God had arranged a long period of unbroken sleep for the Men of the Cave and had taken different measures for their safety. For example, they used to turn on their sides regularly, as otherwise, in the words of Ibn ‘Abbas, the earth would have eaten up their bodies, as happens with dead bodies. At the mouth of the cave, a dog was constantly keeping watch. This was perhaps to prevent the entry of any man or animal. In addition to this, the atmosphere inside was made so terrifying by God that, if an intruder had tried to peep in, he would have become terrified at the very first glimpse and would have run away.