Page 64 - Unawareness: A Sly Threat

62 UNAWARENESS: A SLY THREAT

off, they will hear it seething and rasping. When they are
flung into a narrow place in it, shackled together in
chains, they will cry out there for destruction. “Do not
cry out today for just one destruction, (but) cry out for
many destructions!” Say: “Is that better, or the Garden
of Eternal Life that was promised to those who guard
against evil? That is their recompense and destination.”
(Surat al-Furqan: 12-15)
Some people cannot endure the slightest pain in this
world; but if they honestly think about what awaits them in
Hell, they will see that that particular punishment cannot be
compared with any pain in this world. In Hell, moreover, there
is no death to end the endless punishment:

They will want to get out of the Fire, but they will not be
able to. They will have an everlasting punishment. (Surat
al-Ma’ida: 37)

No indeed! Those who accumulate bad actions and are
surrounded by their mistakes, such people are the
Companions of the Fire, remaining in it timelessly, for-
ever. (Surat al-Baqara: 81)

It is a fact that this punishment is truly enormous and
without end. There is no escape from its eternal agony, and
no one becomes immune to or accustomed to it. If people
honestly consider this, their fear of and respect for Allah, as
well as their level of awareness, will increase. In this way, they
will be able to defeat their unawareness and seek His favor.

Understanding eternity

Some people are lazy when it comes to thinking about