If you know the date of your death, will that change anything in the way you lead your life?

Have you ever lain awake at night and thought about the day of your death? Were you scared? Did you quickly start to think about ways to cheat death? Maybe get an oxygen tent or inject yourself with hormones? Or carry on with your day to day business trying not to think about it and that it will just never happen?

Even then, your brain will still decay. Hormones will not stop your body from slowly moving towards its' end, and there will never be immortality for any of us in this world.

There is no way to cheat death and no sorrow or joy will last but a few seconds before it disappears forever. Indeed, you and I are not permanent residents of this world.

To further bring the truth to our homes and hearts, what if it was possible to know when you were going to die? What if you could get in touch with someone or pay an agency some money to tell you the exact day and time you would pass on to the next life?

How would such knowledge affect you? 

Imagine right now knowing what date you will die if it was today, tomorrow, in ten years or more. What if you saw your death-date carved on your tomb stone at a shop just waiting to stand over your grave?

Would your lifestyle change? Would your goals seem meaningless? Would you begin to question all those things you thought you think are important like a big house and a fancy car just to impress people ? Or would you see them as dust before your eyes ?

Allah says in the Quran what means,

{The example of those who deny their lord is that their accomplishments are like ashes upon which the wind blows furiously on a stormy day. They have no power over what they earned. They were far from a real goal.} (Ibrahim 14:18)

So what are we here for? We are all here to surrender our wills to Allah. We are here to undergo a set of tests to determine if we are worthy of eternal life or eternal damnation.

What is before our eyes is a glittering show and only those who seek less in this life will have more in the real life to come.

Ali ibn Abi Talib said: "People are asleep and when they die they will wake up."

That is a way of saying that most people have no clue who they are or why they are here. And sometimes we bump into people who seem to be sleeping more deeply than others.

Once the Prophet Muhammad was organizing an army to fight the idol worshippers and a lot of people came forward asking to be excused from military duty. According to the Quran they were even questioning Allah saying,

{Our Lord, why have you ordered us to fight? Won’t you give us time to live our natural lives? } (An-Nisaa' 4:77)

Clearly, these people were afraid to die, and selfishly thought only about living in the life they thought they owned.

But Allah then ordered  Prophet Muhammad to tell them,

{The enjoyment of this world is short. The next life is the best for those who do right.. You will never be dealt with unjustly at all.} (An-Nisaa' 4:77)

Then we are all warned,

{ Wherever you are, death will find you. Even if you are in mighty towers.}(An-Nisaa' 4:78)

{You cannot save yourself form death. This life is not a place you should think of as permanent. Your purpose is to be tested and try to build an iman (faith) that is true as you can make it and do the best you can be to those around you.. } (Al-Baqarah 2:160 and Fussilat 41:34)

Think about it that way, if you can release yourself from being a slave to material things, then nothing that happens in this life can pull you into depression or frightfulness. You may feel sad if something tragic happens but you will never lose hope.

Suicide, drug abuse, drunkenness, and stress are all indicators of being far from Allah. People can lose their fears and worries by fully implanting Islam in their lives.

Our lives do not end with death, far from it. Sure, our physical bodies perish and decay away, but the spirit that Allah has breathed into us is quickly released into another world.

Allah says in the Quran what means,

{Allah is a reality. It is He who brings life to the dead and it is Him who has power over all things.} (Al-Hajj 22:6)

The purpose of our lives can best be summoned up in the words of a man who thought much about it and hit upon the truth.

{ I wouldn't be reasonable if I didn't serve the One who created me and Whom I will return.} (Ya-Sin 36:22)

You only have one chance to get your life's record right. Make your decision wisely.

That's why you are here.

[Amirah Bouraba converted at the age of 15 in 2003 and since then she has been trying her best to learn more about Islam. She is a teacher at a local Islamic school teaching  Islamic studies and also working for the Islam Channel for a program called 'City Sisters'. In her spare time she is studying at Oxford University on the subject  of understanding Islam and the Muslims. In 2007, she became a mother for the first time to a baby girl called Safia]

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