Huzoor (rh): In reference to the dead, it doesn’t matter at all. Doesn’t make any difference this is what the Holy Quran tells us. Also the traditions of the Holy Prophet (sa) tell us that, for instance there is an anecdote about a person who was afraid of Allah’s punishment. And he had willed that after his death he should be burned and charred with the result that the whole body should be turned into ashes Then half of the ashes should be thrown to the winds and let the wind carry the ashes and disperse in all the four directions. And half of the ashes should be thrown to some river so that it carries them to ocean and they disperse and just disappear in such detail he wills to his children and they did exactly as they were bidden. So Hazrat Rasool Aqram (sa) tells us and of course he was told this by Allah that when such a person appeared before him and remember this that this is mentioned always in past tense The future events which would take place are always mentioned in the Holy Quran in the past sense They’re so certain so positive as if they had taken place. Similarly in tradition it is the past sense, but it pertains to the future. But I’ll stick to the tense in which Rasool Aqram (sa) spoke on this subject.
So he tells us that Allah spoke to that man and found out why he had done this and he said to Allah I was very much afraid of your wrath. I’m a very sinful person I had committed every possible sin on earth and I was so afraid of being caught by you. This was my device to escape you. And before this Rasool Aqram (sa) tells us that Allah will order the winds and the earth to reproduce every morsel every atom of those ashes which were flown to them and also order the waters to throw him up and both the earth and the water and the winds would throw his whole body up. Now that is all metaphorical, because ashes cannot reproduce the body obviously even if all the ashes are collected they can’t reproduce the body so that shows it is just a metaphorical statement. It is to say that anyway, he could not escape Allah. But when Allah heard this Allah said ‘all right, you are so much afraid of me, I forgive you’. So that was a way of expressing Allah’s forgiveness and it also answers your question.
So in this respect whatever may happen to body will not affect the soul or recreation of spirit in any sense whatsoever. What is important is to the living being, It is the sentimental value of the living which is important. If somebody comes to console someone who has suffered from the death of a relative. What different does it make to the dead? If one doesn’t even that does not make any difference. But it makes the difference to the living, so how you want your beloved one to part in full grace and with all the respect due to him and that respect is in fact due to you. All that you feel is you yourself, not the dead body
