In the Holy Qur’an, the existence of multiple “Heavens” has been mentioned for those, who had sincerely feared God’s position as the creator; thus, Heaven has different sorts, categories, and levels within itself. The diversity of heaven is thus, because of the very presence of different grades and ranks among virtuous souls and other believers, subsequently.
The spiritual and physical heaven
Indeed, the Holy Qur’an has mentioned the existence of two heavens for those human beings, who had truly and verily feared God’s Eminent Position. Let us study that in the noble surah “Ar- Rah’man” [verse 46],
“But for him, who fears the standing before his Lord, there will be two gardens [i.e. in Paradise].” – 55:46
About the nature of these two “Heavens”, religious scholars have given different possible interpretations. Perhaps the best explanation might be the fact that by stating two different “Heavens”, the Holy Qur’an intended to announce that there are is “physical” heaven and one “spiritual” heaven in the other realm. That is, just as there is a “physical” pain and/or pleasure in the earthly plane, and then again a “spiritual” pain and/or pleasure in the world, such notion exists also in the afterlife. Therefore, in the noble surah of “Ar-Rah’man” [Verse 46], the Holy Qur’an has subsequently spoken about both kinds of “heaven”.
The heaven of “Riz’wan”
After mentioning the physical Rewards and Bounties, the Holy Qur’an speaks then of the Heaven, known as “Riz’wan” and announces,
“Allah has promised the believers-men and women,- Gardens under which rivers flow to dwell therein forever, and beautiful mansions in Gardens of Adn [i.e. Eden- Paradise]. But the greatest Bliss is the Good Pleasure of Allah. That is the supreme Success!”2 – 9:72
Indeed, God’s satisfaction and contentment towards mankind is the greatest truth of all, and even the smallest amount or the faintest particle of this divine satisfaction and approval is far beyond all the physical delights, found in the “Physical” Heaven!3
The pure and heavenly drink
Among the heavenly bounties and blessings of paradise, there is the purest and most spiritual heavenly drink. Concerning the [Physical] heaven, where the blessed dwell, Allah announces,
“Their garments will be of fine green silk and gold embroidery. They will be adorned with bracelets of silver, and their lord will give them a pure drink.” – 76:21
The word “Tahūr” means a purifier; that is, in addition to the purity and the spiritual cleanness of the blessed souls, this particular drink will purify and clean them even more from all the earthly imperfections. Here, Allah becomes the “Cup Bearer” par excellence, as Imam Sadiq [as] has stated in this regard, “The Purifier is no one but Allah Himself!”
Therefore, those, who will only drink a sip from the purifying cup of Allah will soon find out that all the physical pleasures that they are faced with will have a completely different significance; and that they would ultimately see only Allah, in all those Divine pleasures.
The heavenly gates
It is stated in all the religious sources that heaven has indeed eight doors or gates [i.e. portals]. These eight Gates are surely not ceremonial and/or superfluous and neither are they installed there, to control and restrict people from entering heaven, because the hereafter is not a World of limitations and restrictions. Indeed, there is no obstacle whatsoever, as to the way the human beings would want to enter inside paradise; they can all enter through the gates of heaven in an instant, and from one heavenly gate only. These Gates are not intended either to make a distinction between the poor and the rich, by letting them enter through different portals. Therefore, what truth lies exactly, behind the existence of these heavenly Gates…?
Truth is, in the hereafter, what matters is the grade [i.e. level-degree] of the souls’ spiritual evolution and virtues, and not the ranks and positions that they had enjoyed having during their lifetime on earth. Faith, good deeds, and virtue have various levels and ranks. Each person and each group of people have their own unique level of faith and piety. Each group has moved up differently in the ladder of spiritual evolution and piety; therefore, according to their specific and proportional level of spiritual evolution and progress, a certain Gate of heaven will be opened to them respectively.
For instance, the gate through which, illustrious martyrs and those, who have fought in the Path of Allah [i.e. the Mudjahidoun] enter is the same gate that the “elite” and those, who are Allah’s “Friends” enter into heaven, to be near Allah and enjoy such infinite privilege.5
The characteristics of paradise
Paradise is the center of divine blessings, bounties, and all the most beautiful characteristics and descriptions of all the most pleasant things that only exist in heaven. However, before we start mentioning the details of the divine bounties, it is necessary to review a number of basic and general properties of this heavenly place, such as:
Purity and pureness
The Holy Qur’an has mentioned the heavenly abode, called “Tooba”, which is the ultimate dwelling-place of the believers:
“[And so it is that] they who attain to Faith and do righteous deeds are destined for happiness [in this world] and the most beauteous of all goals [in the life to come]!” – 13:19
“Tooba” is derived from the word “Tayyib”, which means purity, pureness, and cleanness. It has been reported that “Tooba” is a special tree in paradise; its trunk is located inside the house of the lord of the believers: Ali Ibn-e Abi Talib [as] and its branches have penetrated inside the houses of all the believers, in all over the world, until the day of resurrection. The branches of this heavenly tree are in fact, the very true beliefs of the believers, along with the best of their characteristics and temperaments.6
The human spirit is basically, similar and identical to a tree, consisting of infinite roots, branches, and delicious, juicy fruits. As long as mankind exists and lives in this world, and by performing righteous deed, he/she “grafts” and “unites” himself/herself to the heavenly Tree of “Tooba”; on the contrary, by committing wrongful deeds and demonstrating bad behaviors, and showing cruelty to other people, he/she will instead “graft” his/her existence to the hellish Tree of “Zaqqūm”. Just as it is depicted in the noble surah of “Ad-Dukhan” [verse 43-44],
“Verily, [in the life to come], the tree of deadly fruit will be the food of the sinful.” 7 – 43:44
The divine safety and security
Heaven is the safest and most secure of all places. A number of verses in the Holy Qur’an have emphasized this fact; for instance, it has been reported that, “Good deeds bring on a security and safety…”
Indeed, good and benevolent deeds, along with truth will bring on security. And the kind of security and safety that the believers enjoy in the hereafter is due to their efforts, for having previously accomplished good actions in this world of ours.
Health and well-being
Health and well-being is among the special characteristics of paradise and there exist no physical, mental, and spiritual harm and injury to its inhabitants, whatsoever. The Holy Qur’an describes the pure and clean drinks of heaven, by announcing,
“By which, their minds will not be clouded and which will not make them drunk.” – 56:19
Constancy and eternity
Heaven is indeed the place of eternity, constancy, and immortality. In paradise, no one will ever think of leaving such divine place nor will anyone ever be expelled from it or die in that heavenly abode,
“And neither shall they taste Death there after having passed through their erstwhile Death. Thus will He have preserved them from all suffering through the blazing Fire.” – 44:56
The inexistence of prohibitions and limitations
Heaven is no place for the execution of any task and duty; because the order of that other world is very different from the order, which exists in this world of ours; in fact, its order is not comparable to the earthly plane; thus, there are no limitations and prohibitions in heaven. Whosoever desires anything sees his/her wish fulfilled and can enjoy from any
Bounty that exists there, as much as he/she desires. Therefore, the Holy Qur’an points out to the inexistence of any kind of prohibition and limitations and states,
“Never failing and never out of reach…” – 56:19
The divine mercy, favor, and grace
Heaven and its infinite bounties are solely made of God’s favors and infinite Grace:
“An act of thy Sustainer’s Favor; and that that will be the Triumph supreme!” – 44:57
For those blessed souls, who will be the fortunate inhabitants of heaven and who shall possess spiritual knowledge of the divine, the heavenly bounties shall not only be enjoyable, due to their divine nature, but also most pleasing and agreeable, because they shall come directly from their beloved and merciful God as their well-deserved rewards. And indeed, this latter reason is the most delightful of all Bounties and goes beyond every other heavenly delight, by far…!8
On the other hand, any human being, in any position and rank that he/she might be, is always prone to committing sinful deeds and errors, and always in the need of divine mercy and forgiveness. He/she will always be in need of a purification from the sinful deeds he/she had committed in the past; therefore, the Holy Qur’an announces,
“[As against this,] behold for those, who stand in awe of God although He is beyond the reach of their perception, there is forgiveness in store and a great reward.” – 67:12
According to this noble verse in the Holy Qur’an, two rewards have been given to the human souls: the divine forgiveness and great, innumerable rewards. The Holy Prophet Muhammad (S) had stated in this regard, “If there were a conflict between divine reckoning and mankind’s deeds to be calculated precisely by Allah, no one would have ever become a creditor towards God, whatsoever!” This is because whatever mankind possesses, is bestowed on him by only God; and even if someone claims that all of his/her prayers is a form of gratitude and rendering of grace to God Almighty for only a single one of God’s Rewards, this statement is utterly vain and meaningless. Therefore, human beings need to purify themselves from their sins, misdeeds, and crimes, by asking for God’s Forgiveness before asking for the bestowal and conferment of Allah’s Bounties and Delights.
Spiritual bounties
Indeed, one should insist that spiritual heaven is far better and far more superior than material, physical heaven. However, in opposition to physical and material Heaven, which is describable, spiritual heaven cannot be described as one would expect it to be. Therefore, the Holy Qur’an has announced,
“And [as for all such believers,] no human being can imagine what blissful delights, as yet hidden, await them [in the life to come] as a reward for all that they did.” – 32:17
Physical and material bounties
In order to describe the physical and material heaven, the Holy Qur’an sometimes mentions “special bounties” and in some other times, calls them “All kinds of delights”; especially in the description of two particular Divine Gardens,
“[Two Gardens] of many wondrous hues.” – 55:48
Those two gardens possess “All kinds of delights”. Here, the matter has been intentionally stated with ambiguity, in order for the minds of those, who read this sentence, to wander wherever they please.
Here, God Almighty wants the human beings to understand that if each of the “heavenly bounties” were to be named and accounted for, then the entire notion of “limiting” heaven’s Realm would be entirely vain and false as a result; when this subject is indeed, far beyond our understanding, and therefore, it cannot be fully explained and understood thoroughly.
Heavenly food and drinks
The Holy Qur’an has mentioned various kinds of heavenly drinks and food such as the delicious meat of different Heavenly birds9, different kinds of fruits10 [two11 for each kind] and various pure and delicious Drinks12, of which the blessed souls can retrieve all the best possible benefits without having to face any negative effects upon themselves, whatsoever.
Heavenly spouses
The Holy Qur’an has referred to spouses in paradise as “those endowed with beautiful eyes” [i.e. Hurul Ain]13 and in a number of occasions has described them as well. These Heavenly spouses have always been described in a most delightful manner:
From moral and spiritual points of view: The Holy Qur’an describes them as being virtuous, pure, chaste14, innocent, and endowed with the best of temperaments. It says,
“In these [Gardens] will be mates of modest gaze, whom neither man nor invisible being will have touched ere then.” – 55:56
From an emotional point of view:
“For, behold, We shall have brought them into being in a life renewed, having resurrected them as virgins, full of love, well-matched.” – 56: 35-37
From a physical point of view: some of the physical characteristics of these heavenly spouses have been mentioned in the Holy Qur’an; such as a “chaste, restraining glances”15 or a perfection in the qualities, which adorn them; then again, goodness, great beauty16, virginity17, a pearl well-guarded18, eloquence, and identical age with their companions.
Spectacular sights and wonders
Heaven is a place full of beautiful sights with magnificent, picturesque, and delightful sceneries and panoramas…! Among these wonderful sceneries, one can speak of the trees, of the darkest green in color20 , with sources pouring forth water in continuous abundance21, and ever-flowing rivers, and springs flowing free22, and fountains with translucent, crystal-like water…
A number of verses in the Holy Qur’an have described perfectly and beautifully the characteristics of the different springs, which exist in Paradise. In one noble verse, four different kinds of Heavenly Rivers have been mentioned.
For instance: the rivers, the water of which never putrefies or alters its color [i.e. incorruptible]; the rivers of pure milk that are never corrupted or change taste; the holy rivers, made from delicious and Heavenly wine for those, who wish to drink; and rivers that are made from pure honey and which flow free, devoid of any other thing.
Heavenly garments and ornaments
The blessed dwellers of paradise wear beautiful garments,
“Wearing [garments] of silk and brocade, facing one another [in love].” – 44:53
“Allah will admit those, who attain to faith and do righteous deeds into gardens through which, running waters flow, wherein they will be adorned with bracelets of gold and pearls, and where silk will be their raiment.” – 22:33
And,
“Gardens of Eternity will they enter: therein will they be adorned with bracelets of gold and pearls; and their garments there will be of silk…” – 35:33
Affectionate and sweet relationships
One of the characteristics of heaven is the existence of affectionate, sweet relationships and enthusiastic, friendly conversations and dialogues, based on mutual respect and admiration, devoid of any exaggerations, lies, gossips, unworthy thoughts, and grudge,
“[They will be seated] on gold-encrusted thrones of happiness, reclining upon them, facing one another [in love].” – 56:15-16
“No empty talk will they hear there-nothing but [tidings of] inner soundness and peace; and there will they have their sustenance by day and by night.” – 19:62
Allah has also promised the righteous parents and their virtuous offspring to join each other, as well as uniting the close and intimate relatives, in the light of His inexorable Promise.
Additionally, the Holy Qur’an refers also to other bounties such as couches, thrones, shades, pure dwellings, cups, etc, etc… which, due to the limited space of the present work, we shall have to refrain from explaining thoroughly.
