A summary of the life of the Salaf between words and deeds | Episode (60) | The condition of the predecessors upon death (the grave is the resting place of the believer)

0:00 In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

0:03 The life of the salaf was defined by the harmony between their words and their deeds.

0:09 Consider the state of the salaf at the time of death.

0:14 The importance of remembering death and preparing for it.

0:19 Safiyyah bint ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) related:

0:24 A woman once complained to ‘A’ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) about the hardness of her heart.

0:30 She replied, "Increase your remembrance of death."

0:34 "Your heart will soften."

0:36 She did so, and her heart softened.

0:39 She then came to thank ‘A’ishah (may Allah be pleased with her).

0:43 ‘Ali ibn Abi Talib (may Allah be pleased with him) said:

0:47 "Whoever anticipates death hastens to perform good deeds."

0:51 Abu al-Darda’ (may Allah be pleased with him) said:

0:55 "No servant increases his remembrance of death

0:58 except that his joy diminishes and his envy decreases."

1:02 Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) said:

1:05 "When a person dies,

1:07 the angels ask,

1:09 'What has he sent ahead?'

1:11 while the people ask,

1:13 'What has he left behind?'"

1:14 It is narrated that Sa‘id ibn Jubayr (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

1:20 "If the remembrance of death were to depart from my heart,

1:23 I would fear that my heart would become corrupted."

1:26 Mutarrif ibn al-Shikhkhir (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

1:30 "Indeed, this death has spoiled the comforts of those who live in luxury.

1:35 Therefore, seek a comfort in which there is no death."

1:38 Malik ibn Dinar (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

1:43 "How strange it is for one who knows that death is his destination,

1:46 and the grave is his final resting place,

1:48 that his eyes find comfort in this world,

1:51 or that he finds life in it pleasant."

1:54 Then he wept.

1:56 A poet said:

1:58 "We go and come for our needs,

2:01 and the needs of the living never cease.

2:04 A person’s needs die with him,

2:07 yet one need remains for him as long as he remains."

2:11 Ma‘ruf al-Karkhi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

2:16 "I saw Ahmad ibn Hanbal,

2:18 and upon him were the signs of devotion.

2:21 I heard him speak words that encompassed all goodness.

2:25 I heard him say:

2:27 'Whoever knows that when he dies he will be forgotten,

2:30 he will do good and will not do evil.'"

2:32 What has been said regarding death and its awe.

2:37 ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) was asked:

2:42 "Regarding two souls whose death occurred at the exact same moment,

2:47 one in the East and one in the West,

2:51 how is the Angel of Death capable of reaching both?"

2:55 He said:

2:56 "What is the power of the Angel of Death over the people of the East and the West,

3:01 and the darkness, the air, and the seas,

3:04 but like a man with a table before him,

3:08 taking from whichever part of it he wishes?"

3:12 Ka‘b al-Ahbar (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

3:15 "Whoever truly knows death,

3:17 the calamities and sorrows of this world become insignificant to him."

3:21 ‘Umar ibn ‘Abd al-‘Aziz (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

3:24 "This death has disturbed the people of the world in the midst of their worldly splendor and blossoms.

3:32 While they are in the midst of it and occupied by it,

3:36 a herald of death comes to them,

3:38 and snatches them away from what they are in.

3:41 Woe and regret, then, to those who did not fear death

3:46 and remember it during times of ease,

3:49 so that they might send forth good for themselves to find after they depart from this world and its people."

3:55 Then ‘Umar wept until he was overcome by his tears,

3:59 and he stood up.

4:01 ‘Abd al-‘Aziz Abu Marhum said:

4:04 "We entered with al-Hasan al-Basri (may Allah have mercy on him) upon a sick man to visit him.

4:09 When he sat beside him, he said:

4:12 'How do you find yourself?'

4:14 He replied, 'I find that I crave food,

4:18 but I cannot swallow it.

4:21 I crave drink,

4:23 but I cannot gulp it down.'

4:26 He said:

4:27 Al-Hasan wept,

4:29 and said:

4:30 'This abode was founded upon sickness and disease.

4:35 Even if you were to recover from these ailments and be cured of these diseases,

4:39 would you be able to escape death?'"

4:43 He said:

4:44 The house erupted in weeping.

4:47 He (may Allah have mercy on him) also said:

4:50 "The healthy among you is merely awaiting an illness to strike him,

4:55 the youth among you is awaiting old age to consume him,

4:58 and the elder among you is awaiting death to fell him.

5:01 Are these not the ends you hear about?

5:04 Is it not tomorrow that the soul will depart the body?

5:08 Tomorrow, the one who is stripped of his family and wealth,

5:11 tomorrow, the one wrapped in his shroud,

5:14 tomorrow, the one left in his pit,

5:17 tomorrow, the one forgotten by the hearts of his loved ones,

5:20 those for whom his efforts and sorrows were intended.

5:24 O son of Adam,

5:26 death has descended upon you.

5:28 You see no one arriving,

5:30 you do not come as a visitor,

5:32 you do not speak to a relative,

5:35 and you do not recognize a loved one.

5:37 You are called, but you do not answer;

5:40 you hear, but you do not comprehend.

5:43 Your homes have been ruined,

5:45 your children have been orphaned.

5:47 Your gaze has become fixed,

5:50 and your soul has departed.

5:52 Your teeth have clenched,

5:54 your knees have weakened,

5:56 and your children have become strangers

5:59 in the care of others."

6:01 He (may Allah have mercy on him) also said:

6:03 "Death has disgraced this world,

6:05 leaving no joy in it

6:07 for any person of intellect."

6:09 Abu Bakr ibn Abi al-Dunya said:

6:13 "I found a note at a funeral

6:15 on which was written:

6:17 'You have given your concern to the world,

6:20 and have forgotten the swift arrival of death.

6:23 By Allah,

6:25 there shall descend upon you

6:26 a dark day of death

6:29 that will make you forget the long enjoyment of worldly blessings.

6:32 You shall surely regret it,

6:34 but regret will not avail you.

6:36 Beware, beware!

6:38 Beware before the suddenness of death

6:41 and dwelling among the people of the graves.'"

6:44 A man said to one of the salaf:

6:47 "Advise me."

6:48 He replied, "The army of death is waiting for you."

6:52 Zayd ibn Aslam

6:55 (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

6:57 "If there remains for a believer

6:59 any of his sins

7:01 that he has not reached through his deeds,

7:03 death is made severe for him

7:05 so that he may reach his rank in Paradise

7:07 through the agonies and hardships of death.

7:10 And if a disbeliever

7:12 has performed any good deed

7:14 in this world,

7:16 death is made easy for him

7:18 so that he may complete the reward for his good deed in this world,

7:21 then he proceeds to the Fire."

7:24 Ibrahim ibn al-Ash‘ath

7:26 said:

7:27 "When we would go out with al-Fudayl

7:29 (may Allah have mercy on him) to a funeral,

7:32 he would not cease to preach, remind, and weep,

7:35 as if he were bidding farewell to his companions,

7:38 about to depart for the Hereafter.

7:41 When he reached the graveyard,

7:43 he would sit,

7:44 and it was as if he were sitting among the dead,

7:47 such was his grief and weeping,

7:49 until he stood up,

7:51 as if he had returned from the Hereafter

7:54 to tell us about it."

7:58 What has been said regarding funerals, graves,

8:00 and the moment of death.

8:03 Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) said:

8:06 "When the disbeliever is placed in his grave,

8:09 he sees his seat in the Fire.

8:12 He says,

8:13 'My Lord, send me back,

8:15 that I may repent and do righteous deeds.'

8:18 It is said to him,

8:19 'You were given a lifespan long enough to have done so.'

8:23 Then his grave constricts upon him,

8:25 and he is like one being bitten,

8:27 sleeping and waking in terror,

8:29 while the vermin of the earth swarm toward him,

8:32 its snakes and its scorpions."

8:36 Ibrahim al-Nakha‘i (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

8:40 "They used to attend a funeral

8:43 and remain sorrowful for days,

8:45 and that was evident in them."

8:47 He said:

8:49 "But you, in your funerals, talk

8:52 about the affairs of your worldly life."

8:54 Al-A‘mash (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

8:58 "We used to attend a funeral

9:01 and we would not know whom to console

9:04 because of the grief of the people."

9:06 He (may Allah have mercy on him) also said:

9:08 "I reached the people,

9:10 and when there was a funeral among them,

9:13 they would come and sit in silence,

9:15 not speaking.

9:17 When the body was placed down,

9:19 I would look at every man,

9:21 with his arms folded across his chest,

9:24 as if it were his father, his brother, or his son."

9:28 Salam ibn Abi Muti‘

9:30 (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

9:32 "I attended a funeral with Qatadah (may Allah have mercy on him),

9:36 He did not speak until he turned away.

9:39 I witnessed al-Hariri, may Allah have mercy on him, at a funeral.

9:43 He did not cease weeping until the people dispersed.

9:47 I witnessed Muhammad Ibn Wasi', may Allah have mercy on him, at a funeral.

9:52 He remained with his head covered and bowed.

9:55 He would not look to the right or to the left.

10:00 It was said to Sufyan Ibn 'Uyaynah, may Allah have mercy on him:

10:03 "Why is it recommended to lower one's voice at funerals?"

10:08 He said:

10:10 "They likened it to the gathering before Allah."

10:13 Have you not heard Him say:

10:15 ﴾And voices have been humbled before the Most Merciful﴿.

10:18 “On that day they follow the summoner who deceiveth not, and voices are hushed for the Beneficent, and thou hearest but a faint murmur.” (20:108)

10:21 Al-Hasan, may Allah have mercy on him, was at a funeral.

10:25 He saw a man speaking to his companion and smiling at him.

10:29 He said:

10:30 "Subhan Allah!

10:32 Is there not enough in what is before you to occupy you from smiling?"

10:37 Al-Hasan said:

10:39 "They used to hold death in such reverence that no voice would be raised in its presence."

10:43 Muhammad Ibn Ka'b al-Qurazi said:

10:47 "I came to 'Umar Ibn 'Abd al-'Aziz, may Allah have mercy on him, while he was Caliph.

10:53 When I entered upon him, I stared at him.

10:57 He said:

10:59 'You are looking at me in a way you did not look at me in Medina.'

11:04 Meaning, when he was the governor there.

11:07 I said:

11:09 'Yes, O Commander of the Faithful.

11:11 I am amazed at how your body has wasted away,

11:14 how your complexion has changed,

11:16 and how your hair has thinned.'

11:18 He said:

11:20 'How would it be if you saw me three days after I am in the grave,

11:23 with my eyeballs fallen onto my cheeks,

11:27 and pus and worms coming out of my nostrils and mouth?

11:31 You would find me even more unrecognizable.'"

11:34 A man said to Imam Ahmad Ibn Hanbal, may Allah have mercy on him:

11:38 "Advise me."

11:40 He said to him:

11:41 "Look for the thing you most desire to have as a neighbor in your grave, and act accordingly."

11:46 [He acted upon it.]

11:50 The grave is the resting place of the believer.

11:52 Abu Ayyub al-Ansari, may Allah be pleased with him, said:

11:59 "When the soul of a servant is taken,

12:01 he is met by the people of mercy among the servants of Allah,

12:05 just as they meet a bearer of good news in this world.

12:08 They approach him to ask him,

12:11 and some say to others:

12:14 'Wait for your brother so he may rest,

12:17 for he was in great distress.'

12:20 Then they approach him and ask, 'What did so-and-so do?

12:24 What did so-and-so do?

12:26 Did she get married?'

12:28 If they ask about a man who died before him,

12:32 he says to them:

12:33 'He has already perished.'

12:35 They say:

12:37 “Who say, when a misfortune striketh them: Lo! we are Allah's and lo! unto Him we are returning.” (2:156)

12:40 'He was taken to his mother, the Abyss (Hawiyah).

12:43 What a wretched mother,

12:45 and what a wretched guardian!'

12:47 He said:

12:48 'Then his deeds are presented to them.

12:51 If they see good,

12:53 they rejoice and are glad,

12:55 and they say:

12:57 'This is Your favor upon Your servant,

12:59 so complete it.'

13:01 And if they see evil, they say:

13:03 'O Allah, return Your servant to the right path.'"

13:06 Masruq, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

13:10 "There is no house better for the believer than a niche in the grave,

13:14 in which he has rested from the worries of the world

13:18 and is secure from the punishment of Allah."

13:20 Instructing the dying person to testify to the faith.

13:25 'Umar Ibn al-Khattab, may Allah be pleased with him, said:

13:29 "Attend to your dying ones and remind them,

13:33 for they see what you do not see.

13:36 And instruct them to testify:

13:38 'There is no god but Allah.'"

13:41 Al-Hasan Ibn al-Rabi' said:

13:45 "I heard Ibn al-Mubarak, may Allah have mercy on him,

13:48 when death was upon him.

13:50 Nasir came to him and said:

13:52 'O Abu 'Abd al-Rahman,

13:55 say: There is no god but Allah.'

13:58 He said to him:

13:59 'O Nasir,

14:01 you see how difficult speech is for me.

14:04 If you hear me say it,

14:06 do not prompt me again

14:08 until you hear me

14:10 speak something else after it.'

14:13 For they used to love

14:16 that this be the last of a servant's speech."

A summary of the life of the Salaf between words and deeds | Episode (60) | The condition of the predecessors upon death (the grave is the resting place of the believer)

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