Ecstasy during Death

A narration from Imam Sadiq (a) which is cited in 'al-Kafi' says that one of his companions asked whether a believer may become discontented when his soul is being taken. He (s) replied: 

"By Allah, No! When the angel of death comes to take his soul the believer shows restlessness and the angel says: 'O, Lover of Allah! Be not upset! By He Who has appointed Mohammad (s) to prophethood, I am more sympathetic to you than a kind father. Look carefully!' He looks carefully and sees Prophet Mohammad, Amir -al- Mo'mineen Ali, Fatimah, Hasan, Husain and other Imams from their descendants (a) . 

The angel tells him to look and see that they (a) are all his friends. He opens his eyes and watches. A caller from Almighty Allah suddenly beckons and says: "O, you serene soul! Come back to your Lord well-pleased (with Him) and well-pleasing (Him) . So enter among My servants. And enter into My Garden ". At that moment there is nothing better and more beloved than that his soul separates from his body as soon as possible and moves unto his Lord. 


Al-Kafi, vol. 3, Chapter Believers and the Departure of the Soul, Tradition 2. 

Never abondon 3 things

"There is no Prophet in the heavens or on earth who does not ask Allah for permission to go to the Ziyarah of Husain. (There is always) a crowd (of Prophets) descending (to go to the Ziyarah of Husain) and a crowd ascending (back to the heavens).

(Imam As-Sadiq, as) Kamil Al-Ziyarat, p225

Never abondon 3 things

Ayatullah Sayed Murtadha Muwahhid Abtahi (ra) narrates:

When the controversy about tobacco had surfaced, some scholars from Isfahaan rose to defy the tyrannical government. Their revolt paid off and the Government had to admit defeat. Then the government officials wrote a letter in Arabic and sent it to Haaj Mirza Burujerdi (ra) in Isfahaan, who was to deliver it to Ayatullah Mirza Mohammed Hussein Shirazi (ra) in Najaf.  
Haaj Mirza Burujerdi (ra) went to Samarrah to deliver the letter; he met Haaj Mirza Fateh Ali Sultan Abaadi (ra). The latter is the teacher of Ayatullah Haaj Mirza Hussein Nadwi (ra) and has written the famous book 'Al Kalematut Tayyebah fil Infaaq.'

Haaj Mirza Fateh Ali Sultan Abaadi (ra) after greeting Haaj Mirza Burujerdi (ra) declared, 'I know the purpose of your visit, it is to deliver the letter.'
Then Mirza Fateh Ali (ra) began narrating the contents of the letter which was still with Haaj Mirza Burujerdi (ra).

He gave a glimpse of his astonishing spiritual powers by recounting the exact text of the letter. When Haaj Mirza Burujerdi (ra) witnessed this, he was shocked and asked Mirza Fateh Ali (ra) was some recomendation. The latter said, 'But you are yourself very spiritual.

Haaj Mirza Burujerdi (ra) insisted and said, 'I want to acquire some teachings from you that will serve me as guidance.'
 
Mirza Fateh Ali (ra) replied, 'Never abondon 3 things:
1. The Salaah at the beginning of every month
2. Salaat-ul-Wahshah when you receive the news of someones demise
3. Recitation of Ziyarat-e-Ashura regularly' 
After this incident, Haaj Mirza Burujerdi (ra) used to recite Ziyarat-e-Ashura regularly; to the extent that on the day of Ashura, he used to recite this Ziyarah on behalf of each martyr, individually. He never gave up recitation of this Ziyarah.

Even if he was in some gathering (majlis) or in the mosque, he used to get busy in its recitation for this Ziyarah is nothing but the word of Allah narrated to us by the Aimmah (as).
 
Haaj Mirza Burujerdi (ra) used to recite this Ziyarah with such focus that he did not like to be disturbed while reciting.

 

Once he was invited for a feast. There, everyone sat down to begin eating. Even Haaj Mirza Burujerdi (ra) was seated along with other guests. But he had begun recitation of this Ziyarah and therefore did not touch the food. When he host learnt of this, he sent the food to Mirza's house.
Haaj Mirza Burujerdi's son-in-law, Mirza Mohamed Baqir (ra) (author of Faz-e-Akber) narrates, 'I witnessed that even during Sakaratul Mout, Haaj Mirza Burujerdi (ra) was engrossed in reciting this Ziyarah. When the intensity of his pain increased, he used to halt and then again resume its recitation. Till such a time that he left for the Aakhirah in that very state.'

Miracles of Ziyarat-e-Ashura

Witnessing the Siraat

It is written in Mustadrak of Thiqat al-Islam Noori that according to what is mentioned in Anwaar-ul-Maziyyah (by Syed Gayasuddin Najafi, a Shia jurisprudent and a famous scholar among Imamiyah): 

In our village situated near Hilla there lived a man named Muhammad bin Abi Azeenah. He was the trustee of a mosque. He used to attend that masjid daily as a routine every day. 


One day, when he did not come to mosque, we inquired about him. We came to know that he was ill. We wondered very much because on the very previous day, we had seen him hale and healthy. When we went to see him, we found him burnt from head to feet. He used to faint, them become conscious and again faint. 


In one such interval, I asked him what had happened to him? He replied: Last night in my dream I was shown Siraat and then I was ordered to walk over it. So I proceeded; in the beginning the ground under my feet was levelled. Then I found that it has become thin. Initially, it was soft but later on it turned very sharp. I was putting my steps very slowly, balancing myself to escape falling down. Dark flames of fire from beneath were leaping upwards. I was observing that many people were dropping down like leaves in the fall (autumn). 


Once I felt that there was nothing except an hair like rope under my feet. Then suddenly the fire dragged me to it and I also fell down in that cave of fire. The more I tried to come up the more I was going down. (Hellfire has the quality of drawing people to it, and that, according to a narration, the depth is equal to the length of a seventy year journey). As soon as I realized that I was about to be finished, I remembered that whenever I was falling or stumbling or falling, I used to exclaim Yaa Ali and saying Yaa Maulaai, Yaa Ameerul Momineen, Aghithni. I felt inspired to look upward. 


So when I looked up I found that a saintly person was standing by the side of the Siraat. He extended his hand, caught me and fetched me out. I submitted: O Master! I am burnt down. Please help me. The Hazrat passed his Holy hand over my body from my knee to femur. Suddenly I woke up to find that that particular part of my body had no sign of burning and that it had healed but the rest of my body was burning.


That person remained bedridden for three months, weeping and complaining. Various medicines were given by a number of doctors before he became healthy after three months when fresh flesh appeared on his body. It is also written in this book Mystadrak that whenever that person was describing this even he was getting fever and was trembling.


Doubtlessly there is only one medicine and it is to cling to the Wilayat of the pious Ahle Bayt (a.s.). Imam Reza (a.s.) has promised that he will guide the visitors of his shrine on the bridge of Siraat. Moreover, Hazrat Abu Abdullah-al-Husain (a.s.) is also reported to have given many good tidings to those who cling to the friendship (Wilayat) of Ahle Bayt (a.s.) with regard to Siraat.
The Hereafter - Ma'ad; by Ayatullah Dastghaib Shiraazi

Some food for thought from Lady Fatima ('aS)

Anas bin Malik narrates: "The Messenger of God (S) asked us, "What is most preferable for women?" We did not know what to reply, so Ali went to Fatima and asked her this question. Fatima (A) said, "Why did you not answer that it is most preferable for them that they do not see men and men do not see them." Ali returned and related this reply to the Prophet (S). The Prophet (S) asked, "Who has taught you this?" He said, "Fatima." The Prophet (S) stated, "She is a portion of me."
[Musnad; p 336, tradition 9, narrated by Hafiz abu Na'im in Hilyatu'l awliya']


Hakim al-Nishaburi narrates from Ibn Abbas:
When Fatima fell mortally ill she said to Asma b. al-Umais, "Do you realise what a distressing time has arrived for me? I must be hidden from the eyes of the people when I am carried before them." Asma said, "I swear by my life, I will make a bier for you in the shape that I saw used in Abyssinia." Fatima asked for more details, so Asma obtained some fresh wood and made a bier (taabut), and this was the first time such a device had been used (in Islam). Fatima (A) smiled when she saw it, and this was the first time I had seen her smile since her father had passed away. When she died, we carried her in the same bier and buried her at night.
[Musnad, p.429, trad.56, quoting from Mustadrak al-Sahihain]


It has also been narrated that: "A blind man came to Fatima (A), daughter of the Messenger of God (S), and Fatima veiled herself from him. The Prophet (S) asked why she had veiled herself from him, when he cannot see you. She replied, "O Messenger of God, he does not see me, but I can see him and (furthermore) he can smell fragrances." The Prophet (S) stated, "I bear witness that you are a portion of me."
[Musnad; p 336, tradition 10, quoting from al-Manaqib of Ibn Maghazali.]