Is the Reward in Paradise and Retribution in Hell a Truth or a Metaphor? (With an approach to the views of Imam Khomeini)
Subject Areas : Nameh Elahiyat
1 - Assistant Professor, Department of Islamic Education, North Tehran Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran.
Keywords: metaphor, allegory, warning, Key Terms: Imam Khomeini, Good tidings,
Abstract :
One of the intrinsic tendencies of human beings is their disposition for pleasure and escape from suffering. The purpose of Almighty Truth in exalted verses on good tidings is to create such a pleasure in the addressees’ imagination so that they are encouraged to comply with Divine Orders. By contrast, His purpose of sending the verses on warning is to warn the addresses to keep away from forbidden acts so that they are not deprived of ultimate perfection, which is the same closeness to God. What one reads in luminous Qur’anic verses about otherworldly reward and punishment is not comparable to worldly gifts and difficulties. Nevertheless, they disclose the reality of reward and punishment in the hereafter, which is why the pleasure and torment experienced in Paradise and hell, respectively, have been explained so deeply and at a level beyond the capabilities of the human imagination through eloquent verbal manifestations.In this study,the researcher tries to deal with the exotic ideas of Imam Khomeini, who has discussed differing types of heaven and hell, the truth of pleasure and suffering of the afterlife, and immortalitty debate in details.
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