Blowing Of The Trumpet And Annihilation Of Everything

Many verses prove the blowing of the trumpet. In Shi’a and Sunni channels, many traditions say that the Almighty Allah created Israfil and, along with him, a great trumpet, with one end in the east and the other in the west. From the day Israfil was created, he has been waiting for the command of Allah, with his mouth touching that trumpet.

As Imam Zayn al-’Abidin (‘a) has said in Sahifa Kamilah: “

And Israfil, the trumpeter, the vigilant, who is waiting for Your permission and order to warn the dead, who are lying in the tombs, with the blast”.

Thus, by blowing the trumpet, he brings alive the dead, who will be involved in the recompense of their deeds.

“And the trumpet will be blown, so We will gather them all together” (18:99).

And He says in Surah Taha:
“On the day when the trumpet shall be blown, and We will gather the guilty, blue-eyed, on that day” (20:102).

Then he says in Surah al-Mu’minoon:
“So, when the trumpet is blown, there shall be no ties of relationship between them on that day, nor shall they ask of each other” (23:101).

Then He says in Surah al-Naml:
“And on the day when the trumpet shall be blown, then those who are in the heavens and those who are in the earth shall be terrified except such as Allah please, and all shall come to Him abased” (27:87).

Commentators of Qur’an have said that they would die of the intensity of terror, except one whom Allah does not want to die. And they narrate that those who do not die in the blowing of the trumpet are Jibra’il, Mika’il, Israfil and Isra’il. Allah has said in Surah Yasin:
“They wait not for aught, but a single cry, which will overtake them while they yet contend with one another” (36:49).

Here, the implication is about the first blowing, through which they will die. Commentators of the Qur’an have narrated that the Qiyamah will be established when two people unroll a sheet of cloth to buy and sell, but they will not be able to fold it up again, and that the Judgment Day will be established. A person will have picked up a morsel, but he will die before he can convey it to his mouth. Then the Almighty Allah has said:
“So they shall not be able to make a bequest, nor shall they return to their families” (36:50).

‘Ali Ibn Ibrahim has narrated that in the last period of time, a call will be raised in the world, while people will be busy in their dealings in markets. All would perish wherever they stand, and none will be able to return home; neither would they be able to make any bequest. Then the Almighty Allah said, regarding the second blowing:
“And the trumpet shall be blown, when lo! From their graves they shall hasten on to their Lord” (36:51).
“They shall say: O woe to us! Who has raised us up from our sleeping-place? This is what the Beneficent God promised and the apostles told the truth” (36:52).
There would be naught, but a single cry, when lo! They shall all be brought before us” (36:53).

And in Surah Sa’ad, He says:
“Nor do these await aught, but a single cry, there being no delay in it” (38:15).

And then He says in Surah al-Z’Umar:
“And the trumpet shall be blown, so all those that are in the heavens and all those that are in the earth shall swoon, except such as Allah please; then it shall be blown again, then lo! They shall stand up waiting” (39:68).

And He says in Surah Qaf:
“The day when they shall hear the cry in truth; that is the day of coming forth” (50:42).
“Surely We give life and cause to die, and to Us is the eventual coming” (50:43).
“The day, on which the earth shall cleave asunder under them, they will make haste; that is a gathering together easy to Us” (50:44).

It is seen from these verses that the trumpet will be blown twice: the first time all the folks of the earth and most folks of the heavens will die instantly; the second blowing is at the time of resurrection and rising, as with it the creatures are brought alive all at once.

Some tradition scholars say that the trumpet will be blown thrice. The first is the blowing of terror that terrifies the people; the second is the blowing of the scream, through which they die, and the third is the blowing of the standing up, with which they become alive and emerge from the grave.

But this view is rare, and in authentic traditions, not more than two blowings are mentioned. The interpretation offered by some that ‘Soor’ is the plural of ‘Soorat’ (face) and that the blowing implies the blowing of the souls in bodies on Judgment Day, is absurd and is opposed to the apparent meaning of the verses.

It also goes against reliable traditions, as ‘Ali Ibn Ibrahim has narrated from Suwair Ibn Abu Faqta that he said: I asked Imam Zayn al-’Abidin (‘a): What is the duration between the first and the second blowing? Imam (‘a) replied: As long as the Almighty Allah wants. I asked: O son of Allah’s Messenger, how do they blow the trumpet? He replied: As for the first blowing, the Almighty Allah commands Israfil to descend to the earth; Israfil descends with the trumpet, having one head and two outlets. The distance between the two outlets is the distance between the earth and the sky.

When angels see Israfil descending to the earth with the trumpet, they remark: The Almighty Allah has permitted the destruction of the folks of the earth and the heavens. Israfil comes down at Bayt al-Muqaddas and faces the Ka’ba, and people realise that Almighty Allah has permitted the destruction of the folks of the earth.

When Almighty Allah intends to bring forth Qiyamah, He will order Israfil to blow the trumpet (Soor). The trumpet is large and illuminated, and has one mouthpiece and two tubes, one pointing to the earth and the other to the sky. Israfil will go to the Bayt al-Muqaddas and blow the trumpet while facing the Qibla.

When the sound comes out from the side pointing to the earth, all living beings on it shall die, and when the sound comes out from the end pointing to the sky, all living beings in it shall also die. Then Allah will say to Israfil, “Die”, and he too shall die.

The entire universe will remain thus till Allah wishes. Then Allah commands the heavens, and they start moving; and orders the mountains to move, and they disintegrate and disappear. The Imam explained that they are levelled to the earth; and this earth is changed into another earth; that is, an earth that is without sin having been committed on it.

That earth will appear plain, without any outcrop, tree, or mountain, like it was spread for the first time. Then He will establish His throne on water, like He did the first time, and its stability will appear with greatness and power. Almighty Allah will call out in a loud voice audible in all the corners of the earth and the heavens; He will say:
“..…Whose Kingdom is it today”? (40:16).

Since there will be no one to answer, He Himself will say
“… Verily Allah’s, the Dominant (Qahhar), the Compelling” (40:16).

I created the creatures, and I have destroyed them. I am that God, except whom there is no other god. I neither have a partner nor any minister. I created the creatures with the hand of My power, and I destroyed them by My divine will, and again I am bringing them back alive with My power. Then Almighty Allah will blow the trumpet by His power, and a sound will emerge from that end towards the heaven.

None will remain in the heavens, but they will be brought back alive and stand up as before. The bearers of the ‘Arsh will come again, and Paradise and Hell will be present once more. All the creatures will be gathered for accounting of deeds. The Messenger of Allah (S) said this and wept very much.

It is mentioned in Tafsir ‘Ali Ibn Ibrahim and the book of Zaid Tarsi, quoting from Ubaid Ibn Zurarah that he said: I heard Imam Ja’far as-Sadiq (‘a) say: When the Almighty Allah will destroy the folks of the earth, He will wait for the duration of time that He had created them for and like the duration He has destroyed them in.

On the contrary, thousands of times that duration. After that, He will put to death the folks of the first heavens and leave them in that condition for the duration in which He created and for the duration in which He has given death to the folks of the earth and folks of minority; on the contrary, thousands of times of that duration.

Then He will put to death the folks of the second heavens and delay for thousands of times of that duration. Then He will put to death the folks of the third heaven, and in the same way, He will put to death the folks of every heaven and leave them in that condition for thousand times the duration in which He created.

Finally, He will put to death the folks of the seventh heaven. Then Imam Ja’far as-Sadiq (‘a) said: After that He will delay for the duration of all past durations. On the contrary, many thousands of times that. Then He will give death to Mika’il and delay for a duration thousand times the previous duration.

Then He will give death to Jibra’il and delay for a duration thousand times the previous duration. Then He will give death to Israfil and delay for a duration thousand times the previous duration. Then He will give death to the Angel of Death and delay for a duration thousand times the previous duration. After that He will say:
“..…Whose Kingdom is it today”? (40:16).

Since there will be no one to answer, He Himself will say
“… Verily Allah’s, the Dominant (Qahhar), the Compelling” (40:16).

Where are those who claimed divinity? Where are those arrogant ones?

After that, He creates all the creatures anew. Ubaid says: I asked: Does it happen like that? And I considered those durations to be very long. Imam Ja’far as-Sadiq (‘a) said: The previous durations before the creation of the creatures are mostly long; you came to know about it, but you will not come to know about this.

The author says: This tradition is apparently opposed to those verses and traditions that were mentioned previously, and they prove that most inmates of the heavens will die in an instant due to the blowing of the trumpet. And this tradition, since its narrator is ignorant, it cannot oppose those traditions and verses, and its apparent implication is that all souls and bodies will be annihilated, as will be explained after this, God willing.

Some asked that when all the creatures are annihilated, what is the purpose of the address of:
“..…Whose Kingdom is it today”? (40:16).

Thus, this question is absurd, because the Almighty Allah, who is all-knowing and all-wise, whatever He does, is has some underlying wisdom, even though that wisdom may be concealed from us, and it is possible that in it there is an aspect of grace for the duty-bound, because when the truthful informer will narrate this report before its occurrence, it will make the world insignificant to them, and they will not become proud of worldly wealth, and their knowledge in the power and planning of the Almighty Allah will increase.

As for the annihilation of all things before Qiyamah; there is no doubt in it, that, other than the Almighty Allah, all living beings die, and after that they will again be enlivened in Qiyamah, but there is a dispute whether bodies and souls, etc., which are other than the Holy being of the Almighty Allah, are all annihilated or the souls remain, and all bodies, etc., are destroyed, including the heavens and the earth and also all bodies are annihilated.

Then the Almighty Allah recreates them. Or that none of them is annihilated. On the contrary, their parts are separated and dispersed. And the Almighty Allah, by His power, gathers their original parts or all the parts and returns the soul to them.

There are many different views among Ahl al-Sunnah regarding this, and there is no use in stating them here. Each of them justifies his beliefs with the help of Qur’anic verses and traditions. Those who believe in the annihilation of all things rely on the following verses:
“He is the First and the Last” (57:3).
“Surely He begins the creation in the first instance, then He reproduces it” (10:4).
“Everything is perishable, but He” (28:88).
“Everyone on it must pass away” (55:26).

And there will endure for ever the person of your Lord, the Lord of glory and honour” (55:27).

They reason through the apparent meaning of these verses that proves that ‘gathering’ implies bringing together the scattered parts, like the story of Ibrahim (‘a) and Uzair. The fact is that the verses are in any aspect not clear and direct. Logical evidence is present on both sides, and it is difficult for anyone to decide. Most Sunni theologians believe that souls are not annihilated, and most Shi’a theologians believe that both the souls and bodies of the duty-bound are annihilated, as Khwaja Naseer (r.a.) has written in Tajreed:

Unwritten reasoning proves the annihilation of bodies. And in the duty-bound, along with the difference of parts, they interpret the annihilation of all things as was mentioned previously; that Imam Ja’far as-Sadiq (‘a) said in reply to a heretic: The soul endures till the blowing of the trumpet. At that time all things are destroyed; neither any perception remains nor any feeling. After that, everything is brought back by their creator as He created them in the beginning. For the duration that the creatures remain in existence; that is four hundred years.

It is mentioned in some sermons of Nahj al-Balagha, which are mostly considered widely related, that: He is the one who destroys everything after their creation, till their existence is annihilated like them and after creation of things to annihilate them and is not stranger than bringing them from nothing into existence; and why should it not be so?

Though if all the animals of the world: like birds, quadrupeds and all their kinds, all the ignorant and intelligent ones of all nations unite to create a mosquito, they will never succeed and they will not find any means to do that; on the contrary, without any doubt all their intellects will be bewildered in its knowledge, and they will admit their failure in creating a mosquito.

Whereas the Almighty Allah, after destroying everything, wanders alone and nothing is there with Him, just as it was before their creation. After annihilation, there will be neither time nor place. At that time, death and time will be destroyed, and years and hours will disappear. Nothing will remain, except the Almighty Allah, the Most Powerful One, as the return of all matters is to Him alone. When He created all of them, they did not possess any power, and when He destroyed them, they could not prevent it. If they had the power to prevent it, they would definitely have been eternal.

When He created them, it was neither to strengthen his rulership nor for decline and loss or seeking help over the enemies, nor due to loneliness that he should get company from them. His annihilation after creating them is not due to any grief, which is obtained through their determination or power, nor to allow them to continue had been difficult for Him. Then after annihilating them, He again brings them into creation, without there being any need of them or seeking something from them.

Thus, this sermon clearly shows the annihilation of all things, and based on this, there is no other option but to believe in the return of the non-existent. And the reasons that they mention for the correctness of resurrection, along with the admission of the impossibility of the return of the non-existent, is of no use. On the contrary, the validity of the return of the non-existent from the aspect of Islamic law and reason. While the Almighty Allah can bring something from non-existence to existence, why can’t He create it after it has become non- existent, when He has not crossed the limits of possibility?

If someone claims that this is a natural course of events, it is valid, but traditions regarding the absolute annihilation of all things have not reached this limit that they should create certainty. So, the traditions must not be rejected, and it is better to consider them as probable.