'Will only Muslims go to heaven?'
"Will non-Muslims be there?"
Question:
Do only Muslims go to Heaven?
I heard from a scholar that only Muslims go to Heaven?
Answer:
In order to properly understand the answer we must first supply a basic understanding of what the words in Arabic mean. The key to correct understanding in this matter is to keep in mind that Arabic is a root driven language based on a verb structure.
Look to our website page on this subject at:
http://www.islamtomorrow.com/word/
You will be able to better understand the difference between ISLAM as a verb as opposed to ISLAM as a noun, inshallah.
To give a brief summary of ISLAM as a verb:
ISLAM - means doing what Allah wants you to do and doing it in surrender, obedience, sincerity and peace, according to His Commandments and Rules.
MUSLIM - means a person who is doing the action of Islam - meaning a person who submits to Allah on His terms and does so in complete peace without resisting Allah's Orders.
The first Muslim was Adam, peace be upon him, and then many more came after him. Some were called "Hunafah" (not to be confused with the followers of Abu Hanifah), this was a very long time before Moses, peace be upon him. Some were called "Jews" (Yahud in Hebrew) and then came "Christians."
But all of them were at the same time, "Muslims" because they were doing "Islam."
In other words they were doing what Allah had commanded them to do and they were sincere in their worship to Him and only to Him without any partners.
This means that anybody could be in Paradise as long as they were doing "God's Will" and not worshipping something other than Almighty God.
The statement, "None shall enter the Paradise except Muslims" is true, only if you understand it in the above context.
There are some verses in the Quran that make it crystal clear:
"Inna deenah, inndallahil Islam."
(Certainly, Allah will only accept Islam [submission to Him on His terms in peace] as a way of life for anyone.)
[surah Al Imran 3:19]
"Wa ma yabtaghi ghayril Islama deenah, fala-yuq bala minhu, wa huwa fil akhirati minal khasareen."
(And whoever desires a way of life other than what Allah has command, He will never accept it from them and in the Hereafter they will be amongst the loosers.)
[surah Al Imran 3:85]
Al yawm ya-isa allatheena kafaru min deenikum fala takhshawhum waikhshawni.
This day (at this time) those who disbelieve (in Allah) have given up all hope of your DEEN (way of life - ISLAM), so do not fear them, but rather fear Me [Allah].
Al Yawma akmaltu lakum deenakum wa at mamtu alaykum nia'matee wa radeetul lakum ul islama deena.
This day, I have perfected your DEEN (way of life) for you, completed my favor upon you, and have chosen for you ISLAM (submission to Allah) as your DEEN (way of life).
[Surah Al Mai'adah 5:3]
The prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, said;
"I swear by the One who holds my life in His Hands (Allah) there is none amongst the Jews and Christians who hears about me and then dies without believing in the message with which I have been sent (monotheism of Islam - believing Allah is One and we must submit ourselves to His Will on earth), except he will be of the people of the Fire (Hell).
[Sahih Muslim, Book of Faith, Vol. 1, hadeeth 240]
Allah also says:"Inna allatheena kafaroo lan tughniya AAanhum amwaluhum wala aw laduhum mina Allahi shay-an wa olaaa-ika as-habun-nari-hum feeha khalidoon."
(Surely, those who reject Faith (disbelieve in Allah and in Muhammad, peace be upon him), neither their properties, nor their offspring will benefit them anything against Allah. They are the dwellers of the Fire, therein they will live forever.)
[Surah Al Imran 3:116, tafseer At-Tabari, Vol. 4, Page 58]
We should now be able to understand that the One and Only True God of the universe has made it clear, He has a Way of Life (DEEN) already laid out for us and if we accept it and act on it to the best of our ability, then we are in the right way (ISLAM).
For sure, going to is not based on being an Arab or speaking Arabic or any other culture or language. It is not about skin color, ethnicity or race. It is not about what the world labels us but rather what is in our hearts.
The heart is a precious comodity to Allah and He is the Judge of the hearts. We can not say that someone is from the Paradise of the Hell-Fire.
We can only say what types of beliefs and actions would bring a person closer to either place.
I hope this has been helpful for you in better understanding who are the people of Paradise and who are those of the Fire.
May Allah accept this and keep us away from the Hell and grant us His Paradise in Jennah, ameen.
Salam alaykum,
Yusuf Estes
Comments
Editor:
I think the best way to answer your question is with a clear statement from Islam:
"Every action will be judged by intentions" first hadith in Sahih Al Bukhari.
Scholars say this has two (2) conditions:
1. Intention has to be for Allah
2. Has to be according to Quran & sunnah.
So if someone knows about Quran & sunnah and they choose not to follow, they have no hope. If they do not know, and they are trying their best, it is up to Allah on the Day of Judgment - "Is not Allah the best of Judges?" Surah At-Teen
So... if a Jew is a good person.... Who gives to the poor, and prays but in the way that Jewish people pray, and also worships the same one God us Muslims worship, although not in our own way, and who is a religious jew- and who never hurt or seriously harmed anyone- will he not also go to Heaven? And I'm talking about the Jewish and Christian people of this time, after their books have been altered. Will he automatically go to Hell or are there exceptions??
Thanks!
The Quran is preserved in most amazing way - by oral transmission. People in today's world can't even remember how to recite Mary Had A Little Lamb -
Yet every single Muslim in the world can recite the entire chapter of Al Fatihah exactly the same way as each and every other person. And it this is the same as it was over 1,4500 years ago.
If it were from other than Allah - then it could be changed and passed along from generation to generation with more and more changes -
But we all know, as Muslims - it is not from human endeavor - it is from ALLAH.
As He says in the Quran itself, If it were from other than Allah, you would find in it many contradictions (find one! you can't)
Everything human is always subject to human error - not so the Quran. It is free from any human error, additions or subtractions. And it is still memorized today as it was over 1,400 years ago, from Mouth to Ear - IN ARABIC - memorized completely from cover to cover by over 20,000,000 Muslims (88% of them NON-ARAB)
AMAZING QURAN
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