How tall will people be in the hereafter? They say people will be 30 meters tall. They say Hz. Adam was taller. Is that right?

Dear Brother / Sister,

The hadith regarding the issue is sound. The Prophet (pbuh) stated the following in a hadith reported by Bukhari:

“Allah created Adam, making him 60 cubits tall … Any person who will enter Paradise will be as tall as him.” (Bukhari, Anbiya, 1)

“Allah created Adam in His image with the length of sixty cubits. As He created him, He said to him, ‘Go and greet that group of angels sitting there. And listen carefully to the response that they will give you. For, it will be the example of your greeting and that of your offspring.’ Thereupon, Adam went to the angels and said: “Assalamu alaykum” (Peace be upon you!) The angels said, “Assalamu alayka wa rahmatullahi (May there be peace upon you and the Mercy of Allah). They made the addition "Mercy of Allah" to their greeting. Since Adam is man’s ancestor, anybody who will get into Paradise will be in this nice form of Adam. He was sixty cubits tall. Adam’s grandchildren that came after him continued to lose some part of this nice feature of their bodies.” (Muslim, Jannah, 28)

Since one cubit is about half a meter, 60 cubits is equal to 30 meters. Allah knows what is really meant by it. It may sound strange to us since we are not used to it. If everybody were so tall, we would be used to it. The people who are not at a normal height seem different; those who will be shorter than 30 meters will seem different then too.

Doubtlessly, how the resurrection will take place in the hereafter is directly connected with the will of Allah Almighty. Allah will revive people as He wishes. He will give them life as He wishes.

Some of the narrations regarding the issue may be metaphorical expressions. It is more appropriate to avoid very clear descriptions, interpretations and expressions related to the state of the resurrection in the hereafter and the tallness of people, and to refer it to the will of Allah.

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