No authentic Hadeeth indicates the number of Throne-bearers

27-1-2011 | IslamWeb

Question:

How many are the bearers of the Throne of Allaah?Who will bear the Throne after the blowing of the Horn and the perishing of all creatures?

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Answer:

All perfect praise be to Allaah, the Lord of the worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, is His Slave and Messenger.

The bearers of the Throne are authentically established to exist, for Allaah the Almighty Says (what means): {And there will bear the Throne of your Lord above them, that Day, eight [of them].} [Quran 69:17]

The Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, was reported to have described them in a manner indicating the greatness of their form: Jaabir narrated that the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said about one of the angel bearers of the Throne, that the distance between his ear and shoulder is equal to the distance of a seven hundred-years walk. [Abu Daawood]

There is nothing authentic that indicates the exact number of the Throne-bearers and who will undertake the task after their death. Books of Tafseer (Quranic exegesis) state that there are eight. It is also said that there will be four in the worldly life and eight on the Day of Resurrection. It is further said that there are eight thousand. It is also stated that there are eight rows of angels. Another saying indicates that they are eight groups and each is equal in number to that of the humans, Jinn, devils and angels. However, none of this is authentic.

Allaah the Almighty is not in need of someone to bear His Throne after the angels die for He is able to keep it suspended just as if it was carried by them without them.

Such matters are generally to be believed in and it is not necessary that we know their details because such knowledge will not help us yield neither worldly nor religious benefit.

Allaah Knows best.