Paradise and Hell in the Qur’ān

The vignettes of Paradise and Hell are amongst the most vivid that occur in the Qur’ān, equalled and perhaps even surpassed only by the events that immediately precede peoples’ entry into them, those of the Day of Judgement. If we look for their literary background, there is of course nothing like them in pre-Islamic literature, though the vignette, an impressionistic sketch that stirs the listeners’ imagination, is a favourite, and wonderfully effective, device in pre-Islamic poetry. The passages about Paradise and Hell are spread throughout all four periods of the Qur’ān’s revelation. This spread of passages is just as important as their number. These were topics to which the Qur’ān returned regular­ly through its revelation. The article presents select descriptions of Paradise and Hell in the Qur’ān, pointing out that one should also explore the Prophetic Traditions for additional material.