Regarding An Event On The Day Of Judgment

July 10, 2024

3 min read 3 min

Question

I have heard that on the Day of Judgment the Almighty would call their children by their mothers’ names. Is this correct? I have also heard that people will be called after the names of their names on the Day of Judgement. Please explain.

Answer

There are different sayings ascribed to the Prophet (sws) in this regard. According to some, children would be called by the names of their fathers and while others say that they will be called by the names of their mothers. Bukhari and other compilers of the sayings of the Holy Prophet (sws) have quoted narratives part of which clearly say that on the Day of Judgment people will be called ‘such person son of such person’.¹ This clearly shows that people will be called by the names of their fathers. The narrative, which, says that people will be called by the names of their mothers is not that authentic and is not mentioned by the famous scholars of Hadith. The text follows:

Ishaq Ibn Ibrahim reported on the authority of Marwan Ibn Mu‘awiyyah who reported from Hamid who reported from Anas that the Prophet said: ‘People will be called by the names of their mothers’².

Before stating the narrative, the compiler has made it clear that the Ishaq Ibn Ibrahim is not a reliable narrator. He writes:

Ishaq Ibn Ibrahim, lived in Sana. Ibni ‘Adi said: ‘He is Munkiru’l-Hadith’ (one whose report is not accepted because of his faltering memory and bad character).³

As is obvious from the above information, the report carries many flaws and is considered to be a concocted one. Therefore, it would be inappropriate to ascribe it to the Holy Prophet (sws). The narrative is only mentioned in some books, which deal with the lives of those who reported something from the Prophet (sws) as the authors of books referred to above.

As regards the matter of people being called in the names of their Lord (or leader or Prophet or others which one follows in religious matters), I think you are referring to the following Qur’anic verse:

Keep in mind the day when we will call every group with their respective imams. (17:71)

The verse has nothing to do with the calling people by the names of somebody on the Day of Judgment. It states that people will be called to account along with their leaders in religious matters for example Prophets and Messengers or other religious leaders.

1. Bukhari, Nos: 5823-4
2. Dhahbi, Mizanu’l-I‘tidal Fi Naqd-i-Rijal, CD Edition vol.1, p. 327 / Ibn Hajr, Lisanu’l-Mizan, CD Edition, vol. 1, p. 344
3. Ibid.