Assalamualaikum, Can you please give me a good explanation of the verses 15-16 of Surah Al Waqi`ah? 56:15 - On thrones woven [with ornament], 56:16 - Reclining on them, facing each other. Will the people be sitting face to face and talking all the time or is it only on the congregation day or when they want to meet each other? Thank you.

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 is His slave and Messenger.

At-Tabari said in his Tafseer: “His [Allaah’s] saying ‘On thrones woven [with ornament]’; meaning on thrones whose material is interlaced; and His saying ‘Reclining on them, facing each other’, Allaah says that they are reclining on the woven thrones, facing each other, not looking at each other's backs.”

As regards sitting with each other, then we did not come across specification on the matter, but it is established that a believer meets his friends and relatives in Paradise; Allaah says (what means): {Gardens of perpetual residence; they will enter them with whoever were righteous among their fathers, their spouses and their descendants.} [Quran 13:23]

Ibn Katheer said in his Tafseer: “That is to say that Allaah will gather them and their loved ones in it (Paradise), like their parents, spouses and children who are worthy of entering Paradise from among the believers so that their eyes will be comforted with them to the point that the ones who are in a lower rank will be raised to those who are in an upper rank as a grace and favor from Allaah without detracting from the reward of those who are in the upper rank. Allaah says (what means): {And those who believed and whose descendants followed them in faith — We will join with them their descendants.} [Quran 52:21]” [End of quote]

It is confirmed that this meeting does not happen all the time, as sometimes one is in seclusion with one's spouse and no one can see them. Abu Moosa Al-Ash’ari narrated that the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said: “Verily, for the believer in Paradise is a tent made of a single hollow pearl, sixty miles long, and his wives will be therein. The believer will visit them one by one and they (the wives) will not be able to see each other (i.e. during the visit).” [Muslim]

The author of Daleel Al-Faaliheen Sharh Riyaadh As-Saaliheen said: “They will not be able to see each other, either because of its vastness and they are far apart from each other, or because of screening that from others for a necessary wisdom.”

Allaah Knows best.