How To Enter Heaven (Jannah) in Islam

As religious people, especially muslims, we may wonder how to get to heaven? What are the conditions? The following is a review of the ways and conditions for entering heaven according to Islam. In general, there are two conditions for someone to enter heaven (Jannah), namely iman and good deeds. There are many verses in the Quran that explain this:

Jannah

▪.Al Kahf/18: 107

إِنَّ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ كَانَتْ لَهُمْ جَنَّاتُ الْفِرْدَوْسِ نُزُلًا

“Indeed, those who believe and do good will have the Gardens of Paradise as an accommodation”

▪.Al-Bayyinah/98: 7-8

إِنَّ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ أُولَٰئِكَ هُمْ خَيْرُ الْبَرِيَّةِ. جَزَاؤُهُمْ عِندَ رَبِّهِمْ جَنَّاتُ عَدْنٍ تَجْرِي مِن تَحْتِهَا الْأَنْهَارُ خَالِدِينَ فِيهَا أَبَدًا رَّضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُمْ وَرَضُوا عَنْهُ ذَٰلِكَ لِمَنْ خَشِيَ رَبَّهُ.

“Indeed, those who believe and do good they are the best of ˹all˺ beings.”

“Their reward with their Lord will be Gardens of Eternity, under which rivers flow, to stay there for ever and ever. Allah is pleased with them and they are pleased with Him. This is ˹only˺ for those in awe of their Lord.”

▪.An-Nisa /4: 69

وَمَنْ يُطِعِ اللَّهَ وَالرَّسُولَ فَأُولَئِكَ مَعَ الَّذِينَ أَنْعَمَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِمْ مِنَ النَّبِيِّينَ وَالصِّدِّيقِينَ وَالشُّهَدَاءِ وَالصَّالِحِينَ وَحَسُنَ أُولَئِكَ رَفِيقًا

“And he who obeys Allah and the Messenger they shall be with those whom Allah has favored -the Prophets, those steadfast in truthfulness, the martyrs, and the righteous.” How excellent will they be for companions.”

▪.Al-Baqarah/2: 277

إِنَّ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ وَأَقَامُوا الصَّلَاةَ وَآتَوُا الزَّكَاةَ لَهُمْ أَجْرُهُمْ عِندَ رَبِّهِمْ وَلَا خَوْفٌ عَلَيْهِمْ وَلَا هُمْ يَحْزَنُونَ

“Indeed, those who believe, do good, establish prayer, and pay alms-tax will receive their reward from their Lord, and there will be no fear for them, nor will they grieve.”

▪.Al-‘Asr/103: 1-3

وَالْعَصْرِ. إِنَّ الْإِنْسَانَ لَفِي خُسْرٍ. إِلَّا الَّذِينَ آَمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ وَتَوَاصَوْا بِالْحَقِّ وَتَوَاصَوْا بِالصَّبْرِ

“By the ˹passage of˺ time! Surely humanity is in ˹grave˺ loss, except those who have faith, do good, and urge each other to the truth, and urge each other to perseverance.”

▪.Al-Mu’minun/23: 1-11

قَدْ أَفْلَحَ الْمُؤْمِنُونَ. الَّذِينَ هُمْ فِي صَلَاتِهِمْ خَاشِعُونَ. وَالَّذِينَ هُمْ عَنِ اللَّغْوِ مُعْرِضُونَ. وَالَّذِينَ هُمْ لِلزَّكَاةِ فَاعِلُونَ. وَالَّذِينَ هُمْ لِفُرُوجِهِمْ حَافِظُونَ. إِلَّا عَلَى أَزْوَاجِهِمْ أوْ مَا مَلَكَتْ أَيْمَانُهُمْ فَإِنَّهُمْ غَيْرُ مَلُومِينَ. فَمَنِ ابْتَغَى وَرَاءَ ذَلِكَ فَأُولَئِكَ هُمُ الْعَادُونَ. وَالَّذِينَ هُمْ لِأَمَانَاتِهِمْ وَعَهْدِهِمْ رَاعُونَ. وَالَّذِينَ هُمْ عَلَى صَلَوَاتِهِمْ يُحَافِظُونَ. أُولَئِكَ هُمُ الْوَارِثُونَ. الَّذِينَ يَرِثُونَ الْفِرْدَوْسَ هُمْ فِيهَا خَالِدُونَ.

“Successful indeed are the believers: those who humble themselves in prayer; those who avoid idle talk; those who pay alms-tax; those who guard their chastity, except with their wives or those ˹bondwomen˺ in their possession,1 for then they are free from blame, but whoever seeks beyond that are the transgressors; ˹the believers are also˺ those who are true to their trusts and covenants; and those who are ˹properly˺ observant of their prayers. These are the ones who will be awarded. Paradise as their own.1 They will be there forever.”

Iman

Iman is usually translated in English as faith or belief, also recognition. Iman also defined as Giving recognition with the heart, saying with the tongue, and doing with the limbs; it increases with obedience and decreases with sins.

According to the Qur’an, Iman is conviction which is based upon reason and knowledge; a conviction that results from full mental acceptance and intellectual satisfaction; the kind of conviction that gives one a feeling of inner contentment and peace.

Its most simple definition is the belief in the six articles of faith, known as arkān al-īmān.

Belief in the existence and oneness of God.
Belief in the existence of angels.
Belief in the existence of the books of which God is the author: the Quran (revealed to Muhammad), the Gospel (revealed to Jesus), the Torah (revealed to Moses) Psalms (revealed to David).
Belief in the existence of prophets: from Adam to Muhammad.
Belief in the existence of the Day of Judgment: in that day, humanity will be divided into two groups: that of paradise and that of hell. These groups are composed of subgroups.
Belief in the existence of God's predestination (qadar, 'Divine Decree') due to God's omniscience, whether it involves good or bad.

Good Deeds

All the scholars of Islam – the jurists and others – have agreed that good deeds are one of the pillars of faith, and a witness to the integrity of Tawheed (monotheism), as there is no indication or sign that represents the meaning of the two Shahada’s (testimonies) in reality except for a person’s behavior, morals, commitment and adherence to orders, and abstinence from evil and prohibitions.

Good deeds come naturally to those of us who have the correct akhlaq (manners), along with increased taqwa (fear of Allah SWT). Niyyah (intention) also plays a significant role in our deeds.

There are some acts, however, that are much loved by Allah SWT; some of which are detailed below:

Praying in congregation in the mosque
Reading Quran.
Attending funerals and offering the funeral prayer
Tasbeeh, tahmid and takbir,
Upholding the ties of kinship
Visiting the sick
Repenting to Allah SWT for your sins; those who repent genuinely and vow not to repeat the act
The intent for a good outcome in the committing of bad deeds, while repenting/acknowledging the bad
Charity giving on behalf of the deceased
One’s given test and hardship in life, including illnesses suffered
Performing general good deeds with purest of intentions
Those who feed the hungry, or provide help to those who are in need of your support
Volunteering your time in exchange for an honourable act, such as widening the knowledge of Islam or utilising your time for the benefit or gain of someone else
Seeking Islamic Knowledge
Forgiving a Debtor who is in Hardship
Sponsoring an Orphan
Showing Patience at the Loss of One’s Sights
Having A Good Character

None of us makes any loss while carrying out a noble act as this one good deed will be greatly loved by our Creator. Who knows - maybe He will forgive one of our bad deeds because of all the good deeds. The advantages of being noble far outweigh the negatives.

مَنْ عَمِلَ صَالِحًا مِنْ ذَكَرٍ أَوْ أُنْثَى وَهُوَ مُؤْمِنٌ فَلَنُحْيِيَنَّهُ حَيَاةً طَيِّبَةً وَلَنَجْزِيَنَّهُمْ أَجْرَهُمْ بِأَحْسَنِ مَا كَانُوا يَعْمَلُونَ

“Whoever works righteousness — whether male or female — while he (or she) is a true believer (of Islamic Monotheism) verily, to him We will give a good life (in this world with respect, contentment and lawful provision), and We shall pay them certainly a reward in proportion to the best of what they used to do (i.e. Paradise in the Hereafter)”. [al-Nahl/16:97]

Our ultimate goal in this world is to reach the Day of Judgement with far more good deeds than bad; as we all know, we are currently responsible for our own consequence on this day.

May Allah enter us into heaven. Amen.

Thursday, April 13, 2023