Denial of the Punishment of the Grave, the Meaning of “Marqad,” and Response to Ḥadīth Objections
Source: Aḥkām wa Masāʾil – ʿAqāʾid ka Bayān, Vol. 1, p. 65
**1. The Verse “مَنْ بَعَثَنَا مِنْ مَرْقَدِنَا” and the Punishment of the Grave
- The verse in Sūrah Yāsīn — ﴿قَالُوا يَا وَيْلَنَا مَنْ بَعَثَنَا مِنْ مَرْقَدِنَا﴾ — does not negate the punishment of the grave.
- The claim that “marqad” (resting place) refers only to a place of comfort is linguistically, Sharʿan, and hadīth-wise unfounded.
- Marqad means grave, and in relation to the terrors of the Day of Resurrection, the grave may be called a “temporary resting place” without implying the absence of punishment.
2. Ḥadīth of the Punishment and Reward in the Grave
- Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, and other authentic collections record multiple narrations affirming ʿadhāb al-qabr (punishment) and thawāb al-qabr (reward).
- These narrations do not contradict the Qur’ān.
- Accepting these authentic narrations is obligatory; rejecting them without valid reason amounts to rejecting established Sunnah.
3. The Reality of the Rūḥ (Soul)
- The Qur’ān says: ﴿قُلِ الرُّوحُ مِنْ أَمْرِ رَبِّي﴾ — “Say: The soul is from the command of my Lord.” [al-Isrāʾ: 85]
- The claim that “the soul has no form or existence because it is only Allah’s command” is incorrect.
- The verse does not say “innamā al-rūḥ amr rabbī” (the soul is only Allah’s command); rather, it says min amr rabbī (from the command of my Lord), which indicates origin, not denial of its reality.
4. Alleged Ḥadīth about the Apostasy of Companions
- There is no authentic ḥadīth stating that major Companions (kibār ṣaḥābah) became apostates after the Prophet ﷺ’s death.
- The principle “any ḥadīth that contradicts the Qur’ān must be rejected” is not a blanket rule without evidence; in fact, the Qur’ān nowhere instructs the wholesale rejection of a ṣaḥīḥ ḥadīth.
- Ḥadīths about the punishment of the grave are not in conflict with any Qur’ānic verse.
Conclusion
❖ The concept of ʿadhāb al-qabr is established in both Qur’ān and Sunnah.
❖ The term marqad does not negate the possibility of punishment in the grave.
❖ Misinterpreting verses about the rūḥ and using that to reject established beliefs is baseless.
❖ There is no authentic narration that accuses the major Companions of apostasy.
