What Is the Scale for Weighing Deeds in the Hereafter?
None of us likes chaotic and haphazard environments; we habitually set criteria and standards for everything, even for small tasks and try to align ourselves with them. Whether it is determining the right amount of salt or seasoning in food according to our taste and health, or selecting clothing based on size, beauty, and societal norms. We do not attend every party, make friends with everyone, or listen to every kind of music. In fact, our actions, from small to large, are weighed against a set of criteria, standards, and ideals that help us control situations and their compatibility with our own ideals.
When weighing something, we typically confront two fundamental elements: the subject being weighed and the criteria used for weighing that subject. These criteria and standards serve as a weighing tool to scrutinize and regulate this alignment and determine how much we are compatible with the weighing tool.
But what about the scale for weighing deeds? While we consider special standards and criteria for our small deeds, we cannot expect big deeds that shape our eternal life to follow no rules or criteria. Undoubtedly, there exists some criteria and standards to weigh them. In this article, we will not go through the various types of scales and their connection to other matters. For now, it is enough to know that the scale for weighing deeds is the ‘truth’ and the extent of our compatibility with the ‘truth’ is the criterion which weighs our deeds. In this article, what matters is knowing what the scale is and understanding our relationship with it. In fact, the scale is the criterion by which we are weighed. The correctness or falseness of our deeds, their being right or wrong, the level of our health or illness, and the extent of our weaknesses and defects are all measured by the scale for weighing deeds. In general, the scale is what weighs the degree of our compatibility and harmony with the criterion set for us.
The Scale Is Not Outside of Us
Imagine going to a photographer to have your picture taken. Do you notice the flaws in the photo yourself? Do you need someone to tell you that you blinked or did not look at the camera when the photo was taken? The photo explains everything, serving as a visual report of what lies beneath the surface. Or suppose your car is not moving in a straight line, constantly veering to the right, the headlights do not turn on, it fails to start, or emits smoke from the engine. Would you need someone to tell you that your car has a problem, or do these incidents indicate an issue?
The scale for weighing deeds is within us. When we are born, our physical health indicates the level of our compatibility and harmony with the living conditions of this world. We are compared with the healthiest state that our organs can have in the living conditions of the world. In other words, we show our compatibility with the world through the things we have brought with ourselves.
Naturally, the presence of any problem, such as underdeveloped lungs, additional or missing fingers or toes, an oversized skull, or enzymes not properly produced, serves as an indicator for the degree of our incompatibility with the environmental conditions of the world. Similarly, in the context of the hereafter, the scale for weighing deeds is within us. Upon entering the realm of the hereafter, we become aware of our harmony or disharmony with the living conditions of that realm.
The scale for weighing deeds is like a mirror reflecting our compatibility with the environment we have entered. Jealousy, hatred, anger, sensitivity, stinginess, and so on are not in harmony with a sound heart, and upon entering the hereafter, they will immediately reveal their incompatibility with that environment. Just as eating spoiled food or consuming vegetables and fruits affects our facial complexion and overall well-being, undesirable behaviors and traits leave their marks on our heart and soul. In fact, we do not need an external factor to remind us of the state of our soul; we are witnesses to our situation, what we have brought with us, and the impact it has had on our existence.
In this article, we discussed the definition of scale. We understood that the scale shows how much we are compatible with the criterion or weighing tool. Just as entering the world makes us aware of our compatibility or incompatibility with the living conditions of the world, entering the hereafter reveals our harmony or disharmony with the conditions of the hereafter. The criterion or standard by which we are weighed is something outside of us, but the scale for weighing deeds, both upon entering the world and the hereafter, is not something outside of us. We are fully aware of our situation and do not need an external factor to understand the degree of our harmony with the criteria and standards of the new environment.
How much do you feel the need for weighing and scale? Do you feel any need to weigh your deeds before entering the hereafter? Share your thoughts with us.