All will have to appear before a Court where no one will dare plead another one’s cases. The exhaustion of our youth must therefore be purposive, when Allah has engaged His entire creation, to name a few, the sun and the moon and millions of stars of unimaginable sizes and employed an infinite number of angels to our service and created corns and fruits, animals and fishes and what not in this earth to nourish our bodies and for our comforts and living!

While on the earth what good deeds the children of Adam did or what evil deeds they committed are all perfectly recorded. In the Judgment-Field, angels will spread wide open their Deed of Records. Witnesses will also be raised from every nation and the earth will relate her chronicles, that is, the earth will tell whatever wrong man did on her face by name and time. Even man will stand witness against himself as to how he used to earn.

Above all, Allah Himself will testify concerning that which He revealed. If man is honest and righteous, they will testify in his favour. The earth will testify in favour of the righteous that he prayed and offered Salah on earth for the pleasure of Allah, fasted, performed Hajj and Umrah. Hearing such a happy testimony, the righteous will be elated. The successful will join those fortunate ones regarding whom Allah, the Mighty, has already spoken thus:” And the Hereafter with your Lord is for the righteous.” (Az-Zukhruf: 35)

On the other hand, the earth will testify against the unbelievers and those who sinned and disobeyed and committed adultery and drank, in a word, passed life in unlawful activities. When the sinners will deny to trusting these testimonies, Allah will say:” This day we seal up mouths, and hands speak out and feet bear witness as to what they used to earn.” (Yasin: 65). That is to say, hands will speak out and named the wrong deeds they committed. The feet will likewise testify the illegal gatherings or wrong places to which they attended.

Allah, the Exalted, says at another place: ”And (make mention of) the day when the enemies of Allah are gathered unto the Fire, they are driven on till, when they reach it , their ears and their eyes and their skins testify against them as to what they used to do.” (Fussilat: 20)

The next questions asked would be about one’s wealth as how he did earn and spend it, lawfully or unlawfully. If someone has earned riches unlawfully but he spent it in

sadaqah a part or even the whole of it on his own lawful needs that will not be accepted because “ Hell is more fitting for him whose flesh is nourished by what is unlawful.” (Tirmidhi). Even when the wealth earned lawfully is spent in unlawful places or extravagantly, the defaulter will have to answer before the Court of Allah, because He gave him wealth to spend in the rightful places or for lawful purposes.

Once Sa’ad bin Abi Waqqas (ra), the Conqueror of Persia and one of the maternal uncles of Prophet Muhammad (saw), thought that he was superior to those who were below him in rank. On that Prophet Muhammad (saw) said:” You gain no victory or livelihood except through (the blessings and invocations of) the poor amongst you.” (Bukhari)

Ibn Abbas (ra) reported that once when he recited the verses of the Glorious Qur’an,”O you people! Eat of what is on earth, lawful and good” (Al-Baqarah: 168) in the presence of Prophet Muhammad (saw), Sa’ad bin Abi waqqas (ra) got up and said:” O Messenger of Allah! Ask Allah to make me one of whose supplication is heard.” At this, Prophet Muhammad (saw) said:” O Sa’ad, consume lawful things and your supplication will be heard, and by Him in Whose hands is the soul of Muhammad, when a man puts into his stomach a morsel of what is forbidden his prayers are not accepted for forty days, and a servant of Allah whose body is nourished by usury by what is forbidden becomes more deserving of the Hell-Fire.”(Fiqhus-sunnah)

The final question will be as to how far did one practise the knowledge that Allah had endued him with. Ignorance about a crime is no excuse and ignorance of law is not a valid excuse in any Court of Law anywhere in the world. On the other hand, Prophet Muhammad (saw) said:” He who treads the path in search of knowledge, Allah will make that path easy, leading to Paradise for him.” (Abu Dawud). Therefore, one should keep giving good counsel to one another honestly in the light of the knowledge he possessed without concealing; otherwise bridles of fire will be thrust into his mouth on the Day of Resurrection. Thus a person who honestly works according to his own knowledge is really fortunate.

(Ends)

By Mohammad H. R. Talukdar