*Riyadh as-Salihin* (The Meadows of the Righteous) from the Words of the Master of the Messengers, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.
Chapter: Clarification of What Allah Has Prepared for the Believers in Paradise.
On the authority of Ibn Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him), who said:
The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said:
"Indeed, I know the last of the people of the Fire to be brought out of it,
and the last of the people of Paradise to enter Paradise:
It is a man who emerges from the Fire crawling.
Allah, Mighty and Majestic is He, will say to him:
'Go and enter Paradise.'
So he comes to it,
but it is made to appear to him as though it were full.
He returns and says:
'O Lord, I found it full.'
Allah, Mighty and Majestic is He, will say to him:
'Go and enter Paradise.'
So he comes to it,
but it is made to appear to him as though it were full.
He returns and says:
'O Lord, I found it full.'
Allah, Mighty and Majestic is He, will say to him:
'Go and enter Paradise,
for indeed you shall have the equivalent of the world and ten times as much,'
or 'Indeed, you shall have ten times the equivalent of the world.'
He will say:
'Are You mocking me,
or laughing at me, while You are the Sovereign?'"
He (Ibn Mas'ud) said:
"And I certainly saw the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) laugh
until his molar teeth were visible.
And he used to say:
'That is the lowest of the people of Paradise in status.'"
Agreed upon [by al-Bukhari and Muslim].
*Habwan* means crawling.
*Nawajidhu-hu* means his molars.
Among the benefits of the hadith:
It is human nature for the son of Adam to breach promises;
that is why this man is astonished by the promise of the Lord of the Worlds,
thinking that He is mocking him
or breaking His promise—
far exalted is He above that!
For He never fails in His promise.
When He promises, He fulfills it,
and when He threatens punishment, He pardons.
The lowest status of the people of Paradise
is ten times the domain and bliss of the entire world.
On the authority of Abu Musa (may Allah be pleased with him),
that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said:
"Indeed, for the believer in Paradise there is a tent
made of a single hollowed pearl,
its height extending sixty miles into the sky.
Within it, the believer has households
whom he visits and revolves among,
yet they cannot see one another."
Agreed upon.
A mile (*al-mil*)
is six thousand cubits.
Among the benefits of the hadith:
A demonstration of the magnitude of Almighty Allah's creation in Paradise,
so that the believers may enjoy everlasting bliss.
On the authority of Abu Sa'id al-Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him),
from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), who said:
"Indeed, in Paradise there is a tree
beneath whose shade a rider mounted on a swift, well-bred, trained horse
travels for a hundred years without crossing it."
Agreed upon.
And its transmission in the two *Sahihs* also includes
a narration on the authority of Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him), who said:
"A rider travels in its shade for a hundred years without crossing it."
*Al-jawad* means horse.
*Al-mudhammar* (well-trained/conditioned horse)
refers to a horse that is fed until it grows plump and strong,
then its fodder is reduced to bare sustenance,
and it is placed inside an enclosure
and covered with blankets until it heats up and sweats,
so that when its sweat dries and its excess flesh is shed,
it becomes powerful at running.
"Without crossing it"
means he does not reach the furthest extent of its sprawling branches.
Among the benefits of the hadith:
A demonstration of the immense size of the trees and shade in Paradise,
which points to His supreme power and bounty toward His God-fearing servants,
as He has granted them the Abode of Honor as an inheritance,
where they delight in its bliss, trees, and extended shade.
On the authority of Abu Sa'id al-Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him),
from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), who said:
"Indeed, the people of Paradise will look up at the dwellers of the high chambers above them,
just as you look up at a brilliant, distant star setting on the horizon in the east or the west,
because of the difference in superiority between them."
They said, "O Messenger of Allah,
are those the dwellings of the Prophets, which no one else can attain?"
He said:
"Nay, by Him in Whose Hand is my soul!
They are men who believed in Allah and affirmed the truth of the Messengers."
Agreed upon.
*Yatara'awna*
means they look up and observe.
*Al-ghabir*
means that which is receding or far off on the horizon.
Among the benefits of the hadith:
The people of Paradise vary in status according to their degrees in deeds and virtue.
Whoever affirms the truth of the Messengers and truly believes in them shall attain their lofty stations.
On the authority of Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him),
that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said:
"The space of the bow-length in Paradise is better than everything over which the sun rises or sets."
Agreed upon.
*Qabu qawsin* (the space of a bow-length)
means the distance between the grip and the curved end of the bow,
and every bow has two such spans.
Among the benefits of the hadith:
Magnifying the eternal bliss of Paradise
and deeming the worldly life and its contents insignificant,
for the bliss of Paradise is everlasting and uninterrupted,
while the enjoyments of the world are meager, trivial, and fleeting.
On the authority of Anas (may Allah be pleased with him),
that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said:
"Indeed, in Paradise there is a market which they will visit every Friday,
whereupon the northern wind will blow
and shower upon their faces and garments,
causing them to increase in beauty and loveliness.
They will then return to their families having increased in beauty and loveliness,
and their families will say to them:
'By Allah, you have increased in beauty and loveliness!'
And they will reply:
'And you, by Allah, have also increased in beauty and loveliness after us!'"
Narrated by Muslim.
"Indeed, in Paradise there is a market"
means a gathering place in Paradise where they assemble,
just as people gather in markets in this world.
"Will blow" (*fa-tahubbu*) means it will stir up.
"The northern wind" (*rih ash-shamal*)
is the wind that blows from behind the Qiblah.
It was specifically mentioned
because the Arabs used to anticipate rainbearing northern clouds,
which brought goodness and rain.
Among the benefits of the hadith:
Clarification that the people of Paradise will continuously increase in beauty and loveliness.
*Riyadh as-Salihin* (The Meadows of the Righteous).