Assalmualaikum
If a thief breaks into your home, while you are there, you will hear the noise of breaking glass or the door knocked off its hinges. Thus you will know how then how to or how not to defend yourself:
a. You will shoot the thief, or
b. You will overpower the thief, holding him for the police, or
c. You will do nothing, let the ploice handle it, or
d. The thief gets the upper hand and kill you and perhaps your family.
These are things that you can do when you see and hear the uninvited guest. But what if it is a guest that you cannot see or hear, but in one way or another you will come to know that his visit was real? Scary isn't it? Who is this unseen guest that slips into the home and takes what is dear to you?
He is none other than "Malak-ul-Mawt" aka "The Angel of Death". He has been given the duty to take the souls of the living when their prescribed time has come to a close. But by no means should we think that Allah did not take the soul, as He was the one Who ordered it occurance. However, Allah Subhana wa Ta'ala tell us
in Qur'an:
"Allaah says: “Say: ‘The Angel of Death, who is set over you, will take your souls.” [Surah As-Sajdah: 11]
This is the duty assign to him. But he is not alone, his "assistants" are there also as decreed by Allah. We are not told just what the assistants do, they are there to aid Malak-ul-Mawt and we are to believe that it is so. To many times people question Allah as to why He took their loved ones, or why He let things happen to them. This is not showing trust and patience in Allah Almighty. Our lack of true knowledge of patience in Allah's decree gives way to hysterical crying, grief and questioning.
When this guest comes, you cannot feel him, hear him or question him when he takes out the life of anyone. {I am sure that if we did we would faint away at the sight}. Imagine a pregnant mother, can she feel when the angel takes the soul of her unborn child? She will feel something is not quite right but often times she will be told to stop worrying. When she comes to know that it really is something not quite right, she will grieve hard because she could not prevent what was decreed for that particular baby.
“Blessed be He in Whose Hand is the dominion; and He is Able to do all things. Who has created death and life that He may test you which of you is best in deed. And He is the All-Mighty, the Oft-Forgiving” (67:1-2).
Malak-ul-Mawt and his aides are meticuluous, Mashallah. You ask yourself; "How does he do that"? Does he just reach through the mother to remove the soul or does he, by Allah Ta'ala's permission call the spirit out? Or does he remain with the baby in the mother until its prescribed time? ALLAHU ALIM!
Allah says in Qur'an: " “Until when death approaches one of you, Our messengers (i.e. the Angel of Death and his assistants) take his soul, and they never neglect their duty. Then they are returned to Allaah, their Master, the Just Lord.” [Surah Al-An’aam: 61-62]
Now, if you think the Angel of Death-[Malak-ul-Mawt] is awesome [in his duties,] and none is able to describe this creation of Allah's, how adequate of a pitiful attempt man does in describing Allah Almighty Who created such a creature, Subhanallah!!
When we sleep at night, Allah Ta'ala takes the soul and questions it as to all that it did in a days time. We are in a "lesser death", a suspension where we are not dead just not able to wake up. We do not know just when Allah does this, but just think, even that tiny 5 minute catnap could have been the time, Allahu Alim.
“It is Allâh Who takes away the souls at the time of their death, and those that die not during their sleep. He keeps those (souls) for which He has ordained death and sends the rest for a term appointed” (39:42).
TAFSIR: Ibn Kathir
[Then Allah tells us that He is in control of all things and does as He wills. He causes men to die (the "greater death'') when He sends the angels to take men's souls from their bodies, and He causes them to "die a lesser death'' when they sleep. Allah says:
(It is He, Who takes your souls by night (when you are asleep), and has knowledge of all that you have done by day, then He raises (wakes) you up again that a term appointed be fulfilled, then (in the end) unto Him will be your return. Then He will inform you of that which you used to do. He is the Irresistible, over His servants, and He sends guardians (angels guarding and writing all of one's good and bad deeds) over you, until when death approaches one of you, Our messengers (angels) take his soul, and they never neglect their duty.)(6:60-61). Here Allah mentions the two deaths, the lesser death then the greater death after it; in the Ayah above (39: 42), He mentions the greater then the lesser. Allah says:
(It is Allah Who takes away the souls at the time of their death, and those that die not during their sleep. He keeps those (souls) for which He has ordained death and sends the rest for a term appointed.) This indicates that they [the souls] meet in the higher realm, as was stated in the Hadith attributed to the Prophet which was narrated by Ibn Mandah and others. In the Two Sahihs of Al-Bukhari and Muslim, it is reported that Abu Hurayrah, may Allah be pleased with him, said that the Messenger of Allah said:
(When anyone of you goes to bed, let him brush down the bed with his garment, for he does not know what has come on his bed since he left it. Then let him say, "In Your Name, O Lord, I lay down my side and in Your Name I raise it up; if You take my soul, have mercy on it, and if You send it back, protect it with that which You protect Your righteous servants.'')
[فَيُمْسِكُ الَّتِى قَضَى عَلَيْهَا الْمَوْتَ]
(He keeps those (souls) for which He has ordained death) means, those which have died, and He returns the others back for an appointed term. As-Suddi said, "For the rest of their lives.'' Ibn `Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, said, "He keeps the souls of the dead and sends back the souls of the living, and He does not make any mistakes.
[إِنَّ فِى ذلِكَ لآيَـتٍ لِّقَوْمٍ يَتَفَكَّرُونَ]
If Allah so decrees and it is not our time to die, we will then have our souls returned to our bodies where we will awaken to finish out our appointed time on this earth and try to prepare ourselves for when the real guest arrives, Inshallah.“And the stupor of death will come in truth: "This is what you have been avoiding!” (50:19).
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