You lie not while joking or fighting, but when right
You didn’t do good for the temporary reward
You did not submit to false associations or pride
All you sought was the pleasure of your Lord

You were a slave by choice
To a master who deserved the best
Yet He demanded nothing but your heart,
Damaged but repaired with regrets

You didn’t sell your soul for a small price
You saved it until the market was high
And you sold it to the best buyer
Whose mercy welcomed you to Paradise

You were pleased with your Lord
And the faith He chose for you
You raced for His forgiveness
Sticking to hard work, submission, and what was true

You fulfilled your obligations, and were kind, too
You couldn’t give much but constantly gave your best
You were grateful to God no matter what
And you kept no grudges in your chest

You devoted your youth to the One
In solitude, you shed all your precious tears
You treated everyone with respect
And as a volunteer, looked after an orphan

You promoted good and forbade bad
Yet you never judged anyone
You followed a path in your quest for knowledge
But your parents, you never shunned

You restrained your gaze, even locked your tongue
You caged your thoughts and counted each breath fall
So now your soul is free in a body unbounded by death
As you never considered minor sins so small

So now you enter as a VIP, while everyone waits
You step in and already know your home
A private palace of jewels with no noise or rent
Purely customized to be your dome

You’re surprised how it’s exactly what you love
Intricacy in each, and everything so bold
Royally placed, silver doors and bricks of gold
Without the excessive heat or the bitter cold

You see golden butterflies fluttering around a tree outside
So you travel beneath the shade of its glory for 100 years
Colors your eyes have never seen
You start sweating musk at whatever that appears

Scenery being painted in front of you as you think
In lush green gardens, you ride your park
Suspended there thinking, Is this all mine?
Even when my report card had many red marks?

Now think of never having to feel hunger and stress
Never feeling intensity of pain inconceivable by the brain
All the truths unravel and it’s all clear at once:
No arguments to prove who’s sane or insane

No regrets, no waiting, no hatred or discrimination
No sorrow or fatigue; no wanting to catch a wink.
Boredom is a word you simply forget
Wishing that your eye would now never blink

What you seek is what you see and hear
Smelling the best and thinking the rest.
A world of perfection, with nothing to fear
It couldn’t get any better, yet you got the best

You squint at the special upper abodes
Far away from you, shining like bright stars
You keep thinking you couldn’t ever reach them
Until you get upgraded from where you are

Maybe you had daughters that you treated so well
Maybe your children died and your patience pulled you up
Maybe you died with them, never bidding peace farewell
Sticking to your testimony as the last words for a ticket above

The good character you taught your kids and their prayers
Added to your deeds, even after death
Maybe you never had kids, yet you collected
So much charity that you were out of breath

Maybe some among your pious mates are up there
They want you with them in the Garden
You couldn’t be happier for the blood you shared
Or maybe they were from the friends you chose

You go up there and are filled with awe
For you never imagined such beauty ever existed
Suddenly you see all the prophets gathered
Facing each other on raised thrones, coexisting

Surrounded by gold trees and soil more fragrant than musk
With pebbles underneath of ruby, pearl, and sapphire
Dressed in gold embroidered, fine green silk attire
Eating together: delicious food and fruits, melting in the mouth

Around them, servants revolve like scattered pearls
With never fading youth and cushions lined on stage
They have access to celebrities not surrounded by security
Adam, Moses, Jesus, and Muhammad; all the same age

You rush to them in excitement, and suddenly
Moses parts the sea with his staff
Your pace suddenly slows down, to absorb the grandeur;
You had to close your eyes to even imagine this

But now it’s a reality, your eyes wide open
Never did 4D have so many dimensions
Your overloaded senses make your heart burst
As your mind is stampeded with 1000 questions

The Seal of Messengers greet, taking your name
And you can’t decide whether to cry or faint with glee
So you just stand with them, shoulder to shoulder
And pray as he leads

The river of emotions flows through your veins
But a drenched soul can’t express your gratitude
The tides of rapture bring a hurricane inside you
The soul soars high, with your heartbeats engulfed

You ask for the staff from Moses
And rush to your mates to show off your delight
In your way you find Solomon
You ask for his winged horse and take it for a flight

You join the Angels and holy ones
Flying like green birds with freedom
You fill the cup at hand, with a delicious drink
Right from the flowing spring of Eden

You look down and see adorable babies around Abraham
Mountains humming along with the rhythm of David
You never heard a melody so beautiful
As more hypnotizing voices join in the mood

All your life you thought of meeting these ancestors in heaven
The ones who sacrificed their lives for your faith to be strong
Their efforts were what made it easy for you
You owed them a token of thanks all along

“Was it a woman with a smile?
When her hands and feet were pierced by nails?
Or was it a man, thrown into fire
When he didn’t put his faith on sale?”

The reward of those who suffered in the world
Made you yearn for your skin to be sliced
Now that they find delight in their past miseries
You hear their sad stories with a smile

Above all earthly cares they now soar
Beyond the hurts they patiently endured
You watch light flow from broken hearts
Maybe you’re one of them

Suddenly you’re interrupted by a magical voice
Which is even better than what you have heard before
The voice of your Creator addressing you
He’ll show Himself clear, like a full moon‘s wash

Goosebumps cover your skin in anticipation
And you hold your breath till you see His face
You feel like shouting at the top of your lungs
Glorified You are, when He uncovers His grace

And you whisper to yourself: “Praise be to the One,
My Master didn’t let me be influenced by them
Those who said there was no God, or heaven or hell;
If only they had a heart attached to a brain stem.

If only they could see what I’m seeing right now!
Their doubts wouldn’t have ever rid them of hope,
Hope of being able to see the invisible.
But womb to dust was their only known globe.”

You have every desire at your fingertips
Yet you want to do nothing but quietly stare
At One who’s guidance directed your soul
It’s like you’re new yet you, but enraptured

You don’t feel like going to the heavenly market anymore
For your beauty is enhanced with just a glance
Seeing Moses looking at His Lord without fainting
You just circulate in infinite loops of a euphoric trance

A single life seed you sowed and
Reaped into forever more
Each and every wish granted;
In fulfillment, you run out of more

Wanting this all will never end
So an end will be put to death forever
So much joy that you could just die,
But death has died forever

Never before were dreams so real
Never again can reality be more
Never before was ecstasy such
And never again can life be most

My imagination is made up of what I know
It doesn’t go beyond my thoughts
So I wait in serenity till that day comes
When reality will connect all the dots

The test is here and the results there
Do you just dream or do you strive?
For time is running out, and the price is high
A limited offer, but worth a life
Or more…

Note: The poem has been inspired by a beautiful Jannah poem by Ammar Alshukry.