Answered by our Shaykh, the Allamah, the Trustworthy Advisor, Abu Abdirrahman Yahya bin Ali Al-Hajuri – may Allah preserve him – on the 25th, Shawwal, 1441H
Question:
Does the seeing of the Lord differ amongst the believers on the Day of Judgement and in Jennah?
Answer:
The Prophet ﷺ said:
إِنَّكُمْ سَتَرَوْنَ رَبَّكُمْ، كَمَا تَرَوْنَ هَذَا القَمَرَ، لاَ تُضَامُّونَ فِي رُؤْيَتِهِ
“Verily you will see your Lord as you see this moon, you will not have difficulty in seeing Him.”
This hadith points towards that the people of the place of standing on the Day of Judgement who are believers will see their Lord on the platform of the Day of Judgement without problem, and without over crowding, they will have no difficulty, as the hadith of Jarīr points towards and other than it.
As for the entering of the believers into Jennah, then verily their seeing their Lord differs according to their levels, Allāh said:
“وَلِكُلٍّ دَرَجَاتٌ مِمَّا عَمِلُوا وَمَا رَبُّكَ بِغَافِلٍ عَمَّا يَعْمَلُونَ”
“For all there will be degrees (or ranks) according to what they did. And your Lord is not unaware of what they do.” [ Al-An’ām, 132]
And Allāh said:
“هُمْ دَرَجَاتٌ عِندَ اللَّهِ وَاللَّهُ بَصِيرٌ بِمَا يَعْمَلُونَ”
“They are in varying grades with Allāh, and Allāh is All-Seer of what they do.” [Aāl-‘Imrān, 163]
And in the two Sahīhs on the authority of Saīd Al-Khudrī may Allāh be pleased with him, that the Prophet ﷺ said:
إِنَّ أَهْلَ الجَنَّةِ يَتَرَاءَوْنَ أَهْلَ الغُرَفِ مِنْ فَوْقِهِمْ، كَمَا يَتَرَاءَوْنَ الكَوْكَبَ الدُّرِّيَّ الغَابِرَ فِي الأُفُقِ، مِنَ المَشْرِقِ أَوِ المَغْرِبِ، لِتَفَاضُلِ مَا بَيْنَهُمْ
“Verily the people of Jennah will be able to see the people of rooms from above them, as you all see the shining stars in the horizon from the east or the west, due to the difference in levels amongst them.”
And from what they differ in from the pleasures is looking at the face of their Lord, so whoever status is magnified, his pleasure of looking at his Lord magnify, and indeed it has come from the hadith of Ibn ‘Umar may Allāh be pleased with him with Tirmidhī and Ahmed in his Musnad and other than them:
إِنَّ أَدْنَى أَهْلِ الْجَنَّةِ مَنْزِلَةً الَّذِي يَنْظُرُ إِلَى جِنَانِهِ وَنَعِيمِهِ وَخَدَمِهِ وَسُرُرِهِ مِنْ مَسِيرَةِ أَلْفِ سَنَةٍ، وَإِنَّ أَكْرَمَهُمْ عَلَى اللهِ، مَنْ يَنْظُرُ إِلَى وَجْهِهِ غُدْوَةً وَعَشِيَّة
“The least of people in the Jennah is one who looks at his gardens and his blessings and his servants and his beds from a period of 1000 years, and the most honored by Allāh is the one who look at face in the morning and night.”
But this hadith is very weak, in its chain is Thawbar bin Al-Junaid: “Matrūk”, and An-Nasā’ē said: “He is not thiqqah.” And Thawrī said: “Thawbar was from the pillars of lies.”, and Yūnus ibn Abī Ishāq said: “He was a Rāfidhī.”
The likes of this hadith is not to be relied upon in that the most honored is the one who will look at His face morning and evening, due to its severe weakness, and it suffices to say: Verily the one whose status is high his blessings are more, and from the most magnificent of blessings is looking at the face of Allāh, so he will be more in that blessing of his than other than him from those who are lesser than him. And Allāh is the granter of success.”
Translated by: Abu ‘Abdillah ‘Omar bin Yahya Al-‘Akawi
Click on the link to view the Arabic: https://t.me/sh_yahia_duroos/7048