But he sees what is being said

In other words, he wants to temper and constrain Western secularism with his own brand of Christian morality; he wants the leaders of other Christian fellowships to join him; and he wants to put the world on notice that, with more than fifteen million Muslims living in Western Europe, the only analogous mission in the West today is an Islamist one.

For one thing, Anglicans and Protestants and Orthodox Christians are hardly eager to take their moral marching orders from a man who holds Catholicism to be the one true articulation of Christian faith—and who is demonstrably more at home discussing moral imperatives with secular intellectuals like Habermas than he is with any of them.

It is a matter of theological status. This has been a papal imperative since the Eastern Church broke with Rome, in the eleventh century, and it is especially important now, with Orthodox Christians being the first line of defense against radical Islam.

Turkey not only was a friend to the West—the prototype of George W. That welcome has pretty much been withdrawn by the European Union. The Ottoman massacre of more than a million Armenian Christians, early in the last century, is for them a living nightmare. There are no laws limiting Christian practice, but the particularly volatile new mixture of Islamic internationalism and Turkish nationalism could make the country a very uncomfortable place for Christians practicing their faith outside the big, cosmopolitan cities, like Istanbul and Izmir.

We have had enormous difficulties with this trip, but we are going for this reason. He had twenty minutes. As it happened, the trip went peacefully, and by all accounts it was successful. Benedict made his spiritually fraternal gestures.

He held hands and prayed—beside but not together—with the Grand Mufti of Istanbul in the Blue Mosque. No one seemed offended by his obvious unease, perhaps because most Turks, Muslim and Christian, were just as anxious. He wants to use his papacy to restore to Christian minorities in Muslim countries the same freedom of religion that most Muslims enjoy in the West.

He clearly thinks that the Judeo-Christian West has been self-destructively shortsighted in its concessions to the Islamic diaspora, when few, if any, concessions are made to Christians and Jews in most of the Middle East. In countries under Islamic law, conversion to Christianity or any other religion is an apostatic crime. In Saudi Arabia, churches are forbidden. In the marginally more open sheikhdoms, Christian practice is strictly controlled.

He is the only one adding fuel to the fire of hatred and division among the religions. And it precludes any attempt at theological dialogue with Islam. It is worth remembering that Manuel II Paleologus, the Byzantine emperor who got the Pope into so much trouble in Regensburg, was having a theological dialogue with his Muslim guest—or thought he was. That dialogue went on for the better part of a long winter, in the middle of a war, and the Emperor enjoyed it enough to fill two volumes trying to preserve it.

At the time, Orthodox Christians like Paleologus had almost as much to fear from Catholic armies as from Muslim ones; and his Persian friend had certainly as much to fear from Ottomans as from Christians. So I asked myself what it was. Rauf was one of the few Muslim leaders who appealed for calm and tolerance after the Regensburg speech. Some moderate Muslims who publicly addressed the Pope were more concerned with refuting his argument than with condemning the violence it inspired.

Most mentioned that they missed the ecumenical embrace of John Paul II. In the course of the next weeks, the Vatican Web site doctored a few phrases of the Regensburg speech. He met with the Muslim ambassadors to the Holy See, hoping to appease the rulers they represented.

Paul was born in Tarsus, in what is now Turkey. He was a Roman citizen—a Jew with an education—and he knew Greek. People have been arguing about the meaning of the Word for nearly two thousand years—it is one of the beautiful mysteries of Christianity. Christianity, like any faith, changes with the language that describes it. His father was an Austrian Jewish convert to Islam—a journalist who wrote one of the great English translations of the Koran.

Asad himself grew up in India, studied in England, teaches in New York, and is married to an Englishwoman. But they had it in Spain once, where there was as much of a mix of different religious cultures as human beings seem to be capable of. To say no to that is simply not very interesting intellectually. He thinks they are right to worry. But he also says that there is no way, really, to monitor, let alone separate, theological and cultural exchange. At the Gregorian, the idea has been to train people to work in interreligious dialogue.

We teach the theory and fundamentals of the anthropology and sociology of religions: how each religion—Islam, say—sees itself. But interreligious dialogue, theological dialogue—we have it every day.

But the very important point for me is that the dialogues we have take place through local churches and mosques all over the world. The council exists to encourage these dialogues, and, whatever its criteria, they were never about universals. I asked : Who is he? He Gabriel replied : It is Abraham.

Ibn Shihab said: Ibn Hazm told me that Ibn 'Abbas and Abd Habba al-Ansari used to say that the Messenger of Allah may peace be upon him said : Thereafter he ascended with me till I was taken to such a height where I heard the scraping of the pens. Ibn Hazm and Anas told that the Messenger of Allah may peace be upon him said : Allah then made fifty prayers obligatory for my Ummah and I returned with that and passed by Moses.

Moses, peace be upon him said : What has thy Lord enjoined on thy people? I said : Fifty prayers have been made obligatory on them.

Moses peace be upon him said : Return to thy Lord, for thy Ummah would not be able to bear this burden. Then I came back to my Lord and He remitted a portion out of thut.

I then again went to Moses peace be upon him and informed him about it He said : Return to thy Lord, for thy Ummah shall not be able to bear this burden. I then went back to my Lord and He said : They are five and at the same time fifty, and what has been said will not be changed. I then returned to Moses and he said: Go back to thy Lord. Gabriel then travelled with me till we came to the farthest lote-tree Many a colour had covered it which I do not know.

Then I was admitted to Paradise and saw in it domes of pearls, and its soil of musk. Malik reported on the authority of Malik b. Sa sa', perhaps a person of his tribe, that the Prophet of Allah may peace be upon him said: I was near the House i. Ka'bah in a state between sleep and wakefulness when I heard someone say : He is the third among the two persons.

Then he came to me and took me with him. Then a golden basin containing the water of Zamzam was brought to me and my heart was opened up to such and such part. Qatada said: I asked him who was with me i e. He replied: It means that it was opened up to the lower part of his abdomen Then the hadith continues : My heart was extracted and it was washed with the water of Zamzam and then it was restored in its original position, after which it was filled with faith and wisdom.

I was then brought a white beast which is called al-Buraq, bigger than a donkey and smaller than a mule. Its stride was as long as the eye could reach.

I was mounted on it, and then we went forth till we reached the lowest heaven. Gabriel asked for the gate to be opened, and it was said: Who is he? He replied: Muhammad may peace be upon him. He Gabriel said: Yes. He the Prophet said : Then the gate was opened for us and it was said : Welcome unto him! His is a blessed arrival. Then we came to Adam peace be upon him. And he the narrator narrated the whole account of the hadith.

The Holy Prophet observed that he met Jesus in the second heaven, Yahya peace be on both of them in the third heaven, Yusuf in the third, Idris in the fourth, Harun in the fifth peace and blessings of Allah be upon them.

Then we travelled on till we reached the sixth heaven and came to Moses peace be upon him and I greeted him and he said: Welcome unto righteous brother and righteous prophet. And when I passed by him he wept, and a voice was heard saying: What makes thee weep? He said: My Lord, he is a young man whom Thou hast sent after me as a prophet and his followers will enter Paradise in greater numbers than my followers. Then we travelled on till we reached the seventh heaven and I came to Ibrahim.

He the narrator narrat- ed in this hadith that the Prophet of Allah may peace be upon him told that he saw four rivers which flowed from the root of the lote-tree of the farthest limits : two manifest rivers and two hidden rivers. I said : ' Gabriel! He replied :The two hidden rivers are the rivers of Paradise, and as regards the two manifest ones, they are the Nile and the Euphrates.

Then the Bait-ul-Ma'mur was raised up to me. I said : O Gabriel! He replied: It is the Bait-ul-Ma'mur. Seventy thousand angels enter into it daily and, after they come out, they never return again. Two vessels were then brought to me. The first one contained wine and the second one contained milk, and both of them were placed before me. I chose milk. It was said: You did right. Allah will guide rightly through you your Ummah on the natural course. Then fifty prayers daily were made obligatory for me.

And then he narrated the rest of the hadith to the end. It is reported on the authority of Malik b. Sa'sa' that the Messenger of Allah may peace be upon him narrated the hadith mentioned above and added to it : I was brought a gold basin full of wisdom and faith, and then the part of the body right from the upper end of the chest to the lower part of the abdomen was opened and it was washed with the water of Zamzam and then flled with wisdom and faith.

Qatada reported that he heard Abu al-'Aliya saying that the cousin of your Prophet may peace be upon him , i. Ibn Abbas, told him: The Messenger of Allah may peace be upon him , while narrating his night journey observed : Musa peace be upon him was a man of high stature as if he was of the people of the Shanu'a tribe , and Jesus was a well-built person having curly hair.

He also mentioned Malik, the guardian of Hell, and Dajjal. Abu al-'Aliya reported : Ibn Abbas, the son of your Prophet's uncle, told us that the Messenger of Allah may peace be upon him had observed : On the night of my night journey I passed by Moses b.

He the narrator observed : Then do not doubt his i. Qatada elucidated it thus: Verily the Apostle of Allah may peace be upon him , met Moses peace be upon him. Abu al-'Aliya narrated it on the authority of Ibn 'Abbas that the Messenger of Allah may peace be upon him passed through the valley of Azraq, and he asked: Which valley is this?

They said: This is the valley of Azraq, and he observed: I perceive as if I am seeing Moses peace be upon him coming down from the mountain track, and he is calling upon Allah loudly saying: Here I am! Then he came to the mountain track of Harsha. He the Holy Prophet said : Which is this mountain track? They said : It is the mountain track of Harsha. He observed I feel as If I am seeing Yunus Jonah-peace be upon him son of Matta on a well- built red dromedary, with a cloak of wool around him and the rein of his dromedary is made of the fibres of date-palm, and he is calling upon Allah saying: Here I am!

Ibn Hanbal said in the hadith narrated by him: Hushaim said that the meaning of khulba was fibre of date-palm. Abu al-'Aliya narrated it on the authority of Ibn 'Abbas that he said: We travelled with the Messenger of Allah may peace be upon him between Mecca and Medina and we passed by a valley. He the Holy Prophet asked: Which valley is this? They said: This is the valley of Azraq Upon this he the Holy Prophet remarked: I feel as if I am seeing Moses peace be upon him , and then he described something about his complexion and hair, which Diwud the narrator could not remember.

He Moses, as described by the Holy Prophet was keeping his fingers in his ears and was responding loudly to Allah saying: I am as Thy service, my Lord while passing through that valley. We then travelled further till we came to the mountain trail. He the Holy Prophet said: Which mountain trail is this? They said: It is the Harsha or Lift. He the Holy Prophet said: I perceive as if I am seeing Yunus on a red camel, with a cloak of wool around him.

The halter of his camel was that of the fibre of date-palm, and he was passing through the valley saying: I am at Thy service! It is narrated on the authority of Mujahid that he said: We were with Ibn 'Abbas and the people talked about al-Dajjal.

One of them remarked. There is written between his eyes the word Kafir infidel. It is narrated on the authority of Jabir that the Messenger of Allah may peace be upon him said: There appeared before me the apostles, and Moses was among men as if he was one of the people of Shanu'a, and I saw Jesus son of Mary peace be upon him and I saw nearest in resemblance with him was 'Urwa b.

Mas'ud, and I saw Ibrahim blessings of Allah be upon him and I see your companions much in resemblance with him, i. It is narrated on the authority of Abu Huraira that the Apostle of Allah may peace be upon him said: When I was taken for the night journey I met Moses peace be upon him. The Apostle of Allah may peace be upon him gave his description thus: He was a man, I suppose-and he the narrator was somewhat doubtful that the Holy Prophet observed : Moses was a man erect in stature with straight hair on his head as it he was one of the men of the Shanu'a; and I met Jesus and the Apostle of Allah may peace be upon him described him as one having a medium stature and a red complexion as if he had just come out of the bath He observed: I saw Ibrahim peace be upon him and amongst his children I have the greatest resemblance with him.

He said: There were brought to me two vessels. In one of them was milk and in the other one there was wine. And it was said to me: Select any one you like. So I selected the vessel containing milk and drank it.

He the angel said: You have been guided on al-fitra or you have attained al-fitra. Had you selected wine, your Ummah would have been misled. Umar that the Messenger of Allah may peace be upon him said: I found myself one night near the Ka'bah, and I saw a man with wheat complexion amongst the fair-complexioned men that you ever saw. He had a lock of hair the most beautiful of the locks that you ever saw. He had combed it.

Water was trickling out of them. He was leaning on two men, or on the shoulders of two men, and he was circumscribing the Ka'bah.

I asked, What is he? It was said: He is al-Masih son of Mary. Then I saw another person, stout and having too much curly hair , and blind in his right eye as if it was a full swollen grape. I asked Who is he? It was said:He is al-Masih al-Dajjal. It is narrated on the authority of 'Abdulldh b. Umar that one day the Messenger of Allah may peace be upon him mentioned in the presence of people about al-Masih al-Dajjal. He said: Verily Allah hallowed be He and High is not blind of one eye.

Behold, but the Masih al-Dajjal is blind of right eye as if his eye is like a swollen grape, and the Messenger of Allah may peace be upon him said: I was shown in a dream in the night that near the Ka'bah there was a man fair-complexioned, fine amongst the white-complexioned men that you ever saw, his locks of hair were falling on his shoulders.

He was a man whose hair were neither too curly nor too straight, and water trickled down from his head. He was placing his bands on the shoulders of two persons and amidst them was making a circuit around the Ka'bah. I said: Who is he? They replied: Al-Masih son of Mary. And I saw behind him a man with intensely curly hair, blind of right eye.

Amongst the persons I have ever seen Ibn Qatan has the greatest resemblance with him. He was making a circuit around the Ka'bah by placing both his hands on the shoulders of two persons. They said; It is al-Masih al-Dajjal. It is narrated on the authority of Ibn 'Umar that the Messenger of Allah may peace be upon him said: I saw near the Ka'bah a man of fair complexion with straight hair, placing his hands on two persons.

Water was flowing from his head or it was trickling from his head. I asked: Who is he? The narrator says: I do not remember which word it was. He the Holy Prophet said: And I saw behind him a man with red complexion and thick curly hair, blind in the right eye. I saw in him the greatest resemblance with Ibn Qitan I asked: Who is he?

They replied: It is al-Masih al-Dajjal. Khattab that he heard from the Messenger of Allah may peace he upon him say: I was sleeping when I saw myself making circuit around the Ka'bah, and I saw there a man of fair complexion with straight hair between two men. Water was flowing from his head or water was falling from his head. They answered: He is the son of Mary. Then I moved forward and cast a glance and there was a bulky man of red complexion with thick locks of hair on his head, blind of one eye as it his eye was a swollen grape.

They said : He is Dajjal. He had close resemblance with Ibn Qatan amongst men. It is narrated on the authority of Abu Huraira that the Messenger of Allah may peace be upon him said : I found myself in Hijr and the Quraish were asking me about my might journey. I was asked about things pertaining to Bait-ul-Maqdis which I could not preserve in my mind. I was very much vexed, so vexed as I had never been before.

Then Allah raised it Bait-ul-Maqdis before my eyes. I looked towards it, and I gave them the information about whatever they questioned me I also saw myself among the group of apostles. I saw Moses saying prayer and found him to be a well-built man as if he was a man of the tribe of Shanu'a.

I saw Jesus son of Mary peace be upon him offering prayer, of all of men he had the closest resemblance with 'Urwa b. Masu'd al-Thaqafi. I saw Ibrahim peace be upon him offering prayer; he had the closest resemblance with your companion the Prophet himself amongst people. When the time of prayer came I led them. When I completed the prayer, someone said: Here is Malik, the keeper of the Hell; pay him salutations.

I turned to him, but he preceded me in salutation. Umar that when the Messenger of Allah may peace be upon him was taken for the Night journey, he was taken to Sidrat-ul-Muntaha, which is situated on the sixth heaven, where terminates everything that ascends from the earth and is held there, and where terminates every- thing that descends from above it and is held there.

It is with reference to this that Allah said: "When that which covers covered the lote-tree" al-Qur'an, Iiii. He the narrator said: It was gold moths. He the narrator further said: The Messenger of Allah may peace be upon him was given three things : he was given five prayers, be was given the concluding verses of Sura al-Baqara, and remission of serious Sins for those among his Ummah who associate not anything with Allah.

Al-Shaibini reported to us: I asked Zirr b. Hubaish about the words of Allah the Mighty and Great : "So he was at a distance of two bows or nearer" al-Qur'an, Iiii 8. He said: Ibn Mas'ud informed me that, verily, the Apostle of Allah may peace be upon him saw Gabriel and he had six hundred wings. Al-Shaibani narrated on the authority of Zirr who narrated it on this authority of Abdullah that the words of Allah : "The heart belied not what he saw" al Qur'an, Iiii.

Zirr b. Hubaish narrated it on the authority of 'Abdullah that the words of Allah : "Certainly he saw of the greatest signs of Allah" al-Qur'an, liii. It is narrated on the authority of Abu Huraira that the words of Allah : "And certainly he saw him in another descent" al-Qur'an, Iiii.

It is narrated on the authority of Ibn Abbas that the words: "The heart belied not what he saw" al-Qur'an, Iiii. It is narrated on the authority of Masruq that he said: I was resting at the house of 'A'isha that she said: O Abu 'A'isha kunya of Masruq , there are three things, and he who affirmed even one of them fabricated the greatest lie against Allah.

I asked that they were. She said: He who presumed that Muhammad may peace be upon him saw his Lord with his ocular vision fabricated the greatest lie against Allah. I was reclining but then sat up and said: Mother of the Faithful, wait a bit and do not be in a haste.

Has not Allah Mighty and Majestic said: "And truly he saw him on the clear horizon" al-Qur'an, lxxxi. She said: I am the first of this Ummah who asked the Messenger of Allah may peace be upon him about it, and he said: Verily he is Gabriel. I have never seen him in his original form in which he was created except on those two occasions to which these verses refer ; I saw him descending from the heaven and filling the space from the sky to the earth with the greatness of his bodily structure.

She said: Have you not heard Allah saying. She, i. Verily He is Exalted. Wise" al. Qur'an, xii. Allah says: "O Messenger! She said: He who presumes that he would inform about what was going to happen tomorrow fabricates the greatest lie against Allah. And Allah says "Say thou Muhammad : None in the heavens and the earth knoweth the unseen save Allah" al-Qur'an, xxvii Dawud reported on the same authorities the hadith as narrated above by Ibn 'Uliyya and added: She 'A'isha said: If Muhammad were to conceal anything which was sent to him, he would have certainly concealed this verse: "And when thou saidst to him on whom Allah had conferred favour and thou too had conferred favour: Keep thy wife to thyself and fear Allah, and thou wast concealing in thy heart that which Allah was going to disclose, and thou wast fearing men while Allah has a better right that thou shouldst fear Him.

Masruq reported: I asked 'A'isha if Muhammad may peace be upon him had seen his Lord. She replied: Hallowed be Allah, my hair stood on end when you said this, and he Masruq narrated the hadith as narrated above.

The hadith reported by Diwud is more complete and longer. Masruq reported: I said to 'A'isha: What about the words of Allah: "Then he drew nigh and came down, so he was at a distance of two bows or closer still: so He revealed to His servant what He revealed" al-Qur'an, liii.

She said: It implies Gabriel. He used to come to him the Holy Prophet in the shape of men; but he came at this time in his true form and blocked up the horizon of the sky. He said: He is a Light;. Abdullah b. He Abu Dharr said: What is that thing that you wanted to inquire of him? He said: I wanted to ask him whether he had seen his Lord. Abu Dharr said: I, in fact, inquired of him, and he replied: I saw Light. Abu Musa reported: The Messenger ofallah may peace be upon him was standing amongst us and he told us five things.

He lowers the scale and lifts it. The deeds in the night are taken up to Him before the deeds of the day. His veil is the light. In the hadith narrated by Abu Bakr instead of the word "light" it is fire. If he withdraws it the veil , the splendour of His countenance would consume His creation so far as His sight reaches.

A'mash has narrated this hadith on the same authority and said: The Messenger of Allah may peace be upon him was standing amongst us and he told us four things. He then narrated the hadith like the one reported by Abu Mua'wiya, but did not mention the words "His creation" and said: His veil is the light.

Abu Musa reported: The Messenger of Allah znay peace be upon him was standing amongst us and he said four things : Verily Allah dock not sleep and it does not befit Him to sleep. He raises the scale and lowers it. The deeds of the day are presented to Him in the night and the deeds of the night in the day.

Qais transmitted on the authority of his father Abu Musa Ash'ari that the Apostle may peace be upon him said: There would be two gardens in Paradise the vessels and contents of which would be of silver, and two gardens whose vessels and contents would be of gold. The only thing intervening to hinder the people from looking at their Lord will be the mantle of Grandeur over His face in the Garden of Eden. Suhaib reported the Apostle may peace be upon him saying: When those deserving of Paradise would enter Paradise, the Blessed and the Exalted would ask: Do you wish Me to give you anything more?

They would say: Hast Thou not brightened our faces? Hast Thou not made us enter Paradise and saved us from Fire? He the narrator said: He God would lift the veil, and of things given to them nothing would he dearer to them than the sight of their Lord, the Mighty and the Glorious.

Hammad b. Salama narrated it on the same authority and added: He then recited the verse: "Those who do good will have the best reward and even more" x. The Messenger of Allah may peace be upon him said: Do you feel any trouble in seeing the moon on the night when it is full? They said: Messenger of Allah, no. He the Messenger further said: Do you feel any trouble in seeing the sun, when there is no cloud over it?

They said: Messenger of Allah. He the Holy Prophet said: Verily you would see Him like this as you see the sun and the moon. God will gather people on the Day of Resurrection and say: Let every people follow what they worshipped. Those who worshipped the sun would follow the sun, and those who worshipped the moon would follow the moon, and those who worshipped the devils would follow the devils. This Ummah of Islam alone would be left behind and there would be hypocrites too amongst it.

Allah would then come to them in a form other than His own Form, recognisable to them, and would say: I am your Lord. They would say: We take refuge with Allah from thee.

We will stay here till our Lord comes to us. Subsequently Allah would come to them in His own Form, recognisable to them, and say: I am your Lord. They would say: Thou art our Lord. And they would follow Him, and a bridge would be set over the Hell; and I the Holy Prophet and my Ummah would be the first to pass over it; and none but the messengers would speak on that day, and the prayer of the messengers on that day would be: O Allah! They replied: Yea, Messenger of Allah. He said: Verily those hooks would be like the thorns of Sa'dan, but no one knows their size except Allah.

These would seize people for their misdeeds. Some of them would escape for their good deeds, and some would be rewarded for their deeds till they get salvation. When Allah would finish judging His bondsmen and because of His mercy decide to take out of Hell such people as He pleases.

He would command the angels to bring out those who had not associated anything with Allah; to whom Allah decided to show mercy.

They the angels would recognise them in the Fire by the marks of prostration, for Hell-fire will devour everything limb of the sons of Adam except the marks of prostra- tion. Allah has forbidden the fire to consume the marks of prostration. They will be taken out of the Fire having been burnt, and the water of life would be poured over them, and they will sprout as seed does In the silt carried by flood. Then Allah would finish judging amongst His bondsmen; but a man who will be the last to enter Paradise will remain facing Hell and will say: O my Lord I turn my face away from Hell, for its air has poisoned me ard its blaze has burnt me.

He will then call to Allah as long as Allah would wish that he should call to Him. He would say: I would not ask You more than this, and he would give his Lord covenants and agreements as Allah wished, and so He would turn his face away from the Fire When he turns towards the Paradise and sees it, he will remain silent as long as Allah wishes him to remain so.

He will then say: O my Lord I bring me forward to the gate of the Paradise. Allah would say to him: Did you not give covenants and agreements that you would not ask for anything besides what I had given you. Woe to thee! O son of Adam, how treacherous you are! He would say: O my Lord! He will reply: No, by Thy greatness, and he will give His Lord promises and covenants as Allah had wished He would then bring him to the gate of the Paradise, and when he would stand at the gate of the Paradise, it would lay open before him.

He would remain quiet as long as Allah would desire him to remain silent. He would then say: O my Lord, admit me to Paradise. Blessed and Exalted, would say: Did you not give covenants and agreements that you would not ask for anything more than what I had granted you? Woe to you! And he would say: O my Lord, I do not wish to be the most miserable of Thy creatures.

He would continue calling upon Allah till Allah. Blessed and Exalted. When Allah would laugh at him. He would say: Enter the Paradise. When he would enter, Allah would say: State your wish.

He would express his wishes till Allah would remind him the desire of such and such things. When his desires would be exhausted Allah would say: That is for thee and, besides it, the like of it also. Yazid said: Abu Sa'id al-Khudri was with Abu Huraira and be did not reject anything from the hadith narrated by him, but when Abu Huraira narrated: "Allah said to that man; ind its like along with it," Abu Sa'id said: "Ten like it along with it," O Abu Huraira.

Abu Huraira said: I do not remember except the words: "That is for you and a similar one along with it. The rest of the hadith was narrated according to the narration of Ibrahim b.

Hammam b. Munabbih said: This is what Abu Huraira transmitted to us from the Messenger of Allah may peace be upon him , and he narrated many of them;- one of them was: The Messenger of Allah may peace be upon him said: The lowest in rank among you in Paradise would be asked: Desire whatever you like. And he would express his desire and again and again express a desire.

He would say: Yes. Then He Allah would say: For thee is granted what thou desirest, and the like of it along with it. Abu Sa'id al-Khudri reported: Some people during the lifetime of the Messenger of Allah may peace be upon him said: Messenger of Allah!

The Messenger of Allah may peace be upon him said: Yes, and added: Do you feel any trouble in seeing the sun at noon with no cloud over it, and do you feel trouble in seeing the moon open in the full moonlit night with no cloud over it? They said: No, Messenger of Allah! He the Holy Prophet said: You will not feel any trouble in seeing Allah on the Day of Resurrection any more than you do in seeing any one of them. When the Day of Resurrection comes a Mu'adhdhin a proclaimer would proclaim: Let every people follow what they used to worship.

Then all who worshipped idols and stones besides Allah would fall into the Fire, till only the righteous and the vicious and some of the people of the Book who worshipped Allah are left. Then the Jews would be summoned, and it would be said to them: What did you worship? They will say: We worshipped 'Uzair, son of Allah. It would be said to them: You tell a lie; Allah had never had a spouse or a son.

What do you want now? They would be directed to a certain direction and asked: Why don't you go there to drink water? Then they would be pushed towards the Fire and they would find to their great dismay that it was but a mirage and the raging flames of fire would be consuming one another, and they would fall into the Fire.

Then the Christians would be summoned and it would be said to them: What did you worship? They would say: We worshipped Jesus, son of Allah. It would be said to them: You tell a lie; Allah did not take for Himself either a spouse or a son.

Then it would be said to them: What do you w4nt? They would say: Thirsty we are, O our Lord! Quench our thirst. They would be directed to a certain direction and asked: Why don't you go there to get water? But they would be pushed and gathered together towards the Hell, which was like a mirage to them, and the flames would consume one another.

They would fall Into the Fire, till no one is left except he who worshipped Allah, be he pious or sinful. The Lord of the Universe, Glorified and Exalted, would come to them in a form recognisable to them and say; What are you looking for? Every people follow that which they worshipped. They would say: Our Lord, we kept ourselves separate from the people in the world, though we felt great need of them; we, however, did not associate ourselves with them.

He would say: I am your Lord. They would say: We take refuge with Allah from thee and do not associate anything with Allah. They would repeat it twice or thrice, till some of them would be about to return. It would be said: Is there any sign between you and Him by which you will recognise Him? They would say: Yes. Those who used to prostrate themselves before God of their own accord would be permitted by God to prostrate themselves.

But there would remain none who used to prostrate out of fear of people and ostentation but Allah would make his back as one piece, and whenever he would attempt to prostrate he would fall on his back. Then they would raise their heads and He would assume the Form in which they had seen Him the first time and would say: I am your Lord.

Then the bridge would be set up over the Hell and intercession would be allowed and they will say: O God, keep safe, keep safe. It was asked: Messenger of Allah, what is this bridge? He said: The void in which one Is likely to slip. There would be hooks, tongs, spits like the thorn that is found in Najd and is known as Sa'dan. The believers would then pass over within the twinkling of an eye, like lightning, like wind, like a bird, like the finest horses and camels.

Some will escape and be safe, some will be lacerated and let go, and some will be pushed into the fire of Hell till the believers will find rescue from the Fire. By One in Whose hand is my life, there will be none among you more eager to claim a right than the believers on the Day of Resurrection for saying their brethren in the Fire who would say: O our Lord, they were fasting along with us, and praying and performing pilgrimage. It will be said to them: Take out those whom you recognise.

Then their persons would be forbidden to the Fire; and they would take out a large number of people who had been overtaken by Fire up to the middle of the shank or up to the knees. They would then say: O our Lord I not one of those about whom Thou didst give us command remains in it.

He will then say: Go back and bring out those in whose hearts you find good of the weight of a dinar Then they will take out a large number of people. Then they would say: O our Lord! He will then say: Go back and bring out those in whose hearts you find as much as half a dinar of good. Then they will take out a large number of people, and would say: O our Lord! Then He would say: Go back and in whose heart you find good to the weight of a particle bring him out.

They would bring out a large number of people, and would then say: O our Lord, now we have not left anyone in it Hell having any good in him. Abu Sa'id Khudri said: If you don't testify me in this hadith, then recite if you like: "Surely Allah wrongs not the weight of an atom; and if it is a good deed. He multiplies it and gives from Himself a great reward" al-Qur'an, iv. Then Allah, Exalted and Great, would say: The angels have interceded, the apostles have inter- ceded and the believers have interceded, and no one remains to grant pardon but the Most Merciful of the mercifuls.

He will then take a handful from Fire and bring out from it people who never did any good and who had been turned into charcoal, and will cast them into a river called the river of life, on the outskirts of Paradise. They will come out as a seed comes cut from the silt carried by flood. You see it near the stone or near the tree. That which is exposed to the sun is yellowish or greenish and which is under the shade is white.

They said: Messenger of Allah! He the Holy Prophet said: They will come forth like pearls with seals on their necks. The inhabitants of Paradise would recognise them and say : Those are who have been set free by the Compassionate One. Who has admitted them into Paradise without any good deed that they did or any good that they sent in advance Then He would say: Enter the Paradise; whatever you see in it is yours.

They would say: O Lord, Thou hast bestowed upon us favours which Thou didst not bestow upon anyone else in the world. He would say: There is with Me a favour for you better than this. They would say: O our Lord! He would say: It is My pleasure. I will never be angry with you after this. The Messenger of Allah may peace be upon him said: Do you feel any trouble in seeing the sun on a cloudless day?

We said: No. And the remaining part of the hadith has been narrated to the end like the hadith transmitted by Hafs b. Maisara with the addition of these words: Without the deed that they did or any good that they had sent before.

It would be said to them: For you is whatever you see in it and with it the like of it. Abu Sa'id said: I have come to know that the bridge would be thinner even than the hair and sharper than the sword; and in the hadith narrated by Laith these words are not found: They would say, O our Lord! Thou hast bestowed upon us favours which thou didst not bestow on anyone else in the world.

Abu Bakr b. Abi Shaiba, Ja'far b. Sa'd, Zaid b. Aslam narrated the hadith as transmitted by Hafs b. Maisara, with certain additions and omissions. He would then say: See, he whom you find having as much faith in his heart as a grain of mustard, bring him out.

They will then be brought out burned and turned to charcoal, and would be cast into the river of life, and they would sprout aj does a seed in the silt carried away by flood. Assessing the current economic situation, the Fed chief said during a panel discussion hosted by the European Central Bank that he was "frustrated" that getting people vaccinated and arresting the spread of the Covid delta variant "remains the most important economic policy that we have. Inflation by the Fed's preferred measure is running at its hottest pace in about 30 years.

Powell and most of his colleagues say they expect the current pressures to decline back to trend as supply chain bottlenecks ease and demand goes back to pre-pandemic levels. He said Wednesday that should be "quite a strong year" for economic growth. However, officials as of late have acknowledged that the current inflation conditions have not eased the way the Fed thought they would.