Why did God create us to put us in hell or paradise and there is no in between?

So we will either receive eternal pleasure or eternal and extreme torture, with no other option?

  • 1
    are you sure there is nothing between? – Battle of Karbala Nov 20 '13 at 2:58
  • @Ahmadi Is that a question or a possible contradiction to the statement "no in between"? – Bleeding Fingers Nov 23 '13 at 18:46
  • @hus787 According to some hadith there are places between. God has a lot of places. – Battle of Karbala Nov 24 '13 at 13:35
  • 1
    I just read on another website that there is a place in between jannah and jahannam called a'raif. I am not sure what happens in there but I would prefer to go into jannah. – user13207 Jun 28 '15 at 22:51

There's doesn't seems to be any point of creating a between. He's the most beneficent, if a person doesn't deserve hell then give him heaven. After all the heaven doesn't lack abundance.

Roughly speaking, if the cumulative deed, good - bad, is greater then or equal to (>=) zero (0) then heaven is one's eternal home.

Related to the question:

Don't know if it's an anecdote or fact, because I haven't read it anywhere nor heard it from any religious scholar, that there is a separate place other then the heaven and hell, and that it would be freezingly cold and people who have done great deal of good deeds but haven't embraced Islam will be put there.

  • I'm not familiar with that particular interpretation (i.e. "freezingly cold"), but the "separate place other than the heaven and hell" could be referring to Al-A'raf: qtafsir.com/… – goldPseudo Nov 19 '13 at 18:56
  • @goldPseudo Possibly. – Bleeding Fingers Nov 19 '13 at 19:38

Jahannam (hell), unlike Jannah (paradise), is not eternal for everyone. Allah may still forgive a sinner and cut their punishment short:


Al-Ana'am 6:128 (Emphasis mine)

In another ayah Allah says that he can forgive all sins except shirk (idolatry).


Al-Nissa' 4:48 (Emphasis mine)

This has lead many scholars to postulate that as long as you are a believer you will not dwell in hell forever, but only stay there long enough to be punished for your sins.

  • i dont understand that very well cause there is other verses that speaks about eternal punishment – Sidux Nov 19 '13 at 21:40
  • @Sidux - The Quran should be taken as a whole. So, taking the ayahs of eternal punishment along with the mercy ayahs, we know that punishment isn't eternal for everyone. Only for the most wicked. – System Down Nov 19 '13 at 22:57

The main thing to think about is, how to put my feet in jannah, rather than judging Allah.

However, As an answer, if allah decided not to throw one in Jahannam (hell) then he will give him a place in Jannah

There is an Important fact that no body REALLY deserve entering the Janna nor Mohammed (peace upon him).

Abu Huraira reported Allah's Messenger () as saying: There is none amongst you whose deeds alone would attain salvation for him. They (the Companions) said: Allah's Messenger, not even you? He (the Holy Prophet) said: Not even I, but that Allah wraps me in Mercy and He grants me pardon. Ibn 'Aun pointed towards his head with his hand saying: Not even I, but that Allah wraps me in His Forgiveness and Mercy.

sahih albokhari


My view: This world is just a game, for good deeds you get a 'good' point, for bad deeds you gain a 'bad' point. In judgement day everyone will get punished for the bad points as a consequence, unless if god forgives you. When you had 'paid' for your bad deeds, you go to jannah unless for the very wicked. To gain 'good' points for good deeds, you need to be a believer in one supreme god. Also note that 'good' points can also be lost for certain bad deeds, and the opposite is also true. Allah knows best.

This system simply doesn't have any place for an intermediate fate between jannah and jahanam.

  • the probleme is that hell torture is so extreme for exemple if you drink alcohol you will pay for it in hell when 1 day is 50000 year this is so .... – Sidux Nov 21 '13 at 15:38
  • If a person continues doing haram deeds in his life time without seeking forgiveness, then we can be sure that he will continue to do it for thousands of years if his age is long enough. So if 1 day in normal life is instead 50000 years, then a person with bad deeds will continue his actions and get much more wicked and therefore have an even worse fate in the hereafter. Also, it is easier for a pious person to do good deeds for a normal life time. I just see the comparatively short human life time as a mercy from god. – Ali Nov 24 '13 at 13:25

There is something in between Jannah and Jahanam, i dont know what it is called but it is for the people that have done the same amount of good and evil in his/her life. What it does is the people in it see Jahanam on one side and Jannah on the other and cant do anything but stay there.

  • welcome to Islam stack,please provide some references for your answer or post it as a comment. – beautiful mind Jul 3 '15 at 2:15

Beforehand please consider:

The meaning of eternity is a debated concept even among highly respected scholars.

We as readers can only say what God says, i.e. when God says eternal then this means eternal. But the meaning in the truest sense is not clear. Eternity can be the time, can be the feeling (that is a very bad feeling indeed, when you start to believe that there is no stop), can be unlimited, can be ... God knows best.

Now to your answer. There are grades (or levels) in hell and in paradise. The better you perform the higher your reward. The worse you perform the harder your punishment. I believe this concept to be generally agreed upon and understood by most scholars.

Having said this, it is difficult to consider an "in between".

Also I cannot recall where exactly I learned that, but to the question "What if on Judgement Day your balance is "on par"? it was narrated that God is the most merciful and will grant paradise.

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