Question: While explaining our faith and its virtues to an atheist who visited the shop where I work, he posed a question: "How do you claim that the Hereafter is real? Is there any evidence? How can human bodies be resurrected after decomposing following death? How can those who are cremated or those who die after being swallowed by fish be brought back? If punishment occurs in the grave, why is no such evidence found when a grave is exhumed? Can you prove that this actually happens?" He asked several such questions.– J. Riyas Khan, Keelakarai.
Answer: Before discussing the Hereafter, it is best to consider the life we are currently living. This is because the initial act of creating something is the difficult part; destroying it and recreating it is not nearly as challenging. This is a principle that rational people accept.
It took many years to create the first computer. Once created, however, manufacturing hundreds of thousands of identical units became easy.
A hundred years ago, you did not exist in this world. You did not exist anywhere else, nor were you any form of matter. For Muslims, who believe that God created them from a state of nothingness, believing that He can destroy created beings and recreate them is a simple matter of faith.
Furthermore, when Muslims believe in God, they believe He is All-Powerful. They do not view God as a weak being like a human.
If God were incapable of recreating what has decomposed—just as you and your friend are incapable of doing so—then there would be no need for such a God. The fundamental tenet of Islam is that God is the One capable of doing what is impossible for us.
Therefore, questioning the reality of the Hereafter is inappropriate. Once one reaches a conclusion regarding the existence of God, believing in the Hereafter, Paradise, and Hell becomes a simple matter.
The concept of "punishment in the grave" is a term used to signify a reality; if one were to dig up a grave, one would not see a person actually undergoing physical torment. This concept must be understood correctly and explained to others in the right manner.
It is an Islamic belief that everyone—good or bad—experiences life in the grave. Specifically, there is evidence in Islam indicating that the wicked cannot escape the punishment of the grave.
Many wicked individuals are cremated, and their ashes are scattered into rivers across various regions. They are not buried in a specific location; instead, their ashes are dispersed widely across the country. If one were to argue that they face no punishment because they lack a physical grave, it would contradict the evidence stating that everyone undergoes the punishment of the grave.
Similarly, consider a person mauled and eaten by wild animals, or someone who drowns at sea and is consumed by fish; where is the grave for such individuals?
If we were to believe that the punishment occurs only at the burial site—specifically within that soil—then the majority of people in the world would be exempt from the punishment of the grave.
The only logical conclusion is that God, having taken the souls of the deceased, punishes them in a realm beyond our sight.
There are Hadiths in which Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) pointed out instances of punishment occurring in specific graves. These instances should be understood as events revealed to him by virtue of his role as the Messenger of God.
To avoid the absurd conclusion that those who were cremated or consumed by animals have no life in the grave, one must interpret the concept of life in the grave in this manner.
Once you grasp this understanding of life in the grave, you will be able to answer your atheist friend's question. He cannot ask questions like, "Can you dig into the earth and show the suffering being inflicted?"