Grandmother's warning
He
remembered his grandmother's warning about praying on time: "My son, you
shouldn't leave prayer to this late time". His grandmother's age was 70 but
whenever she heard the Adhan, she got up like an arrow and performed Salah.
He, however could never win over his ego to get up and
pray. Whatever he did, his Salah was always the last to be offered and he prayed
it quickly to get it in on time. Thinking of this, he got up and realized that
there were only 15 minutes left before Salat-ul Isha. He quickly made Wudhu and
performed Salat-ul Maghrib.
While making Tasbih, he again remembered his
grandmother and was embarrassed by how he had prayed. His grandmother prayed
with such tranquility and peace. He began making Dua and went down to make
Sajdah and stayed like that for a while. He had been at school all day and was
tired, so tired?!
He awoke abruptly to the sound of noise and shouting.
He was sweating profusely. He looked around. It was very crowded. Every
direction he looked in was filled with people. Some stood frozen looking around,
some were running left and right and some were on their knees with their heads
in their hands just waiting. Pure fear and apprehension filled him as he
realized where he was. His heart was about to burst. It was the Day of Judgement.
When he was alive, he had heard many things about the
questioning on the Day of Judgement, but that seemed so long ago. Could this be
something his mind made up? No, the wait and the fear were so great that he
could not have imagined this. The interrogation was still going on. He began
moving frantically from people to people to ask if his name had been called. No
one could answer him.
All of a sudden his name was called and the crowd split
into two and made a passageway for him. Two people grabbed his arms and led him
forward. He walked with unknowing eyes through the crowd. The angels brought him
to the center and left him there. His head was bent down and his whole life was
passing in front of his eyes like a movie. He opened his eyes but saw only
another world. The people were all helping others.
He saw his father running from one lecture to the
other, spending his wealth in the way of Islam. His mother invited guests to
their house and one table was being set while the other was being cleared.
He pleaded his case, "I too was always on this
path. I helped others. I spread the word of Allah. I performed my Salah. I
fasted in the month of Ramadan. Whatever Allah ordered us to do, I did. Whatever
he ordered us not to do, I did not." He began to cry and think about how
much he loved Allah. He knew that whatever he had done in life would be less
than what Allah deserved and his only Protector was Allah.
He was sweating like never before and was shaking all
over. His eyes were fixed on the scale, waiting for the final decision. At last,
the decision was made. The two angels with sheets of paper in their hands,
turned to the crowd. His legs felt like they were going to collapse. He closed
his eyes as they began to read the names of those people who were to enter
Jahannam. His name was read first. He fell on his knees and yelled that
this couldn't be, "How could I go to Jahannam? I served others all my life,
I spread the word of Allah to others".
His eyes had become blurry and he was shaking with
sweat. The two angels took him by the arms. As his feet dragged, they went
through the crowd and advanced toward the blazing flames of Jahannam. He was
yelling and wondered if there was any person who was going to help him. He was
yelling of all the good deeds he had done, how he had helped his father, his
fasts, prayers, the Qur'an that he read, he was asking if none of them would
help him. The Jahannam angels continued to drag him.
They had gotten closer to the Hellfire. He looked back
and these were his last pleas. Had not Rasulullah [saw, Peace Be Upon Him] said,
"How clean would a person be who bathes in a river five times a day, so
too does the Salah performed five times cleanse someone of their sins"?
He began yelling, "My prayers? My prayers? My prayers."
The two angels did not stop, and they came to the edge
of the abyss of Jahannam. The flames of the fire were burning his face. He
looked back one last time, but his eyes were dry of hope and he had nothing left
in him. One of the angels pushed him in. He found himself in the air and falling
towards the flames.
He had just fallen five or six feet when a hand grabbed
him by the arm and pulled him back. He lifted his head and saw an old man with a
long white beard. He wiped some dust off himself and asked him, "Who are
you?" The old man replied, "I am your prayers".
"Why are you so late! I was almost in the Fire! You
rescued me at the last minute before I fell in".
The old man smiled and shook his head, "You always
performed me at the last minute, did you forget?"
At that instant, he blinked and lifted his head from
Sajdah. He was in a sweat. He listened to the voices coming from outside. He
heard the Aadhan for Salat-ul Isha. He got up quickly and went to perform
Wudhu.
Who
delay their Salāt (prayer) from their stated fixed times"
[Qur'an 107:4-5]
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