PARADISE IS SURROUNDED BY HARDSHIP AND HELL IS SURROUNDED BY DESIRES

“Hell is surrounded by lusts and Paradise is surrounded by things displeasing to the carnal self.”
(Bukhari, Riqaq, 28; Muslim, Janna, 1)
Hell is screened by lusts, whereas Paradise is hidden by apparent hardships and undesirable aspects. For those who pursue everything for the material value, the difficulties on the path that leads to Paradise may not seem to be very appealing. Primarily, both Paradise and Hell are a blessing for human beings, for one is a form of encouragement for those seeking the true path, while the other is terrifying, a path of fear. When a human sees the incentives that lie on the path of benefaction they struggle to reach Paradise, and when they see the dreadful path that leads to Hell they make every effort to avoid its evil, turning back to the path of righteousness; in this way both paths become a form of mercy for us.
The Almighty One has put Paradise and Hell in different coverings. Then He presented them to human beings as exchanges for their deeds; we make a choice between the paths leading to either destination by using our free will. Paradise is a precious pearl screened by an unattractive shell; performing the rituals of purification and prayer, the pilgrimage, giving to charity, striving to remove the obstacles between people and God and, bearing difficulties and mistreatment for His sake are among the elements of this shell. Those who only see the outward face are always misguided. Therefore, the candidates for Hell outnumber those of Paradise.
Humans tend to choose the easier alternative; those who think “Prayer is beneficial, but praying five times every day is too difficult” avoid this duty, which is of great benefit, out of their petty calculations. The difficulty of performing the ritual of purification under harsh winter conditions is one of the main reasons why people abandon the duties bestowed upon them. However, we are told in the hadith that those who endure hardships will be able to move one step closer to the gates of Paradise; this is also pertinent to fasting, giving charity, performing the hajj and other duties.
Various trivial things that prevent an intelligent person from acting with a sense of consciousness are also forms of deceit that prevent one from entering the gardens of Paradise; the fire of Hell is a place of destruction which lures us with ambition and desire. Most of those who choose the path of evil are unaware of the agonizing trap they are about to fall into, like a fly landing on poisoned honey. Passion is nothing but a poison; it destroys those who dare to reach to it like fire destroys the moths that approach the heat of the flames. With total ignorance, people approach passion that screens evil and suddenly find themselves in the burning flames of Hell. Before they have the chance to escape this trap, they are lured on by attractions that pull them ever deeper into the burning flames.
The apparent burdens around the path to Paradise do not deceive those who know the Prophet, one who stands on the crossroads of the two paths. Such people will find guidance to the path of truth from his words of wisdom. They will find the way that leads to the gates of Paradise, for their souls have embraced the desire to reach the prosperity of the garden. However, others who seek the pleasures of prosperity elsewhere live steeped in the deceit of passion and the artificial blessings of their so-called heaven in this world. But the fact of the matter is that those who live in this heaven of materialism will never reach the true prosperity that awaits the devoted believer in Paradise, not even for a moment.
Faith and blasphemy are like seeds which will reveal their true faces in the next world and transform into Paradise and Hell; this means that despite what might seem to be difficult, a believer actually lives the life of Paradise in the world of mortality. The truth of the matter is that it is inconceivable for a person who is aware of the benefits of Paradise to reject the chance of eternal happiness and take the path to Hell; what deceives people are the cloaks they wear. If we re-examine the words of Prophet we can see how significant they are; here laid out before us the consequences of following the two paths—the prosperous path which leads to happiness and contentment and the path which leads to fear and destruction.