After returning from the night journey (Mi’raj), Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) warned us about the punishments in Hell and the bad deeds that lead to them.
Punishments for Specific Bad Deeds
- Missing Prayers (Salah): A person who skips prayers will have their head crushed with a heavy stone. Their head will then be made whole again, only to be crushed repeatedly.
- Not Covering One’s Hair: A woman who shows her hair to strange men (outside her close family) will be hung upside down by her hair in Hell. The extreme heat of the fire below will cause her brain to boil and melt.
- Hurting One’s Husband with Words: A woman who insults and abuses her husband with her tongue will be hung by her tongue. Her hands will be tied behind her back while she suffers this pain.
- Spreading False Rumors and Lies: An angel will use an iron hook to rip open one side of the liar’s mouth, tearing it from the jaw up to the nose, eyes, and back of the neck. Then the angel will do the same to the other side. Once healed, the punishment starts all over again.
- Stealing from Orphans: On the Day of Judgement, those who wrongfully consumed the property of orphans will rise from the earth with flames of fire bursting out of their mouths, ears, noses, and eyes. Their faces will be completely black, and their bellies will be full of fire.
- Dealing in Interest (Riba): A person who takes interest will be forced to swim in a river of blood in Hell. On the Day of Judgement, their stomach will be filled with burning coals, and they will walk around in a state of madness, like someone possessed by the devil.
- Preaching Good but Doing Bad: A person who tells others to do good but does not practice it themselves will have their tongue continuously clipped with scissors made of fire.
- Dying as an Alcoholic: A person who dies while addicted to alcohol will enter the grave drunk, rise on the Day of Judgement drunk, and be thrown into Hell drunk. In Hell, rivers of blood and vomit from the people of Hell will be their only food and drink.
- Backbiting and Carrying Tales: A woman who gossips and ruins relations between people will be given the head of a pig and the body of a donkey, and she will face endless torments.
- The Drink of Alcoholics: The sweat and fluids discharge from the bodies of suffering women in Hell will be given as a drink to those who drank alcohol in the world.
Special Warnings and the Depth of Hell
The Prophet (PBUH) once told his companions, “Seek protection from Allah from Jubbul Huzn (the pit of sorrow).” The companions asked, “O Messenger of Allah! What is Jubbul Huzn?” The Prophet (PBUH) replied, “It is a valley in Hell from which Hell itself seeks protection from Allah a hundred times every day. It is meant for those who tell others to do good but do not do it themselves, and for those who commit sins even after visiting the holy Kaaba.”
Regarding those who collect gold and silver but do not pay their charity tax (Zakat), the companion Abu Hurairah (RA) narrated that their gold and silver will be heated in the fire of Hell until red-hot. It will then be branded onto their sides, backs, chests, and foreheads. It will take 50,000 years for these brands to cool down, only to be heated and applied again. At that moment, the person will realize the uselessness of the wealth they hoarded.
— Nasai
Allah says in the Quran:
“Indeed, it is a roaring fire. It strips away the skin. It calls out to those who turned their backs and walked away from the truth, and those who collected wealth and hid it away safely.”
— Surah Al-Ma’arij: 15-18
The Intense Sorrow of the People of Hell
The people of Hell will cry until they run out of tears, and then they will cry blood. Their hearts and throats will melt from the extreme heat. Eventually, they will suffer in total silence, unable to even make a sound.
The Prophet (PBUH) shared this prayer (Dua) regarding the fear of Hell:
“O Allah! Grant me two eyes that shed tears out of Your fear, washing my heart before the day comes when tears turn into blood and teeth turn into burning coals.”
Once, the Prophet (PBUH) saw a group of people laughing and playing. He warned them, “You are laughing while Hell is waiting behind you! If you knew what I know, you would laugh less and cry more. You wouldn’t even enjoy food or drink, and you would flee to the hills crying out for forgiveness.”
Allah describes their appearance in the Quran:
“The fire will burn their faces, and they will grin with disfigured, twisted lips.”
— Surah Al-Mu’minun: 104
How Hot is the Fire of Hell?
The Angel Gabriel (AS) described the creation of Hell’s fire to the Prophet (PBUH): “Allah ordered Hell to burn for 1,000 years until it turned white. Then He ordered it to burn for another 1,000 years until it turned red. Then He ordered it to burn for another 1,000 years until it became pitch black. It is now completely dark and lightless. If an opening as tiny as the eye of a needle were made in Hell, its heat would destroy every living thing on earth.”
The bodies of the people of Hell will be made huge so they feel more pain. For example, a single tooth of a person in Hell will be as large as Mount Uhud. Their lower lips will stretch down to their chests, and their upper lips will stretch up to cover their faces. When they get thirsty, they will be given melted copper to drink, which will completely melt their insides.
Hazrat Umar (RA) used to cry out of fear, saying, “Remember Hell often! Its depth is endless, and its whips are made of iron. I wish I had been born a sheep so my family could have slaughtered and eaten me, rather than facing accountability.”
The Final Conversation in Hell
Allah reminds us that reading the Quran is not just for earning blessings, but for listening to its rules and changing our lives. If we ignore it, we face Allah’s anger.
Allah will ask the people of Hell:
“Were My verses not recited to you, and you used to deny them?”
— Surah Al-Mu’minun: 105
The people of Hell will reply:
“Our Lord! Our bad luck overcame us, and we became a lost people. Our Lord! Take us out of this fire. If we ever return to sin, then we are truly wrongdoers.”
— Surah Al-Mu’minun: 106-107
Allah will give them this final, terrifying answer:
“Stay inside it in disgrace, and do not speak to Me!”
— Surah Al-Mu’minun: 108
The Seven Gates of Hell
The punishment of Hell is permanent and has no end. To match different types of sins, Allah created seven levels of Hell:
- Laza
- Jaheem
- Usra
- Hawiyah
- Saqar
- Sa’eer
- Jahannam
The angels guarding Hell are created to be extremely harsh, strict, and completely deaf. They cannot hear the screams or pleas of the residents of Hell, so they show no mercy. The Prophet (PBUH) said that if just one of these guard angels were to appear on earth, all living creatures would die instantly from their terrifying look and awful smell.
Sinning might look like fun in this short world, but paying for it in the next world brings endless pain.