As-Sirāt [islamic bridge to heaven]

 As-Sirāt [islamic bridge to heaven]

I'm talking about a challenge after death that most Muslims believe in because according to Sunni Islam it is required to believe in it and in Shia Islam it is one of the basic tenets of the faith. 

The Sirat or the bridge According to Islam specifically according to a very insane and long hadith After death, there will be a bridge that everyone has to walk on in order to go to heaven, I'm sorry. A bridge that every Muslim has to walk on Non-muslims all go to hell directly...

What are you even thinking? 

Sahih Bukhari [9.93.532]

Narrated Anas:

The Prophet said, "The believers will be kept (waiting) on the Day of Resurrection so long that they will become worried and say, "Let us ask somebody to intercede far us with our Lord so that He may relieve us from our place.

Then they will go to Adam and say, 'You are Adam, the father of the people. Allah created you with His Own Hand and made you reside in His Paradise and ordered His angels to prostrate before you, and taught you the names of all things will you intercede for us with your Lord so that He may relieve us from this place of ours? Adam will say, 'I am not fit for this undertaking.' He will mention his mistakes he had committed, i.e., his eating off the tree though he had been forbidden to do so. He will add, 'Go to Noah, the first prophet sent by Allah to the people of the Earth.' The people will go to Noah who will say, 'I am not fit for this undertaking' He will mention his mistake which he had done, i.e., his asking his Lord without knowledge.' He will say (to them), 'Go to Abraham, Khalil Ar-Rahman.' They will go to Abraham who will say, 'I am not fit for this undertaking. He would mention three words by which he told a lie, and say (to them). 'Go to Moses, a slave whom Allah gave the Torah and spoke to, directly and brought near Him, for conversation.'

They will go to Moses who will say, 'I am not fit for this undertaking. He will mention his mistake he made, i.e., killing a person, and will say (to them), 'Go to Jesus, Allah's slave and His Apostle, and a soul created by Him and His Word.' (Be: And it was.) They will go to Jesus who will say, 'I am not fit for this undertaking but you'd better go to Muhammad the slave whose past and future sins have been forgiven by Allah.' So they will come to me, and I will ask my Lord's permission to enter His House and then I will be permitted. When I see Him I will fall down in prostration before Him, and He will leave me (in prostration) as long as He will, and then He will say, 'O Muhammad, lift up your head and speak, for you will be listened to, and intercede, for your intercession will be accepted, and ask (for anything) for it will be granted:' Then I will raise my head and glorify my Lord with certain praises which He has taught me. Allah will put a limit for me (to intercede for a certain type of people) I will take them out and make them enter Paradise." (Qatada said: I heard Anas saying that), the Prophet said, "I will go out and take them out of Hell (Fire) and let them enter Paradise, and then I will return and ask my Lord for permission to enter His House and I will be permitted.

When I will see Him I will fall down in prostration before Him and He will leave me in prostration as long as He will let me (in that state), and then He will say, 'O Muhammad, raise your head and speak, for you will be listened to, and intercede, for your intercession will be accepted, and ask, your request will be granted.' " The Prophet added, "So I will raise my head and glorify and praise Him as He has taught me. Then I will intercede and He will put a limit for me (to intercede for a certain type of people). I will take them out and let them enter Paradise." (Qatada added: I heard Anas saying that) the Prophet said, 'I will go out and take them out of Hell (Fire) and let them enter Paradise, and I will return for the third time and will ask my Lord for permission to enter His house, and I will be allowed to enter.

When I see Him, I will fall down in prostration before Him, and will remain in prostration as long as He will, and then He will say, 'Raise your head, O Muhammad, and speak, for you will be listened to, and intercede, for your intercession will be accepted, and ask, for your request will be granted.' So I will raise my head and praise Allah as He has taught me and then I will intercede and He will put a limit for me (to intercede for a certain type of people). I will take them out and let them enter Paradise." (Qatada said: I heard Anas saying that) the Prophet said, "So I will go out and take them out of Hell (Fire) and let them enter Paradise, till none will remain in the Fire except those whom Quran will imprison (i.e., those who are destined for eternal life in the fire)." The narrator then recited the Verse:-- "It may be that your Lord will raise you to a Station of Praise and Glory.' (17.79) The narrator added: This is the Station of Praise and Glory which Allah has promised to your Prophet.

The Quran doesn't say very much about this bridge except making a few implications But the hadith explained us in very many details. How this bridge is into, what it is According to narrations by Muhammad: After death every one will gather for the judgment Allah will first deal with the Non-muslims such as Jews and Christians and will send them directly to hell after mocking them a bit "They will say, "we want water," then it will be said to them, "drink," and they will fall down in hell instead." 

Allah is very funny as you can see The remaining ones, the Muslims will then have a bridge laid down in front of them. Under the bridge is hell with its fire almost reaching the bridge and in front of them is the path to paradise where Allah waits for his pure piousness. Muslims to pass the bridge, but not every Muslim will make it over the bridge. A lot of people who believe in Allah and Muhammad will also go to hell temporarily. 

The bridge is described by Muhammad as slippery bridge on which there are clamps and hooks or thorns. Based on their good deeds and sins Some Muslims will cross the bridge as quickly as the wink of an eye Some as fast as a lightning Some like a strong wind Like fast horses and others like camels Some will be very slow and the last ones will be dragged all over the bridge. 

There are thorns that attack those who pass the bridge and some will be harmed while passing the bridge. (It's quite weird that you would be physically harmed after death but whatever) And others won't make it and will fall down into hell for their mischievous behaviors in life The thorns will of course have the intelligence to tell Which one is a sinner and which one is not a sinner. 

That's no surprise, that-that's nothing surprising Okay, even hands can speak in the Islamic afterlife. 

Quran [36.65]

ٱلۡيَوۡمَ نَخۡتِمُ عَلَىٰٓ أَفۡوَٲهِهِمۡ وَتُكَلِّمُنَآ أَيۡدِيہِمۡ وَتَشۡہَدُ أَرۡجُلُهُم بِمَا كَانُواْ يَكۡسِبُونَ 

That Day, We will seal over their mouths, and their hands will speak to Us, and their feet will testify about what they used to earn.

The bridge is also narrower than hair and sharper than a sword; those Muslims who fall into Hell will be taken out of hell afterwards by Allah for the sake of Mohammed. 

I don't know what the point of throwing them into hell is in the first place But I said Allah is quite funny and he loves mockery. Even though you submitted your life to Allah anyway After this weird ritual is over and all sinning Muslims have suffered enough By getting their bodies burned over and over again. The Muslims will be in paradise and the non-muslims will burn in hell for all eternity. 

It's all funny and interesting but about all of this there is actually something that is much much more funny and interesting. Ok, actually two things The concept of the bridge is not part of Christianity or Judaism Which is the reason why Christians and Jews are surprised by hearing about this Considering that this bridge is really an essential part of belief and afterlife. If Allah is the same God of the Bible, Then why was this bridge never introduced in the Bible to Christians and Jews? 

Ok. Muslims claim that the Bible was falsified by Jews and Christians But even if that was true, what would be the point of removing this bridge from the faith? 

I mean, it doesn't harm their faith. It doesn't benefit them in any way. It makes no sense. Why would they do that? 

There is no explanation. That makes sense and I'm really clear right now Point two, and this is much more interesting. It is not found in Christianity and Judaism but it is found in a religion that Islam mysteriously took many things from Zoroastrianism. This Ancient Persian religion has also a bridge called The Chinvat bridge Also called Bridge of the Recruiter or Bridge of Judgment. 

Although the Zoroastrian belief in this bridge is far more sophisticated. It has clear similarities to the Islamic bridge. It is a bridge to heaven and it is accompanied by blazing fire. Every soul has to go over it. The bridge will appear good and easy to those who had good thoughts, words and deeds in life and it will appear narrow and scary to those who did evil in life. The wicked ones among people will be taken by a demon and put into a place where they will be punished The good ones will pass it. They will be taken by a good spirit and go to a good place and afterward they meet their God or they are the highest spirit Ahura Mazda. 

As you can see there are only some differences like; everyone walks on the bridge That spirits pick you up from there and that the Zoroastrian story doesn't have some annoying forms, Other than that the story sounds scarily similar. It almost looks like Mohammed copied…? 

No, he wouldn't do that. Would he no no, no, he wouldn't do that. Now an Islamic apologist would explain this by saying that Zoroastrianism apparently had some right and good teachings. That was probably inspired by Allah at some point, But seriously? 

A semi polytheistic religion has the right answer to something Islamic and the Abrahamic religions don't have the answer at all? 

They don't even know of that? 

From ex Muslim perspective. It looks very much like Muhammad taking something from non Abrahamic beliefs inserting them in Islam and then selling them as Abrahamic and Islamic You can try really hard and explain why this bridge never appeared among Christians and Jews and in the Bible But it would be just that trying hard then you could go on and try to explain 

Why is Zoroastrianism a religion much much older than Islam has the exact same teaching? 

You could try really hard, but you would also look very embarrassed. But then again How does the bridge make sense at all? 

If Islam is a religion where life is the test and death is the end Why would Allah even bother putting a bridge there and playing with Muslims? 

What's the point? 

There is nothing left to learn. Nothing left to test, you are dead already. Therefore I will just leave this here as Islamic paganism...