Note: The following transcript was generated using AI and may contain inaccuracies.
Praise be to Allah, who destroyed the death of Mashid al-A'mar, and sentenced the people of this house to death, and made them in it symptoms of the swords of judgment and fate, and caused them diseases that annoy them from the decision.
Praise be to Him, and the sweetness of my praise increases with repetition, and I thank Him and His grace for His gratefulness. And I bear witness that there is no god but Allah, alone, with no partner. To Him belongs the Great King, the Omnipotent.
I bear witness that there is no god but Allah, alone, with no partner. To Him belongs the Great King, the Omnipotent. To Him belongs the Great King, the Omnipotent.
I bear witness that there is no god but Allah, alone, with no partner. لقد أصبح كثير منا يشكو قسوة قلبه لقد أصبح كثير منا يشكو قسوة قلبه Many of us are complaining about the darkness of our hearts. And how hard our hearts have become.
And we also are complaining about how our Iman has decreased. And we also are complaining about how our Iman has decreased. And the reason to that, my beloved brothers and sisters, is because of the heedlessness.
And how we've become heedless And how we've become heedless of a reality that awaits us. And so that's why I find it necessary that I speak about and that I talk about that which will bring light to the heart again that which will bring light to the heart again and soften our hearts and that will allow our Iman to increase. May Allah Ta'ala increase our Iman for us May Allah Ta'ala increase our Iman for us and forgive us.
And from the greatest things, my beloved brothers and sisters, from one of the greatest things in which softens the hearts and also increases your Iman is the remembrance of death. Death is one of those things that can remind you and wake you up. Some of the Salafis said, shay'ani, qata'anni laddat al dunya, two things have disconnected the joy of this dunya from me.
Some of the Salafis said, shay'ani, two things, qata'anni, these two things, they have disconnected from me what, laddat al dunya, the sweetness and the joy of this dunya, it's disconnected from me. These two things have become the reasons for me not to taste the dunya, not feel the dunya is dhikr al mawti, the remembrance of death, wal wuqufu bayna yadai allahi azza wa jalla and knowing that I am one day going to stand in front of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. The poet he said, wakayfa yaladdu al aisha man kana muqina, how can he enjoy this world and this dunya, the one who knows he is going to stand in front of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala.
bayna al mana ya baghdatan satu ajilu, how can a person enjoy this dunya and have fun and laugh and enjoy himself and he knows that death can come to him suddenly, wakayfa yaladdu al aisha man kana muqina, how can he enjoy the joy of this dunya, the one who is certain about what, bayna ilaha al khalq la budda sa'ilu, that Allah is the one who is going to question you subhanahu wa ta'ala, interrogate you. Always remember that line of two lines of poetry, wakayfa yaladdu al aisha man kana muqina, bayna al mana ya baghdatan satu ajilu, wakayfa yaladdu al aisha man kana muqina, bayna ilaha al khalq la budda sa'ilu, how can you enjoy this dunya and find joy in it, when death can come to you suddenly, you can die anytime, any minute, any second, how can you enjoy this dunya when you are certain that one day you are going to stand in front of Allah and He is going to interrogate you and ask you questions.
Abu al-Darda radiallahu ta'ala anhu he said, kafa bilmawti wa'idhan, death is enough as a reminder, wakafa bildahri mufarriqan, al yawma fiddoori waghadan fil quboori, and time is the one thing that is going to separate us all, death is the best reminder you can give a person, to stand over a grave and look at it, and remind yourself that one day you are going to be from the inhabitants of this grave, one day you are going to be living there one day, that is your house, today you are in this world and tomorrow you are in your grave.
The poet said:
اذكري الموت وداومي ذكره، إن في الموت لذي اللب عبر وكفى بالموت فاعلم واعظًا، لمن الموت عليه قد قدر
The poet said:
"Remember death and be consistent in its remembrance."
اذكري الموت – "Remember death."
وداومي ذكره – "And increase in its remembrance."
Don’t stop it—be consistent in remembering death.
إن في الموت – "Verily, in death, there is..."
لذي اللب عبر – "For the one who is wise, a lesson and a reminder."
وكفى بالموت – "And enough in death..."
What is enough for you in death?
That it is the greatest reminder.
وكفى بالموت فاعلم واعظًا – "Know that death is the best admonition for a person."
لمن الموت عليه قد قدر – "Because death has already been decreed for you."
You have no choice in the matter.
No one is going to consult you—
"Do you want to die?"
"Do you want to live?"
No one is going to ask you that question.
And when the time comes for your soul to be taken,
No one will negotiate with you.
No one will take your opinion on it.
The Angel of Death will come.
أينما تكونوا يدرككم الموت ولو كنتم في بروج مشيدة
"Wherever you may be, death will reach you, even if you are in fortified towers."
You can be in a house made of cement.
You can be in the strongest fortress you want.
You can live in the highest penthouse,
Lock yourself in,
Put the greatest security measures in place.
But when the time comes—
Your soul will be taken from you.
We don’t know where we are going to die.
Wallahi, we don’t.
We know that our souls will be taken—
But we don’t know where.
We don’t know when.
And since it can happen anywhere—
At any place—
In any situation—
We should always be on our feet.
We should always be exerting effort and hard work.
And for this reason, Ibn al-Qayyim rahimahullah and other great scholars have powerful statements about it.
The poet said:
الموت كأس وكل الناس شاربه فليت شعري بعد الموت ما الدار؟
"Death is a cup, and everyone will drink from it."
الموت كأس وكل الناس شاربه – "Death is a cup, and every single person is going to sip from it."
فليت شعري بعد الموت ما الدار؟ – "But where will I be after I die?"
Will I be in Jannah?
Or will I be in Hellfire?
The Prophet ﷺ advised in a hadith narrated by Imam al-Tirmidhi, Ibn Majah, and authenticated by Shaykh Muhammad Nasir al-Din al-Albani in Sahih al-Jami’—
That the Prophet ﷺ said in the hadith of Abu Hurairah رضي الله عنه:
أكثروا ذكر هادم اللذات
"Increase in the remembrance of the destroyer of pleasures—death."
When you remember death—
You hasten toward the obedience of Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala.
When you remember death—
You run away from sins.
And for that reason, Umar ibn Abdul Aziz rahimahullah wrote a letter to some members of his family.
And in that letter, after praising Allah, he said:
أما بعد، فإنك إن استشعرت ذكر الموت في ليلك أو نهارك بُعِّدَ إليك كل فانٍ، وحُبِّبَ إليك كل باقٍ، والسلام
"To proceed: If you truly internalize the remembrance of death in your night or in your day—"
بُعِّدَ إليك كل فانٍ – "You will begin to hate everything that is perishable."
Which is the Dunya.
Everything in the Dunya.
If you remember death, everything that you know will one day come to an end—
You will no longer desire it.
You will start to think—
"Why should I be attached to this world when I am going to leave it anyway?"
بُعِّدَ إليك كل فانٍ – "Everything that is temporary will become insignificant to you."
وحُبِّبَ إليك كل باقٍ – "And you will start to love everything that is eternal."
Which is the Akhirah.
إخواني في الله – My beloved brothers and sisters,
كفى بالموت مكرّهاً للقلوب
Death is enough to wake up the hearts.
It is the one thing that can soften our hearts and open our chests.
ومبكياً للعيون
And it is the one thing that can truly bring tears to our eyes.
ومفرّقاً للجماعات
And death—
My dear brothers and sisters—
Is the one thing that separates us from our loved ones.
A husband passes away—
And his wife is left a widow.
Death, my beloved brothers and sisters—
وهادم اللذات – "It is the destroyer of pleasures."
وقاطع الأمنيات – "And it cuts off hopes and dreams."
You were wishing to become an engineer, a doctor—
And there it is—
You died before you could achieve it.
فهل تفكرت يا ابن آدم؟
Have you really thought about it, O son of Adam?
في يوم مصرعك – The day when you drop dead?
وانتقالك من موضعك – When you leave this place and move to another?
Have you thought about it?
Have you also thought about—
وإذا نُقلت من سِعةٍ إلى ضيقٍ
When you are taken from this vast world—
This wide-open space that you see—
To a small, confined grave?
Have you thought about it?
وخَانَكَ الصَّاحِبُ وَالرَّفِيقُ
Your friends will betray you.
Your companions—
Everyone—
They will all abandon you.
No one will go with you into the grave and say:
"This is my best friend—I want to be buried with him."
No one will do that.
Have you also thought about—
Have you pondered over—
Your children?
Your family?
Your wife?
Your wealth?
Your clothes?
All of it—
Will be taken from you.
Your wife will become a wife for someone else after your death.
Your children will be taken care of by another man after you—
Or another woman after you.
This world will carry on.
Things will not come to an end because of your death.
Allah says in the Qur’an:
كُلُّ نَفْسٍ ذَائِقَةُ الْمَوْتِ ۖ وَإِنَّمَا تُوَفَّوْنَ أُجُورَكُمْ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ ۖ فَمَنْ زُحْزِحَ عَنِ النَّارِ وَأُدْخِلَ الْجَنَّةَ فَقَدْ فَازَ ۗ وَمَا الْحَيَاةُ الدُّنْيَا إِلَّا مَتَاعُ الْغُرُورِ
"Every soul will taste death, and you will only be given your full recompense on the Day of Judgment. So whoever is drawn away from the Fire and admitted into Jannah has truly succeeded. And the life of this world is nothing but the enjoyment of deception."
(Surah Aal Imran 3:185)
Every soul will taste death.
And everyone will be rewarded based on their hard work and the efforts they exerted.
فَمَنْ زُحْزِحَ عَنِ النَّارِ وَأُدْخِلَ الْجَنَّةَ فَقَدْ فَازَ
Whoever is distanced from Hellfire and placed into Jannah—
He has truly succeeded.
وَمَا الْحَيَاةُ الدُّنْيَا إِلَّا مَتَاعُ الْغُرُورِ
And the joy of this world—
Is nothing but temporary—
A fleeting illusion.
You will not be here forever.
Al-‘Allama Abdul Rahman Nasir al-Sa’di رحمه الله said:
وهذه الآية الكريمة فيها تزهيد في الدنيا بفنائها وعدم بقائها
This noble verse—
Encourages detachment from the Dunya—
Because of its temporary nature and the fact that it will not remain.
وأن متاع الغرور
And that the pleasures of this world—
Are deceptive.
تفتن بزخرفها
It entices you with its glitters and glamours.
وتخدع بغرورها
It deceives and misleads you.
وتغر بمحاسنها
It entraps you with its apparent beauty.
ثم هي منتقلة
But in reality—
It is vanishing.
It is fading.
It is turning its back on you.
رحمه الله رحمةً واسعة
May Allah have vast mercy upon him.
And this journey—
Begins with your soul departing from your body.
This journey starts with your soul leaving your body.
Allah ﷻ says:
قُلْ يَتَوَفَّاكُمْ مَلَكُ الْمَوْتِ الَّذِي وُكِّلَ بِكُمْ ثُمَّ إِلَىٰ رَبِّكُمْ تُرْجَعُونَ
"Say: The Angel of Death, who has been assigned to you, will take your souls. Then you will be returned to your Lord."
The Angel of Death has been assigned—"Go, take that person's soul."
And that's it.
That's where the journey starts from.
And then after that, you're إِمَّا إِلَى الْجَنَّةِ أَوِ النَّارِ—either to Jannah or to the Fire.
Allah ﷻ says:
وَجَاءَتْ سَكْرَةُ الْمَوْتِ بِالْحَقِّ ذَٰلِكَ مَا كُنتَ مِنْهُ تَحِيدُ
"And the agony of death has come in truth. This is what you were trying to avoid."
You used to try to avoid it—here it is now.
حَتَّىٰ إِذَا بَلَغَتِ التَّرَاقِيَ—until the soul reaches your collarbone.
وَقِيلَ مَنْ رَاقٍ—and the people around you are like, "Where's the doctor? Where's the doctor?"
"Who can help him?"
"Where's the medicine?"
وَظَنَّ أَنَّهُ الْفِرَاقُ—and he realizes that this is the moment of separation.
وَالْتَفَّتِ السَّاقُ بِالسَّاقِ—and the legs are wrapped around each other.
إِلَىٰ رَبِّكَ يَوْمَئِذٍ الْمَسَاقُ—"To your Lord, on that Day, is the final return."
فَلَا صَدَّقَ وَلَا صَلَّىٰ—and then look at this part—never gave sadaqah, never prayed.
Where are you heading?
Where is the direction you're going?
إِلَىٰ رَبِّكَ يَوْمَئِذٍ الْمَسَاقُ—that's where you're going.
That's where you're heading—you're going to Allah ﷻ.
And that is why Al-'Allamah Ibn al-Qayyim and great scholars have pointed out:
"Where is the mother?"
He says:
أَيْنَ الْوَالِدُونَ وَمَا وَلَدُوا—Where are the parents?
Where are they?
Now their children have passed away—what can they do for them?
أَيْنَ الْجَبَّارُونَ؟—Where are the tyrants?
وَأَيْنَ مَا قَصَدُوا؟—Where are those who pursued their desires?
أَيْنَ أَرْبَابُ الْمَعَاصِي؟ عَلَى مَاذَا وَرَدُوا؟—Where are the sinners and criminals today?
What can they do now?
No one can do anything.
Brothers and sisters, the Messenger ﷺ urged us to go and visit the graves—so we can remember death, so we can ponder on our situation and where we're heading.
That is why Ibn Majah narrated in his Sunan, and Shaykh Muhammad Nasiruddin al-Albani authenticated it, that the Prophet ﷺ said on the authority of Abu Hurairah:
زُورُوا الْقُبُورَ فَإِنَّهَا تُذَكِّرُكُمُ الْآخِرَةَ
"Visit the graves, for they will remind you of the Hereafter."
Go to the graves—
They will remind you of what?
The Hereafter.
It was said about Uthman رضي الله عنه—that if he stood over a grave, he would cry until his beard became wet with tears.
They said to him:
"You hear about Jannah and Jahannam, and you do not cry—"
"Yet you cry when you come to the grave?"
And he said:
"I heard the Prophet ﷺ say:"
إِنَّ الْقَبْرَ أَوَّلُ مَنَازِلِ الْآخِرَةِ
"The grave is the first stage of the Hereafter."
"If a person makes it through the grave—"
فَمَا بَعْدَهُ أَيْسَرُ مِنْهُ—"Then whatever comes after it will be easier."
"And if he does not make it through the grave—"
فَمَا بَعْدَهُ أَشَدُّ مِنْهُ—"Then whatever comes after will only be harder."
He also said:
مَا رَأَيْتُ مَنْظَرًا قَطُّ إِلَّا وَالْقَبْرُ أَفْظَعُ مِنْهُ
"I have never seen a scene whatsoever except that the grave was the worst of it."
The Prophet ﷺ is saying this.
The poet said:
هُوَ الْمَوْتُ مَا مِنْهُ مَلَاذٌ وَلَا مَهْرَبُ مَتَى حُطَّ ذَا عَنْ نَاعِشٍ ذَاكَ يَرْكَبُ
"Death—there is no running away from it."
"When you are taken from the shoulders of the people—"
"The place you're going to is a grave. That's it."
Yazid al-Rakashi رحمه الله mentions:
"I entered upon a worshipper from the worshippers who was known in Basra for his worship."
"His family was around him."
"He was on the moment of death—struggling—going through a lot of hardship."
His father cried.
The worshipper, on his deathbed, looked at his father and said:
"O father, why are you crying?"
His father said:
"O my son, I cry because I am losing you—"
"And because of the hardship I see you going through."
Then his mother started to cry.
So he said:
"O my kind, soft-hearted mother, who is concerned for me—"
"Why are you crying?"
She said:
"O my son, I cry because I will lose you—"
"And because of the loneliness I will feel after your death."
Then his family, his wife, and his children started to cry.
He looked at them and said:
"O my children—why are you crying?"
"O soon-to-be orphans—why are you crying?"
They said:
"O father, we cry because we will lose you—"
"And because we fear the hardship of being orphans after you."
Then he said:
"Sit me up. Sit me up."
And they sat him up.
Then he said:
"Why is it that I find all of you crying for my worldly life?"
"You're all crying because you want to have a relationship with me in this dunya."
"Is there not among you someone who cries for my Akhirah?"
"Is there not among you someone who weeps for the moment when dirt is thrown over my face?"
"Is there not among you someone who fears my meeting with Munkar and Nakir, the angels, when they question me in the grave?"
"Is there not among you someone who cries for my standing before my Lord?"
Then he let out a cry—
And he died.
Brothers and sisters, let's benefit from our last and only chance that we have in this world.
This is the only chance that we have to make it.
If we don't make it in this dunya, no other chance will be given.
Let's benefit, brothers and sisters, from the minutes and the seconds by doing good, and let's stay away from departing from this dunya unprepared.
Let's be prepared for it—so that when we leave this dunya, we ensure that we don't leave with only a few good deeds.
Wallahi, the happy person is the one who's given righteous actions:
وَالسَّعِيدُ مَنْ وُفِّقَ
And wallahi, the destroyed individual—the wretched individual—is the one whom Allah ﷻ does not allow to come with righteous deeds while he lived in this world:
وَالشَّقِيُّ مَنْ فَرَّطَ وَضَيَّعَ الْعُمْرَ
حَتَّىٰ إِذَا جَاءَ أَحَدَهُمُ الْمَوْتُ—until when death comes to one of them—
قَالَ رَبِّ ارْجِعُونِ—he will say:
"Oh my Lord, take me back to the dunya!"
Why does he want to go back to the dunya?
لَعَلِّي أَعْمَلُ صَالِحًا فِيمَا تَرَكْتُ
"I want to do righteous actions in what I have left behind."
But then, look at what comes to him—
يَأْتِيهِ التَّوْبِيخُ وَالزَّجْرُ
Allah ﷻ will reprimand him and say:
كَلَّا إِنَّهَا كَلِمَةٌ هُوَ قَائِلُهَا
"No! It is just mere words that you are saying with your mouth."
وَمِنْ وَرَائِهِمْ بَرْزَخٌ إِلَىٰ يَوْمِ يُبْعَثُونَ
"And behind them is a barrier until the Day they are resurrected."
You're not going to be given that chance.
Brothers and sisters, understand the reality of this dunya.
وَاحْذَرْ—and beware—أَنْ تَغُرَّكَ—that it deceives you and lies to you—
بِشَهَوَاتِهَا—with its glimmers and its glitters.
كُلُّ مَنْ عَلَيْهَا فَانٍ
"Everything on it will perish."
وَيَبْقَىٰ وَجْهُ رَبِّكَ ذُو الْجَلَالِ وَالْإِكْرَامِ
"And the Face of your Lord, full of Majesty and Honor, will remain."
Abdullah ibn Umar رضي الله عنهما said:
"The Messenger of Allah ﷺ took hold of my shoulder and said to me:"
كُنْ فِي الدُّنْيَا كَأَنَّكَ غَرِيبٌ أَوْ عَابِرُ سَبِيلٍ
"Be in this world as if you are a stranger or a traveler passing through."
And from that moment on, Abdullah ibn Umar رضي الله عنهما used to say:
إِذَا أَمْسَيْتَ فَلَا تَنْتَظِرِ الصَّبَاحَ
"If the evening comes, do not wait for the morning."
وَإِذَا أَصْبَحْتَ فَلَا تَنْتَظِرِ الْمَسَاءَ
"And if the morning comes, do not wait for the evening."
وَخُذْ مِنْ صِحَّتِكَ لِمَرَضِكَ، وَمِنْ حَيَاتِكَ لِمَوْتِكَ
"Benefit from your health before you become sick, and benefit from your life before death comes to you."
أَخِي الْحَبِيبُ—my beloved brother and sister, and my beloved family members—
Take death as a lesson.
I ask Allah ﷻ to give us soft hearts and to grant us righteous actions.
إِنَّهُ وَلِيُّ ذَٰلِكَ وَالْقَادِرُ عَلَيْهِ
He is the One who controls that, and He is capable of everything.
سُبْحَانَكَ اللَّهُمَّ وَبِحَمْدِكَ، أَشْهَدُ أَنْ لَا إِلٰهَ إِلَّا أَنْتَ، أَسْتَغْفِرُكَ وَأَتُوبُ إِلَيْكَ
