If people were to see Paradise in its real form, everyone would become earnestly desirous of entering Paradise. If people were to see Hell in its real form, everyone would flee from it. However, the present world is a testing ground. To facilitate this trial, the path of Paradise leads the way through many unpleasant experiences. In contrast to this, the path of Hell is surrounded by beautiful things. In other words, one has to place curbs on one’s desires to become a deserving candidate for Paradise, whereas following one’s desires without any restraint will lead one to Hell. Putting curbs on one’s desires produces a purified personality, making one a deserving candidate for Paradise. On the contrary, following one’s desires unrestrainedly produces an impure personality destined for Hell. It is, thus, expressed in the Quran: “He who purifies it will indeed be successful, and he who corrupts it is sure to fail.” (91:9-10)
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We seek a life of comfort. However, we are not able to find it in this world. In a tradition the Prophet of Islam explained that comfort is only available in Paradise in the Hereafter: "O God! There is no comfort, but the comfort of the Hereafter." (Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith No. 2961) To search for comfort and happiness in the present world is like a passenger trying to construct a mansion on a railway platform. An individual stays on a railway platform for only a brief period, so it is not the right place to build a mansion where he can live for a long time. The present world is a place for engaging in actions that can make a person eligible for Paradise: It is not the place for building a 'paradise'. The right place for Paradise is in the Hereafter.
If we seek a life of comfort, we must set Paradise as our goal.
Source: God’s Creation Plan
From this understanding, it also becomes clear what Paradise and Hell are. Paradise is the home of the eternal joy and peace of serious and righteous people, while Hell is the place to punish rebellious people who were addicted to falsehood.
The understanding that emerges in line with this is that the present world has been made as a testing ground, and the next world as a place for acquiring the results of one’s actions performed on Earth. Each person has been bestowed with a being that shall never die. However, man’s life is like an iceberg, with a tiny portion visible above the water while the rest is sunk deep in the sea. Man’s lifespan is divided into two portions—one, a small part, which has been kept in this world, and the remaining portion of his lifespan, which has been kept in the world of the Hereafter and will last forever.
There is an ‘examination paper’ for every person that he must ‘answer’ in this present world. Everything in this world exists so that man can seek to perfect his personality. For example, this present world is full of bitter experiences. It is so that man, passing through these experiences, can prove that he can live with positive feelings even in negative conditions. Only people with such a positive personality will be admitted into the ideal world of Paradise in life after death.
In contrast, people who become victims of reactions when faced with negative experiences become negative. Such negative people will be considered non-eligible for Paradise.
Source: God’s Creation Plan
Man’s life is divided into the pre-death and post-death periods. The limited period before death is for the test, while the eternal period after death is for obtaining the results of one’s performance in the test. Those who pass the test will be blessed with Paradise, and those who fail the test will be consigned to Hell.
This is the creation plan of the Creator for this world. However, the status of Paradise and Hell are not the same. The actual purpose of creation is to select the people of Paradise. As far as the people of Hell are concerned, they are just relative components of creation; they do not form any real part of the creation plan.
The world before death is made following the demands of the test. After the period of this test, there will be no need for this world, nor will there be a need for those who fail the test. After this period, only Paradise and those people selected to be settled in the ideal world of heaven will remain in the universe.
Source: God’s Creation Plan
Paradise is the name of the ideal world, the desire for which is lodged in the hearts of every man and woman. Paradise is a place where people will have no sorrow. It is Paradise where the personality of a human being shall achieve fulfilment in the complete sense.
Paradise is that world in which a creation such as man attains his complete fulfilment, where he thinks the way, he wants to think; where he sees what he desires to see; where he listens to the sounds that give pleasure to his ears in the real sense; where he has the company of those people who make his life highly meaningful.
Paradise shall be a world that would have everything that a person can think of and more. It would be a world devoid of limitations, disadvantage, illness, and unfortunate circumstances.
The Quran mentions that the inhabitants of Paradise will 'have no fear, nor will they grieve' (2:38). It means that no one is bereft of fear and grief in the present world. The present world's system has been made so that attaining a life free of anxiety and grief is impossible. Given this, the only proper attitude for man is that he should not make this world his goal. He should give the world only the status of a road that leads to his true destination—Paradise.
Source: The Seeker’s Guide
