Likewise, when the soul is leaving the body they again fall into three groups. Allah—exalted is He—described their condition on the Day of Resurrection in Sūrat al-Wāqiʿah, and at the close of the sūrah He summed up their state at the moment of death, saying:

“Then why, when the soul reaches the throat, while you are looking on—yet We are nearer to him than you, though you do not see—and why, if you are not to be held to account, do you not bring the soul back, if you are truthful? Now, if the dying person is one of al-muqarrabīn (those brought near), then ease, fragrance, and a Garden of bliss await him. And if he is one of the people of the right, then ‘Peace be upon you; you are of the people of the right.’ But if he is among the deniers, the misguided, then his welcome is scalding water and roasting in Hellfire.” (Q 56:83-94)

The al-muqarrabūn (those brought near) are the forerunners who outstrip others in every kind of goodness. The people of the right—aṣḥāb al-yamīn—receive the greeting of peace. As for the deniers, the misguided, these are the people of the left—Allah forbid; they are the ones who disbelieved and strayed. May Allah protect us from their fate.

The author, may Allah have mercy on him, alludes in these verses to the fact that the people of the right enjoy lasting merits both in this world and in the Hereafter. God willing, the remainder of the discussion will follow.