Part 25

And there are two gardens whose utensils and contents are made of silver, and two other gardens whose utensils and contents are made of such-and-such (gold). And nothing will prevent the people who dwell in the Garden of Eden from seeing their Lord except the Veil of Majesty over His Face."89 It has been related by Abu Hurairah and A'isha "Jibril came to the Prophet and said, 'O Messenger of Allah! Khadija is just coming with a bowl of soup (or food or drink) for you. When she comes to you, give her greetings of peace from her Lord and from me, and give her the good news of a palace of jewels in the Garden, where there will be neither any noise nor any tiredness."90 It has been related by Anas that the Prophet said, "I dreamt that I entered the Garden and in front of me was a palace of gold. I asked, 'Whose palace is this?' They (the angels) replied, 'It is for a man of the Quraysh.' I thought it might be me, so I asked, 'Who is he?' The angels replied, 'It is Umar ibn al-Khattab.'"91 The Food of the People of Paradise 85 al-Bukhari, 6/ 11; Muslim, 13 / 28; Al-Tirmidhi, 10 / 8; Ibn Majah, 4331. 86 Ibid. 87 al-Bukhari, 11 /416; Muslim, 17/169; Al-Tirmidhi, 10 / 21. 88 al-Bukhari, 6/318; Muslim, 17/175; Al-Tirmidhi, 10/ 6. 89 Transmitted by al-Bukhari and Muslim. 90 al-Bukhari, 7/133; Muslim, 15/199. 91 al-Bukhari, 6/318; Muslim, 15/163. Allah says: ( And any fruit they specify and any bird-meat they desire. ) (56: 23-24) As for the fruits of Paradise, Allah says: ( When they are given fruit there as provision, they will say, 'This is what we were given before.' But they were only given a simulation of it. ) (56: 23-24) In another verse, Allah says: ( Its shading branches will droop down over them, its ripe fruit hanging ready to be picked. ) (76: 14) It has been related by Anas Ibn Malik, "When the Messenger of Allah was asked what AlKawthar is, he replied, 'It is a river (in the Garden) which Allah has given me, whiter than milk and sweeter than honey, with birds whose necks are like the necks of sacrificial camels.' Umar remarked, 'They must have a pleasant life,' and the Messenger of Allah replied, 'Those who eat them have an even more pleasant life.'"92 It has been related by Jabir that the Prophet said, "The people of the Garden eat and drink but do not have to spit, or pass water, or defecate, or deal with catarrh. Someone asked, 'Then what happens to the food?' and he replied, 'They just burp and perspire — and their perspiration smells like musk and they glorify and praise Allah as easily as you breathe.'"93 Thawban , the freed slave of the Messenger of Allah said, "While I was standing next to the Messenger of Allah one of the rabbis of the Jews came and started asking the Prophet some questions. Among them was, 'Who will be the first people to cross the Sirat (on the Day of Rising)?' He replied, 'They will be the poor from amongst the refugees.' The Jew asked, 'What will be their first meal when they enter the Garden?' He replied, 'A fillet of fish-liver.' He asked, 'What will they have to eat after this?' He answered, 'A bullock which has grazed in different parts of the Garden will be slaughtered for them.' He asked, 'What will they have to drink?' He replied, 'They will be given a drink from the fountain called Salsabil." The Jew said, 'You have spoken the truth — you are indeed a Messenger.'"94 The Drink of the People of Paradise Allah says: ( The truly good will drink from a cup mixed with the coolness of camphor, a spring from which Allah's slaves will drink, making it gush forth at will abundantly. ) (76:5-6) Allah also says: ( They will be given there a cup to drink mixed with the warmth of ginger. In it there is a flowing spring called Salsabil. ) (76:17-18) And He says: ( And their Lord will give them a pure draught to drink. ) (76: 21) 92 Al-Tirmidhi, 10/12, who classified it as hasan ghareeb; Albani classified it as hasan sahih. 93 Muslim, 17/174. 94 Muslim, 3/ 226-227; Al-Baghawi, 15/ 224. The Garments of the People of Paradise Allah says: ( They will enter Gardens of Eden where they will be adorned with gold bracelets and pearls, and where their clothing will be of silk. ) (35: 33) He also says: ( They will have Gardens of Eden with rivers flowing under them. They will be adorned in them with bracelets made of gold and wear green garments made of the finest silk and rich brocade, reclining there on couches under canopies. What an excellent reward! What a wonderful repose!