if 72 sects are going to burn in hell, then what's the point?

It wouldn't be 1/73 of a chance loool.

format_quote Originally Posted by Abdul178

not the answer I was looking for but...

Well your question was incorrectly asked. If you follow islam your chance is 100%. The rest are not considered Islam.

Secondly, if we are going to go by statistics..if ~90% of the total Muslim population is Sunni and the rest is the 72 sects, then you would have 90% of a chance, which is 9/10th of a chance, not 1/73rd.

I remember related story that when asked, the holy prophet (pbuh) answered that even he is not guaranteed paradise and that it is with the Mercy of Allah that he will enter paradise.

So if there was anything to be taken from this narrative, is that we must seek His mercy.

Just to give another related incident (from what I am informed that it is an authentic hadeeth) about the prostitute who used her shoe to give drink to a thirsty dog and entered paradise.. so it is about your 'being' that will get Allah's mercy...

If you were to reflect on the passage you would read daily in your prayers, you would ask 'ihdinahsiraatalmustaqeem' meaning that you ask regularly to be guided on to the right path.. indicates that you can be guided (or misguided) at any time and that the most important thing (in my opinion) is that we die in the state of imaan.

I hope this gives you some points to consider against the 'sect' concerns you have... Believe me I had similar thoughts too! Only I when I looked at it (because I was informed that the Jews will have 1/71, the Christians will have 1/72 and Muslims, 1/73. My simple mathematics indicate from all the people of the Books, 3/216 will enter paradise (that is a hopelessly low statistic for 'winners') and if i were to link this to Satan v Allah, the result would appear very lopsided indeed (and in my mind Satan wins!) and it really disturbed me.

But the prostitute story gave me hint that I have absolutely no knowledge on how Allah would do His Judgment (who would win and who would lose). So, as what Rasulullah has said, we depend of Allah's Mercy. So let us pray for His mercy and constantly seek His guidance to be on the right path.

Lol, what's the point of getting on the motorway to my intended destination if so many roads branch and intersect and go in the wrong direction?
Forget it, im'a sitt'n right 'ere and chewin'me baccy and smoking me pipe and swiggin' me wiski, yous go if yous like.

format_quote Originally Posted by Abdul178

what's the point of following Islam when you only have a 1/73 chance of 'entering paradise' ?

The point is to tell you that 72 of those sects will not be following Islam properly and that you must follow the Quran and Sunnah without hesitation if you want to be saved from hell fire. Allah says "enter into Islam fully". Unless this condition is met to the best of one's ability, they will be among the 72 sects.

As an example are the true Shia followers and maybe even the Ahmedi's would fall amongst those 72, although you could argue Ahmedis aren't even Muslim to begin with.