The Loss Of A Beloved Pet
Submission to God (Islam in Arabic) is a way of life that encourages kindness, tolerance and acceptance. It is not always practiced that way but that is clearly the emphasis of the Quran, which is the scripture given by God to Muhammad in the 600’s AD. Tradition has changed the focus somewhat over the centuries but if you go to the source—the Quran—and look there for answers, it’s quite clear.
Animals—all animals—are submitters to the will of God, which makes them “muslims.” They come to this earth for a period of time, determined by God, and then they return to Him for eternity. The Quran makes it clear that all the animals will go to Heaven. The movie title; “All Dogs Go to Heaven” was absolutely correct. Dogs cannot be “bad” since they are submitters. That’s not necessarily true for all humans, but all the animals will go back to God. So, if as a human, you lead a righteous life and worship God ALONE, submit to the will of God, you will be reunited with your pets in Heaven. We can learn a lot from watching how our pets accept this concept of submission.
Unfortunately, some of this truth has been lost over the last 1400 years. In traditional Islam, it is not considered clean to have a dog. But the Quran tells of a story of youths who fled persecution and hid in a cave for 309 years and their faithful dog slept there with them. By mentioning the dog in that story, God is telling us that He approves of us keeping pets. There is also a reference in the Quran to training your dogs and eating the food that they catch for you. God says: “You train them according to God’s teachings.”
There are no references in the Quran to grieving for your pet. I think that’s because, since we know they are going to Heaven, there’s no need to grieve. How we cope with the loss in our own lives is a personal matter. As far as counseling or spiritual guidance, it would come from friends within the community, helping friends to cope. We would remind each other of the comforting fact that while we will miss the companionship of our dog, the dog itself is in total happiness forever. We make our own mental image—I’ve always had the soothing picture of my dog chasing rabbits and eating steak. This was especially helpful with a dog that I’d had for over 18 years. At the end she was quite frail and slow. When she died, my friends in the community were able to make me smile with this image of the younger, healthier, happier dog. Knowing that she, and all the other dogs I have lost, are romping joyously in Paradise gives me peace. My goal is to be worthy to join them in the end.
Finally, I would like to quote some verses from the Quran. Traditional Islam relies heavily on books called Hadith, written centuries after the Prophet Muhammad’s death, but true Islam takes all its guidance and knowledge from the Quran itself, the proven word of God.
All the creatures on earth, and all the birds that fly with wings, are communities
like you. We did not leave anything out of this book. To their Lord, all these
creatures will be summoned. [6:38]
Among His proofs is the creation of the heavens and the earth, and the creatures He spreads in them. He is able to summon them, when He wills. [42:29]
The heavens and the earth are full of proofs for the believers. Also in your creation, and the creation of all the animals, there are proofs for people who are certain. [45:3-4]
Do you not realize that to God prostrates everyone in the heavens and the earth, and the sun, and the moon, and the stars, and the mountains, and the trees, and the animals, and many people? [22:18]