A Commentary on the phrase Wa adkhilni al-Jannata

وَأَدْخِلْنِي الْجَنَّةَ

And place me in the Garden of Heaven

إِنَّ اللَّهَ يُدْخِلُ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ جَنَّاتٍ…

“Allah will indeed admit those who have faith and do balanced deeds into gardens...” (22:14).

وَادْخُلِي جَنَّتِي

“And enter My Garden” (89:30).

*****

وَأَدْخِلْنِي الْجَنَّةَ

And place me in the Garden [of Heaven]

The interrogative verb adkhilni here signifies a subtlety worthy of mention: The servant wants the Mawla Himself to make him enter Heaven. Such an expression also appears in the Holy Qur’an as follows:

فَمَنْ زُحْزِحَ عَنِ النَّارِ وَأُدْخِلَ الْجَنَّةَ فَقَدْ فَازَ

“... Whoever is delivered from the Fire and admitted to the Garden of Heaven has certainly succeeded ...” (3:185).

Notice the phrase ‘wa udkhila al-jannah’ is employed, meaning ‘he was made to enter’.

In chapter 3, verse 195, there is a clear mention that Allah Himself makes the good servants enter the Garden of Heaven:

فَالَّذِينَ هَاجَرُوا وَأُخْرِجُوا مِنْ دِيَارِهِمْ وَأُوذُوا فِي سَبِيلِي وَقَاتَلُوا وَقُتِلُوا لَأُكَفِّرَنَّ عَنْهُمْ سَيِّئَاتِهِمْ وَلَأُدْخِلَنَّهُمْ جَنَّاتٍ تَجْرِي مِنْ تَحْتِهَا الْأَنْهَارُ ثَوَابًا مِنْ عِنْدِ اللَّهِ ۗ وَاللَّهُ عِنْدَهُ حُسْنُ الثَّوَابِ

“...So those who migrated and were expelled from their homes, and were tormented in My way, and those who fought and were killed - I will surely absolve them of their misdeeds and I will surely admit them into gardens with streams running in them, as a reward from Allah, and Allah, with Him is the best of rewards” (3:195).

In this verse the phrase ‘wa la-udkhilannahum jannat (and I will surely admit them into gardens)’ is employed which reveals great emphasis in Allah Himself admitting the righteous servants into the Gardens of Heaven.

In chapter 4, verse 13, Allah says:

وَمَنْ يُطِعِ اللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُ يُدْخِلْهُ جَنَّاتٍ تَجْرِي مِنْ تَحْتِهَا الْأَنْهَارُ خَالِدِينَ فِيهَا ۚ وَذَٰلِكَ الْفَوْزُ الْعَظِيمُ

“...and whoever obeys Allah and His Apostle, He shall admit him to gardens with streams running in them, to remain in them [forever]. That is the great success” (4:13).

Here again Allah says that He Himself will admit one who obeys Allah and His Apostle. The phrase yudkhilhu (He shall admit him) refers to this.

In chapter 4, verse 57, we have a similar mention:

وَالَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ سَنُدْخِلُهُمْ جَنَّاتٍ تَجْرِي مِنْ تَحْتِهَا الْأَنْهَارُ خَالِدِينَ فِيهَا أَبَدًا لَهُمْ فِيهَا أَزْوَاجٌ مُطَهَّرَةٌ وَنُدْخِلُهُمْ ظِلًّا ظَلِيلًا

“As for those who have faith and do righteous deeds, We shall admit them into gardens with streams running in them, to remain in them forever. In it there will be chaste mates for them, and We shall admit them into a deep shade” (4:57).

In chapter 5, verse 65, Allah says:

وَلَوْ أَنَّ أَهْلَ الْكِتَابِ آمَنُوا وَاتَّقَوْا لَكَفَّرْنَا عَنْهُمْ سَيِّئَاتِهِمْ وَلَأَدْخَلْنَاهُمْ جَنَّاتِ النَّعِي

“And had the People of the Book believed and been God-wary, We would surely have absolved them of their misdeeds and admitted them into gardens of bliss” (5:65).

Other verses likewise have similar expressions, which show that it is the All-Beloved who admits His good servants into the Gardens of Heaven. We would like to suffice ourselves here with the few that have been mentioned.

Hence, when we recite ‘wa adkhilni al-jannah’ we must realise the importance of our expression. O Allah, it is extremely intoxicating when it is You who says that You will place us in Jannah!

وَأَدْخِلْنِي الْجَنَّةَ

And place me in the Garden [of Heaven]

While we seek the Garden of Heaven from Almighty Allah, we must try to understand and seek the causes that facilitate the same. There are so many verses of the Holy Qur’an and narrations of the Ahl al-Bayt (‘a) that teach us the path towards Heaven. The following are some noteworthy examples:

1. The Holy Qur’an says:

وَبَشِّرِ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ أَنَّ لَهُمْ جَنَّاتٍ…

“And give good news to those who have faith and do balanced deeds, that for them shall be gardens...” (2:25).

This verse conveys a universal principle that says that one who has proper belief and performs balanced deeds will be availed with Jannah. This actually informs us that Jannah is a place of elevation, for the principle for achieving elevation that we mentioned earlier is the same principle for attaining the Garden of Heaven.

2. The Holy Qur’an, mentioning the same principle, says:

وَالَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ أُولَٰئِكَ أَصْحَابُ الْجَنَّةِ هُمْ فِيهَا خَالِدُونَ

“And those who have faith and do balanced deeds they shall be the inhabitants of the Garden [of Heaven]; they shall remain in it” (2:82).

3. The Holy Qur’an reckons those who observe God-wariness (taqwa) to be those who would enjoy the Gardens of Heaven:

لِلَّذِينَ اتَّقَوْا عِنْدَ رَبِّهِمْ جَنَّاتٌ تَجْرِي مِنْ تَحْتِهَا الْأَنْهَارُ

“... For those who are God-wary there will be gardens near their Lord, with streams running in them...” (3:15).

4. The Holy Qur’an reckons those who struggle in Allah’s path and attain martyrdom to be among the people of Jannah:

…فَالَّذِينَ هَاجَرُوا وَأُخْرِجُوا مِنْ دِيَارِهِمْ وَأُوذُوا فِي سَبِيلِي وَقَاتَلُوا وَقُتِلُوا لَأُكَفِّرَنَّ عَنْهُمْ سَيِّئَاتِهِمْ وَلَأُدْخِلَنَّهُمْ جَنَّاتٍ تَجْرِي مِنْ تَحْتِهَا الْأَنْهَارُ ثَوَابًا مِنْ عِنْدِ اللَّهِ ۗ وَاللَّهُ عِنْدَهُ حُسْنُ الثَّوَابِ

“... So those who migrated and were expelled from their homes, and were tormented in My way, and those who fought and were killed - I will surely absolve them of their misdeeds and I will surely admit them into gardens with streams running in them, as a reward from Allah, and Allah, with Him is the best of rewards” (3:195).

5. Another verse that speaks of Jannah to be the reward of martyrdom is the following:

إِنَّ اللَّهَ اشْتَرَىٰ مِنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ أَنْفُسَهُمْ وَأَمْوَالَهُمْ بِأَنَّ لَهُمُ الْجَنَّةَ ۚ يُقَاتِلُونَ فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ فَيَقْتُلُونَ وَيُقْتَلُونَ وَعْدًا عَلَيْهِ حَقًّا فِي التَّوْرَاةِ وَالْإِنْجِيلِ وَالْقُرْآنِ

“Indeed, Allah has bought from the faithful their souls and their possessions for the Garden of Heaven to be theirs: they fight in the way of Allah, kill, and are killed. A promise binding upon Him in the Torah and the Evangel and the Qur’an...” (9:111).

6. The Holy Prophet (S) is reported to have said:

لِلَّهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ تِسْعَةُ وَتِسْعُونَ اسْماً مَنْ دَعَا اللَّهَ بِهَا اسْتَجَابَ لَهُ، وَمَنْ أَحْصَاهَا دَخَلَ الْجَنَّةَ

Allah, the Invincible and Majestic, has ninety-nine names, by which whosoever calls Allah He will respond to him, and whosoever enumerates them will enter the Garden of Heaven1.

Enumeration here does not mean vocalisation, but assimilation and exemplification. In simpler words, it means whosoever acquires them [according to his limit] enters the Garden of Heaven.

7. Imam as-Sadiq (‘a) is reported to have narrated the following:

إِنَّ قَوْماً أَتَوْا رَسُولَ اللهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَآلِهِ) فَقَالُوا: يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ اضْمَنْ لَنَا عَلَى رَبِّكَ الْجَنَّةَ، قَالَ: فَقَالَ: عَلَى أَنْ تُعِينُونِي بِطُولِ السُّجُودِ، قَالُوا: نَعَمْ يَا رَسُولَ اللهِ، فَضَمِنَ لَهُمُ الْجَنَّةَ، قَالَ: فَبَلَغَ ذَلِكَ قَوْماً مِنَ الْأَنْصَارِ فَأَتَوْهُ، فَقَالُوا: يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ اضْمَنْ لَنَا الْجَنَّةَ، قَالَ: عَلَى أَنْ لَا تَسْأَلُوا أَحَداً شَيْئًا، قَالُوا: نَعَمْ يَا رَسُولَ اللهِ، قَالَ: فَضَمِنَ لَهُمُ الْجَنَّةَ، فَكَانَ الرَّجُلُ مِنْهُمْ يَسْقُطُ سَوْطُهُ وَهُوَ عَلَى دَابَتِهِ فَيَنْزِلُ حَتَّى يَتَنَا وَلَهُ، كَرَاهِيَةَ أَنْ يَسْأَلَ أَحَداً شَيْئاً،

Indeed, a people came to the Apostle of Allah (S) and said: O Apostle of Allah, guarantee for us from your Lord the Garden of Heaven. He (S) said: On the condition that you assist me with lengthy prostration. They said: We agree, O Apostle of Allah (S); so, the Apostle of Allah (S) guaranteed for them the Garden of Heaven. So, a group of people from the Ansar came to learn of this incident, and they came to him (S) and said: O Apostle of Allah (S), guarantee for us the Garden of Heaven. He (S) said: On the condition that you do not ask anything from anyone. They said: We agree, O Apostle of Allah (S). So, the Apostle of Allah guaranteed for them the Garden of Heaven. Thus, a whip of a person from them would fall while he would be on his mount, whereupon he would come down to pick it up himself, in order not to ask anyone for anything2.

8. The Holy Prophet (S) is reported to have said:

مَنْ عَالَ بِنْتَا مِنَ الْمُسْلِمِينَ فَلَهُ الْجَنَّة

Whosoever supports one daughter [among the Muslims] will have the Garden of Heaven3.

9. Imam as-Sadiq (‘a) in a lengthy conversation with his companion Abu Amarah is reported

وَمَنْ أَنْشَدَ فِي الْحُسَيْنِ (ع) شِعْراً فَأَبْكَى وَاحِداً فَلَهُ الْجَنَّةُ، وَمَنْ أَنْشَدَ فِي الحسين (ع) شِعْراً فَبَكَى فَلَهُ الْجَنَّةُ، وَمَنْ أَنْشَدَ فِي الْحُسَيْنِ شِعْراً فَتَبَاكَى فَلَهُ الْجَنَّةُ

And whosoever recites one poem on al-Husayn (‘a) and makes one person cry, will have the Garden of Heaven, and whosoever recites one poem on al-Husayn and cries [himself], will have the Garden of Heaven, and whosoever recites one poem on al-Husayn and makes his face in such a way as if he is crying, will have the Garden of Heaven4.

10. Imam as-Sadiq (‘a) is reported to have said:

مَنْ زَارَ عَلِيّاً بَعْدَ وَفَاتِهِ، فَلَهُ الْجَنَّةُ

Whosoever visits Ali after his demise, will have the Garden of Heaven.

11. The Holy Prophet (S) is reported to have said:

مَنْ زَارَ الْحُسَيْنِ (عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ) بَعْدَ مَوْتِهِ، فَلَهُ الْجَنَّةُ

Whosoever visits al-Husayn (‘a) after his demise, will have the Garden of Heaven.

12. Imam Musa Ibn Ja'far al-Kadhim (‘a) is reported to have said:

مَنْ زَارَ ابْنِي هَذَا وَأَوْمَا بِيَدِهِ إِلَى أَبِي الْحَسَنِ الرِّضَا (ع) فَلَهُ الْجَنَّةُ

Whosoever visits this son of mine (and the Imam pointed at Abu al-Hasan ar-Ridha’ (‘a)) will have the Garden of Heaven5.

13. Imam al-Jawad (‘a) is reported to have said:

مَنْ زَارَ قَبْرَ عَمَّتِي بِقُمَّ فَلَهُ الْجَنَّةُ

Whosoever visits the grave of my aunt in Qum will have the Garden of Heaven6.

14. Imam ar-Ridha’ (‘a) is reported to have said:

السَّخِي قَرِيبٌ مِنَ اللهِ قَرِيبٌ مِنَ الْجَنَّةِ قَرِيبٌ مِنَ النَّاسِ بَعِيدُ مِنَ النَّارِ وَالْبَخِيلُ بَعِيدٌ مِنَ الْجَنَّةِ بَعِيدُ مِنَ النَّاسِ قَرِيبُ النَّارِ

The openhanded one is close to Allah, close to the Garden of Heaven, close to the people, and distant from Hell-Fire; and the miserly one is distant from the Garden of Heaven, distant from the people, close to Hell-Fire7.

الْجَنَّةَ

Garden [of Heaven]

The definite article al prefixed in al-jannah can be employed to signify something specific and in this case, it can refer to a specific Jannah (Garden of Heaven). And since a believer’s aspiration is always exalted and high (‘all), he would opt for the highest level of the Gardens of Heaven which the insightful call Jannat al-Liqa’ (the Garden of Meeting Allah). It is this kind of Garden that is spoken about in the concluding verses of Surat al-Fajr, where Almighty Allah addressing the serene soul, says:

وَادْخُلِي جَنَّتِي

“And enter My Garden” (89:30).

Interestingly, the word ‘jannah’ refers to a specific kind of garden. Its root (Jim, nun) means ‘to hide (as-Satr)8. And Jannah was so called because the trees [in the Garden] hide [and cover] it. Ibn al-Athir, defining al-jannah, says that it is from al-ijtinan which is as-Satr (to hide), and that is because of the thickening of its trees, and because it is overshadowed by the coiling of their branches9.

أَدْخِلْنِي الْجَنَّةَ

Place me in the Garden [of Heaven]

It is possible that the supplicant seeks the Garden of Heaven during his supplication, and does not only ask for the same at a later stage (i.e. during death or Resurrection). The reality, as the Holy Qur’an and the traditions of the Ahl al-Bayt (‘a) clearly teach, is that one is either in Paradise while still residing in this world or in the Hell-Fire. If the curtains were unveiled (law kushifa al-ghita) for him he would see other dimensions of his reality (such as the barzakhi reality), which would either depict bliss and paradise or agony and fire.

The following are noteworthy anecdotes:

1) Abu Dharr’s Ailing Situation

Imam ‘Ali (‘a) is reported to have said:

وُعِكَ أَبُو ذَرٍ رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ فَأَتَيْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ (ص) فَقُلْتُ: يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ إِنَّ أَبَا ذَرَ قَدْ وُعِكَ، فَقَالَ: امْضِ بِنَا إِلَيْهِ نَعُودُهُ، فَمَضَيْنَا إِلَيْهِ جَمِيعاً، فَلَمَّا جَلَسْنَا قَالَ رَسُولَ اللهِ (ص): كَيْفَ أَصْبَحْتَ يَا أَبَا ذَرٍ؟ قَالَ: أَصْبَحْتُ وَعِكَاً يَا رَسُولَ اللهِ، فَقَالَ: أَصْبَحْتَ فِي رَوْضَةٍ مِنْ رِيَاضِ الْجَنَّةِ

Abu Dharr [once] became sick; so I came to the Apostle of Allah (S) and said: O Apostle of Allah, indeed, Abu Dharr has fallen sick. He said: let us go to visit him, and so we went collectively to visit him. And when we sat beside him, the Apostle of Allah (S) asked him: O Aba Dharr, how did you confront your morning? He said: I have confronted the morning in sickness. The Holy Prophet thereupon said: Surely you have confronted the morning while you are in a garden among the gardens of Paradise10.

2) Reciting Ziyarah Aminullah

In the introduction to his anthology Shahrullah fl al-Kitab wa as-Sunnah, when explaining the kind of divine banquet that believers should anticipate in the holy month of Ramadan, Ayatullah Rayshahri quotes ar-risalah al-Majdiyyah of Shaykh Ridha al-Isfahani, where the latter explains the kind of divine repast that the believers are invited to. At one point he says:

فقد سمعت مرات وكرات ممن هو أقرب الناس إلي حسبا ونسباء أنه يقول: كنت في أحد أيام شهر رمضان مشغولاً بالزيارة المعروفة بزيارة أمين الله في المرقد الشريف بالنجف، وحين وصلت بعبارات الزيارة إلى وموائد المستطعمين معدةً ... وفيما أنا أتأمل بمعناها وأفكر به، تراءت لي فجأة مائدة مصفوف عليها أنواع الأطعمة والأشربة مما لم أكن أتصوره قتل، وأنا أتناول من طعامها، وفي تلك الأثناء كنت أفكر بمسألة فقهية، إنها حالة عجيبة تبعث على الدهشة الواقع أن هذه هي حقيقة الغذاء، وهي ليست مفطرة للصوم

Indeed, I have heard several times and repeatedly from one who is closest to me in terms of relationship and kinship saying: I was busy reciting the well- known Ziyarah Aminullah in the holy sanctuary in Najaf, and when I reached the verse ‘wa mawa’id al-mustat‘imina mu‘addah (and the banquets of those who seek sustenance are ready)’... and reflected over its meaning and thought about it, I was suddenly made to see a banquet on which lay different kinds of food and drinks, which I had never thought of, and I was eating from them, and in the course of that state I was contemplating about an Islamic ruling. Surely it is an amazing state which renders one perplexed! The truth is that this is the reality of [Heavenly] food, which does not break the fast11.

Al-Isfahani later continues and says:

ولا تظنن أن تعبيرات هذا العبد هي من قبيل خيالات الشعراء وأوهامهم، أو من شطحيات غلاة المتصوفة، فحاشي أن أتجاوز لسان الكتاب والسنة، أو أتخطى في معتقدي غير ما جاء به الله والنبي وأمرا به، وإنما المقصود هو قول الله نفسه في سورة هل أتى حيث يقول وَسَقَاهُمْ رَبُّهُمْ شَرَابًا طَهُورًا : يبحانه

Do not think that the expressions of this servant resemble the imaginations of the poets and their vain ideas or the theopathetic utterances (shatahiyyat) of the extremist so-called sufis (mutasawwifah). I dare not transcend the bounds of the speech of the Book of God and the Sunnah, or adopt a course in my belief that is other than what Allah and His Messenger brought and ordered [us to follow]. What I only mean here is the word of Allah in chapter Hal Ata where Allah says: ‘wa saqahum Rabbuhum sharaban tahuran – ‘and their Lord made them drink a pure drink’ (76:21).

These two anecdotes depict the existence of Jannah in Barzakh (the Intermediate Realm). Only those whose visions have no hurdles can easily behold their higher levels. Barzakh, as the insightful scholars explain, is not a separate phase in time that succeeds this world, but rather the higher level or the kernel of this very material world. Hence, while one still inhabits this world, he can be in Paradise in the higher realm of his own existence too. Consider this beautiful saying reported from Amir al-Mu’minin (‘a) carefully:

وَاللَّهِ إِنَّ صَائِمَكُمْ لَيَرْتَعُ فِي رِياضِ الْجَنَّةِ تَدْعُو لَهُ الْمَلَائِكَةُ بِالْقَوْزِ حَتَّى يُقطر

I swear by Allah, indeed, the fasting one among you is enjoying in the gardens of Paradise, and the angels pray for his success until he breaks his fast12.

• 1. Shaykh as-Saduq, al-Tawhid. p. 195.
• 2. Shaykh al-Tusi, al-Amali, p. 664.
• 3. Al-Ihsa’i, Awali’ al-La’ali, v. 3, p. 294.
• 4. Ibn Qulawayh, Kamil az-Ziyarat, p. 105.
• 5. ‘Allamah Al-Majlisi, Bihar al-Anwar. v. 99, p. 41.
• 6. Ibn Qulawayh, Kamil az-Ziyarat, p. 324.
• 7. Shaykh as-Saduq, ‘Uyun Akhbar ar-Ridha’ (‘a), v. 2, p. 12.
• 8. Ibn Faris, Mu’jam Maqayis al-Lughah, v. 1, p. 421.
• 9. Ibn Athir, an-Nihayah fi Gharib al-Hadith, v. 1, p. 307.
• 10. Mirza Nuri, Mustadrak al-Wasa’il, v. 1, p. 57.
• 11. Ayatullah Rayshahri, Shahrullah fi al-Kitab wa as-Sunnah, p. 21.
• 12. Shaykh Tabrasi, Mishkat al-Anwar. p. 170.