"Then he who is given his Record in his right hand,

He truly will receive an easy reckoning

And will return unto his folk in joy!

But he who is given his Record behind his back,

He surely will invoke destruction!

And he will enter a Blazing Fire." (Al-Inshiqaq: 7 to 12)

The Quran has talked about people who get their Records with their right or left hands. What does 'hand' signify here? What is inferred from this strange method of distribution of records? Is there going to be an actual record of one's deeds or is this just a metaphor of our failure or success on the Doomsday?

Allah says in the Quran, "the Hand of Allah is above their hands." (Al-Fath: 10) Which means 'The power of God is above every other power.'

Here, 'hand' could mean 'side'; the right side signifies success and the left side means failure. In Al-Waqi'ah Surah 'the Companions of the Right Hand' and 'the Companions of the Left Hand' have been named with the same significance. So, these records show who will attain happiness and who will be punished.

When talking about 'the Companions of the Left Hand', Allah says that they will receive their records from behind their backs; "But he who is given his Record behind his back..." (Al-Inshiqaq: 10)

This shows the unusual situation of "the Companions of the Left Hand". Such people, by committing sins, have forced themselves out of the normal human state.

As Imam Baqir (as) says, "Committing sin corrupts the heart. When a heart gets familiar with sin, it turns towards wrongdoing more and more everyday, until sin defeats it and then the heart is turned upside down." This has been also talked about in the Quran, "By no means! but on their hearts is the stain of the (ill) which they do!" (Al-Mutaffifin: 14)

All of these shows that the one, whose record is given to him from behind his back, has changed his heart and his nature due to committing sins.

Another point is that, people's records are different in regards to their different situations, "And thou wilt see every sect bowing the knee: Every sect will be called to its Record: "This Day shall ye be recompensed for all that ye did!" (Al-Jathiyah: 28)

Differences of time, culture, knowledge, etc. are also considered, so that the Judgment is totally fair and just.