What Will Be the Food and Punishments for the People of Hell?


Answered by Mawlana Ilyas Patel

Question

What will the food and punishments be in Jahannam?

Answer

In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate

I pray you are in good faith and health. Thank you for your question.

The food and punishment will vary according to people’s disbelief and sins. Below are a few examples:

Allah (Most High) said, “So, he has no friend here today, nor any food except from that which flows from wounds when washing…” [Quran, 69:35-36].

Pus and Filthy Water

The word hamim means “a sincere or bosom friend.” The word ghislin with ‘gh’ bearing the kasra symbol refers to the water with which the pus and blood of the wounds of the inmates of Hell will be washed.

The verses signify that on the Day of Resurrection, he will have no friend that will support him or save him from punishment, nor will he have anything to eat except the filthy water with which pus exuding from the wound of the inmates of Hell might have been washed.

The people of Jahannam will also drink the discharges of dirty wounds, blood, and pus. They will drink it with much difficulty and won’t be able to swallow it down their throats. It will taste and smell foul. The Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) told us that Allah will make the one who consumed intoxicants in this world drink from the sweat of the people of Jahannam. [Muslim]

Zaqqum

Allah (Most High) said,Is this ˹bliss˺ a better accommodation or the tree of Zaqqum? We have surely made it a test for the wrongdoers. Indeed, it is a tree that grows in the depths of Hell, bearing fruit like devils’ heads. The evildoers will certainly ˹be left to˺ eat from it, filling up their bellies with it.

The food provided will be bitter, smell foul, and choke them. They will be fed poisonous, thorny plants that will fail to satisfy their hunger. Then, on top of that, they will be given a blend of boiling drink. Then, they will ultimately return to ˹their place in˺ Hell.” [Quran, 62-68]

They will eat from Zaqqum, a frightening tree that emerges from the depths of Jahannam. Its fruits are like molten metal and will burn their insides. It is revolting and truly horrendous.

The Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and give him peace) said, “If a single drop of Zaqqum were to be dropped into this world, it would ruin the food of its inhabitants. So how will it be for the person with no other food except it (i.e. Zaqqum)?” [Ibn Maja].

Once they’ve eaten, they will start to feel thirsty. They will then be given scalding water to drink. They won’t just have a sip, stand back, and stop because it is burning their insides. Instead, they will drink and drink like “camels suffering from the disease of over thirst” [Quran, 56:55]. Not only will it burn their insides, but it will also disfigure their faces.

Recommended Dua

So we should always read the Quranic dua below in our regular daily prayers and also our prayers in our daily supplications:

Anas Ibn Malik (Allah be pleased with him) reports that the Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and give him peace) would say:

اللَّهُمَّ رَبَّنَا آتِنَا فِي الدُّنْيَا حَسَنَةً، وَفِي الآخِرَةِ حَسَنَةً، وَقِنَا عَذَابَ النَّارِ

Allahumma Rabbana atina fid dunya hasana wa fil akhirati hasana wa qina ‘adhaban nar

O our Lord! Give us in this world mighty good, and in the next world mighty good, and protect us from the chastisement of the fire.

[Bukhari; Muslim]

I would like you to go through the valuable answers and links to related books below. In sha Allah, you will receive guidance and direction.

Related

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I pray this helps with your question.

Wassalam,
[Mawlana] Ilyas Patel
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Abdul-Rahim Reasat

Mawlana Ilyas Patel is a traditionally-trained scholar who has studied in the UK, India, Pakistan, Syria, Jordan, and Turkey. He started his early education in the UK. He went on to complete the hifz of the Quran in India, then enrolled in an Islamic seminary in the UK, where he studied the secular and ‘Aalimiyya sciences. He then traveled to Karachi, Pakistan. He has been an Imam in Rep of Ireland for several years. He has taught hifz of the Quran, Tajwid, Fiqh, and many other Islamic sciences to children and adults onsite and online extensively in the UK and Ireland. He taught at a local Islamic seminary for 12 years in the UK, where he was a librarian and a teacher of Islamic sciences. He currently resides in the UK with his wife. His interest is a love of books and gardening.