Sayyiduna Jaabir (radhiyallahu ‘anhu) reports, “I heard Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) mention, ‘Every slave (of Allah Ta‘ala) will be resurrected on that (condition) which he died upon (i.e. if he died in the condition of doing actions of piety, he will be resurrected as a pious person, and if he died in the condition of committing sin, then he will be resurrected as a sinner).’” (Saheeh Muslim #7232)
No person knows when the appointed moment of his death will strike. This is the stark reality that every person faces. When getting into the car, we do not know if we will live to return home. When retiring to bed at night, we do not know if we will live to see the morning. Even when placing a morsel of food into our mouths, we do not know if we will live long enough to swallow the morsel.
Hence, at every moment, a believer should be concerned that the action which he is engaged in should be permissible and pleasing to Allah Ta‘ala (whether eating, meeting people, traveling, etc.), as this may perhaps be his last action before leaving this world. In essence, there is no guarantee of life, and death may befall us at any moment. Hence, the question is, “How will we meet our death?”
Mulla ‘Ali Qaari (rahimahullah), the renowned Muhaddith and saint of his era, has quoted the pious as saying, “As you live, so you will die, and as you die, so you will be resurrected.” (Mirqaat vol. 1, pg. 361)
The truth of this statement has been witnessed time and time again throughout history. How many fortunate people spent their lives in the recitation of the Quraan Majeed and were blessed to leave this world while the words of their Rabb flowed from their tongues? How many blessed souls spent their nights engaged in nafl salaah, and were then honoured to have their souls extracted while they were in sajdah? How many courageous men would leave their homes to strive for Islam and were then blessed to meet their end in the path of Allah Ta‘ala?
In the hadeeth mentioned above, Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) explained that a person will be resurrected on the Day of Qiyaamah in the condition he was in at the time of his death. If he passed away while engaged in righteousness, he will be raised in that condition and will be rewarded accordingly. However, if he passed away while indulging in sin and evil, then he will be raised in that lamentable condition and will be punished accordingly.
Thus, if a person wishes to receive a good death, and be raised on the Day of Qiyaamah in a good condition, then he should lead a life of goodness, piety and righteousness. If he wishes to die in sajdah and be resurrected among the people who were honoured to die in the condition of sajdah, bowing to Allah Ta‘ala and submitting before His commands, then he should make the main theme of his life salaah.
If one is ever tempted to commit a sin, he should ponder over this hadeeth. He should think to himself, “What will become of me if I pass away in this condition of sin? What if the Angel of Death strikes while I am immersed in this evil?”
Insha-Allah, if we train ourselves to think and ponder in this manner, then this will be an effective deterrent that will restrain us from obeying our nafs (carnal self) and falling into sin.
May Allah Ta‘ala assist us to lead lives of piety, to have a death of piety, and to be resurrected in a condition of piety, aameen.