from the 'Invitation to Islam' Newsletter, Issue 5, October 1998.
1. Death, the Destroyer..
2. The Quest for Immortality
3. Islaam and Death
4. Between Belief and Disbelief
5. Footnotes
However, death is no longer remembered amongst mankind, unless a relative or a loved one passes away. And even then, tears are shed for a brief time before we forget again about this reality [1]. How many people has this state of forgetfulness caught unaware? Some of us believe that we will die according to the life expectancy of our nation, which the statisticians give us. We believe that it is something which will only hit us when we are old and frail. We see it as something far off in the horizon, which will not touch us for a long time to come. But whilst we enjoy the pleasures and comforts of life, death comes ever nearer to the soul. It creeps up on us like a shadow in the night, when we least expect it. Every breath we take, every move we make it comes closer:"It is He who has created life and death, so that He may test which of you is best in deed" (Surah Al- Mulk 67:2).
It is something which is truly in the hands of Allah."Indeed they see it as distant, but We see it as near" (Surah Al-Ma'arij 70:6-7).
Ever since the advent of time, people have sought to 'cheat death'. However, this unachievable feat was something which was first inspired by Iblis, the Devil. In the Qur'an we find the story of the father and mother of humanity, Adam and Hawwa (Eve). Allah informs us how He placed these two beings in the gardens of Paradise when they were created. In these gardens Allah let them taste of any tree they wished to, except for one tree which He specifically forbade them from. Iblis then came to them and was the first of creation to initiate this quest for immortality:
We can thus see how this quest to cheat the command of Allah, is truly a devilish deception which has confused humanity. Even after this event which occured at the dawn of time, many people still believed that they could achieve eternal life on this earth. The Ancient Egyptians and Chinese are two classical examples of this. Both of these cultures had been blessed by Allah with many favours, yet they still chose to try and avert His command. The Egyptians, who had their kings and queens wrapped up, believed that this was the way that they could preserve their bodies and one day come back to life. Whilst it is true that the wrapping up of these people has preserved their bodies, who can say that their souls have also been preserved after Allah had taken them out? And how did these people eventually turn out? After their 'sacred' tombs had been raided from the 19th century onwards, they are now stuck in different museums all over the world, being viewed by thousands of people each day as common entertainment on a day out."Then shaytan (devil) whispered suggestions to them both ... he said; 'Your Lord only forbade you this tree so that you don't become Angels or of those who live forever"' (Surah Al- A'raaf 7:20)
With the ancient Chinese, they too had themselves, their riches and hundreds of clay soldiers buried with them so that they could return once again to rule the Earth. When the Forbidden City in Beijing, China, was unearthed and opened, such dreams of immortality went flying out of the window.
Such ancient dreams of living forever, have been continued into the modern age. People believe that modern technology can find for them a cure for death. Death is ridiculed as being a mere fantasy, with the character of the grim reaper [2] being something used only to scare the children with. Thus millions are spent on preserving people's bodies after they die (by freezing them) and they hope that a cure will one day be found which will bring them back to life. The famous cartoonist Walt Disney is one such example of this. Others like the singer Michael Jackson have been known to do ridiculous things such as sleep in a oxygen chamber (with his pet chimp Bubbles!) so that he can enhance his life and live forever [3]. Such dreams are spurned by the wealth which these people have amassed. But it is as Allah says:
This is the reality of what will happen to all those who think that they can buy their way out of death. From amongst the people today, the Jews are also of those who wish that they can avert the return, as Allah says:"He thinks that his wealth will make him immortal. No! But indeed he will he thrown into the crushing Fire" (Surah Al-Humaza 104:3-4).
Is this not more true then the way that the Jews cling on to the land of Palestine which they have been so oppressively occupying for the last 50 years? [4] Is this not true, in the light of the fact that the Jews run the interest based oppression of the World Bank and the IMF (International Monetary Fund)? [5] By committing such oppression these people truly wish that they could live for a thousand years. They are the lovers of life. In the Qur'an Allah commands His Prophet as a warning to such people:"And indeed you will find them the greediest of mankind for life and (even greedier) then those who ascribe partners to Allah and do not believe in the Resurrection. Everyone of them wishes that he could be given a life of a thousand years. But the grant of such a life will not save him even a little from punishment. And Allah is all seer of what they do" (Surah Baqarah 2:96).
This life and all its desires and pleasures will indeed be cut off by death, as the Messenger of. Allah (saws) described it as: "... The destroyer of desires" [6]. And which desire can be greater, then the false desire which all these people have of living forever on this earth."Say (O' Muhammed); 'Indeed the death from which you flee will surely meet you. Then you will be sent back to (Allah), the All-knower of the unseen and the seen, and He will tell you what you used to do" (Surah Al-Jum'ah 62:8)
So how does Islam view this reality? As Muslims we have been told by our Messenger (saws) that this world is a transitionary period. The Prophet (saws) said: "Live in this world as if you are a stranger or a traveller " [7]. This life is not meant to be an abode of settlement by which we gather all the pleasures possible and make plans for a permanent residence. Rather, it should be like a long journey on which we gather all that we need to get to our destination. This destination being the Hereafter and death the journeys end. Allah says:
The Prophet (saws) also said: "This world in comparison to the world to come is just like one of you putting his finger in the sea. Let him consider what it returns with " [8]. Thus, the Muslim is one who does not view death as being something unnatural and that which should be avoided. Rather, it is viewed as something which is inevitable and must take place, as Allah says:"But truly the home of the hereafter is the actual life, if only they knew" (Surah Al-Ankaboot 29:64).
There is no cure for death. A cure for cancer exists, a cure for AIDS exists and a cure for every other disease exists, except death. The Messenger of Allah (saws) said: 'Allah has not created a disease except that He has created a cure for it, except for a single disease ... old age" [9,10]. So as Muslims we try to live our life as best as we can, in line with the divine injunctions which Islam has placed upon us. By doing this we attempt to die upon Islam, as Allah says to us:"Wherever you may be, death will over take you, even if you are in fortresses built up strong and high" (Surah An-Nisa 4:78)
By dying upon Islam, one dies for the last time. By dying upon other than Islam, one dies for the last time. The difference between the two is that one will live forever in bliss and happiness, whilst the other will suffer and feel pain forever. Such is the justice of Allah, that He allows those who worshipped him sincerely and correctly to go through the process of death on this earth, only once. After this He will admit His chosen slaves into His Paradise, a place where:"O' you who believe fear Allah as He should be feared, and do not die except in a state of Islam" (Surah Al-Imran 3:102).
Between belief and disbelief"They will not taste death therein, except the first death (of this world) and He will save them from a torment of the blazing Fire" (Surah Al-Jathiya 45:56)
Every day the world witnesses thousands of deaths. In countries like Saudi Arabia, death is a common phenomenon, and daily funeral prayers are prayed in the mosques. Likewise, here in the Western world, deaths have been occurring very frequently. What needs to be realised however, is that the death of the believer and the death of the disbeliever are not the same. You hear so many people say 'he died so peacefully' regarding disbelievers. But what really begs to be asked is, 'how do you know this?'. Were the people who make these ignorant statements present when the soul of a person was being removed at the point of death? No of course not. Such statements clearly show how astray mankind has become. In the Qur'an Allah describes the situation of the people who die upon disbelief.
However despite this clear indication as to what happens to the disbelievers, we find that some Muslims believe otherwise. Over the past one and a half years, the West has witnessed many of its famous people dying suddenly."And if you could see when the Angels take away the souls of those who disbelieve (at death), they smite their faces and their backs (saying); 'Taste the punishment of the blazing fire. This is because of that which your hands had forwarded. And indeed Allah is not unjust to His slaves"' (Surah Al-Anfal 8:50-51).
Gianni Versace, Mother Tereasa and Princess Diana have been some of the most famous people to have passed away recently. All of these people, were clearly Non-Muslims and they all died upon this. Gianni Versace was a well-known homosexual, who probably never even believed in a God. Such was the evil of his actions, that Allah ended his days at the hands of another psychotic homosexual. Mother Tereasa had been hailed as a modern day saint by Christians, Muslims and many others. Whilst it was true that she helped many orphans in Calcutta, India [11], it is also true that she died in a state of worshipping other then Allah i.e. Jesus and his mother Mary, a hideous crime indeed. [12] As for Diana, princess of Wales, then she has received the most amount of praise from the ignorant and modernist Muslims. Simply because she had been fornicating with a Muslim, Muslims started to insist that she had died as a Muslim! Others even went to the extreme of saying publicly on TV, that she was destined for Paradise!! The reality however, is that she, along with the above, died as a non-Muslim. There was nothing concrete to say that Diana had accepted Islam. It is for this reason that we as Muslims should refrain from praising those who clearly died upon other than Islam; for when a person dies upon other then Islam, then we should have a fear of dying in this state, and ask Allah that this does not happen to us.
The distinction between the death of the believer and the disbeliever, is made clear when the Prophet (saws) said: "...when the time of the death of a believer approaches, he receives the good news of Allah's pleasure with him and His blessings upon him, and so at that time, nothing is dearer to him then what is in front of him. He therefore loves the meeting with Allah, and Allah loves the meeting with him. But when the time of death of a disbeliever approaches, he receives the evil news of Allah's torment and His requital, whereupon nothing is more hateful to him then what is before him. Therefore, he hates the meeting with Allah, and Allah hates the meeting with him " [13]. In the Qur'an Allah describes the statement of the disbeliever at the moment of death, He says:
This barrier which is referred to here, is the trial of the grave which people will go through before the actual day of resurrection [14]. For the disbeliever and the sinful Muslim, such a trial will be very heavy. For the righteous Muslim, it will not be so heavy. The Prophet (saws) said: "When the deceased is put in the grave, two Black Angels having Blue eyes come to him. One of them is called Al-Munkeer and the other An-Nakeer... " [15]. These two Angels will conduct the trial of the grave and will not hesitate in carrying out the commands of Allah. This year, another famous Western personality, Frank Sinatra, has also met his death. Sinatra had been known in Hollywood as 'Old Blue eyes'. Without doubt, 'Old Blue eyes' Sinatra who died as a disbeliever, is now facing Blue eyed Munkeer and Nakeer. A spine chilling thought."Until death comes to one of them he says 'My Lord, send me back so that I may do good in that which I have left behind'. No! It is but a word that he speaks and behind him is a barrier until the Day when they will be resurrected" (Surah Al-Mu'minoon 23:99-100).
The realities of death have to be established firmly in our hearts and in our minds. It is a reality which may dawn upon us at any time. We may leave this world while we are eating our meal. Maybe we may leave this world when we are in the middle of our prayer. Maybe we may never wake up from the sleep which we will go to tonight. So let us hear the advice of the Final Messenger to mankind, Muhammed (saws) when he said: "If you survive till the evening, do not expect to be alive in the morning, and if you survive till the morning, do not expect to be alive in the evening" [16] The world is limited and has an end; and this end will come. We are limited and will die; and this death will definitely come...
Footnotes
1 When someone dies in the West these days, it
has become customary to have a little party after the funeral!
2 The grim reaper is the symbol of death which
appears on tarot cards, in stories and in plays. (See title heading of
this article).
3 Michael Jackson is very famous for his desire
to live forever, and has publicly expressed this desire
4 Recently the Jews have been celebrating with
great vigour in the UK and elsewhere, 50 years of the establishment of
the state of Israel. However, it is indeed remarkable that the Western
world somehow misses all the oppression which the Jews have meted out to
the Muslim Palestinians because of their (Jews) great desire to live and
love life on the soil of occupied Palestine. If anyone raises such objections
to the atrocities of the Jews, then they are conveniently labelled as anti-Semitic!
5 It is Jews who run these two financial institutions
which have destroyed many third world nations (especially in Africa) through
their excessive amounts of interest charged on loans to these nations.
Many of these nations are still paying off the interest, which constantly
increases.
6 Authentic - Reported by Tirmidhee
7 Reported by Bukhari - Eng. Trans Vol.8, p. 284,
No.425
8 Reported by Muslim - Eng. Trans, Vol.4, p.1486,
No.6843
9 The Messenger of Allah (saws) meant that nothing
could cure old age and that death is inevitable
10 Authentic - Reported by Tirmidhee
11 Allah says in the Qur'an: "Say (0' Muhammed);
'Shall we tell you the greatest loser in respect of (their) deeds? Those
whose efforts have been wasted in this life whilst they thought that they
were acquiring good by their deeds. They are those who deny the signs of
their Lord and the meeting with Him. So their works are in vain, and on
the Day of resurrection We shall not give them any weight- (Surah Al-Kahf
18:103-105). It doesn't matter how many orphans this woman cared for,
she clearly rejected the signs of Allah; the Qur'an and Muhammed (saws)
12 It is amazing to think that whilst this great
polytheist came from Albania, Allah has also raised one of the greatest
monotheist and scholars of Islam in our time, Sheikh Muhammad Nasir-ud-Deen
al-Albaanee, also from this land. At the age of 84 he currently resides
in Jordan. May Allah continue to make him of benefit to us.
13 Reported by Bukhari - Eng. Trans, Vol.8, p.339,
No.514
14 Inshallah, this will be covered in a
future article
15 Authentic - Reported by Tirmidhee
16 Reported by Bukhari - Eng. Trans, Vol.8, p.248-5,
No.425