he may dream that someone is striking him and wake with pain in his body. He may also dream that he has been fed something delicious and wake with its taste in his mouth. This does occur. If, then, a sleeping person experiences bliss and torment in both soul and body, while the person beside him feels none of it—so much so that the sleeper may cry out from intense pain or fright, and someone awake hears his cries—how can the state of a person in the grave be denied? The sleeper may even speak, reciting the Quran, remembering Allah, or answering someone. A person who is awake hears this, although the sleeper’s eyes are closed and he would not hear if addressed. Yet the Messenger, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, told us that the person in the grave hears the sound of their sandals.

He also said:

“You hear what I say no better than they do.”

The heart resembles the grave. Thus, when he missed the afternoon prayer on the day of the Battle of the Trench, he said, may Allah bless him and grant him peace:

“May Allah fill their insides and their graves with fire.”

In another wording:

“their hearts and their graves with fire.”

Allah distinguished between the two in His words:

“what is in the graves is scattered forth”

“and what is within the breasts is brought to light.”

This analogy makes the matter easier to understand and establishes its possibility.

It must not be said that the bliss and torment experienced by the dead are like those experienced by a sleeper in his dreams. Rather, that bliss and torment are more complete, more intense, and more perfect. They are real bliss and real torment. This example is cited only to explain how this is possible when a questioner says, “The dead person does not move in his grave, and the soil does not change,” or something similar. This matter nevertheless calls for a lengthy discussion and an explanation beyond the scope of this sheet. Allah knows best. May Allah bless Muhammad, his family, and his Companions, and grant them peace.