The Day of Judgement: belief in the Akhirah
Islamic Studies · Key Stage 2 · The School
A day this life is measured against
Muslims believe this life ends, for everyone, and is followed by a Day of Judgement. On that day, every person's deeds are shown and weighed. Belief in this — called AKHIRAH, the afterlife — is one of the six articles of faith.
The earth itself as a witness
Surah Az-Zalzalah describes the earth shaking violently, throwing out what is buried within it. It says the earth will tell everything that happened on it, because Allah will have inspired it to do so (99:1–5). A stark, physical image of nothing staying hidden.
Weighed, down to the smallest thing
The same surah states it precisely: whoever has done an atom's weight of good will see it, and whoever has done an atom's weight of evil will see it too (99:7–8). Nothing is too small to count. Nothing is too small to matter.
Picture two claims a person might make. "It was only a small lie." "It was only a small kindness, it doesn't matter." Surah Az-Zalzalah rules both claims out directly. An atom's weight of evil is seen. An atom's weight of good is seen. The surah is not describing only huge, dramatic deeds — it is describing every single one, however small it felt at the time.