and other worthy words.
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Out of Allah’s mercy toward His creatures, He has appointed angels to console the Muslims in times of affliction; they attend them and say Āmīn to their prayers.
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It is recommended to supplicate for the deceased—asking for mercy and forgiveness, elevation of rank in Paradise, and that he be gathered with Allah’s friends among the prophets, the ever-truthful, the martyrs, and the righteous.
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The hadith affirms the bliss of the grave: it is widened and illumined until it becomes a garden from the gardens of Paradise, the first station of the Hereafter.
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It is also recommended to pray for the family and progeny of the deceased, that Allah replace their loss with something better and reward them for their patience.
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Abū Salama, Allah be pleased with him, enjoys a tremendous distinction by virtue of this blessed prophetic supplication. Part of its acceptance is manifest in this world: the Messenger of Allah ﷺ married his widow, who thereby became one of the Mothers of the Believers; his children were honored as the Prophet’s step-sons, raised in his household under his direct care and protection. We hold with firm confidence that Allah answered the Prophet’s prayer, forgave Abū Salama’s sins, and raised his rank among the rightly guided.
Abū Salama al-Makhzūmī al-Qurashī was among the earliest converts to Islam. He made both emigrations—to Abyssinia and to Medina—fought at Badr and Uḥud, was wounded at Uḥud, and though the wound initially healed it reopened later; a few months afterward he died from its effects, may Allah be pleased with him.
Two inquiries arise from this ḥadith.
The first inquiry: What, in essence, is death?
Physicians state that the brain stem governs respiration, the heart, and the circulatory system; therefore, when the brain stem ceases to function and dies, it inevitably leads to their cessation.