Welcome to the University of Sufism's Ramadan reading of Rosina Fawzia al-Rawi's book,
The Call of Allah,
A companion to the holy month of Ramadan.
Today I will be sharing day 19 about death,
Also known as mawt.
Bismillah ar-Rahman ar-Rahim.
Abdullah ibn Umar narrated,
The messenger of Allah ﷺ took me by the shoulder and said,
Be in this world as a stranger or a wayfarer.
And Ibn Umar used to say,
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.
And take from your health for your sickness and from your life for your death.
Our journey towards death begins the moment we are born.
Our entire life is a preparation for death and the afterlife.
We human beings are embedded in the constant interplay of life and death.
Our cells keep dying and new ones forming.
Our hair falls to make space for the new.
Teeth grow and fall.
Our skin continuously decays and forms anew.
Our body,
Which is our garment,
Our vehicle for the life in this world,
Relentlessly reminds us of impermanence.
And all the little deaths in and around us keep reminding us that nothing lasts forever in this world.
Eternity belongs to Allah alone and everything here is bound to return to him one day.
So be here,
Treasure life and respect it,
But never forget you are in the world,
But not of the world.
Allah sent us to this world from paradise so that we may spend a short time here and know why we are here and what our task is.
And time and time again,
In his love and his mercy,
He has sent us prophets,
Peace be upon them,
To show us the way which leads back to him.
In the Quran,
Allah reminds us that death is first and foremost a homecoming and not an end.
Death is life returning to its origins,
Returning to God.
For indeed,
The life to come will be better for thee than this earlier part of thy life.
Quran 93,
4.
It is death that teaches us to bond deeply with Allah.
More than all else,
It is our fear of death that shows us how we are holding on to other things than to Allah.
Most of the time,
We are not so much afraid of death as of the feeling that maybe we did not fulfill or live as we should have.
That we have not found the meaning and fulfilled the purpose of our soul.
It is essential for us human beings to realize that we do not die,
But we go through a gate called death.
Before we can pass through it,
Everything familiar to us is taken from us.
Our body,
Our family,
And our friends.
Our home,
Our job,
All the places we know.
In that moment,
Everything vanishes and truth shows itself.
All that lives on earth or in the heavens is bound to pass away,
But forever will abide thy sustainer's self,
Full of majesty and glory.
Quran 55,
26-27.
When death comes,
There is no going back.
Then that which lights up our way are our faith and the good deeds,
The love,
The kindness,
And mercy we have spread for Allah's sake.
They widen our grave and fill it with light.
A funeral procession walked past the Prophet,
Peace be upon him,
And he,
Salallahu alayhi wasalam,
Said,
Relieved or relieving?
The people asked,
Oh messenger of Allah,
Alayhi wasalam,
Who will be relieved and who will be relieving?
He,
Peace be upon him,
Replied,
The believing servant of Allah will be relieved from the struggles of this world and from its evils,
And he will enter Allah's mercy,
And the wicked person will relieve their fellow human beings,
The land,
The plants,
And the animals from them.
During the blessed month of Ramadan,
We can experience and feel the sentence,
Die before you die,
With a unique intensity.
Let go of the negative traits you think you need to cultivate to survive.
Let go of your attachment to the illusions of life,
Your reputation,
Your possessions,
Your pride,
Your obsession with control,
And your power games.
Let them wilt and die,
And turn your face,
Your whole being,
To the eternal.
Do not let remorse accompany your last breath,
And reconcile yourself.
Forgive and bring together as best you can that which has been brought apart by pain and misunderstanding.
Trust completely in Allah and be free,
For we can only find inner peace and freedom when we rely solely on God.
Wealth and children are an adornment of this world's life,
But good deeds,
The fruit whereof endures forever,
Are of far greater merit in thy sustainer's sight,
And a far better source of hope.
Time and time again,
Put your fears and your hopes in Allah's hands.
Remain constantly aware of death,
So that you may lead a rich,
Meaningful life.
Stay awake and connected in love with Allah,
And whenever forgetfulness leads you to separation,
Return to unity.
Do not fall into half-sleep,
And prepare well for your homeward journey,
For death may appear any moment.
Verily,
With God alone rests the knowledge of when the last hour will come.
Quran 31-34.
Death is an invitation to leave the prison of this world for the gardens of paradise,
And through the Creator's mercy and generosity,
We are rewarded for our deeds.
The Prophet,
Peace be upon him,
Said,
Whoever loves to meet Allah,
Allah too loves to meet him.
And whoever hates to meet Allah,
Allah too hates to meet him.
May we be amongst the ones who love.
Practice suggested for today.
Take the time to lie down in a dark room.
If you like,
You may cross your arms on your breast.
Imagine that you are already lying in your grave.
Your life on earth is over,
All is done,
And nothing can be changed anymore.
Breathe calmly and reflect on your life.
Reflect on how you spent your life.
Reflect on those deeds and words which maybe you should have refrained from doing and saying,
And those which you should have done or said and failed to do or say.
Breathe deeply and calmly while contemplating your life,
And change and correct what you still can before the time comes for the great,
Ineluctable confrontation that will follow death.
When you sit up again,
Repeat three times.
Consider the flight of time.
Verily,
Man is bound to lose himself unless he be of those who attain to faith and do good works and enjoin upon one another the keeping to truth and adjoin upon one another patience in adversity.
Quran 103,
1 to 3.
Thank you for listening,
And we pray you feel the love and be amongst the ones who love.
