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DEATH
AND THE SPIRIT AFTER DEATH
All
human beings have an intrinsic feeling
of eternity, and so feel imprisoned in
the narrow confines of the material
world and yearn for eternity. Whoever
can hear our conscious nature will hear
it pronouncing eternity over and over
again. If we were given the whole
universe, we would still hunger for the
eternal life for which we were created.
This natural inclination toward eternal
happiness comes from an objective
reality: the existence of eternal life
and our desire for it.
The
spirit uses the body as an instrument,
and thus governs and controls all parts
of it in a comprehensive manner. When
the appointed hour of death comes, any
illness or failure in the body’s
functions is an invitation to the Angel
of Death (the Archangel Azra’il). In
actuality, God causes people to die.
However, so that people should not
complain about Him, which might seem
disagreeable to many, God uses Azra’il,
upon him be peace, to take the souls of
those who are to die. He also uses
illness or other calamities as another
veil between Azra’il and death so that
people should not criticize the
Archangel.
Since
all angels are created from light, Azra’il
can be present and assume any form in
innumerable places at once and do many
simultaneous things perfectly. Like the
sun giving heat and light to all things
in the world at the same time, and being
present through its images in
innumerable transparent objects, Azra’il
can take millions of souls at the same
moment with great ease.
However,
Archangels like Gabriel, Michael, and
Azra’il, upon them be peace, have
subordinates that resemble them and are
supervised by them. When good, righteous
people die, some angels come to them
with smiles and radiant faces. They are
followed by Azra’il and his
subordinates charged with taking the
souls of the good, or one of Azra’il’s
subordinates. The Qur’anic verses: By
those who pluck out violently; by those
who draw out gently (79:1-2), indicate
that those angels who take the souls of
the righteous differ from those who take
the souls of the wicked. The latter are
plucked out violently, and have sour,
frightened faces at death.
To
those who believe and live righteous
lives are greeted with opened windows
from the places reserved for them in
Paradise. Prophet Muhammad, upon him be
peace and blessings, stated that the
souls of the righteous are drawn out as
gently as the flowing of water from a
pitcher. Better than that, martyrs do
not feel death’s agony and do not know
that they are dead. Instead, they
consider themselves to be transferred
into a better world and enjoy perfect
happiness. Prophet Muhammad, upon him be
peace and blessings, told Jabir ibn ‘Abd
Allah ibn ‘Amr, who was martyred at
the Battle of Uhud:
Do
you know how God welcomed your
father? He welcomed him in such an
indescribable manner that neither
eyes have seen it nor ears heard it,
nor minds conceived of it. Your
father said: “O God, let me return
to the world so that I can explain
to those left behind how pleasant
martyrdom is.” God replied: “There
is no return. Life is lived only
once. However, I will inform them of
your circumstances,” and He
revealed: Never think of those slain
in the way of God to be dead; rather
they are alive and are provided in
the Presence of their Lord. (3:169)
Prophet
Muhammad, upon him be peace and
blessings, the most advanced in
worshipping God, advised prescribed
prayers while he was dying. So did ‘Umar,
the second Caliph, may God be pleased
with him. Khalid ibn Walid was one of
the few invincible generals of world
history. Just before his death, he asked
those beside him to bring his sword and
horse. People like ‘Uthman (the third
Caliph), ‘Ali (the fourth Caliph),
Hamza, and Mus’ab ibn ‘Umayr
dedicated themselves to the cause of
Islam and died as martyrs. Those who
lead lives of dissipation die while
frequenting drinking or gambling tables
or houses of prostitution.
For
those who believe and do righteous
deeds, death is not something to be
feared. Although death seems to bring
decomposition, extinguish life, and
destroy pleasure, in fact it represents
a Divine discharge from the heavy duties
of worldly life. It is no more than a
change of residence, a transferal of the
body, an invitation to and the beginning
of everlasting life. As the world is
continually enlivened through acts of
creation and predetermination, so is it
continually stripped of life through
other cycles of creation, determination,
and wisdom. The dying of plants, the
simplest level of life, proves itself a
work of Divine artistry, like their
living, but one that is more perfect and
better designed. This is so because
death leads to a more perfect life. When
a fruit’s seed dies in the soil, it
seems to decompose and rot away. But in
reality, it undergoes a perfect chemical
process, passes through predetermined
states of re-formation, and ultimately
grows again into an elaborate, new tree.
So a seed’s death is really the
beginning of a new tree, a new, more
perfect and elaborate life.
Since
the death of fruits and vegetables and
meat in our stomachs causes us to rise
to the degree of human life, in this
sense their deaths can be regarded as
more perfect than their lives. Since the
dying of plants is so perfect and serves
so great a purpose, our deaths, given
that we are the highest form of life,
must be much more perfect and serve a
still greater purpose. Once we have gone
underground, we certainly will be
brought into eternal life.
Death
releases us from the hardships of
worldly life, which is a turbulent,
suffocating, narrow dungeon of space
that gradually becomes harder through
old age and affliction, and admits us to
the infinitely wide circle of the
Eternal, Beloved One’s mercy. There,
we may enjoy the everlasting company of
our beloved ones and the consolation of
a happy, eternal life.
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