Question: While
going through the Qur’an, I
have come across verses which say that there are Angels who take the souls
at the time of death and at another place it is written that it is in fact
Allah who takes the souls. The relevant verses are listed below:
But how will it be when the Angels take their souls at
death, and smite their faces and their backs? (47:27)
It is Allah that takes the souls of men at death; and
those that die not He takes during their sleep... (39:42)
I was wondering about this ‘inconsistency’
if it is okay to call it by this name. Could you clarify this for me?
Answer: In answering
your query, I would like to draw your attention to the everyday styles
and patterns a language employs.
When it is said that the massoleum
Taj Mahal was built by the
Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan, it means that he was the person who was responsible
for constructing it. He of course did not construct it with his hands.
Similarly, when it is said that Allah gives death to people, this is merely
a delineation of the fact that He is the first cause of this. As is evident
from the Qur’an, He has actually
entrusted this task to His angels.
Consequently, the verse quoted second
tells us that it is Allah who is responsible for giving death, while the
first verse tells us how He does it.
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