BUBBLE 15 – DEATH

Bismillah Hir Rahman Ir Raheem,

In some occasions, I wonder what it will feel like to die. What situation I will be in. The chaos and anarchy around me. Whether I’ll see it coming and be attached to a ventilator in a white, uncomfortable hospital bed with an array of tubes attached to my skin with the atmosphere smelling of ibuprofen, blood, urine, sweat and tears. Or the Angel will come to me while I sleep peacefully, dreaming warm, soothing and hopeful dreams. I could meet my Beloved Allah in a few minutes or while sitting on my favorite chair with snowy white hair caressing the deep, wrinkled masterpiece of a face with open eyes that have seen too much, yet have not seen enough.

Death gives my life meaning. It makes me careful of the deeds that I do, the way I talk to and treat others, the dreams I wish to fulfill and the thoughts I have in my head. It reminds me that this world is temporary and we all have to leave this Earth and meet Allah to answer for our deeds. I do fear death. I fear not having done enough good in this world to secure my place in Heaven. I do one good deed and countless other bad deeds. Not a day goes by that I am thankful for what I have and that I pray for forgiveness of my sins. But I stay motivated, patient and hopeful and I keep trying. Because nothing can stop a person who has the will and drive to achieve something.

But when I leave my house and face the world, I see the exact opposite in people.

You might have experienced it yourself within yourself or in people that there is one thing that they are constantly saying in different ways; that they want to die. Exams are too stressful so they want to die. Life has many obstacles so they want to die. Someone had a breakup, they want to die. Someone feels restricted from having fun, they want to die. Every conversation always seems to end in this sad end. Initially, I thought that people who say that they are depressed because they failed in an exam were just diagnosing their small shift in mood as a disorder that they can’t escape, whereas that feeling would have disappeared by the next day. But I’m really getting concerned that they are becoming depressed because I hear this almost everyday. No wonder people are looking for the purpose of life and motivation. What if they really want to die and they have an accident that makes them immediately regret their plea? What then ,when it is too late?

It has gone so crazy that people are even laughing about it. The memes I see in Facebook are numerous, highlighting the urge to die and leave life:

I try to convince them that life is not all that bad but they refuse to accept. They are thankless of all the opportunities that they do have. They are definitely not happy, or do not want to feel happy. And I don’t know how much I can persuade them. Most of my friends here are Muslim, but Muslims are meant to be patient, hopeful, with faith and although I can’t judge who is a better Muslim or person as only Allah has the authority to do so, I don’t see people having the importance of God in their lives. Some don’t even mention Him and are all about the world and it’s problems. I get it. Life is hard, and it will continue to be hard. But our ancestors like our Prophets have also gone through a lot of hardship and pain, if not the same ones we are facing, and perhaps more, and some with knowledge and faith have persevered and came out strong. What you are going through is just an obstacle which you need to fight hard to push aside. We need to try our best to be good to ourselves and to others in spite of the struggles we face so that our outcome in the Hereafter will be worth it. And the world may be against you but Allah is always with you.

I would like all those reading this to console yourselves that this situation you are going through is not permanent and it will be better, and to console your brothers and sisters as well. Do as much as you can, the rest is up to them. Be the best that you can be. Mental health is very important and in this day and age, it is very vulnerable.

If you don’t fear Death, at least be prepared to welcome it.

It is not death that man should fear, but he should fear never beginning to live. – Marcus Aurelius

All the people go to Allah after their death, a wise person goes to Allah before his death.

Any thoughts? Please share in the comments. 😀

Allah Hafiz