Three Grades of Heaven and Hell — Essence of Islam Vol. 2

14 Sep, 2026 Essence of Islam 0

Essence of Islam Book Cover by Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (AS)

Introduction

In this discourse from Essence of Islam (Volume 2), Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (AS), the Promised Messiah and Mahdi, expounds upon Three Grades of Heaven and Hell, presenting profound spiritual insights and scriptural verities.

Book Series: Essence of Islam (Volume 2)
Author: Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad of Qadian (AS)
Section: Part 17: Heaven and Hell
Navigation: Book Table of Contents | « Previous: He Who Devotes His Life to the Cause of God Is a Martyr | Next: Only the Creator Can Enjoin the Purpose of Life »

Heaven and hell have three grades. The first grade, which is imperfect, begins when a person departing from this world enters his grave. This grade has been metaphorically described in the Ahadith in several ways. One way is that for a righteous person a window is opened in the grave towards heaven through which he observes the splendour of heaven and enjoys its breezes. The size of this window corresponds to the grade of the faith or actions of the dead person. It is also recorded that those who leave the world in a condition in which they are wholly lost in God and who lay down their lives in the cause of the Beloved like the martyrs and Siddiqs, who are even ahead of the martyrs, for them it is not merely a window that is opened into heaven, but they enter heaven with the whole of their beings and faculties. Nevertheless, they do not enjoy the delights of heaven to a perfect degree before the Day of Judgement. In the same way, for the dead body of a wicked person a window is opened in the grave towards hell through which a consuming vapour arrives in the grave from hell and that wicked soul burns all the time in its flames. But for those who depart from the world in such condition that, on account of their persistent disobedience, they are wholly lost in Satan and in obedience to him they cut asunder altogether from God, it is not only a window that is opened for them after their death towards hell, they are cast into hell with their whole being and all faculties, as God has said: 232

Nevertheless, they are not subjected to the full torment of hell before the Day of Judgement.
There is a second stage of entry into heaven and hell which should be called the intermediate stage, which is attained after the resurrection, but before entry into the great heaven or the great hell. In this grade the faculties are sharpened and the manifestation of God’s mercy or His wrath is observed in a perfect way, and the delights of heaven or the torments of hell are felt more strongly on account of the nearness of the great heaven or the great hell, as God the Glorious, has said: 233 234

In this second grade also people are not equal. There are those of a high grade who are accompanied by heavenly 232 ‘Because of their sins they were drowned and made to enter Fire.’—Nuh, 71:26 [Publisher]
233 ‘And Heaven shall be brought near to the righteous; and Hell shall be opened to those who have gone astray.’—Al-Shu‘ara’, 26:91-92 [Publisher] 234 ‘On that day some faces will be bright, laughing, joyous! and some faces, on that day, will have dust upon them, darkness will cover them. Those are the ones that disbelieved and were wicked.’— ‘Abasa, 80:39-43 [Publisher] lights. Allah the Glorious refers to them in the verse: 235

In the same way, there are great disbelievers in whose hearts a fire is kindled before they enter completely into hell, as Allah the Glorious says: 236

Above this second grade is a third grade, which is the last of the grades which people will enter after the Day of Judgement and will enjoy or suffer in a complete and perfect manner. In these three grades a person is in a type of heaven or hell, and in none of these grades is he excluded from heaven or hell. From one grade he progresses into another. One of the ways of such progress is that, for instance, a person dies in a low condition of faith and action and a small hole is made for him towards heaven as his capacity for the manifestation of heaven is limited to that much. Thereafter, if he leaves behind righteous progeny, who supplicate earnestly for his forgiveness and for that purpose give alms to the poor or, if he had love for a man of God who supplicates earnestly for his forgiveness, or he has left behind him some project which is of public benefit, then by the blessing of these good actions that are carried on his behalf, the window that is opened for him towards heaven widens daily and this process is accelerated by the Divine pronouncement: My mercy outruns My wrath; till the window becomes a wide gate 235 ‘Their light will run before them and on their right hands.’—AlTahrim, 66:9 [Publisher] 236 ‘It is Allah’s kindled fire which leaps at hearts.’—Al-Humazah, 104:7-8 [Publisher] and he enters heaven like the martyrs and Siddiqs….
God Almighty has made so much provision for the widening of this window that it appears clear that His purpose is that if anyone travels towards Him with a particle of faith and action that particle will be constantly nurtured. If by any chance all sources of good that should reach a dead person from this world are unavailable, at least this source remains available that God Almighty has imperatively commanded all believers and pious people and martyrs and Siddiqs that they should most sincerely supplicate for the forgiveness of those of their brethren who have passed on from this world. It is thus obvious that a supplication that is made by a host of believers will not be in vain, but will work daily to widen the window that was opened towards heaven for the sinful believers who had died. These supplications have so far widened numberless windows so that countless persons have entered paradise who were bestowed in the early days only a small window for the contemplation of heaven. In this age some of the Muslims are under the misconception that only the martyrs will enter heaven immediately after death and that all other believers, including Prophets and Messengers, will remain outside heaven till the Day of Judgement and that only a window will be opened for them towards heaven. They have not considered that all Prophets and Siddiqs are spiritually superior to martyrs and that being kept away from paradise is a type of torment which cannot be contemplated for those who have been forgiven. Can one concerning whom God Almighty has said: 237

remain behind the martyrs in good fortune and the achievement of his purpose? It is a pity that through their lack of intelligence, these people have reversed the law. They conceive that the first entrants into heaven will be the martyrs and that the turn of the Prophets and Siddiqs would arrive after countless years. These people are guilty of great disrespect and can derive no benefit from vain excuses. Everyone can understand that those who are foremost in faith and action should be the first to enter heaven and not that they should only have a window opened for them like those who are weak of faith, and that the martyrs should have access to all the fruits of heaven as soon as they die. If entry into heaven depends upon perfect faith, perfect sincerity and perfect devotion, then there is no one who is ahead of the Prophets and Siddiqs, whose whole life is so devoted to God Almighty that they are like the dead and yearn that they should be martyred in the cause of Allah, and be revived and be martyred again, and be revived and be martyred again.
It is thus clear that there is such great provision for entry into heaven that almost all believers will enter it completely before the Day of Judgement and that the Day of Judgement will not expel them from heaven, but will bring it even nearer. From the illustration of the window, it should be realized how heaven is brought near to the grave. This does not mean that heaven is brought physically close to the grave. It is brought spiritually near. In this way, the dwellers of paradise will be spiritually present in the Day of Judgement and will also be in 237 ‘Some of them He exalted by degrees of rank.’—Al-Baqarah, 2:254 [Publisher]
[Izala-e-Auham, Ruhani Khaza’in, vol. 3, pp. 282-286]
[Essence of Islam, Vol. 2, p. 455]

461 THE PURPOSE OF CREATION Though different people, on account of their shortsightedness or lack of courage, appoint various types of objectives for their lives and stop short at worldly purposes and desires, yet the purpose that God Almighty has specified in His Holy Word is: 238

I have created jinn and men so that they should recognize and worship Me. According to this verse the true purpose of human life is the worship and understanding of God Almighty and devotion to Him.
[Essence of Islam, Vol. 2]
[Essence of Islam, Vol. 2, p. 460]

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Introduction