Just read one of my best buddy’s post, Arif’s Ticking Clocks, titled Complexities of my religion and couldn’t help it but think myself.
I couldn’t agree more with him that most orthodox Muslims will say that as long as you are not a Muslim, you will go to hell. Topping on to that, even if you are a Muslim and you don’t practice Islam the way those guys in the Mosques do so, you will still go to hell!
So just what gets you an express ticket to heaven in Islam?
The answer that my parents drilled in my mind since I was young is….Nothing.
There is a funny twist to what I learn in the Madrasah who claims that if people don’t do their formal prayers, their prayers won’t be heard.
I remember this story that my parents used to tell me during the days where I would believe anything an adult would say and I would like to share it with the world. The story took place in the time of our beloved Prophet Mohammed and it goes something like this…
There was a village in the time of Prophet Mohammed that that had accepted Islam after all that was fought for. In the village, there was a couple of brothers that had embraced Islam just like any other villager.
The elder brother camps in the village Mosque all day long, praying for redemption and for God’s acceptance for his entry into heaven. While his younger brother, doesn’t even know how to do a proper prayer and toils all day long to feed and maintain a roof on top of his elder brother and his family. The younger brother is willing to go to hell and is cursed by his fellow villagers as a bad, non practicing Muslim, just to get his elder brother a ticket to heaven.
One fine day, Prophet Mohammed paid a visit to the village. (Do take note that Islam spreaded to all parts of Arab land without having Prophet Mohammed preaching on a stage to each of them. So this village didn’t know who is Prophet Mohammed and how he looks like.) Prophet Mohammed walked about the village and came upon the village Mosque. Did his daily afternoon prayers in the Mosque and stepped out of it.
Prophet Mohammed noticed of the man that is camping in the Mosque, approached nearby villagers and sparked a conversation. “Who is the man that has been praying in the Mosque for hours?”
The village man replied, “Oh, he is a very holy man in this village. He prays in the mosque all day long and does nothing else. Surely he is man of heaven.”
Prophet Mohammed then asked, “Doesn’t he eat? What does he do for food?” The village man then replied, “His younger brother will come and provide him his meals daily. It is a shame, unlike that man, his younger brother doesn’t even know how to pray. All he does is work all day which will bring him no where. The only good he does is providing his holy brother food and a shelter. And there he is, coming with lunch for his elder brother.”
Prophet Mohammed was quick to reply to the added comments of the village man and replied loud enough for everyone around them to hear. “That is the man that is made for heaven’s ground. The younger brother! He toils hard to take care of his family without thinking of his own well being! Unlike the elder brother who is selfish and only cares about himself and enjoys the holy praises about him even in the House Of God (Mosque)!”
The villagers around the mosque was shocked. The villagers started shouting and questioning Prophet Mohammed assuming that he is a senile and disrespectful old man.
And some of the questions were as such, “Who are you? How dare you you say such things of a Holy man and compares him to his hell bound brother?!”
Prophet Mohammed humbly replied, “I am Mohammed.”
And a villager that had seen Prophet Mohammed at another village before shouted with fear and respect, “Yes! Yes he is our beloved Prophet Mohammed!”
Through this story, I believe Islam is easy somehow if the preachers and those that teach Islam do not force Muslims to live in a cage and bans us from thinking out of the box.
Generally, I understand from this story that everyone will have a place in heaven as long as they are good people.
Additional information to make my stand stronger, with support from the Holy Quran. I quote three incidents in the Quran that confirms my beliefs and faith that as long as you are a good person, you shall not have a thing to worry in your after life. I am also almost certain that only Islam tells you that everyone will go to heaven as long as they are good people.
Al-Hajj (The Pilgrimage)
22:17 Verily, as for those who have attained to faith [in this divine writ], and those who follow the Jewish faith, and the sabians, and the Christians, and the Magians, [on the one hand,] and those who are bent on ascribing divinity to aught but God, [on the other,] verily, God will decide between them on Resurrection Day: for, behold, God is witness unto everything.
Al-Baqara (The Cow)
2:62 VERILY, those who have attained to faith [in this divine writ], as well as those who follow the Jewish faith, and the Christians, and the sabians -all who believe in God and the Last Day and do righteous deeds-shall have their reward with their Sustainer; and no fear need they have, and neither shall they grieve.
Al-Ma’idah (The Table Spread)
5:69 for, verily, those who have attained to faith [in this divine writ], as well as those who follow the Jewish faith, and the sabians, and the Christians - all who believe in God and the Last Day and do righteous deeds - no fear need they have, and neither shall they grieve.
Please take note:
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Sabians are followers of John the Baptist.
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Magians are Zoroasters or Persians/Pharsis. (The religious group not the people of the state.)
And with this I would like to end leaving you to think through about good and bad. And my dear Arif, I know you as a person and you are a good person. So not to worry about your after life. As long as you don’t die of a heart attack humping a prostitute, I am sure you’ll be judged well by God. 
Peace be upon you,
Deen Yusoff
Deen Yusoff
Elvenarsha Mok
barakathunnisha
July 28th, 2008 at 7:19 pm
Well different people have different views, man. Sometimes you wish too hard to get people to follow and believe too deep that the mind gets narrow. I think that is what is happening to some preachers. Maybe…. Just what I think anyways, my view.
July 30th, 2008 at 3:51 pm
Yeah, there are many ideas when it comes to getting a spot in heaven. I don’t think God is complicated. He has made simple rules for us to meet.
The rest are just for us to help him gauge how good our faith is I guess, since he has given us freewill as an experiment. =x
August 5th, 2008 at 8:56 am
Yeah dude, you struck a chord there. Sometimes, i just get confused over whether i still can have faith in my faith. Its justtiring me to be labelled a bad Muslim. and yeah, just to make things clear,i don’t pay for sex anyway. haha.
August 5th, 2008 at 10:09 pm
Rasul sleeps, eats, toils and basically, everything we do if we do it because of Allah is ibadah. The one discerning thing that makes us a muslim is our faith.When we carry out our responsibilities in making sure this world and our family is a better place, we get pahala especially if we do it because of Allah.
If we each know what our roles are and perform it to gain the pleasure of Allah, then it is up to Allah to reward or recognize for he is Oft Knowing and Oft kind.
That which is in our hearts (unseen by others) is what is judged. That is why when u give with yr right hand, never let the left see.. Wassalam
August 5th, 2008 at 10:46 pm
Peace N.B.A,
I am not sure what you are driving at but I am sure you meant good.
By the way, I understand that our Islamic schools teaches us calling God Allah but that doesn’t mean we can’t use the term God to refer to Allah.
You do realize that in Malay Mosques, the Imam’s would say raise his arms and beg forgiveness by his native tongue as such, “Ya Allah, oh Tuhan yang maha penyayang. Maafkan lah hamba hamba kamu ini…”
Also, you are right when you said “what makes us Muslims is our faith.” I believe that it makes Jews and Christians Muslims before us in this sense, as Nabi (Prophet) Isa, Daud and all the prophets before them and their followers had/has the same faith as the current muslims.
Like some guys have said out there before me, Halal is only Kosher.
August 6th, 2008 at 12:26 pm
i’m sure N.B.A is a staunch Muslim. I am a Muslim myself but i am not a rule abiding one. I consider myself a liberal Muslim, one who respects the religion but does not necessarily follow it by the book.
There was a time when i did try my best to practise religion as closely as possible. But lately, in this highly globalised world, i find many aspects that some Muslims still adhere to are simply outdated and remnants of an ancient past.
I’m against polygamy, against fundamentalism. I’m pro-choice and believe in evolution. I believe that religion should not be used as law as in Malaysia’s case. My theories are at odds with Islam sometimes but i truly believe that a person should put faith in himself and his beliefs rather than putting his faith blindly in a religion.