Imam Abdallah Ibn Alawi Al-Haddad
The Lives of Man: A Guide to the Human States: Before Life, In the World, and After Death by Imam Abdallah Ibn Alawi Al-Haddad is an explication of how Islam views the different stages a human being undergoes in life and after death.
Although relatively short in length (approximately 90 pages), the book is intense. The life of the human being is divided into 5 stages: before conception to birth; life in this world until death; life in the grave until the resurrection; from the time of the resurrection until one enters the Garden (Paradise) or the Fire (Hell); and entrance into the Garden or Fire. The final stage lasts for all eternity. Each stage can have subdivisions and different states within it.
Imam Al-Haddad supports his explication with frequent and extensive references to the Qur’an and Hadiths. This is not a quick or easy read, but it is an essential read for anyone interested in learning how one of the world’s major monotheistic religions envisions the stages humans experience in life and after death.