the ti the ic P Of eber9 A.lam al-Ghayb: The Hidden Realm In this chapter, you will learn about: Muslim beliefs about e Key aspect s of al-Gha yb: 'Alam al-Gha yb (the unseen Allah, angels and the jinn. and the hidden ), and e Teach ings of the Prophet-::~ knowle dge of its existen ce. on protec tion from danger s related to the unseen. 'Alam al-Gha yb, the hidden and the unseen realm, is e\'ery th ing beyond the grasp of the hunwn senses. The ghayb (unsee n) is a reality \\'hich Muslim s believe in \\'ith certain !\'. Allah >. savs in the Qur',in : "This is a book in \\'hich there is n~l douht; it coi~cai ns guidan ce for those who arc consci ous of All,ih; those who believe in the unseen [glwyhJ, pl'rform Salah, and gin? [in charity ! from what \Ve h,l\'e gin n them" (2:2-3). 'Al.AM AL-GHAYB: THE HIDDEN REALM 59 Muslims base their beliefs in the unseen primarily on Qur'anic e Alim al-Ghayb - verses which ~iscuss Allah ~, His angels, the jinn, and all the The Knower of the Unseen events in the Akhirah. Secondly, they also base their beliefs "[He is the] Knower of the on al).adith from the Prophet~. For example, in authentic unseen. He does not let anyone narrations, the Prophet ~ taught about the coming of the know the unseen. Except a Mahdi~, the menac~_ofYa}uj and Ma'juj,1 the test ofDajjal,2 and Messenger whom He chooses the return of Prophet Isa® to this world,3 [to inform through revelation], as He appoints [angels as] watching guards in front of him Allah~ and behind him" (72:26-27). Belief in Allah~ is the most important aspect of the unseen. Allah ~ is beyond human grasp. Nothing can share His attributes or power, nor does He resemble any creation. Because of this, Muslims cannot imagine Allah~ having a shape or form. He also cannot exist in any creation, nor is He bound by time, space, dimensions or directions. He is al-Ba.tin, the Hidden - Angels Allah~ has created:· worship, as well as for., -ut - many special duties. Created from light, angers have no free will. "They do not disobey Allah in what He orders them, Our vision is limited; for and they do whatever they are ordered to do,, (66:6). Furthermore, example, only some parts there are two divisions of angels: the Lower Assembly (al-Mala' of the spectrum is visible al-Asfal) and the Higher Assembly (al-Mala' al-A'la). 4 to the human eye. e Al-Mala' al-Asfal: Angels in the Lower Assembly have various tasks and duties. For instance, some remain on the right and left of a human, recording their good and bad deeds (50:17). These angels swap shifts, one What do angels after another: one shift is from Salat al-Fajr until Salat al-'A~r, look like? and the other from Salat. al-Fajr. They ascend. al-'Asr. until Salat The Qur'an describes angels to the heavens, where Allah db, asks them: "How did you leave My as winged creatures (35:1), servants?,, The angels reply: "We left them praying, and we went but the nature of their wings is to them praying.,,5 unknown. There is no evidence that Thus, actions of a person reach the heavens through angels. angels have halos, nor do they The results of these actions sometimes also return through have a gender. What we know angels. For example, the Prophet i,p, said: "When Allah loves a about them is only what is servant, He calls Jibril [and says]: 'Indeed, Allah loves so-and-so; taught to us in the Qur'in and therefore, love them.' So, Jibril l?ves them. Then, Jibril calls out al)acfith.  1 60 Serving the believers: du'a' Angels also make du a'Jor the believe rs: du'a' seek forgiveness and make The carriers of Allah's Throne 1 for believers (40:7-9). ts wake up, two angels morning when Allah's servan 1 Every to the poor, and against those who make du'i' for those who give 1010). don't (Bukhari: 1449; Muslim: er remains seated after falah, 1 Angels make du'i' for whoev ; ted with wu~o· (Bukhari: 445 for as long as they remain sea Muslim: 649). els ther in their absence, the ang 1 When one makes du'i' for ano (Muslim: 2732). make the same du'a' for them e loves so-and-so; therefore, lov to [the angels] in the sky: J\Jlah love them too. Then, the person them.' So, (the angels] in the sky6 This shows us the actions of is granted acceptance on earth." in this world, but also in the humans have an effect not only heavens. e Al-Mala' aJ-A'Ia; have the highest status and Angels in the Higher Assembly ~1 re the angels that asked Allah closeness to Allah Jb.. These we the creation ofAdam @- why - when He informed them about th who would cause bloodshed He would place a creation on ear and corruption. 8 ed the Prophet ~ that the Want to be Furthermore, ~lab ~ once inform s about and rush to record the in blessed angels of Al-Mala al-A la discus s cial deeds are: walking toward deeds that re~ove sins. These spe in the masjid after ~al ah; company? the cong:egat1on~,1 ~alahs; sitting ially when it is difficult to do Angels descend to offer perforrn~ng wu