Is the torment of the grave inflicted upon the soul alone or upon it and the body together?

The torment and blessings of the grave afflict both the soul and the body together, according to the consensus of the Sunni Muslims. The soul may also experience blessings or torment individually, separate from the body.

Evidence for this comprehensive involvement of both the soul and the body includes: The Hadith of Anas: "Indeed, when a servant is placed in his grave, and his companions turn away from him, to the extent that he hears the tapping of their sandals, two angels come to him and make him sit up..." This Hadith describes the torment of the disbeliever and the blessings of the believer. His statement: "he hears the tapping of their sandals" and "his grave constricts upon him until his ribs intertwine" indicates the comprehensive involvement of both the soul and the body. The Hadith of Abu Hurayrah: "When the deceased is buried, two black-blue angels come to him..." It includes: "then it closes upon him until his ribs intertwine," which is explicit in this regard. The Hadith of Aisha: "If it is a righteous man, he is made to sit in his grave without fear, and if it is a wicked man, he is made to sit in his grave in terror." The long Hadith of Al-Bara' ibn Azib, which states: "Indeed, Allah Almighty says: 'Write the book of My servant in Illiyyin, and return My servant to the earth, for from it I created them, and into it I shall return them, and from it I shall bring them forth again.' So his soul is returned..." And "his soul is cast down, and his soul is returned to his body..." This is explicit that both the soul and the body are afflicted by blessings or torment.

As for the evidence that blessings may afflict the soul separately from the body, it includes the ascent of the soul to heaven, and the Hadith of Ka'b ibn Malik: "Indeed, the soul of the believer is a bird hanging in the trees of Paradise until Allah resurrects it to its body on the Day He resurrects it."

The totality of these texts indicates that the soul experiences blessings or torment with the body in the grave, and that it experiences blessings in Paradise alone.

The torment of the grave is the torment of the Barzakh (interim period). Everyone who dies and deserves torment will receive their share of it, unless Allah pardons them, whether they are buried or not. Even if they are eaten by wild beasts, burned, blown up, or drowned, the torment that reaches the buried will reach their soul and body.