That's How We Roll

In this short post we shall be looking at a hadith.

Narrated Ibn 'Umar:

that a freed a slave girl of his came to him, and said: "Times have become hard on me and I want to go to Al-'Iraq." He said: "Why not to Ash-Sham the land of the resurrection? Have patience you foolish lady; I heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) say: 'Whoever endures its hardships and difficulties (Al-Madinah) then I will be a witness, or an intercessor for him on the Day of Judgement." [He said:] There are narrations on this topic from Abu Sa'eed, Sufyan bin Abi Zuhair, and Subai'ah Al-Aslamiyyah.

https://sunnah.com/tirmidhi:3918

The Rightly Guided caliph speaks of the Levant as the 'land of resurrection'. Would all people be somehow transported to the Levant in order to be resurrected? Let's compare with Jewish writings.

The Gemara asks: And according to the opinion of Rabbi Elazar, will the righteous outside of Eretz Yisrael not come alive at the time of the resurrection of the dead? Rabbi Ile’a said: They will be resurrected by means of rolling, i.e., they will roll until they reach Eretz Yisrael, where they will be brought back to life. Rabbi Abba Salla Rava strongly objects to this: Rolling is an ordeal that entails suffering for the righteous. Abaye said: Tunnels are prepared for them in the ground, through which they pass to Eretz Yisrael. Ketubot 111a:21

Rabbi Ḥanina said: One who dies outside of the Land of Israel and is buried there, has undergone two deaths, as so it is written: “And you, Pashḥur, and all the dwellers in your house, will go into captivity, and to Babylon you will come, and there you will die, and there you will be buried” (Jeremiah 20:6). That is, he has undergone two deaths. That is why Jacob says to Joseph: “Please do not bury me in Egypt.”

Rabbi Simon said: If so, the righteous who are buried outside of the Land of Israel suffer a loss. What, then, does the Holy One blessed be He do? He makes tunnels in the ground for them and makes them like channels, and they roll along until they reach the Land of Israel. The Holy One blessed be He then places in them a spirit of life and they arise. From where is this derived? It is written: “Behold, I am opening your graves, and I will take you up from your graves, My people, and I will bring you to the soil of Israel” (Ezekiel 37:12), and then: “I will place My spirit into you and you will live” (Ezekiel 37:14). Reish Lakish said: It is an explicit verse, that once they reach the Land of Israel, the Holy One blessed be He will place a soul in them, as it is stated: “Who places a soul in the people upon it” (Isaiah 42:5). Bereshit Rabbah 96:5