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Introduction
The most powerful motivating force in our lives is fear. Consciously
or subconsciously, everyone’s actions are the result of some kind of
fear. It could be of financial ruin, worldly disgrace, a powerful
enemy, or some superior power. Each and every person functions because
of some real or imaginary fear.
Yet there is no substance to the actions which people perform on the
basis of such fear, for there is no substance to the objects which
they fear. The only fear which is of any value is fear of God, and
sincere actions can result only from true awe and apprehension of one
God.
God has created man: He controls the vast universe and has complete
power over man’s destiny. Anyone who truly believes this will
certainly fear God. But there is more to the matter than this: God
will raise us up after death and will judge us according to our words
and deeds on earth. We are responsible to Him for our actions. One has
to think seriously about life when one considers it from this point of
view. If we keep in mind our eternal destiny, we shall then have no
choice but to submit to the Lord who created us, and who will judge us
after death.
We must do our utmost to protect ourselves and others from the torment
of hell fire. God’s Prophets taught man the reality of life. According
to their teachings the real issue facing us in life is how to avoid
God’s punishment in the next world. We must prepare ourselves for
meeting God and must exhort others to do the same. As Muslims, this is
the basic task that lies before us. Other things that we desire in
life can be ours only if we perform this fundamental task.
Wahiduddin Khan
October, 1980
The Islamic Centre,
New Delhi
The Reality of
Life
There is only one God. He has created all things.
All men will return to Him after death, and He will judge them
according to their actions on earth. Some will be rewarded with
eternal paradise, while others will be condemned to hellfire. Everyone
shall meet the fate he merits, be he weak or strong.
When one realizes this grave reality, one’s life changes completely.
One becomes careful to avoid that which will lead one to Hell, and
desirous of anything which will make one deserving of paradise. One
comes to love and fear God above all else. When one fears God and is
conscious of one’s eternal destiny, one becomes extremely cautious in
one’s dealings with one’s fellow men. By mistreating others, one feels
as if one is exposing oneself to the fire of hell. One is never
arrogant, for one realizes that it is not just humans one is dealing
with; every man is supported by the power of God and His angels. One
is never unjust when dealing with one’s fellow, for one knows that
eventually one is going to have to answer before God for one’s
actions. One does not see others as mere people; one realizes that the
Almighty God is also standing by their side. What we must do is strive
to save ourselves and our fellows from the punishment of the next
world. The prophets have taught that man should make every effort to
save himself from eternal doom. We must do our utmost to protect
ourselves from the torment of Judgement Day and exhort others to do
the same. There is no task in life more important than this. This is
the Muslims’ fundamental task. Only if they perform this task can they
hope to obtain that which they desire in this world.
Inner Revolution
God is the greatest of all powers. No one can escape His reckoning. He
will deal severely with the wicked. Belief in a God of this awesome
nature is no simple matter; faith transforms a person’s being when it
enters his soul.
Imagine the change that comes over a person who suddenly realizes that
a lion is roaming free in front of him. A far greater change occurs
when one truly realizes the existence of God. To believe in God is to
discover Him, and when one truly discovers God, one becomes more
certain of His existence than of anything else; one fears Him above
all else.
Faith in God is like an earthquake which shakes the human soul. The
true believer sees the Day of Resurrection before it comes. Such
belief engulfs one’s entire being in the fear of God. This fear is
manifested in all one’s dealings with others. One does not humiliate
the weak, for one sees that they are God’s envoys. One does not cower
before the strong, because one sees that all are helpless before God.
One accepts the truth when it is proven, for denying it would be like
seeing heaven and Hell before one, then leaving the fresh gardens of
paradise to plunge into the flames of Hell.
The Trial of Man
When one considers one’s dealings with others in purely human terms,
one is apt to resort to cruelty and injustice. If one were to be aware
of the presence of God, one would be careful to avoid all injustice
and cruelty.
All worldly events occur by God’s leave. Everything fits in with a
divine scheme according to which man is tested by the Lord. Everything
happens so that those concerned may be tested. A person’s calibre can
only be made out from the way he responds to life’s situations.
In all worldly matters we are being tested as to whether we are just
in our treatment of one another. We are being tested, in the various
situations we have to deal with in life, as to whether we are
consistent in the values we apply, or whether we have one set of
values for ourselves and another set for others. In the decisions we
have to take in life, we are being tested as to whether we follow a
policy of convenience, or stick to what is right.
Our future fate is being decided on the basis of our present
performance. We can either make use of our opportunities on earth to
deserve a place for ourselves in paradise, or we can waste them and
condemn ourselves to punishment in Hell.
What Man should
Realize
Man thinks he is free to do and say what he likes in this world. He
accumulates wealth and thinks it will ensure his future security. He
wields power fearlessly, certain that it will never be taken away from
him. People are sure of themselves in this world. They have no idea of
the fate that is in store for them. Eventually death will put paid to
the false security they feel in this world. They will be transported
in a helpless state with dreadful suddenness to the next world.
No one can escape this fate. When death comes, we will realize, with
terror in our hearts, how wrong we had been about things in this
world. What seems real to us in this world is, in fact, only a
deception; the reality of things will only be revealed to us after
death.
A person’s attitudes will suddenly change when he perceives reality.
“Lord,” he will cry, “I thought I was free in the world, but my
freedom was only an illusion. I thought I was rich, but I have turned
out to be destitute. I considered myself powerful, but now I have been
exposed for the helpless creature that I was. I thought I had many
friends in the world, but they have all deserted me; there is no one
to help me now.”
This is what man should realize. But unfortunately man has forgotten
that this is the reality that is going to affect him more than
anything.
Doomsday
People eat, drink and make merry in this world.
They establish themselves in comfortable homes. They seek to win
promotion in life. They believe or reject matters at will. They are
free to do and say what they like. They strive to excel in whatever
department of life they choose.
Man has been deluded by his worldly position. He thinks that what he
owns in this world will always be his. He forgets that he is being put
to the test by means of all the power which he wields in this
ephemeral world. Nothing that he has will last. Everything will be
taken away from him. He will be stripped of even the most basic of the
worldly amenities he used to enjoy. He will be brought before the Lord
of the Universe to be judged.
All disparity between men will disappear on the Day of Judgement. Fear
of God will seal everybody’s tongue. Injustice will benefit no one;
truth will be inescapable. Man will stand alone, answerable for his
actions.
We must foresee the coming of that day before its arrival. Those who
fail to see it coming before it is upon them will have to pay dearly
for their shortsightedness. They will have to endure the punishment of
hell-fire.
Credit Alone
Man has no intrinsic power. No one can, by himself, give anything to,
or take anything away from anyone. All events happen by the will of
God. Man exists in this world to be tested, and the test of man
concerns his intentions alone, for man can only wish for an event to
take place; he cannot actually make things happen.
Everything that happens in this world seems to have a cause, but these
‘causes’ are no more than a veil over reality. Cause and effect are
beyond the powers of man. These tasks are accomplished by God through
His angels.
Man is being tested in this world by means of the situations with
which God confronts him from day to day. God wishes to see how he
reacts to these situations. Sometimes he is being tested as to whether
he upholds the cause of truth, or forsakes the truth and follows a
false path. Sometimes he is being tested as to whether he is just in
his treatment of others or not. Sometimes he is being tested as to
whether he is true to his word, or breaks promises after they are
made.
All worldly events occur by the will of God. Man simply takes credit
for what happens, whether good or bad.
Seeing into the
Future
In order to put man to the test in this world, God has given him some
power. Everybody has been granted a certain domain in which he is able
to act at will. Some have more scope to act than others, but everyone
acts, within his own domain, as others act in theirs. It makes no
difference whether the power one wields is minimal or great. Everyone
misuses it in much the same way. Different as people may seem, in
reality they are all the same.
People, seeking to prove themselves, are always trying to further
their own interests at the expense of others. They overestimate their
power and consider that they can usurp others in order to establish
themselves. They do not realize that it is not anyone’s vacant seat
that awaits them: it is their own graves. Those who seek to destroy
others are bound to be destroyed themselves. Those who would like to
see others dead and buried are soon to suffer that very fate
themselves.
Those who consider themselves successful today will have to face
failure in the future. We are being reminded of this daily, but no one
takes heed. Everyone is too engrossed in the present. No one cares to
look beyond the present into the future. Those who are caught up in
the present should begin to look into the future, for the present will
soon pass, it is in the future that the day of reckoning lies. We
shall then have to face the consequences of that day for all time to
come.
Before Time Runs Out Man is on trial in this world. Here, everyone is
being tested: if one acts rightly, one will succeed in the trial of
life. Neglect of the task that lies before one is tantamount to
failure. Those who do not strive to succeed in the trial of life are
doomed to failure, whether they like it or not.
Man can be likened to an ice-vendor in this respect, one whose ice is
continually melting and who has to sell his merchandise before it all
dissolves. If he delays in selling the ice, then he will have nothing
left to sell; his capital and his profits will have vanished into thin
air.
This same principle applies to the life of man. Man is rapidly moving
towards a sorry end. There is only one thing he can do to avoid
disaster, and that is to put the time he has been allotted on earth to
the best possible use.
A successful ice-vendor is one who sells his ice before it has all
dissolved. Similarly a successful person is one who puts his life to
good use before it ends, and prepares for the life to come before it
is upon him.
When Will They
Ever Learn?
Man has been given freedom of choice in this world, for this world is
for the trial of man, and man can only be tested if he is free to do
as he wills—if he is free to choose between right and wrong, and free
to use the opportunities and potentialities which he has been given in
whatever manner he chooses. His freedom, however, will be short-lived.
If anyone wishes to reject the truth in this world, he will have no
difficulty in finding words with which to justify himself. If anyone
wishes to deny the true call to religion, he will find other beliefs
in which he can take refuge. If anyone chooses to ignore God’s call,
he will find other things to hold on to in this world which will lull
him into a false sense of security. When the true nature of things is
revealed, however, the props on which he depended in the world will be
exposed as false and unreal.
When man rises from the dead, and God appears in all His glory, man
will be helpless before the Lord. He will have no choice but to accept
that which he used to deny in the world.
If man only knew the awesome nature of the last day, he would cease
the vain conversations in which he endlessly indulges in this world;
he would refrain from all the crimes which no humanitarian or moral
exhortation could prevent him from committing.
The Tragedy of
Man
Man has lost all sense of reality in this world.So lost has he become
in his own vainglory that he has forgotten the greater glory of God.
Although man is constantly being reminded of his helplessness, before
death he thinks he has power; in fact, he is nothing but a pawn of the
reality which he chooses to ignore.
Man breaks his promises; he does not pay people their due; he does not
bow to the truth; he accuses others, but fails to admit his own
mistakes; he turns away from the weak and hails the strong; he bases
his life on desire rather than on principle; he persecutes the
downtrodden and cowers before the mighty; he concentrates on himself
rather than on God. Fear of Hell and desire for heaven do not dominate
his life; he is guided by worldly apprehensions and desires alone. Man
continues in his evil ways and forgets that in so doing he is moving
further away from Paradise and drawing closer to Hell. This is the
tragedy of man; he does not care for that which is most to be desired;
he does not fear that which is most to be feared.
No Refuge
One who does not bow before the truth but cringes before worldly
might, who is not persuaded by sound reasoning but cowers in
submission when there is any threat of force, is worthy of going to
Hell.
Whereas in eternity God Himself will appear directly before men, in
this world there can only be indirect evidence of His existence. To
bow before the evidence of God is to bow before God Himself. Those who
do so will be admitted into Paradise. Those who do not bow before the
evidence of God in this world have, in effect, refused to bow before
God Himself. They will be punished for their rebelliousness and will
be consigned to Hell.
When the truth is proclaimed by some insignificant person, those who
deny it are sure that they cannot be harmed. They forget that it is
not some weak person’s word they are denying; it is the word of God.
Their action amounts to a rejection of God Himself and the whole
universe rejects one who rejects God. They will be left to wander
aimlessly, with no refuge in heaven or on earth.
The day is coming when those who rely on false evidence will have to
face the truth, when those who are settled in the world will be
rendered homeless and those who are secure will not find a blade of
grass on which to stand.
Wishful Thinking
People seek their own happiness in other’s pain.
They oppress those who are close to them and attempt to make a name
for themselves amongst the far-distant. They are unjust in their
private lives, but put on a show of justice in public. They cannot
bear to hear themselves criticized, but consider themselves as having
been appointed by God to criticise others. They are expert in
detecting the faults of others, while ignoring their own.
But the reward of God will be reserved for those who give others what
is due to them, and who do no wrong to their neighbours; who are not
selfish in their dealings with others, but think in terms of what is
fair and just; who do not think of their own interest when the truth
is at stake; who lose themselves in the greatness of God. People are
playing with fire, but have no idea of the consequences of their
deeds. They are careering towards Hell but are happy in the mistaken
idea that they are well on the way to heaven. One can but pity those
who have only false hopes to their credit, and who seek to make
capital out of such wishful thinking. One can only pity those who want
to fashion, in the world created by God, a world of their own
choice—which is not permissible in the eyes of the Almighty.
Angelic or
Satanic
God’s faithful servants act on angelic promptings, while the
rebellious take their cue from the devil. The source of people’s
guidance is clear from their actions and speech.
Those who live in the company of angels are humble in times of
disagreement and quick to bow to the truth. They show by their actions
that they have been guided on to the path of the angels, for angels
are never proud; they show no hesitation in bowing to the truth. The
devil’s way is very different. Those who follow it are cruel and
vindictive in times of disagreement. They are haughty in their
dealings with others. They are following in the devil’s footsteps.
Arrogance and self-assertiveness are attributes of the devil: the
Quran has made this clear.
Ignorance of death and of the resurrection of man gives people the
courage to indulge in injustice and contumacy in this world. If people
knew what was coming to them they would stop dead, in fear; their
tongues would freeze into silence. They would not try to justify their
mistakes; they would immediately admit that they were wrong.
When God Appears
When one truly discovers God, one realizes that he cannot have created
man and the rest of the world in vain. God has created the universe:
He sustains it in its functioning. How can an almighty and all-knowing
God such as He let the whole cosmic machine grind on pointlessly
without its meaning ever being revealed? Faith does more than this for
a person. It instills in one the firm conviction that God will Himself
eventually appear before man. In this world He remains hidden, though
His presence is felt as He guides and sustains the universe. Faith
tells one that the manifestation of the Lord will be an event of the
greatest relevance. God is both mighty and just; He is aware of all
things; His appearance will bring justice to the world. When God comes
before mankind, those who refused to serve Him on earth will be
brought low before Him. They will appear more despicable than insects.
On the other hand, those faithful servants of God, who devoted
themselves entirely to Him, will be honoured in heaven.
God’s invisibility in the world seemingly gives unbelievers the
licence to run amok. But when God appears before mankind, only the
faithful will be honoured. They will inherit a new, complete and
everlasting world in which they will enjoy the eternal delights of
paradise, while those who defied God in the world will be thrown into
the fire of Hell.
The Lesson of
Death
Man desires life, but, sooner or later, he has to come to terms with
death. Just as he is at the peak of his career, death comes and
shatters it all. Suddenly, he has to face a world for which he has
made no preparation.
Man aims at establishing his own glory on earth, but death comes and
demolishes all the delusions of grandeur which he had nurtured,
teaching him how powerless he had been before death. Man wants to be
his own lord and master, but his helplessness in the hands of fate
shows that he has no control over his destiny. Man wants to satisfy
his desires in this world, but he is foiled by death, which teaches
him to seek in the Hereafter the gratification that constantly eludes
him in this world.
We must learn from death, for the secret of life is hidden in the
message it has to teach us. Death shows us that we are not our own
masters; that our stay on earth is only temporary; that the world is
no place for the realization of our dreams. Death teaches us how to
live; it shows us the way to real success.
Delusive
Grandeur
People usually take worldly success to be an indication of success in
the life to come. But they are mistaken in this, for success in this
life has nothing to do with eternal success. Worldly grandeur is no
true grandeur at all. It is just a means by which man is put to the
test. Some are happily placed in this world, while others are not. But
whatever the conditions of human existence, all men are the same in
that they are being tested. A person’s position on earth is not an
indication of success or failure: it is just a test.
When one is raised in stature or in some way honoured in this world,
one would be mistaken if one were then to look down on others, for all
are equal in the face of death. Death puts the whole human race on one
level. Then great are those whom God sees fit to make great, and lowly
are those who are cast down by Him.
The world is a place of trial. Here man can pretend to be great, but
it will not be long before his real position is exposed. On that day
many who have honour in this world will be debased before God; many
who claim to be friends of justice and humanity will be exposed as
enemies of the very causes they expoused; many who are acclaimed
amongst the brave will be condemned as cowards; many who claimed to
bow to the truth will be exposed as shams.
The Inevitable
Fate of Man
The poor are aggrieved by their lowly conditions of living. They eye
the rich with envy, not realizing that wealth creates even more
problems than poverty. Important figures may appear to command
substantial popular support, but in private they have no peace of
mind. They are so restless that they cannot sleep at night without the
help of sleeping pills. Everyone is beset by problems in this world,
though the nature of these problems differs from person to person.
However much happiness one obtains in this life, it can only last for
a short time. Death will spare no one. When it comes, wealth and power
will be of no avail. Some die walking on the streets, others die while
travelling in aeroplanes. Some die in shacks, others in palaces. Death
shows no mercy. It is an inevitable fate which everyone has to face.
Death reminds one to look beyond the present, and to seek success
beyond this ephemeral world. Those who fail to learn will soon be
deprived of the temporary pleasure which they enjoy in this world.
They will find themselves in a world of darkness. They will feel
remorse at not having prepared themselves for the life after death,
but their remorse will not benefit them. They will have to live with
their anguish for all time.
Life’s Journey
Everyone’s mind is full of hopes and ambitions.
Everyone cherishes some dream and likes to think that he is
progressing towards the fulfillment of that dream. Death puts paid to
all his hopes and shows him that he has been travelling towards the
world of God, not the world of his own fancies. The journey of his
life is not destined to end in this world: he is bound for eternity.
How ignorant man is of his own fate! How different from what he
imagines his real destination.
Man spends his life ensuring that his children make the most of their
future, but he does not live to see the fruits of his efforts. Before
long he himself is forced to face a future for which he has made no
preparation. Man strives to build himself a comfortable home, but
death comes between him and the enjoyment of which he dreamed. Man
seeks to enrich himself; he thinks that the more he earns, the more he
will advance in honour and prestige. But soon he has to come to terms
with the fact that he is bound for the desolation of the grave rather
than the honour and prestige of which he dreamed.
Man cannot do without ephemeral comforts. This obsession causes him to
deny the stark realities of life. If only he realized that his
temporary pleasures would soon be replaced by eternal torment, then
his attitude to life would change radically.
God’s Mercy
What a shock it will be for man to realize that his activities on
earth have come to nothing. People take pride in asserting themselves,
but they would do better to take pride in humility. They seek to
justify their errors, but they would do better to admit them freely.
They have been given tongues with which to praise God, but instead
they praise humans. They have been instilled with emotions of love and
fear to offer to God, but they waste them on other objects. Hoarding
wealth is their greatest aim in life, whereas their greatest aim
should be to give their wealth in God’s cause. True virtue lies in
being kind to the weak, but they ignore the weak and hail the mighty.
They would do well to delve into the silent world of meanings, but
they prefer to engage in noisy, worthless pursuits. Progress lies in
being able to criticize oneself, but they are busy criticizing others.
Man is living in a fool’s paradise of his own making, but the
Resurrection will shatter all his dreams. Then, only those who take
refuge in His mercy will be saved.
Extraordinary
Disillusionment
Man has directed all his efforts towards mundane objects. He is
possessed by thoughts of food, clothes, shelter, fame, wealth and
happiness. His attention is fixed on the attainment of these worldly
goals. He expends all his energy in striving after them. If his
efforts are successful, he is pleased. If not, he becomes so
discontented that his life is ruined.
Death comes to show man that he is not destined to be happy in this
world. Even if one obtains all these things in this world, one can
only possess them for a very short time. When, after decades of
unremitting struggle, man is at the peak of his powers, death comes
and puts paid to his career.
This shows that this world is not meant for the fulfillment of one’s
hopes and ambitions. The place for their fulfillment is the eternal
world in which we are going to dwell after death. People, busy
preparing for their worldly future, have neglected their eternal
future. They overlook, in the next, more complete life, the very goal
which they have set their eyes on this ephemeral world. Thus man is
busy losing exactly what he sets out to gain. What extraordinary
disillusionment is in store for him.
The Great Divide
The grave divides this world from the Hereafter.
The next world lies across this great divide. Today we are on this
side of the divide; tomorrow we will cross it. All living men will
taste death; no one will be able to escape it. But man is oblivious of
death—the greatest reality of life.
We have all seen people entering the grave never to return, but few of
us realize that we are also going to meet the selfsame fate. The door
of the grave will open for us and then close on us for ever. How
strange it is that man witnesses others dying every day, but himself
lives as if he was never going to die. He can see others being
summoned before God every day, but he excludes himself from death’s
list; he acts as if he was never going to come before the Lord to be
judged.
We are closer to death than life. If we could realize this we would
look on everyone’s death as our own; it would seem as if we ourselves
were being carried to the grave when we saw someone else’s funeral.
When Words Fail
Every soul shall taste death. Those who see will become sightless and
those who speak will be silenced. When death overtakes us, we will
leave this world behind and enter the next world. We will leave this
world never to return and enter a world in which we will have to abide
for ever. We will be removed from the worldly arena of our actions to
an arena where we must suffer the eternal consequences of our deeds.
We are closer to death than life. People think they are alive, but it
would be truer to say that they are dead, for no one knows when death
will come. Death is already upon us. It is not a future event.
Everyone is moving towards death. Some set their eyes on the world,
others on eternity; some live for that which meets the eye, others for
that which lies beneath the surface. In this world both types of
people appear the same but, in relation to their final destination,
they are very different. Those who live God-oriented lives are safe,
while those who live self-oriented lives are destroying themselves.
The Final Hour
The final hour comes to everyone. It can come while one is sleeping,
walking or lying in one’s bed. No one can escape this hour, though the
form which it takes differs from person to person. How strange death
is. The flame of life is suddenly extinguished; a happy face abruptly
fades into oblivion, as if it were less than dust; the aspirations and
ambitions that one cherishes on earth are shattered in an instant, as
if they were meaningless.
How meaningful life appears, yet its conclusion renders it
meaningless. How free man appears to be, yet he is absolutely helpless
before death. How dear man’s ambitions and desires are to him, but how
mercilessly the hand of fate brings them to nothing.
If one only remembers death, one will never be arrogant. The secret of
a good life is to stay within one’s own bounds: death alone can teach
one the truth of this.
Death teaches one not to despise others, for soon one will be brought
low oneself. Death reminds one not to crush others, for soon one will
be crushed beneath tons of earth oneself.
The Coming Day
Death will surely carry man off. On the day of death the angels will
come to take man before his Lord.
It will not be long before man is carried off, but people know only
about this happening to others; they do not realize that the same fate
awaits them. They gossip about the demise of others, but they forget
that one day the angels will also take them before the Lord to be
judged.
People are good at finding faults in others, but they would do better
to find faults in themselves. They try to save themselves by
justifying their actions, but they can only be saved by admitting
their faults.
The day when man is taken before God will be the most awesome of days.
If one is really aware of what this day means, one’s whole life will
change. One will live in this world, but one’s mind will be focussed
on the Hereafter. One will weigh oneself today on the divine scales of
justice on which everyone will be placed after death. One who fears
the hand of God will look on everyone’s death as if it were his own.
When he sees someone being taken to a human court in handcuffs, he
will think of his own fate, when he is brought into the Divine Court
to be judged by the Lord of the Universe.
Remembering
Death
Man has endless words at his disposal in this world; but there will
come a time when he will be at a loss for words. There will be no one
to listen to what he has to say, no press to print what he writes, and
no loudspeaker to announce his words. The fool’s paradise which he had
constructed for himself in the world will have been razed to the
ground. He will look for some respite from anguish and despair, but
there will be none.
If only man were to remember death, the things which make him cruel
and unjust would become meaningless; he would realize that his actions
are leading him towards Hell. Man cannot make use of the wealth which
he holds so dear before death comes and severs him from his earnings
for all time. If man were to remember this fact, he would not be so
obsessed with self-enrichment in this world. People plot the
destruction of others, but before they can carry out their plots,
death comes between them and their enemies. If one constantly keeps
this fact in mind, one will never seek to harm others; one will never
plot the downfall of another.
No one is ready to buy a house which is due to be demolished the next
day. No one inhabits a city which is about to be devastated by an
earthquake. Yet everyone makes the much more serious mistake of
ignoring the most severe earthquake which will strike us—death.
Man’s Negligence
Old age is a completely new experience for a person. Life loses all
its meaning. One sees that one is about to plunge into an unknown
world. One longs for a ray of hope at this decisive time; but death
catches one unprepared. Suddenly one is robbed of all one’s freedom.
One enters, a world where one is helpless and forlorn. Death haunts us
all. We tend to forget about it in our youth, but eventually the hand
of fate holds sway. When our life on earth has run its course we are
taken to a world of darkness—a world in which we will be bewildered
and confused, because we had not prepared for it on earth.
In the daytime man knows that night is coming. He organizes his day in
accordance with this knowledge. Then, when night falls, he is sure
that soon a new day will break. Yet few are conscious of the coming of
the Hereafter. Few look forward to life after death as one who travels
by day looks forward to the coming night. Even fewer realize that we
will be exposed to the raging fire of Hell after death. Everyone seems
to think that death and Hell are for others, not for himself.
Man Stands Alone
Death proves that man is alone. In this world, he lives with others.
He has family and friends to keep him company and support him. But
death will tear him away from all such attachments; it will isolate
him from his friends. Death proves that, in this world, man stands
alone; he has no friend or helper.
Every day, everywhere, people see this happening. They see others
living amongst family and friends in this world. Then suddenly death
descends upon them and isolates them from everybody. They find
themselves in a pit where there is no one on either side. How strange
and striking this event is; but few take heed of the lesson that it
teaches.
In this world one has friends to help one at every stage of life; but
after death one will be alone in the grave; one will have to contend
with the angels alone; one will come before God with no one to support
one.
Man thinks that he has everything in this world, but in fact he has
nothing. Death comes to convey this reality to man in the most
conclusive possible way.
The Deluge of
Eternity
Death is all that divides us from the next world.
No one knows when death will come; it might come at any time, breaking
the barrier that divides us from eternity, and unleashing the grave
realities of eternity upon us like a deluge. No amount of words of
force will be of any use then. Man will stand helpless before his
Lord. All those who were lost in the splendours of this world and were
not prepared to listen to any admonition will be condemned to eternal
doom. Only those who reckoned with themselves, before coming to the
Lord to be reckoned with, will be saved.
There is no one more ignorant than those who choose to ignore the
coming of this day; but their ignorance will not save them. There is
no one weaker than those who depend entirely on worldly supports, for
these will crumble and fall, leaving one with nothing to depend upon.
Many who seem to be building for themselves are in fact demolishing
their own edifices. Many consider themselves superior to others in
this world, but will be proved inferior in the next. This will happen
when the deluge of eternity engulfs the whole world. On that day, God,
together with His angels, will appear. Everyone will be questioned as
to what they have left behind them in the world, and what they have to
take with them into the afterlife.
Man’s Ignorance
Talking is the easiest thing in the world, and keeping quiet the most
difficult. But there will soon come a time when speech will seem to be
such a grave matter that one will wish that one had remained silent
all one’s life; one will wish that one had renounced the power of
speech and that one’s tongue had been frozen into a perpetual silence.
There is no greater source of temptation in man’s body than his
tongue, yet it is his tongue that he misuses more than anything: he
uses it to deny rather than accept truth; he uses it to utter evil
instead of righteous words. People are quite happy with the way they
explain themselves in this world. They do not realize that eventually
they are not going to have to answer to any human being; they are
going to have to answer to God. If they were conscious of this fact,
they would prefer to own up to their worldly disgrace rather than
pretend to maintain their honour.
This is all because man wrongly considers himself to be his own
master. He forgets that, before long, his true Lord and Master will
appear, leaving man to languish in his helplessness. If people knew
what was going to happen to them tomorrow, they would cease to derive
enjoyment from their present state. Their pride would suddenly change
to humility. It is their ignorance of the after-life which has made
the world seem too attractive to them.
The Trumpet of
the Last Day
Those who truly discover God become completely changed people.
Outwardly they appear like anyone else, but inwardly they are quite
different. They live on a different level from others.
Such people live in the world, but are in the aura of eternity.
Everything in this world seems to them to mirror eternity. They catch
a glimpse of the splendours of Paradise in the lustre of this
ephemeral world, but are reminded of the torment of Hell when their
experiences are bitter. Within the framework of this world, they see a
picture of eternity. Life conveys to them the message of death. The
true believer is one who sees the world of eternity within the present
world. He lives as if the realities of the next, unseen world were
present before him. Unbelievers will also see the next world, but this
will only be when all veils have been torn asunder by the shrill noise
of the trumpet announcing the resurrection of man. Then, all unseen
realities will be visible to man. But man’s vision will not profit him
on that day, for it will be the time for retribution, not the time to
give evidence of one’s faith in God.
The angel who is to announce the Last Day is ready and waiting with
the trumpet in his hand for God to give the order to sound it. This
will be a most terrifying time for man. He will want to speak, but
will be struck dumb. He will want to walk, but his legs will not carry
him.
The Day of
Reckoning
The time will come to pass when the whole of creation will be gathered
before the Lord. All voices will be silenced except for the voice of
God. Only the truth will have any weight on that day. Nothing else
will be of any consequence. On that day man will be judged. Only death
divides us from that day. We are all proceeding towards a fate which
will bring us either eternal bliss or eternal torment. Every moment
that passes is bringing us closer to the fate that is in store for us.
We lose one day more in our lives every day the sun sets, and we will
never have another chance like the present to prepare for this awesome
day. We have only a comparatively short time in this world, but will
have to endure the consequences of our life on earth for ever: either
bliss or agonizing punishment.
We are soon going to leave this world where we are free to act, and
enter another world where we will reap the consequences of our
actions; we must examine our lives before this happens. We will all
have to stand before God one day. On that day, how fortunate will be
those who are included among God’s faithful servants, for they will be
honoured in heaven. How unfortunate will be those whom God rejects,
for they will have nothing to look forward to except eternal torment
and disgrace.
Only One Chance
Man is an immortal being. He passes part of his time on earth and the
rest of his time in the hereafter. This world is for actions; in the
next world we will reap the consequences of our actions. The only
chance we have to work for the Hereafter is in this world. Afterwards
we shall not be able to act: we shall rather have to bear the
consequences of our actions. We have very little time on earth. Many
who were once among us on earth are now dead and gone. In the same way
we shall be removed one day from the land of the living. Our lives
will end and we shall be brought before the Lord.
This life is the first and last chance that we shall have to build an
eternal future for ourselves. We have only one life on earth, and it
is in this life that we must prove our worth. We are being tried on
earth, and this trial is sure to reach a decisive outcome. We shall
not be able to escape the consequences of our actions. Every second
that passes is conclusive, for time that has passed can never return.
We have only one chance to show our worth; we can either waste it or
put it to good use. We have only one life on earth; we can either grow
for ourselves a heavenly crop or an infernal one.
Real Success and
Failure
Some seem to be successful in this world and others appear to have
failed. For this reason people have come to think of success and
failure as confined to this world. Heaven and hell have become for
them things of this world, not the next.
But this is no more than an illusion. Real success and failure lie in
the next life. Many who consider themselves successful in this world
will be shocked to find that the reality is far from what they
thought. They will discover there who are the losers and who are the
winners; they will see who understood the reality of life and who was
taken in by mere appearances; they will realize who forged ahead in
the race of life and who was left behind; it will be evident who put
his talents to the best possible use and who wasted them on the
fleeting enjoyments of this world; it will become clear who has
attained to true honour and who has been disgraced.
Failure in its true sense is failure in eternity, and likewise true
success is success in eternity. Opportunism and expediency earn one
honour and status in this world, but they will be of no use in the
Hereafter. People who gained worldly honour in this way will find
themselves quite unfit for honour in the everlasting world of God.
They will be like an old-fashioned, manual worker, who is considered
skillful in an agrarian society, but whose skills are of no use in a
modern technological age.
The Greatest
Earthquake
Earthquakes are a sign of God. When an earthquake strikes, it
demolishes all the props which man relies on. It causes mighty stone
fortresses to come tumbling down, just as it reduces flimsy wooden
huts to matchsticks. It does not distinguish between the strong and
the weak. It strikes the mighty in the same way as it strikes the
helpless.
Earthquakes give us prior warning of what is eventually going to
happen to all of us in this world. They remind us in this world of the
doomsday which all mankind must face in the next world. When the
trembling of the earth makes people lose their senses; when houses
start falling as if they were made of playing cards; when the earth is
turned upside down; then people will realize how utterly helpless they
are before the might of God. All man can do at such a time is
helplessly gaze on his own destruction.
The earthquake of the Last Day will be infinitely more severe than any
worldly earthquake. All man’s supports will collapse. He will forget
the skills which he displayed in the world. The grandeur which he
enjoyed on earth will disappear. The only people who will have
anything to rely on will be those who did not rely on worldly
supports. The successful one on that day will be those who attached
themselves to God, while others had taken refuge under other banners.
On the Verge of
Death
Everyone is on the move and everyone’s journey ends in death. Death
means heaven for some and hell for others. Fortunate are those who
find themselves on the threshold of heaven at the time of death; they
will dwell in eternal bliss; they will know neither grief nor
apprehension. But there is no limit to the misfortune of those whom
death brings to the threshold of hell; for they will be trapped
forever in a world of fire and smoke.
Those who acknowledge God’s greatness and bow before Him, who abide by
the truth and do good to others, are the ones who will be admitted
into heaven.
Those who do not acknowledge the greatness of God, who are unjust in
their dealing with others, who are cruel and proud towards their
fellows, will be condemned to Hell.
Heaven is for those who are of a heavenly nature in this world, while
Hell is for those who do not make their lives conform to heavenly
standards.
All too Soon
Man seeks wealth, honour, power and offspring in this world. He does
all he can to obtain these things, but death shows him that his
desires cannot be fulfilled in this world. He cannot find in this
ephemeral world what he longs for above all else.
One only has to think: what is the point of gaining anything in this
world when one is bound to leave it behind in a few days? If one were
to be content with one’s lot in this world, all the plundering and
exploitation that man indulges in would then cease. It is a fact that
there is no great difference between acquiring a thing and not
acquiring it: what is the value of an acquisition which the very next
day is going to be turned to loss? Man expends all his energies to
obtain something, only to lose it the next moment. Life is sure to end
in death. Man will leave behind all the valued possessions which he
surrounds himself with in this world, never to return to them again.
Man lives for today; he forgets about tomorrow. He builds a home for
himself by destroying others’ homes, although tomorrow he is going to
step into the grave. He takes others to human courts, where he makes
out false cases against them; he forgets that the angels are standing
over him, ready to take him to the divine court. He looks down on
others, thinking he is secure in his worldly greatness, but this
greatness will soon be destroyed, and there will be no trace of it
left.
Divine Scales of
Justice
In this world of trial every man is free. It is possible to torment
one’s neighbour, yet still be acclaimed for one’s piety. One may be
struggling for leadership, yet still be hailed as a holy crusader. One
may choose to be unjust to those one deals with, yet still be invited
to preside over meetings whose aim is to promote peace and justice.
One may be forgetful of God in private, yet in public places, be
considered a representative of the divine cause. One may be totally
indifferent to the plight of the oppressed, yet still find a place in
the headlines as friend of the downtrodden. One may only be spouting
empty words, yet be given credit for beneficent actions.
No facade, however perfect, can conceal man’s true nature from God.
But he keeps his superior knowledge hidden in this world and will
reveal it only in the hereafter. The scales of God will be put into
place and everyone will be seen for what he is. There is no doubting
the coming of that day. No one will be able to postpone it or escape
from it. Wise are they who prepare for that day by placing themselves
today on the divine scales of justice; for those who are placed on
them tomorrow will be damned.
After Death
All men will have to face death sooner or later.
They will leave the world behind them never to return. Ahead of them
will be the Hereafter. They will have no option but to enter this new
world.
The Judgement Day is approaching fast. On that day every soul will
appear as it really was. All the veils that conceal a person’s true
nature in the world will disappear. Beautiful words will be of no
avail in concealing that true nature.
In this world a selfish person can appear as a godly one. One who is
hungry for fame can present himself before men as a standard-bearer of
truth. One who places self-interest before all in his work can by
clever talk deceive people into thinking that he is selflessly serving
the cause of truth.
But death is the event in man’s life that exposes all such pretence as
false. In the world after death all such veils will disappear. Man
will appear as he really is for himself and for others as well.
Brought Before
God
Death is not the end of our lives; it is the beginning of our real
life. After death man will be brought before the Lord for final
judgement.
Man has many concerns in this world, but after death he will be
concerned with one thing alone: escaping from the wrath of God. If one
has ample time at one’s disposal, one engages in many tasks. But if
time is short then one concentrates on the most important task. At
crucial moments, no one is foolhardy enough to engage in irrelevant
pursuits.
No time is fixed for death. It can come at any moment. This fact makes
death an even more delicate issue. First and foremost, we should
communicate to others the dangers that death holds in store for us; we
should inform people about tomorrow, before it is upon us. This is the
essence of the message of Islam. Islam calls man to faith in the
Hereafter; it seeks to awake the living to the issues that will face
the dead. The preacher of Islam stands between life and death. While
still on earth, it is as if he has already experienced death and is
thus able to inform his fellows of what lies beyond the grave.
The Greatest
Calamity
The greatest calamity afflicting our world is that one million people
die every day. No one knows, of those who are alive today, who will be
dead tomorrow. Every one of us shall taste death, but no one knows
when death will come. We do not know which of our fellow men will
leave this world tomorrow, and who will remain to receive this
message.
Every one of us is hastening towards this fate. Everyone who is alive
today is in danger of dying tomorrow. Then we will not have the chance
to warn others, nor they the chance to listen. Under these
circumstances, it is clear what our real task must be: we must dwell
on the life after death and warn our fellows of it, for this is the
real issue of life. There are over four billion people on earth, and
this task applies to each and every one of them. Everyone is ignorant
of the reality of life, and everyone needs to be informed of it. If a
strong hurricane is approaching, one forgets trivial matters. Death is
greater than a hurricane. If one were to realize this, one would think
and speak about death more than anything.
Warning People
of the Hereafter
Muslims have a responsibility to God: to tell all nations of the world
that the day shall come when God will judge them, meting out reward
and punishment according to the merits and demerits of people’s
actions. The Muslims’ present and future well-being rests entirely
upon their fulfillment of this responsibility. Their value lies in the
performance of this service of conveying the divine message. They are
of no value in the sight of God if they do not rise to this task. If
Muslims neglect this responsibility, nothing that they do will be
acceptable to God; even their apparently religious work will count for
nothing. When they neglect this responsibility, God will leave them to
their enemies; He will set other nations over them. Even the
movements, which they call Islamic, but which are not aimed at the
execution of this duty, will come to nothing. They will continue to
indulge in wishful thinking, but they will not be able to deny the
truth of the fact that God has deserted them.
If Muslims do not rise to the task of warning people of the next life,
they lose their worth in the sight of God; they become disgraced and
miserable both in this world and the next. One only has to look at the
vicissitudes in the history of the Jewish people to understand this
fact. Man’s worth is in relation to his performance of the duties
which have been entrusted to him. If Muslims neglect their duty to
God, then how will they be of any worth in His sight?
Responsibility
of Preaching
In this world, floods come to remind us of a greater flood which will
come in the Hereafter. Every year, in some part of the globe, towns
and villages are submerged in flood waters. The day when man rises
from the dead, there will be a huge flood of this nature. All
protective measures will disintegrate before the oncoming flood. It
will submerge all of us; even high mountains will not be able to give
us safe harbour.
The ones who survive worldly floods are those who have prepared boats
before the coming of the flood. So, the survivors of the great flood
of the Hereafter will be those who ride in God’s boat by giving
themselves up to Him.
Mankind must be warned of the flood that is descending upon him. To
issue this warning is the greatest task in the world today. It was to
warn mankind of the coming of this flood that God sent His messengers
to the world; so that after death, when man is brought before God, no
one will be able to claim ignorance, and say that he is being punished
for something he had never been told about. No prophet will come to
the world now, but this task is still as important as ever. After the
termination of prophethood, this special mission of the Prophet has
been entrusted to the followers of the final Prophet. They must
fulfill their duty, before God unleashes the flood waters upon us, or
no one will have a chance to warn others, or be warned himself.
The
Awe-Inspiring Day of Retribution
What an awe-inspiring day it will be when God sits in judgement. No
one will be able to be defiant or proud. Those who had been considered
worthless and rejected in the world will be raised in value and
accepted in God’s sight. Those who had been considered weakest among
men will, by the grace of God, be given great importance: it will be
according to their testimony that people will be sent either to heaven
or to Hell.
Those who were loquacious in the world will be rejected by God. Those
who were thought of as mighty and powerful in the world will be
reduced to powerlessness. Those who feigned piety in the world will be
exposed for the impious beings they really were. Their brightness will
be dimmed and, for them, white will be turned into black. People are
hidden behind artificial appearances in this world. Some hide
themselves behind seductive words; others conceal their true natures
behind material grandeur and splendour. But they will be denied these
things in the life to come. Everyone will appear in his true garb. One
who realizes the awe-inspiring nature of that day will suddenly be
reduced to silence; worldly honour will seem to him as meaningless as
worldly disgrace.
The Soul of
Islam
The true believer is one who actually sees the Archangel Israfil
standing, waiting to sound the trumpet which will signal the end of
the world. This is the true difference between a believer and a
disbeliever; the disbeliever lives for this world, while the believer
lives for the next world; the disbeliever is engrossed in the outward
form of life, while the believer discovers the inner truth of life in
its final outcome.
Islam means to devote one’s life entirely to God. A man’s soul should
commune with God in this world. If this is not the case, it means that
the true spirit of religion is lacking. People may claim to believe in
God, but their belief consists of an attachment to empty rituals. They
bring religion down to the level of their own consciousness, and
neglect the spirit of true submission to God. When this happens,
people tend to ignore the spirit behind religious observances, and as
a result, only outward forms survive. People stop crying to the Lord
in private, they are interested only in public espousal of ‘Islamic’
causes. Mosques are crowded by worshippers but the prayers do not
succeed in illuminating their souls. People do not concentrate on
abstinence in fasting, but rather on having lavish meals before and
after the fast. The spirit of servitude is lacking in religious
festivals, which become instead occasions for self-indulgent,
ostentatious enjoyment. The Prophet’s life ceases to be an example for
his followers; instead they show their attachment to the Prophet by
celebrating his anniversary and holding conventions in his honour.
In short, when the spirit is lacking, religion is moulded in the form
of the worldliness of its adherents.
Hushed Silence
Among the Crowd
When religion becomes part of a national tradition, a new phenomenon
comes into existence: ceremonies performed in the name of religion
increase, but true religion disappears entirely.
This is what is happening to the Muslims today. The number of people
who pray is on the increase, but there are few who really fear God.
There is no lack of people who will speak on behalf of Islam, but
there are few who will remain silent for the sake of their religion.
Everybody sees his own righteousness, but few see righteousness in
others. There are plenty who are ready to display their piety in
public, but few are really pious in private. Everyone wants to see
Islam established in the whole world, but no one has time to establish
it in the individual self. Everybody has huge reserves of fine words
at his disposal, but few have any fine actions to offer. Everybody
thinks he has the key to paradise, but few feel the need to tremble in
fear of Hell. Everybody is enthusiastic about Islam when it is
embellished with material grandeur, but no one is interested in the
Islam which shakes one’s soul and makes one live in awareness of the
afterlife.
Never before in the midst of such a proliferation of religious
activities has there been such spiritual bankruptcy.
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