From the Twenty-Sixth Discourse—page 572-575
in Irshad: Wisdom of a Sufi Master, by Sheikh Muzaffer Ozak Al-Jerrahi, trans. Muhtar Holland. An Ashki Book of Amity House, Warwick: 1988.
WHEN THE TRUMPET SHALL SOUND…
Just as we shall experience our individual resurrection, the universal Resurrection must surely come. Everyone will be called to account and asked about the good and evil he has done. One day the Trumpet will be blown:
On the day the Trumpet is blown, and terror seizes those in the heavens and those on earth, except for whom Allāh wills, and all come humbly unto Him. [27:87]
The force of the Trumpet blast will cause an earthquake unlike any the world has ever known: the Earthquake of the Resurrection. People will reel, bewildered and perplexed. Pregnant women will abort and the earth will turn inside out. Mothers will throw their suckling infants to the ground. The horror of that Day will turn black hair while and youngsters into old men. Mothers and fathers will forget their own children. Children will forget their parents. Each person will be preoccupied with himself to the exclusion of all else.
That time will surely come. We must not let the distractions of worldly life make us forgetful of Allāh, Exalted is He, and the Day of Reckoning.
When the Trumpet has blown, Heaven and all therein—sun, moon, stars and earth—all will be destroyed. All creatures will die. The sole survivors will be Gabriel, Michael, Isrāfīl, ‘Azrā’īl, and the Bearers of the Throne. Obedient to Allāh, the Angel of Death will then take the souls of other angels. The Glorious and Exalted Lord will ask him if no living being remains and ‘Azra’īl will say: “O Lord, You know. Nothing is hidden from You. Only this poor impotent servant of Yours remains.”
Allāh, who is Ever-Living and will never die, will say: “Did you not hear My words:
[ Arabic ]
Every soul shall taste death. [3:185]
“Now it is your turn. Take your own soul.” When he receives this order, the Angel will go to a station midway between Paradise and Hell. There, as he is taking his own soul, he will utter such a cry as would scare the life out of all creatures had there been any still alive.
While uttering this cry, ‘Azrā’īl will say: “If I had known that death was so painful, violent and bitter, I would have gone gently when taking away the souls of believers.” Ultimately, ‘Azrā’il will die and no being will remain except Allāh, Exalted is He. The world will be left desolate for forty years and the Ever-lasting Lord will say to it: “O vile world, where are your Pharaohs and Nimrods with their claims to divinity? Where are those deviants who boasted: ‘I am king and sovereignty is mine?’ Where now are those denying traitors? Where are the armies, goods, thrones and palaces in which they placed their trust? Where are those who worshipped others instead of Me, although they consumed My substance? Where are those who refused to believe in Me? Where are those who said: ‘I am your Lord most high,’ and denied the Resurrection? Look, there is no one to give an answer. Whose is the kingdom, I wonder: yours or Mine? I created you from a drop of sperm. With My Almighty brush, I painted you in your mother’s womb. You knew neither your origin nor your destiny, yet you behaved ungratefully as if you would never die. Where are you now: to whom do all things belong?
…To Allāh, the One, the Triumphant.” [40:16]
After this, the Exalted One will send a barren wind to level the whole earth. Neither mountain nor valley will remain; all will be flattened out:
You will see there neither curve nor ruggedness. [20:107]
Finally, Allāh will command the sky to rain and for forty days the rain of life will fall. The waters will rise to a height of twelve cubits and human bodies will sprout from the ground like plants. All these bodies will be complete with limbs and organs like those in the present world.
He will first bring to life the angels who are the Bearers of the Throne, then Isrāfīl, then Michael, then ‘Azrā’īl, and then Gabriel. These four angels He will send to Paradise, saying: “O My angels, the first to be resurrected is My Muhammad. I shall first resurrect my Beloved. Go to Paradiseand fetch the heavenly steed My Beloved shall ride, the belt with which he shall be girded, the robes he shall wear and the crown that shall be set upon his head.”
Ridwān, the Angel of Paradise, will receive his orders and a heavenly steed, a crown, a celestial robe and the Banner of Praise will be handed over to Gabriel.
Gabriel will halt midway between Heaven and earth, asking: “Earth, where is the tomb of Muhammad, on him be peace:” The Earth will reply: “I swear by Allāh who has sent you, that I do not know. The wind that blew has scattered me to pieces so I cannot tell where it may be.”
At that moment, Allāh will raise a beam of light from the tomb of the noble Glory of the Universe. When that light reaches heaven it will flood the whole cosmos. Gabriel will descend, weeping, toward that light and when the angels ask him the reason for his tears, he will say: “How could I do otherwise than weep? The Messenger will now ask me about his Community. What shall I tell him?”
Just as he arrives, with these thoughts in mind, at the blessed resting place of our Master, the tomb of Muhammad will shudder and burst asunder. Our Master will emerge, shaking the dust from his blessed head, and look about him to his right and left. Failing to see any building or habitation on the face of the earth, he will turn to Gabriel, Michael, Isrāfīl and ‘Azrā’īl, as they stand in line before him, and will say: “O Gabriel, what day is it today?”
“O Messenger of Allāh, Gabriel will reply, “today is the day of remorse. Today is the day of regret. Today is the day of Resurrection. Today is the Day of Intercession.”
Our blessed Master will then inquire: “Where is my Community? Can you have come here to me and left them on the brink of Hell?” Receiving the reply: “O Messenger of Allāh, I have brought you a heavenly steed, a robe of honor, a girdle and a standard from Paradise.” Our blessed Master will reply: “I want neither steed nor robe nor girdle nor crown. Only my Community … Only my Community … Give me news of my Community, O Gabriel.”
When the Messenger of Allāh hears that he is the first to be gathered up, he will set the blessed crown upon his head, don the robe of Paradise, gird himself with the belt and mount the heavenly steed, as he asks Gabriel: “My brother Gabriel, where is my Friend of the Cave? Where are my Companions and Helpers? Where are Abu Bākr, ‘Umar, ‘Uthmān and ‘Alī?
When His refined Beloved expresses his wish and desire, the Lord of Glory will bring these four Companions to life and these noble beings will also be provided with heavenly steeds and robes of Paradise. Wearing these robes, they will ride their steeds into the presence of the Messenger. Dismounting form his celestial steed, our blessed Master will fall in prostration, weeping as he beseeches his Lord and pleads: “My Community … my Community.”
The All-Glorious Lord, unable to resist the entreaty from his refined Beloved, will command Isrāfīl to blow upon the Trumpet once again:
Then another blast will be blown, at which they will get up and look around. [39:68]
When Isrāfīl blows this second blast of the Trumpet, the souls of mankind will buzz about like bees between Heaven and earth and each soul will enter its own body. All divine creatures will arise and be driven to the Place of Resurrection. Mankind will rise from the tomb in three groups: to give account to Allāh, Exalted is He.
1: The first group will arise from their graves to find heavenly steeds awaiting them. They will don the celestial robes sent from Paradise at God’s command and will rejoice in heavenly food provided for them. To add to their happiness they will receive the congratulations of the angels at their service. With such honor and dignity, they will be ushered to the Place of Resurrection to find themselves in the shade of the Throne, beneath the Banner of Praise and close to the Prince of the Universe.
Of these the angels will say: “These worthy beings are the righteous ones who were the saints of Allāh during their lives on earth. For them there is neither fear nor sadness. Although the Plain of ‘Arasāt is a fearful place, they shall know no fear. Although the Place of Resurrection is a place of remorse and lamentation, they shall neither grieve nor lament. Unlike the rest, they will neither beat their breasts nor groan and sigh, for they have been granted the approval of the all Merciful and have attained eternal bliss.”
2: The second group will consist of sinful Muslims who will arise naked from their tombs and will make their way barefoot, hungry and thirsty, to the Place of Resurrection.
3: The third group will be made up of the unbelievers and the dissolute. Angels with whips of fire will drive them forcibly to the Place of Resurrection, as they drag their faces along the ground like serpents. These treacherous, obdurate, wrongful and arrogant prodigals were stubborn in their unbelief, closed their eyes to the Word of God, rejected all good advice, persecuted the believers and reviled them. Now they will crawl beneath the lash to the Place of Resurrection. The lackeys that followed them will suffer the same treatment and undergo the same torment…