The People of the Left

أصحاب الشمال

The People of the Left in Qur'an and Sunnah: those given their book in their left hands on the Day of Resurrection, entering fire — their book is given in their left hands as they enter fire.

Depth

At a glance

Region
Global / Diaspora

Afterlife and eschatology

Summary

The People of the Left are mentioned in Qur'an and Sunnah as those given their book in their left hands on the Day of Resurrection, entering fire. They are among the people of fire, whom God is not pleased with, who disbelieved and did evil deeds.

People and things also explored

The Gates of Paradise· The terrors of the Day· Islamic eschatology· The display and standing before God· Al-barzakh· The Beast of the Earth· The Smoke· The Greatest Terror

Sources

  • Tanzil Project, Qur'an text v1.1
  • Sahih al-Bukhari
  • Sahih Muslim
Cite this page

islam.museum contributors. “The People of the Left”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/concept/ashab-al-shimal/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Last updated 2026-11-12.

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Wing

Ideas

Beliefs, concepts, sciences and schools, explained in plain words.
Related

The Gates of Paradise

Paradise has eight gates, as the Sahih reports, each with its people of deed: a gate of prayer for the people of prayer, a gate of jihad, a gate of al-Rayyan reserved for the fasting, and a gate of charity. The Prophet said: «Whoever spends a pair in the way of God is called at the gates of Paradise: O servant of God, this is good — whoever was of the people of prayer is called from the gate of prayer».