It has also been said that there are seventy ranks, with the distance between each two ranks equal to seventy years’ galloping by a swift horse conditioned for racing.
The correct view is that these are the ranks mentioned in the hadith of Abū Hurayrah, narrated by al-Bukhārī in his Sahīh, in which the Prophet ﷺ said:
“Whoever believes in Allah and His Messenger, establishes prayer and fasts Ramadan, Allah has pledged to admit him to Paradise, whether he emigrates in Allah’s cause or remains in the land where he was born.” They asked, “Messenger of Allah, should we not tell the people this?” He replied, “In Paradise there are a hundred ranks which Allah has prepared for those who strive in His cause. The distance between each two ranks is like the distance between heaven and earth. When you ask Allah, ask Him for al-Firdaws, for it is the central and highest part of Paradise. Above it is the Throne of the Most Merciful, and from it flow the rivers of Paradise.”
They said: Allah, glorified and exalted is He, described the first distinction as a single rank, whereas here He describes it as ranks, forgiveness and mercy. This indicates that the one who strives is superior to those without disabilities.
Such is the presentation and explanation of this view.
Yet it remains to be said: If those who strive are superior to those who remain behind without qualification, it follows that no one who strives is equal to anyone who remains behind. There would then be no point in qualifying those who remain behind as being without disabilities, since those who strive would likewise be unequal to those who remain behind because of disabilities.
Moreover, those mentioned in the verse as remaining behind, over whom others are given preference, are those without disabilities—not those who remain behind because of disabilities. The verse does not state the ruling concerning the latter; rather, it excludes them and makes clear that the preference is over others. Thus, the definite article in “those who remain behind” refers to those already mentioned: those without disabilities, not those afflicted with them.
Furthermore, a fighter who remains behind because of a compelling necessity that prevents him from striving receives the same reward as one who strives. It is authentically established that the Prophet ﷺ said:
“When a servant falls ill or travels, the deeds he used to perform while healthy and resident are recorded for him.”
He ﷺ also said, “There are people in Medina who, whenever