Imagining My JANNAH

“But those who have believed and done righteous deeds — We will admit them to gardens beneath which rivers flow, wherein they will abide forever. For them therein are purified spouses, and We will admit them to deepening shade.”
— Surah An-Nisa (4:57)

From the tender days of life, the rushing thoughts in my mind related to Jannah were: "There are the divine gardens for the virtuous! And these radiant gardens will be owned by those great people who live their lives for Allah and those who die in the Name of Allah!"

Reflecting on the greatness of those people, my mind often thinks about the martyrs of Palestine, Yemen, Syria, and all those upon whom this world proved its cruelty. I always console myself that now they are resting in the gardens of Paradise—a world far beyond one's imagination, the beauty of which could neither be written nor described! Thinking and reading about them—who left this mortal world—always makes me think about the world hereafter.

Every now and then, when life feels heavy and the mind needs deliverance from all distress, a kind, tender feeling suggests: "Imagine your Jannah." But I always end up counting my sins! While thinking about the breathtaking beauty and blessings of Paradise, my inner thoughts also make me ponder: how will my Jannah look, when my life is not like the lives of those “great people”? I am not suffering in this world like millions of people, and I am not even close to Allah. Will Paradise be granted to me as well? Will I be one of those chosen souls? But then again, humble belief provokes me to think beyond all this.

Look at those little deeds of kindness that will help you pass through the doors of Heaven. Reflect upon those generous acts by which you will receive everlasting blessings in Heaven!

Then, I imagine Paradise as the one I must prepare for in this world—through my charity, generosity, and sincere prayers. My Heaven will exactly be as I choose it to look!

• If my hands have fed a single “grain” of wheat to end someone’s hunger, in my Paradise millions of crops of wheat will be prepared for me.
• If I have quenched someone's thirst with a “drop” of water, an ocean of fresh water will be ready in Paradise for me to quench my thirst forever.
• If I helped someone with the least money I possessed, I will be bestowed all the riches and treasures of the world.
• If I have become the cause of someone's happiness, I will be granted everlasting laughter and joy.
• If I ever provided shade to a weary soul, I will be granted eternal peace under the shade of Allah's throne.
• If I became a cause of someone's relief, I will be blessed with the everlasting gentle winds of Heaven.
• My kind regards to someone are like planting vibrant and shady trees for me in my gardens of Heaven.

Behold! What can one wish for when there will be blessings and blessings? There will be no sorrows or tears, no hunger, no thirst, no injustice, no homelessness, no distress, and most of all, no desires left!

Then I imagine: what will remain when we have nothing left to wish for? I want Allah to give me a chance to ask for His divine blessings in Jannah as well.

For me, the greatest blessing of Allah is compassion and tenderness of heart—I want to possess it in any world. I wish Allah to give me warmth of love in Jannah, where no hate or aggression remains in any heart. I wish to weep and beseech before Him in Jannah too. I wish to remain penniless and destitute in Jannah, despite having everything.

But in the end, I am just a sinful servant, for whom the kindest blessing will be hearing these words:

“And enter My Paradise.”