and you shall come upon the Messenger’s Basin (1) when you are thirstier—by Allah—than any drinker I have ever seen (2). By the life of your Lord, no one among you will stretch out his hand without a goblet being set upon it, cleansing him from excrement (3), urine, and every trace of defilement. The sun and the moon will be held back, and you will see neither of them.”
I said, “Messenger of Allah, with what will we see?”
He replied, “With sight like the eyesight you possess at this very moment. That will be at the rising of the sun on a day when the earth is radiant and the mountains face it.”
I said, “Messenger of Allah, how will we be recompensed for our misdeeds and our good deeds?”
He answered, “A good deed will be rewarded tenfold, and an evil deed onefold—unless He pardons.”
I said, “Messenger of Allah, what is Paradise, and what is Hell?”
He said, “By the life of your Lord, Hell has seven gates; between any two of its gates a mounted rider would travel seventy years. Paradise has eight gates; between any two of them a mounted rider would travel seventy years.”
I said, “Messenger of Allah, what sights will we behold of Paradise?”
He said, “Rivers of clarified honey; rivers of wine from a cup that brings neither headache nor regret; rivers of milk whose taste never changes; water that never stagnates; and fruits—by the life of your Lord, the like of which you do not know—together with what is even better, and spouses who are pure.”
I asked, “Messenger of Allah, shall we have wives there—will they be righteous?”
He said, “The righteous women are for the righteous men. You will enjoy them as you enjoyed pleasure in this world, and they will enjoy you, but there will be no procreation.”
Laqit said, “I asked, ‘Messenger of Allah, what is the furthest rank we shall attain and the final limit we shall reach?’ The Prophet ﷺ did not answer. I then said, ‘Messenger of Allah, to what do you bind me in allegiance?’ The Messenger of Allah ﷺ extended his hand and said, ‘To establish the prayer, pay the zakat, abandon the idolater (4), and never associate anything with Allah.’
“I said, ‘Shall we have what lies between East and West?’ The Prophet ﷺ withdrew his hand, spread out his fingers, and thought I was stipulating something he would not grant me. I said, ‘We may settle wherever we wish therein, and no one bears the burden of another’s offence.’ He stretched out his hand and said, ‘That is yours: settle wherever you wish, and no one shall be answerable for you but yourself.’
“We departed, and he said, ‘By the life of your Lord, these two are among the most God-fearing of people, both in this world and the next.’ Kaʿb ibn al-Khudariyyah, a man of Banu Bakr ibn Kilab, asked, ‘Who are they, Messenger of Allah?’ He replied, ‘The Banu al-Muntafiq are the people of that.’
“We departed again, and I turned to him and asked, ‘Messenger of Allah, does anyone who died in the Age of Ignorance have any merit?’ A man from among the common (5) Quraysh exclaimed, ‘By Allah, your father al-Muntafiq is in the Fire!’
“It was as though a burning heat spread between my skin, my face, and my flesh because of what he said about my father in front of the people. I was about to say, ‘And your father too, Messenger of Allah!’ but a nobler answer occurred to me, so I said, ‘Messenger of Allah—and your family?’ He said, ‘And my family, by Allah, there is no grave upon which you have passed…’