Do Souls Meet in Barzakh?
Yes, it is proven that the souls of the believers meet and visit one another. There follow some of the hadiths which indicate that, as well as some of the fatwas of the scholars on this matter.
Abu Hurayrah narrated that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said:
“Does his soul meet with the souls of his family and relatives? According to the hadith narrated from Abu Ayyub al-Ansari and others of the salaf, and narrated by Abu Hatim in al-Sahih from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him):
And because the deeds of the living are shown to the dead, Abu’l-Darda used to say:
“O Allah, I seek refuge with You from doing any deed that would shame me before ‘Abd-Allah ibn Rawahah.”
This is how they meet when he comes and they ask him questions and they answer him.
That will happen whether their places in which they are buried in this world are far apart or close together. Souls may meet even though their places of burial are far apart, or they may be separated even though their places of burial are close together. A believer may be buried beside a disbeliever, but the soul of the former will be in Paradise whilst the soul of the latter is in Hell. Two men may be sitting or sleeping in the same place, but the heart of one is blessed and the heart of the other is tormented, and there is no connection between the two souls. As the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said:
“Souls are troops collected together and those who got along with each other (in the heaven from whence they come) would have an affinity with one another (in this world) and those amongst them who opposed each other (in heaven) would also be divergent (in the world).”
(Narrated by Muslim, 2638; Majmu’ al-Fatawa, 24/368)
Source: Click here
Abu Hurayrah narrated that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said:
“When the believer is dying, the angels of mercy come to him with white silk and say: ‘Come out content and with the pleasure of Allah upon you to the mercy of Allah, fragrance and a Lord Who is not angry.’ So it comes out like the best fragrance of musk. They pass him from one to another until they bring him to the gate of heaven, where they say: ‘How good is this fragrance that has come to you from the earth!’ Then the souls of the believers come to him and they rejoice more over him than any one of you rejoices when his absent loved one comes to him. They ask him: ‘What happened to So and So, what happened to So and So?’ They say: ‘Let him be, for he was in the hardship of the world. When he says, ‘Did he not come here?’ They say: ‘He was taken to the pit (of Hell).’ When the kafir is dying, the angels of punishment come to him with sackcloth and say: ‘Come out discontented and subject to divine wrath to the punishment of Allah. So it comes out like the foulest stench of a corpse. They bring him to the gates of the earth, where they say: ‘How foul is this stench!’ Then they bring him to the souls of the disbelievers.”
(Narrated by al-Nasai, 1833; classed as sahih by al-Albani in al-Silsilah al-Sahihah, 2758)
Does one’s soul meet with the souls of his family and relatives?
Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah said:“Does his soul meet with the souls of his family and relatives? According to the hadith narrated from Abu Ayyub al-Ansari and others of the salaf, and narrated by Abu Hatim in al-Sahih from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him):
“When his soul is taken up it is met by the souls who ask him about the living and they say to one another: ‘Let him rest.’ And they say: ‘What happened to So and So?’ And he says: ‘He did a righteous deed.’ They say: ‘What happened to So and So?’ and he says: ‘Has he not come to you?’ They say: ‘No.’ They say: ‘He was taken to the Pit (of Hell).’”
And because the deeds of the living are shown to the dead, Abu’l-Darda used to say:
“O Allah, I seek refuge with You from doing any deed that would shame me before ‘Abd-Allah ibn Rawahah.”
This is how they meet when he comes and they ask him questions and they answer him.
Where do the souls settle?
With regard to where they settle, that depends on their status before Allah. For the one who is among those who are close to Allah (al-muqarrabin – cf. al-Waqi’ah 56:88), his status will be higher than those of the Right Hand (cf. al-Waqi’ah 56:90). The one who is higher may descend to the one who is lower but the one who is lower cannot ascend to the one who is higher, thus they will gather when Allah wills as they used to gather in this world, despite their differences in status, and they will visit one another.That will happen whether their places in which they are buried in this world are far apart or close together. Souls may meet even though their places of burial are far apart, or they may be separated even though their places of burial are close together. A believer may be buried beside a disbeliever, but the soul of the former will be in Paradise whilst the soul of the latter is in Hell. Two men may be sitting or sleeping in the same place, but the heart of one is blessed and the heart of the other is tormented, and there is no connection between the two souls. As the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said:
“Souls are troops collected together and those who got along with each other (in the heaven from whence they come) would have an affinity with one another (in this world) and those amongst them who opposed each other (in heaven) would also be divergent (in the world).”
(Narrated by Muslim, 2638; Majmu’ al-Fatawa, 24/368)
Source: Click here
Where is Allaah?
Allah is above the 'Arsh
"They fear their Lord above them, and they do what they are commanded." [al-Nahl 16:50]
"Do you feel secure that He, Who is over the heaven, will not cause the earth to sink with you?" [al-Mulk 67:16]
Sufyän ath-Thawri (رَحِمَهُ الله) said:
