World Dawah Quran & Sunnah through understanding of Salaf
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
Introduction
Some Christians claim that Paradise in Islam is nothing more than a place for the gratification of physical desires. They cite the Qur’an and the Prophetic Sunnah, pointing to the mention of spouses and the maidens of Paradise (ḥūr al-ʿīn), as well as certain narrations describing marital relations in Paradise. They then argue that such descriptions are unworthy of what the Hereafter ought to be.
This objection, however, arises from a misunderstanding of the true nature of Paradise in Islam, from quoting certain texts while ignoring others, and, at times, from relying on reports that are not authentically attributed to the Prophet ﷺ before building an argument upon them.
The real point of contention is not whether marital bliss exists in Paradise, for this is firmly established by the Qur’an and authentic Prophetic traditions, and no Muslim denies it. Rather, the claim is that Islam portrays Paradise as being centered upon sexual pleasure, or that the Qur’an emphasizes such pleasures to the extent that they become the ultimate purpose of the inhabitants of Paradise.
This claim is without evidence. On the contrary, it is contradicted by a comprehensive reading of the revealed texts, as well as by sound reasoning, as will become clear.
It should also be understood that in the Hereafter, man will be resurrected with both body and soul. Accordingly, his reward will not be purely spiritual, nor merely physical. Rather, Allah will bless both his body and his soul, just as He will punish both the body and soul of those who deserve punishment. Thus, the existence of physical delights in Paradise is not something strange or objectionable; rather, it is a natural consequence of belief in the bodily resurrection, which is clearly affirmed throughout the Qur’an and the Sunnah.
The answer to this objection may be presented from three perspectives:
- First: Sexual desire is a natural human inclination that Allah has permitted. Islam regulates it in this world and perfects its enjoyment in the Hereafter.
- Second: Paradise is the abode of reward and everlasting bliss, not merely a place of sensual pleasure.
- Third: What does the Bible itself say about the relationship between man and woman?
First Response: Sexual Desire Is a Natural Human Inclination, Which Islam Regulates in This World and Perfects in the Hereafter
Allah created human beings with natural instincts and innate dispositions that are essential to their lives. Among the strongest of these is the inclination toward women. For this reason, Allah, the Exalted, says:
“Beautified for mankind is the love of desires—for women, children, heaped-up treasures of gold and silver, fine branded horses, livestock, and cultivated land.” (Qur’an 3:14)
Islam therefore does not regard this natural inclination as something impure that must be eradicated, nor does it consider it inherently evil. Rather, it forbids its unlawful expression while permitting it through lawful means. Thus, Islam prohibits fornication and all forms of sexual immorality, permits marriage, limits the number of wives a man may have in this world, and lays down laws that preserve rights and prevent injustice.
Accordingly, when a believer strives against his desires in this life, lowers his gaze, guards his chastity, and remains patient in observing the limits set by Allah, it is only fitting that Allah reward him in the Hereafter with the lawful delights that he desires. Allah says:
“Therein is whatever souls desire and whatever delights the eyes, and therein you shall abide forever.” (Qur’an 43:71)
Thus, the existence of spouses in Paradise should not be regarded as strange or objectionable. Rather, it falls under this comprehensive divine promise that every perfect and lawful delight desired by the human soul will be found there.
Nevertheless, this is not the essence of Paradise, nor is it its greatest blessing. It is merely one of the many forms of bliss that Allah has prepared for His believing servants.
The greatest blessing enjoyed by the people of Paradise is their beholding the Noble Face of Allah. Likewise, among the greatest favors bestowed upon them is His eternal pleasure with them, such that He will never again be displeased with them. This is a blessing beyond compare. Everything else—food, drink, spouses, palaces, rivers, and all other delights—is part of the complete honor and reward that Allah has prepared for His righteous servants.
Whoever reduces Paradise to this single aspect of its bliss has ignored the many revealed texts describing its countless blessings, selected only a handful of passages, and then attributed this incomplete picture to Islam. Such an approach is neither fair nor intellectually honest.
Second Response: Paradise Is the Abode of Reward and Bliss, Not Merely a Place of Sensual Pleasure
Paradise is the abode of reward that Allah has prepared for His believing servants. It is not a place of obligation, labor, or trial, but rather the abode of everlasting bliss, untouched by fatigue, hardship, grief, or sorrow. Allah says:
“Look how We have favored some of them over others. But the Hereafter is greater in degrees and greater in distinction.” (Qur’an 17:21)
He also says:
“For all there will be degrees according to what they did, so that He may fully recompense them for their deeds, and they will not be wronged.” (Qur’an 46:19)
And He says:
“Allah will raise those among you who believe and those who have been given knowledge by many degrees. And Allah is fully aware of what you do.” (Qur’an 58:11)
These verses establish that the inhabitants of Paradise will not all occupy the same rank. Rather, they will differ in their درجات according to their faith and righteous deeds. The greater a person’s rank with Allah, the greater his honor and reward.
For this reason, the blessings of Paradise are diverse. Some are shared by all its inhabitants, while others are granted only to certain people according to their rank and station. Thus, there is nothing strange about some believers receiving more spouses than others, just as they differ in their palaces, ranks, and every other form of bliss.
What the objector overlooks, however, is an obvious fact: the Qur’an does not present spouses as the essence of Paradise. Rather, they are mentioned alongside many other blessings. Paradise is described as the abode of eternal life, peace, security, flowing rivers, magnificent palaces, abundant fruits, beautiful garments, splendid adornments, everlasting joy, freedom from sorrow and fatigue, and the fulfillment of every lawful desire. Spouses are mentioned only as one element within this complete and perfect picture of Paradise. The Qur’an neither singles them out above all other blessings nor presents them as the greatest delight of Paradise.
Rather, the greatest blessing enjoyed by the people of Paradise is Allah’s eternal pleasure with them and their beholding His Noble Face. Everything else—spouses, dwellings, food, drink, and every other delight—is part of the complete bliss that Allah has prepared for His righteous servants.
Among the proofs that the people of Paradise will differ in this regard is the authentic narration of Abu Hurayrah, who reported that the Prophet ﷺ said:
“The first group to enter Paradise will have faces like the full moon. Those who follow them will shine like the brightest star in the sky. Their hearts will be as one heart, with no hatred or envy among them. Every man among them will have two wives from the ḥūr al-ʿīn, whose marrow can be seen through their flesh and bones.”
Source: Sahih al-Bukhari (3254); Sahih Muslim (2834).
Likewise, Abu Sa’id al-Khudri narrated, in the well-known ḥadīth concerning the lowest-ranking inhabitant of Paradise:
“…Then he will enter his dwelling, and his two wives from the ḥūr al-ʿīn will come to him and say, ‘All praise belongs to Allah, who gave you life for us and gave us life for you.’ He will then say, ‘No one has been given anything like what I have been given.'”
Source: Sahih Muslim (188).
Likewise, Al-Miqdam ibn Ma’dikarib narrated that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said regarding the virtues of the martyr:
“The martyr is granted six distinctions by Allah: he is forgiven with the first drop of his blood, he sees his place in Paradise, he is protected from the punishment of the grave, he is kept safe from the Greatest Terror, a crown of honor is placed upon his head… he is married to seventy-two wives from the ḥūr al-ʿīn, and he is permitted to intercede for seventy of his relatives.”
Source: Jami’ al-Tirmidhi (1663); Sunan Ibn Majah (2799). Authenticated by Muhammad Nasir al-Din al-Albani in al-Silsilah al-Ṣaḥīḥah (3213).
Ibn al-Qayyim reconciled these narrations after mentioning the various reports concerning the number of spouses in Paradise:
“The authentic narrations mention only that each believer will have two wives, and there is nothing authentic beyond that. If the other reports are preserved, then they may refer to additional female servants besides the two wives, with their number varying according to each person’s rank, just as servants and attendants vary. Or they may mean that he will be granted the strength to have relations with that number, which is the more likely interpretation… Or perhaps the number of women differs according to the differing ranks of the people of Paradise. And Allah knows best… There is no doubt that the believer in Paradise will have more than two wives, based upon the authentic narration found in both Ṣaḥīḥ collections from ʿAbdullāh ibn Qays…”
Source: Ibn al-Qayyim, Ḥādī al-Arwāḥ ilā Bilād al-Afrāḥ, pp. 220–221.
Likewise, Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani said after mentioning these narrations:
“What appears to be correct is that two wives represent the minimum that each inhabitant of Paradise will have.”
Source: Fatḥ al-Bārī, 6/374–375.
If Allah has informed us that the people of Paradise will differ in their ranks and rewards, then what objection can there be to some receiving more spouses than others, just as they receive greater palaces, higher ranks, and greater honors?
Furthermore, Paradise is unlike this worldly life. There is no envy, no hatred, no jealousy that leads to injustice or conflict, no fatigue, and no deficiency. Rather, Allah has removed all rancor from the hearts of its inhabitants and perfected every aspect of their bliss.
Allah says:
“Therein is whatever souls desire and whatever delights the eyes, and therein you shall abide forever.” (Qur’an 43:71)
Likewise, Sahl ibn Sa’d narrated that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ described Paradise and concluded by saying:
“In it are things that no eye has ever seen, no ear has ever heard, and that have never occurred to the heart of any human being.”
He then recited:
“No soul knows what joy has been hidden for them as a reward for what they used to do.” (Qur’an 32:17)
Source: Sahih Muslim (2825).
How, then, can anyone claim that Paradise in Islam is nothing more than a place of sensual pleasure, when Allah Himself has informed us that its blessings surpass all human imagination, and that what has been described to us in this world serves only to bring its reality closer to our understanding, not to exhaustively describe everything He has prepared for His righteous servants?
Third Response: What Does the Bible Say About the Relationship Between Man and Woman?
Having demonstrated that this objection is refuted by the Qur’an and the authentic Sunnah, that Islam does not portray Paradise as being centered upon sexual pleasure but rather as the abode of perfect and complete bliss, and that many of the reports relied upon by critics are not authentically attributed to the Prophet ﷺ, it is appropriate to address the objector by way of argument ad hominem (ilzām), not as an independent proof.
If the mere mention of the relationship between a man and a woman, or the description of certain aspects of it in a religious scripture, is considered a flaw, then the very same objection applies to the Bible.
For example, the Song of Songs contains explicit romantic and sensual descriptions, including the woman’s words:
“Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth—for your love is better than wine… The king has brought me into his chambers… My beloved is to me a sachet of myrrh that lies between my breasts… Behold, you are handsome, my beloved, truly delightful. Our couch is green.”
Source: Song of Songs, Chapter 1.
These passages plainly describe the relationship between a man and a woman in unmistakably sensual language.
If the objector replies that the presence of such passages does not diminish the sanctity of the Bible, then the same must be said regarding the Qur’an and the authentic Sunnah. There is nothing objectionable about Allah, or His Messenger ﷺ, mentioning the blessings that Allah has prepared for His righteous servants in Paradise. Describing these blessings is not a defect, nor is there any contradiction between the perfection of spiritual bliss and the perfection of bodily bliss.
The real error lies in isolating a single aspect of Paradise, making it the defining feature of the entire Hereafter, while ignoring the many other forms of everlasting bliss that Allah has described throughout His revelation.
Christians believe in bodily resurrection. The Bible Dictionary states: “According to the teaching of the Bible, resurrection includes the resurrection of the bodies, the transformation of these bodies, and their remaining forever. It then says: “Christ clearly taught that the dead will rise.”
Christians also believe in eternal bliss in Paradise and eternal punishment in Hell, as stated in the Gospel of Matthew (25:34): “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; inherit the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world.’” It also says: “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels…’ These will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”
Christians maintain that Paradise does not involve eating, drinking, sexual relations, or other forms of physical pleasure, but that its supreme joy consists in communion with God and the vision of His divine majesty. In this regard, Christians describes the blessedness of the righteous as their union with God and their contemplation of His glory, presenting the vision of God as the highest and ultimate reward—one that transcends every other good, fulfills the deepest desires of the human soul, satisfies its longings, and constitutes the highest form of happiness toward which the heart ultimately turns.
Their denial of these pleasures is based on their belief that the bodies on the Day of Resurrection will be spiritual[Glorified]bodies that have no need for food or drink, possess no sexual desire, and in which there will be no distinction between the body of a woman and that of a man. They use two passages as evidence for this. The first is from the Gospel of Matthew (22:29), in which Christ says: “For in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like the angels of God in heaven.” The second is from Paul in First Corinthians (15:44), where he speaks about the resurrection of the dead: “It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body.”
This statement by Paul, however, has no evidence supporting it and is one of his inventions and alleged fabrications.
As for the passage falsely attributed to Christ, it only denies marriage; it does not deny food and drink. Indeed, the Gospel texts affirm food and drink in the afterlife. In Luke (22:29), Christ says to his believing disciples: “And I appoint unto you a kingdom, as my Father hath appointed unto me; that ye may eat and drink at my table, and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.”
In the Gospel of Matthew (26:29), Christ says to his disciples after the last drink he shared with them: “And I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.”
These passages clearly oppose the previously mentioned claim that rejects sensual pleasures, showing that such a claim is mistaken. The reality is that the people of Paradise will experience perfect and complete bliss, as Allah Almighty states in the Qur’an and as the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ explained in detail. There is no logical or rational barrier to this, for Allah has power over all things, and His bounty and mercy are boundless.
Conclusion
From the foregoing discussion, it becomes clear that this objection rests upon no sound foundation. Rather, it arises from quoting certain texts in isolation, ignoring others, confusing authentic narrations with weak ones, and then forcing the texts to convey meanings they were never intended to convey.
The following points have been established:
- Sexual desire is a natural human inclination created by Allah. Islam does not regard it as inherently evil; rather, it regulates it in this life, permits its lawful fulfillment, and perfects its enjoyment in the Hereafter.
- Paradise is not merely a place of sensual pleasure. Rather, it is the abode of complete reward, in which Allah has gathered every form of everlasting bliss. The greatest blessing enjoyed by its inhabitants is Allah’s eternal pleasure with them and their beholding His Noble Face. Everything else—spouses, dwellings, food, drink, and every other delight—is part of the complete reward that Allah has prepared for them.
- The inhabitants of Paradise differ in rank according to their faith and righteous deeds. Accordingly, there is nothing remarkable about some receiving greater honors than others, including differences in the various blessings that Allah bestows upon them.
- The mere mention of the relationship between a man and a woman in a sacred text is not, in itself, a valid criticism. Otherwise, the very same objection would necessarily apply to the Bible.
Accordingly, when Muslims encounter objections of this nature, they should not be disturbed by them. Most such claims are built upon selective quotation, reliance upon unauthentic reports, or the false assumption that the realities of the Hereafter must be judged according to the standards of this worldly life. Yet Allah has informed us that the bliss of Paradise is beyond all human imagination—that within it are things no eye has ever seen, no ear has ever heard, and that have never occurred to the heart of any human being.
The proper approach, therefore, is to interpret the ambiguous in light of the clear, to reject weak narrations in favor of what has been authentically established, and to submit to what Allah and His Messenger ﷺ have revealed, knowing with certainty that Allah describes nothing for His servants except that which constitutes perfect bliss, and that His mercy, wisdom, and justice are far greater than the human mind can fully comprehend.
And Allah knows best. May Allah send His peace and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and all of his Companions.
الحمد لله رب العالمين
