I think about death a lot and I'm afraid of dying. What should I do?

Dear Brother / Sister,

Death is not extermination. It is the door of a better world. A seed underground apparently dies, rots and becomes eradicated, but in reality it enters a better life, from the life of a seed to a life of a tree.

Similarly, a person who dies apparently goes under the earth, rots, but in reality s/he finds a more beautiful life in the intermediate realm (the realm of the grave).

Body and spirit are like a light-bulb and electricity. When the bulb is broken, electricity does not die out, but continues to exist. Even if we don't see it, we are sure that electricity is still existent. Likewise, when human dies, spirit leaves the body. But it continues to exist. Allah ensures the spirit's life in the intermediate realm by making it wear a more appropriate and beautiful garment.

For this reason, the Prophet said: “Grave is either a garden from gardens of Heaven or a hell from the holes of Hell.” and informed us about the existence of life in grave and how it will be.

If a faithful person dies of an incurable disease, s/he is considered a martyr. This kind of martyrs are called martyrs of morality. And martyr wander freely in the world of grave. They are unaware of that they are dead. They think they are still alive. They only know that they are living a more gorgeous life. The Prophet said: “Martyrs do not feel the agony of death.”

It is stated in Quran that martyrs are not dead. That’s to say that they are unaware of that they have died. For instance, think of two men. They are in a very beautiful garden together in a dream. One of them knows that it is a dream. Yet the other one is unaware of that it is a dream. Which one enjoys it the most? Of course the one who does not know that it is a dream. The one who knows it is a dream thinks that if he wakes up, all the joy will get lost. However, the other one feels the joy truly and fully.

Similarly, the ordinary dead do not feel the joy to the full as they are aware of that they are dead. Nevertheless, martyrs feel it to the full as they are unaware of that they are dead.

Souls of those who die as believers and who are not subject to punishment in grave wander freely. For this reason, they can travel to many places. They can be in many places at the same time. It is possible for them to wander around and amongst us. Even, Hazrat Hamza, the lord of the martyrs, helped a lot of people and still there are people to whom he helps.

Human beings, who come into the wombs of their mothers from the world of souls, then are born into the world. They meet here. Similarly, people in world are born into the otherworld through death and they wander there. Just as we bid farewell to people who go to the otherworld from this world, so are there ones in the otherworld, who welcome the ones who leave this world for the otherworld. Insha’allah, our beloved ones, especially the Prophet, will welcome us there; as long as we are true slaves to Allah here.

Just as we welcome a new born child here, so will our friends welcome us, insha’allah, when we go to the otherworld; on condition that we believe in Allah and obey Him and His apostles and die as a believer.

2. A small amount of fear resulting from anxiety about afterlife is beneficial. However, if this is an obsession which disturbs one’s sleep, it may lead one to hopelessness. And hopelessness is not permissible.
Such things happen in accordance with Allah’s order and wisdom. One should trust His wisdom and mercy and think that the appointed time of death is unchangeable, and try to be prepared for it all the time and be between hope and fear.

Bediuzzaman said on the issue:

“Faith is both light and power. Yes, a man who reaches real faith can challenge the world and can be safe from the hardships of events at the rate of the power of his faith.” (Nur Collection, 23rd Word).

Faith and being slave to Allah is the source of all kinds of good deeds and courage. All kinds of evil and cowardice result from infidelity and aberration. Muslims’ courage and infidels’ cowardice are especially manifested obviously in battles. What makes believers courageous are mainly the following two factors:

a. “To every people is a term appointed: when their term is reached, not an hour can they cause delay” (al-A’raf, 34; Yunus, 49; an-Nahl, 61) is the reality that “time of death is unique and unchangeable”. The one who is at the front line and the one who is at the back line are at the same distance to the death. Even there is not a difference of distance to death between the one who is resting in his house and the one who is in battle. There are many people who attend to lots of wars and yet die in their beds. And there are many who die in the first war they attend.

The case of Halid bin Walid is an appropriate example to this. While spending the last days of his life, he says to the people around him: I attended so many wars. There is not a single organ in my body which does not have a scar of arrow or spear. Yet, I am dying in my bed, as you see. Let the cowards draw a lesson from this!”

b. “Can you expect for us (any fate) other than one of two glorious things- (Martyrdom or victory)?” (al-Tawbah, 52). A true believer, who says: “I will be a martyr if I die and I will be a ghazi (one who fights on behalf of Islam) if I survive”, will be more brave than a non-Muslim of course.

In Nur Collection, it is stated that faith is an affiliation. “A true believer who affiliates to the Eternal Sultan faithfully and who becomes a good servant of Him” is supposed to have reached the source of the greatest courage.

“Faith is both divine light and power. Yes, a man who gains true faith can challenge the universe.”

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