Back to search

How does one respond to the specious argument denying the Sirat (bridge over Hell) which claims a contradiction between the Hadith of the Sirat and the Holy Quran, based on the following arguments: 1. The Sirat before accountability renders accountability useless? 2. The Sirat after accountability contradicts verses that speak of keeping the people of Paradise far from the Fire, such as His Almighty saying: ﴿So whoever is removed from the Fire and admitted to Paradise has attained success﴾ and His saying: ﴿Indeed, those for whom good has preceded from Us – those are from it far removed﴾? 3. People falling from the Sirat contradicts the description of Hell as an abode for the people of the Fire and that it has gates, not a ditch before Paradise, and Allah’s command to the angels to take the people of the Fire to it and shackle them, as in His Almighty saying: ﴿Seize him and shackle him, (30) Then into Hellfire drive him. (31) Then into a chain whose length is seventy cubits insert him﴾?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

The Sirat is established by the Quran, Sunnah, and scholarly consensus. It is a bridge extended over the surface of Hell, which people will cross after the reckoning, and some will fall from it. Disbelievers will not cross it; rather, they will enter Hell before that. Hell has seven gates, and there are layers into which disobedient monotheists will fall from above the Sirat. It is obligatory to believe in the unseen and to beware of doubts.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

Read the full answer on Ftawy