Are the people who die met in the realm of grave?

- I have heard " We will be met by some beings after death based on the degree of our belief ".
- Is there a verse or hadith regarding the issue?

Dear Brother / Sister,

Yes, the spirits that go to the realm of barzakh after leaving their bodies after death are met by angels and the people of the grave that go there beforehand.

As a matter of fact, there are hadiths stating that the spirit of a believer that ascends to the sky after death is met by the beings of mercy and that they will ask the spirit about the world and the people in the world:

“When it is time for death for a believer, the angels of mercy dressed in white silk clothes will come and address the spirit of the believer as follows: 'Ascend to the mercy and presence of your Lord, you being pleased with your Lord and He being pleased with you!' Then, the spirit of that believer will exit his body like the best-smelling musk."

"Then, the angels will transfer this spirit to one another and take it to the gate of the sky near the spirits of the believers. The spirits of the believers will be happier than a person who becomes very happy when he meets a person he loves coming from a distant place and welcomes him accordingly; Then, they will ask him, 'How is such and such a person?' Some of them will say, 'Leave him; he indulged himself with the pleasures of the world.' The spirit that has just arrived will say, ' Did he not die and meet you?' They will say, 'They probably took him to Hell, which is his mother (shelter).

"When the time for death for an unbeliever approaches, the angels of penalty will make him wear a thick garment made of haircloth and say to him, 'Go to your Lord’s penalty, your Lord being very angry with you.' The spirit of the unbeliever will exit his body like the worst stink. The angels will take him to the gate of the place he will go. They will say, 'What a stink it is' and take the spirit to the place where the spirits of the unbelievers are.” (Nasai, Janaiz, 9)

"When the spirit of the believer exits, two angels will welcome it and ascend to high places. The people of the sky will say, 'A nice and beautiful spirit came from the earth. May Allah have mercy on you and your body you rendered prosperous!' Then, it will be taken to its Lord, who is Aziz (Mighty) and Jalil (Glorious). Then, they will be ordered, 'Take this to the last stop (that is, Sidratul-Muntaha).'"

"As for the unbeliever, when its spirit exits, the people of the sky will say, 'A dirty and stinking spirit came from the earth.' Then, they will be ordered, 'Take this to the last stop (that is, Sijjin).'"

After this explanation, the Messenger of Allah put the thin garment he had on him to his nose and covered his nose. (Muslim, Jannah, 75)

Sa'id b. al-Musayyab from Tabiun said, "When a person dies, his son (who has died before him) meets him like a person who returns from a journey." (Ibnul-Qayyim al-Jawziyya, ar-Ruh, Beirut, 1975, p. 19)

There are some other hadiths and explanations regarding the issue. (see Suyuti, Kabir Alemi, Kahraman Yayınları, 165-170)

On the other hand, according to the following verse,

“And neither heaven nor earth shed a tear over them" (ad-Dukhan, 44/29),

the people of the heavens and earth, who are interested in man, do not cry when the people of aberration die; that is, they become pleased when the people of aberration die.

According to the meaning indicated by the verse, when the people of guidance die, the heavens and the earth cry and do not want their separation.

Accordingly, if man becomes subject to the Quran and Muhammad Mustafa (pbuh), the beloved one of Allah, the heavens and the earth along with all beings feel sad - in accordance with the degree of man - because of his separation and weep spiritually.

Since those who leave the world when they die are seen off from this realm, the verse above indicates that a believer will have a good welcome in the world of eternity according to his degree, when he enters it through the door of the grave with their mourning in elevated fashion and giving him a splendid send-off. (see Nursi, On Üçüncü Lem’a, On İkinci İşaret)

Death is not non-existence. It is the door of a more beautiful realm. A seed that goes underground dies, rots and disappears seemingly but it actually passes on to a more beautiful life. It passes from the life of seed to the life tree.

Similarly, a person who dies goes underground and rots seemingly but he actually attains a more perfect life in the realm of the barzakh and grave.

People who come to the womb from the realm of spirits are born in the world after the womb. They meet and talk to one another here. Similarly, the people in this world are born in the hereafter when they die and wander there. We see those who go from here to the other world off. Likewise, there are people who welcome those who go there.

We hope all our beloved ones, especially our Prophet (pbuh), will welcome us there. The condition for this is to believe in Allah, to obey Him and His Prophet and to die as believers.

Questions on Islam