IZRA'IL / AZRAEL

Izra'il (or Azrael). Izra'il is the Angel of Death who along with his helpers is responsible for parting the soul of the human from the body. The actual process of separating the soul from the body depends on the person's history or record of good or bad deeds. If the human was a bad person in life, the soul is ripped out very painfully. But if the human was a righteous person, then the soul is separated like a 'drop of water dripping from glass'. It is also noted that The Angel of Death will look like a terrifying beast or demon for the souls of bad people and will look like 'the most pleasant sight' when he comes for the souls of good people.

Azrael (angel of death) is the archangel of death. It is an English form of the Arabic name Azra'il or Azra'eil (عزرایل), the name traditionally attributed to the angel of death in Islam. The Qur'an never uses this name, refering instead to Malaikat al-Maut (angel of death). It is also spelled Izrail, Izrael, Azrail, Ezraeil, Azraille, or Ozryel. Chambers English dictionary uses the spelling Azrael. The name literally means Whom God Helps.

Depending on the outlook and precepts of various religions in which he is a figure, Azrael may be portrayed as residing in the Third Heaven. He has four faces and four thousand wings, and his whole body consists of eyes and tongues, the number of which corresponds to the number of people inhabiting the earth. He will be the last to die, recording and erasing constantly in a large book the names of men at birth and death, respectively.

The Angel of Death will look like a terrifying beast or demon for the souls of bad people and will look like 'the most pleasant sight' when he comes for the souls of good people.

(Malaikat Izrail adalah salah satu di antara empat pembesar malaikat yang empat selain malaikat Jibril, Mikail dan Israfil. Dikenali malaikat maut kerana ia ditugaskan untuk mencabut nyawa makhluk-makhluk Allah. Malaikat Izrail diciptakan oleh Allah SWT dalam keadaan yang serupa dengan malaikat Mikail baik wajahnya, saiznya, kekuatannya, lisannya dan sayapnya. Semuanya tidak kurang dan tidak lebih.)

Kematian:

Disebutkan, ketika Allah SWT mencipta Al-Maut (kematian) dan menyerahkan kepada malaikat Izrail, maka berkata malaikat Izrail: "Wahai Tuhanku, apakah Al-Maut itu?". Maka Allah SWT menyingkap rahsia Al-Maut itu dan memerintah seluruh malaikat menyaksikannya. Setelah seluruh malaikat menyaksikannya Al-Maut itu, maka tersungkurlah semuanya dalam keadaan pengsan selama seribu tahun. Setelah para malaikat sedar kembali, bertanyalah mereka: "Ya Tuhan kami, adakah makhluk yang lebih besar dari ini?" Kemudian Allah SWT berfirman: "Akulah yang menciptakannya dan Akulah yang lebih Agung daripadanya. Seluruh makhluk akan merasakan Al-Maut itu".

Kemudian Allah SWT memerintahkan Izrail mengambil Al-Maut Allah telah menyerahkan kepadanya. Walau bagaimanapun, Malaikat Izrail khuatir jika tidak terdaya untuk mengambilnya sedangkan Al-Maut lebih agung daripadanya. Kemudian Allah SWT memberikannya kekuatan, sehinggalah Al-Maut itu menetap di tangannya.

other Angels:

• Malik is the angel who is responsible for Hell.
• Ridwan is the angel who is responsible for Heaven (Paradise).
• Kiraamun kaatibeen are the angels who record the good and bad deeds of a person.
• Munkar and Nakir are the angels who interrogate a person in the grave about his good and bad deeds.
• Harut and Marut are the angels who were sent as a test to an ancient Israeli tribe. (in Babylon)