2. A number of our people have narrated from Sahl ibn Ziyad from ‘Abd al-Rahman ibn abu Najran from Muthanna al-Hannat from abu Basir who has said the following: “Abu ‘Abd Allah, ‘Alayhi al-Salam, has said, ‘The souls of the believing people are in a tree of paradise. They eat and drink of fruits and water thereof, and say, “O Lord, make the Day of Judgment to come for us, make what You had promised to come true and allow the last of us to join our first.’””

3. Sahl ibn Ziyad has narrated from ’Isma‘il ibn Mehran from Durust ibn abu Mansur from ibn Muskan from abu Basir who has said the following: “Abu ‘Abd Allah, ‘Alayhi al-Salam, has said that the souls (spirits) with the quality of body are in a tree in paradise where they get to know each other and ask questions. Whenever a new coming soul (spirit) joins them, they say, ‘Leave him alone. He has just experienced a huge terrifying experience.’ Then they ask him, ‘What is so and so and so and so doing?’ If he says, ‘I left him in his lifetime,’ they wish the best for him; but if he says, ‘He died’, they say, ‘He then has fallen into the deep (hell).”’

4. Ali ibn Ibrahim has narrated from his father from ibn abu ‘Umayr from Muhammad ibn ‘Uthman from abu Basir who has said the following: “I once asked abu ‘Abd Allah, ‘Alayhi al-Salam, about the souls (spirits) of believing people. He said, ‘They are in chambers in paradise, they eat and drink thereof and say, “O Lord, make it the Day of Judgment, allow what You had promised us to come true and join the last of us with those who were first.’””

5. Ali has narrated from his father from Muhsin ibn Ahmad from Muhammad ibn Hammad from Yunus ibn Ya‘qub who has said the following: “Abu ‘Abd Allah, ‘Alayhi al-Salam, has said that when a dying person dies, other spirits gather around him and ask, ‘Who is still alive and who is dead?’ If someone is dead and has not joined them they say, ‘He then has fallen into the deep.’ Others among them say, ‘Leave him alone so he can gain comfort from what he has experienced from death.’”

6. Muhammad ibn Yahya has narrated from Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn ‘Isa from Muhammad ibn Khalid from al-Qasim ibn Muhammad from al-Husayn ibn Ahmad from Yunus ibn Zabyan who has said the following: ’Once I was with abu ‘Abd Allah, ‘Alayhi al-Salam, and he asked, ‘What do people say about the spirits of the believers?’ I then replied, ‘They say that they live in the craws of green birds in chandlers in paradise under the Throne.’ Abu ‘Abd Allah, ‘Alayhi al-Salam, then said, ‘Allah is free of all defects. A believer is highly respected in the sight of Allah. He does not place them (the spirits of believers) in the craws of birds. O Yunus, when that (death) comes Muhammad, Ali, Fatimah, al- Hassan and al-Husayn, ‘Alayhim al-Salam, and the angels of high ranks before Allah come. When Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Glorious, causes him to die, the spirit is transferred to a form like his form in the world. They (spirits) eat and drink. When a new coming soul (spirit) joins them, they recognize him through his form which he had in the world.’”