A Shocking Awakening from the World of Illusions
Human beings become so engrossed in the world’s fleeting pleasures and the pursuit of wealth that they completely forget their true home, the afterlife, and the gateway to it, death. Abdülkadir Geylânî (q.s.) makes a striking depiction to violently shake these hearts still asleep: “O heedless ones! The mouth of the grave is opening. The beast and dragon of death have also opened their mouths.” Just as a person would try to escape if they saw a wild animal approaching them with its mouth open, one should also be in the same state of alertness (vigilance) when facing imminent death. However, worldliness blinds us from seeing this absolute truth. The Prophet’s hadith, “People are asleep until they die and then awaken,” brings to light just how illusory and transient our worldly life truly is.
The Narrowness of the Grave and the Inevitable Reckoning
Death is not merely annihilation but also the beginning of a severe reckoning. When a person dies, they will be lowered into the dark and oppressive narrowness of the earth with great ceremony. Geylânî (q.s.) describes the condition of one entering the grave with painful words: The angels Munkar and Nakir will come, and the person will wait in that narrow space until the Day of Judgment to render an account for their deeds 28, 29. If a servant has obeyed his nafs (ego) and Satan in this world, the grave will be a pit from the pits of hell, and his ribs will become disjointed. Those who walk with pride in this world will be speechless in the face of death, and no power will be able to help them.
Understanding the Value of the Present Time
Awakening before death is the sole condition for spiritual salvation. A person does not know if they will see tomorrow; therefore, one must always be a “man/woman of today.” The warning, “My dear child, do not promise your nafs that you will last until evening after dawn, and when you have completed the evening, do not tell it that you will go out in the morning,” indicates a state of mind ready to greet the Angel of Death (Azrail) with a smiling face. The believer who understands that the world is a worthless, transient stop reduces their ambitions, shortens their hopes, and spends all their energy on investments for the afterlife.
Spiritual Revival Through Repentance
There is no escape from the hand of the dragon of death, but the way to turn its terror into mercy is through repentance. As long as a servant breathes his last with sincerity and turns to Allah, even if he is a great sinner, the darkness of the grave will become a luminous garden for him. For those who accept the world as a “baking oven,” death becomes an instrument of flight from the prison of the mortal body to eternal freedom (union). Those who die before dying enter the grave not as a prisoner but as a beloved meeting their Lord.