“A
man went to extremes in committing sins. When death came to
him, he
left instructions to his sons, saying: ‘When I die, burn me,
then
grind me into powder, then scatter me in the wind and in the sea,
for
by Allah, if my Lord has power over me, He will subject me to a
punishment that He has never subjected anyone to.’ So they did that
to
him, then (Allah) said to the earth: ‘Return what you have
taken,’ and
there he was, standing. He said to him: ‘What made
you do what you
have done?’ He said: ‘Fear of You, O Lord.’ So
He forgave him because
of that (fear).”
Sunan Ibn Majah Book 37, Hadith 156