Punishment of the Grave in Quran Karim A comparative study between “Almizan fi Tafsir alQuran” and “Tafsir alQuran alAdheem”

The Holy Qur’an is the main source for the beliefs and knowledge that guides human towards perfection and salvation in this world and the Hereafter. One of the most important beliefs in Islam is the life after death and its punishment and blessings. There is a consensus on the existence of the afterlife among Muslims, but there is a debate on the existence of Barzakhi life and its punishment and blessings. Accepting its existence, there are many questions in the subject; Theologians and interpreters have relied on numerous Qur’anic verses to prove the Barzakh life and its details; and theosophists and mystics have also explained and expanded its subtleties. Examining the Muslim heritage and focusing on the interpretation of Al-Mizan and Ibn Kathir, this research first examines the important points of the subject among Muslims, then studies the evidences used and the knowledge gained, along with the method of the argument, in both interpretations, using a descriptive-analytical method. This research concludes that: the pressure of the grave exists for everyone except those whom God removes the pressure, for some reason. The ‘question of the grave’ exists at least for those who have pure faith and who are completely unfaithful. The world of Barzakh also exists, in which the believer is blessed and the unbeliever has nothing but destruction. The one who suffers is the soul; it suffers through its Barzakhi body, which fits the world of Barzakh on the one hand and fits his/her beliefs, moralities and actions on the other hand. Many believe that the duration of punishment and reward in Barzakh is due to the existence of heaven and hell in Barzakh, and some consider heaven and hell to be a special account of Barzakh. It is clear that although Allameh Tabataba’i does not believe the Barzakhi life as a Qur’anic necessity and a consensus of all Muslims, but he believes the punishment and blessings in the grave – or in the world of Barzakh – is proved. He believes in a kind of Barzakhi life after death for the honor of the martyrs and the believers, of course not for the unbelievers, who have nothing but destruction. He considers the Barzakhi reward and punishment following a Barzakhi calculation. Ibn Kathir believes the life in Barzakh is in the grave, and punishment in the grave is only for the unbelievers. The punishment in Barzakh comes to both the body and the soul; and the people of Barzakh are not completely separated from the world; they are in an intermediate world, i.e. they are neither along with the people of this world nor along with the otherworldly people in seeing the results of their actions in the Hereafter. Comparing the two interpretations, I can conclude that Allameh Tabataba’i receives his main knowledge from narrational sources and expands them with the help of his intellectual expertise. But Ibn Kathir’s method is only narrational; therefore, he collects Islamic narrations [including Qur’an and tradition] to explain Barzakh, which is rooted in his idea of being ‘Ahl al-Hadith’.