It has been related from Abu Ja‘far Muhammad al- Baqir...

It has been related from Abu Ja‘far Muhammad al- Baqir, peace be upon him, that he was questioned on the meaning of the speech of Allah: "Surely in that are signs for such as mark[^1] , he said, "That it refers to us, the People of the House (i.e., the Imams, peace be upon them)." It is also mentioned in the traditions that Allah, the Almighty will place therein, that is, al-A‘raf, a group of men who have failed to merit Paradise by their good acts and have not deserved punishment, yet they do not merit an eternal abode in Hell; among these are they who wait for the decision of Allah and entertain hope of intercession; they will abide there till they are permitted to enter Paradise through the intercession of the Prophet, peace be upon him and his progeny, and the Commander of the Believers and the Imams, peace be upon them.

It has been mentioned also that it is an abode of those who were not subject to any relig- ious obligation in their lifetime, thus they do not deserve either Paradise or Hell; therefore Allah will place them therein and recompense them with a certain grace which is far below that of those who merited it by the virtue of their acts. Hence, all that is mentioned above (concerning al-A‘raf) is tenable by reason and confirmed by traditions, and yet Allah best knows the truth.

What is generally accepted regarding al-A‘raf is that it is a place midway between Paradise and Hell; there will stand those whom we call the Proofs of Allah to His creatures (Hujaj Allah, that is, the Prophet and the Imams); there, also, will be those whose final judgment has been deferred. Beyond this Allah knows best what will be. [^1]: See al-Kulayni, al-Kafi, vol.l, p.218, Tradition nos.l & 2. Also, al-Mufid,al-Ikhtisas, p.303. Previous…