"Indeed the hell fire is the dwelling place of them all. It has seven gates and within each gate there is an
appropriate punishment for each inhabitant…" (Hijr: 44)
Imam As Sa'di (Rahimahullah) mentions in his tafseer: "The gates of Hell are structured one gate below the
other descending, opposite the gates of paradise, which have one gate above the other ascending. The
distance between each gate is 500 years prepared for Iblees and all of his followers.
The First Gate: This gate is called Jahannam, as Allah mentions in many verses in the Qur'an:
قالوا لا تنفروا في الحر قل نار جهنم أشد حرا لو كانوا يفقهون
"They said (i.e. the hypocrites): "Don't go out for war during the heat!" Say (i.e. Muhammad) the fire of
Jahannam is even hotter if you only understood." (Tawbah: 81)
This gate is called Jahannam because the fire will scorch the faces of the men and women who enter it!!!
Their faces will be sullen and glum. It will eat away at their flesh and Allah says:
كلما نضجت جلودهم بدلنناهم جلودا غيرها ليذوقوا العذاب
"Every time the fire eats away their flesh We will replace it with new flesh so they can taste the
punishment…" (Nisaa':56)
Imam As Sa'di (Rahimahullah) mentioned in his tafseer: this is in response to their obstinacy and resistance
in the life of this world. Just as they continued to reject obedience to Allah and submission to Him, likewise
the fire will continue to burn up their flesh and when it reaches the point of almost being obliterated, Allah
will remove the old flesh and replace it with new flesh, a just recompense for their rebellion in this life."
The ironic thing is, this is the lightest punishment that one can receive in Hell outside of the specific
punishment of Abu Talib the uncle of the Prophet (Sallahu alaihi wa salam)
The Second Gate: This Gate is called Ladha', as Allah says in the Qur'an:
كلا إنها لظى نزاعة للشوى تدعوا من أدبر وتولى وجمع فأوعى...
"There is no way out for them, except the Ladha (i.e. Fierce Blaze) will certainly scorch the inward organs
and the outward flesh! It will invite everyone who turned away from following the truth, heedless of it
and gathered wealth but refused to spend it in the cause of Allah…" (Ma'arij:15)
This level of hell is called Ladha because the fire will eat away at their body parts one by one, both
internally and externally. It will invite those who abandoned Tawheed (i.e. Islamic monotheism) and turned
away from that which the Prophet (Sallahu alaihi wa salam) came with.
The Third Gate: This gate is called Saqar, as Allah says:
سأصليه سقر وما أدراك ما سقر ولا تبقي واتذر لواحة للبشر عليها تسعة عشر...
"We will throw him into the Saqar and what will make you know what Saqar is? It is a scorching fire, it
spares nothing and leaves nothing behind it will shake them vehemently and over it are nineteen angels "
(Mudathir: 26-30)
It is called Saqar because it will eat up the flesh of the human being and not his bones. But listen to what
Allah mentioned about those who enter this particular level of hell:
في جنات يتسائلون عن المجرمين ما سلككم في سقر قالوا لم نك من المصلين ولم نك نطعم المسكين وكنا نخوض مع الخائضين
وكنا نكذب بيوم الدين حتى أتانا اليقين.
"Those in paradise will ask the criminals what has landed you all in Saqar? They will say: "We were not of
those who used to pray and we didn't feed the poor and we used to talk vainly with those who talked vain
talk and we used to deny the Day of Recompense until death came to us and we saw the reality of all that
we denied" (Mudathir:40-47)
So there are a total of four things that they were guilty of, which ultimately landed them in this level of the
hell fire:
The First: They did not offer salat (i.e. prayer) and the scholars also use this as a proof to show that
abandoning the salat is Kufr (i.e. disbelief). And it also shows how serious it is because it was the first thing
they mentioned out of all the offenses they were guilty of. In essence they refused to give Allah His right.
The Second: They did not feed the poor. Meaning they refused to benefit the needy on all levels.
The Third: They used to talk vainly with those who talk in vain. Meaning they used to indulge in falsehood
and used it to argue unjustly against the truth.
The Fourth: They used to deny and reject the Day of Recompense and this is the end result of delving into
falsehood.
The Fourth Gate: This gate is called Al Hutamah, as Allah says:
كلا لينبذن في الحطمة وماأدراك مالحطمة نار الله الموقدة التي تطلع على الأفئدة إنها عليهم مؤصد فعمد ممددة
"Nay they will be thrown into Al Hutamah (i.e. Crushing Fire). And what will make you know what Al
Hutamah is? The fire of Allah kindled by men and stones which scorches the hearts. Surely it is vaulted over
them in pillars widely extended." (Humazah: 4-9)
It is called Al Hutamah because it will shatter the bones of the human being and burn the heart and other
internal organs. The fire will start at his feet and burn all the way through until it reaches the heart!!! Allah
says:
إنها ترمي بشرر كالقصر كأنه جمالة صفر
"Indeed it (i.e. the hell fire) spits out sparks the size of mansions, as if they were yellow herds" (Mursalat: 32-
33)
The individual in the fire will turn completely black when the sparks ascend up and scorch their faces, hands
and bodies. They will cry tears until their tear ducts are completely exhausted then they will cry blood and
when the blood is completely exhausted they will cry pus until the pus is completely exhausted!!!! They will
leave behind a pool so great that if a ship wanted to set sail on top of what they cried it would have no
problem doing so!!!
The Fifth Gate: This particular gate is called Jaheem, as Allah mentions in many verses:
خذوه فغلواثم الجحيم صلوا ثم في سلسلة ذرعها سبعون ذراعا فاسلكوه إنه كان لا يؤمن بالله العظيم ولا يحض على طعام
المسكين...
"Seize him and shackle him!! Then roast him in Jaheem (i.e. hell fire) in chains that are seventy cubits long.
This is because he did not believe in Allah, the Magnificent and he did not encourage the feeding of the
poor." (Al Haqq: 30-34)
This gate is called Jaheem because it is actually one big piece of hot coal that is bigger than the lowest
heaven as we know it. And look at the crimes of the one who enters this particular gate:
The First: He did not have the correct belief in Allah. This is to correct the misunderstanding of those who
deride having the correct aqeedah and make discouraging statements such as "Why do they spend so much
time studying Aqeedah?!!" or "We can learn Tawheed in 10 minutes!" or those who simply say: "I just believe
in Allah!" This is a very nonchalant approach towards the greatest right over us as human beings, which is
the right of Allah (i.e. Tawheed) the right to be worshiped alone without any partners.
The Second: They refused to give the creation their rights, which is the most important right after the right
of Allah. He did not encourage the feeding of the poor.
The Sixth Gate: This gate is called Sa'eer, as Allah says:
فريق في الجنة وفريق في السعير
"A group in paradise and a group in Sa'eer (i.e. the blazing fire)" (Shurah: 7)
Allah also says about the people therein:
و قالوا لو كنا نسمع أو نعقل ما كنا في أصحاب السعير فاعترفوا بذنبهم فسحقا لأصحاب السعير
"And they will say: "If we had listened and used our intellect we would not be inhabitants of As Sa'eer (i.e.
blazing fire)!! They confessed their sins but away with the companions of As Sa'eer" (Mulk: 10-11)
This gate of Hell is called As Sa'eer because it is constantly kindling, rather it has never ceased to kindle from
the moment it was created!! In it are 300 castles and in each castle there are 300 houses and in each house
there are 300 types of punishments.
In this particular level of hell there are scorpions and snakes, ropes, chains and shackles!! There is also
something call the "Pit of Agony", which is incomparable and unparalleled to any other type of punishment
in hell. When the door of this pit is opened the people in the hell fire will grieve austerely!!!
The Seventh Gate: This gate is called Al Haawiyah, as Allah says:
وأما من خفت موازينه فأمه هاوية وما أدراك ما هيه نار حامية
"As for the one whose scales are light, then the Hawiyah will embrace him like a mother embraces her child.
And what will make you know what Al Hawiyah is? It is a kindled fir burning hot." (Al Qa'riah: 8-11)
This gate of hell is called Al Hawiyah because whoever enters this level of the hell fire will never come out!!!
Notice Allah said that the fire will embrace him like a mother embraces her child!! In this level of the hell
fire there is a well that will let out a breeze of fire and when this breeze comes out it will be so hot and
powerful that all of the fires in the other levels of hell will seek refuge in Allah from it!!!
In this level of the hell fire there is a mountain made of fire and the enemies of Allah will be laid on their
faces on this mountain and their hands will be tied to their necks and their necks tied to their feet and over
them will stand the Zabaaniyah, who are angels that guard this particular level of the hell fire, as Allah
says:
سندعو الزبانية...
"And We will call the Zabaaniyah (i.e. angels who guard the hell fire)…" (Alaq: 18)
The hands of the Zabaaniyah will be like iron and when they strike one of those in the hell fire one time
with their hands they let out a scream so loud that both the Jinn and mankind can hear.
I think it is important to post the Valley of Lam Lam and the tree of Zaqqum
Valley of Lam Lam:
It is also reported that there is a valley in Hell named Lamlam. This valley is infested with serpents as fat as the neck of a camel and as long as one month's journey. A person neglecting salaat shall be tormented in this valley.
Shajarat Al-Zaqqum:
The Tree of Zaqqum is some of the food that the people of Hell will eat from. The Tree of Zaqqum is so awful, if a drop of Zaqqum was to be placed on this Earth, everything on Earth will be ruined. Can you imagine then how horrible it is to have it as food?
When consumed it will be like molten brass but worse. It will scald and burn their faces and their insides. The people of Hell will be so hungry that they will rush down to the pits of the fire to eat anything that they can find. Here, they will be forced to eat from the Tree of Zaqqum. Even before touch, their own lips will burn and expose their teeth. Not only that, but they will swallow thorn like pieces that will rip away their flesh and insides as it is swallowed. Before it even settles in their stomach it will burn away through their flesh and empty out.
We can recite in Qur'an:
"Without doubt, the Tree of Zaqqum, will be the food of the Sinful. Like molten brass it will boil in their insides, like the boiling of scalding water."
44:43-46
And:
"No food will there be for them but a bitter Dhare' (a plant that is bitter, thorny and loathsome in smell and appearance with absolutely no nourishment whatsoever), which will neither nourish nor satisfy hunger."
88:6-7
Such food will also cause the person to choke.
A very clear description can be found in Surah As-Saffat:
"Is that better entertainment or the Tree of Zaqqum? For We have truly made it as a trial and punishment for the wrong-doers. For it is a tree that springs out of the bottom of Hell-fire. The shoots of its fruit-stalks are like the heads of Shaytans."
37:62-65
This is very important knowledge that should be made permanent in the back of our mind so we will always think twice everytime we try to intentionally sin.
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