Ramadan Talk Day 17: Death Can Come at Any Time

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Zulaykha Abodunrin

Many people believe that this life is fleeting, but they have this naive idea at the back of their minds that they will grow old before they die.

Yes, we all pray to grow old in good health and the best of life before we pass away, but the reality of life is that death has no age.

People die at every stage of life, whether they are a fetus, toddler, teenager or a menopausal adult. To the angel of death, it doesn’t matter if you are getting married next week, or you just got your dream job.

The sahabahs lived as if they only had one day to live. Not in an extravagant “YOLO” kind of way, but in a make-every-second-count kind of way. That is the peak of productivity.

The sahabahs wouldn’t postpone a good deed until they were in the mood to do it, neither would they busy themselves with mindless matters when there were so many things of benefit that they could be doing.

To be productive, you should aspire to make every second of your life count. If you are not doing something good to improve your worldly life, be doing something to improve your life in the hereafter.

Make Good Use of the Silent Hours

If you’ve paid attention online in recent times, you may have seen articles that research into the daily habits of the world’s most successful people.

These articles talk about what such people do to amass their fortune, and in every story, one thing is common; successful people take advantage of the times when other people are sleeping. Either in the morning or late at night.

This is not to say that one should forgo sleep and build unhealthy rest habits, but there is something about waking up before everyone else or staying awake after others have gone to sleep, that helps you focus on your tasks.

During the lifetime of the sahabahs, many of them would wake up before the fajr adhan to recite or memorize the Qur’an. They stayed up at night to perform qiyam ul-layl and do as much dhikr as they were able to. All of these before they go on to earn their means of livelihood in the morning, or at night after a long day’s work.

The silent hours of the early morning, and those of the night, are times that you can use productively to work on your dunya or hereafter. You don’t have to stay awake all night, an hour here and there used productively and consistently will add up as the days go by.

On the authority of Abdullah ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with him), who said: “The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) took me by the shoulder and said, “Be in this world as though you were a stranger or a wayfarer.” And Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) used to say, “In the evening do not expect [to live until] the morning, and in the morning do not expect [to live until] the evening. Take [advantage of] your health before times of sickness, and [take advantage of] your life before your death.” (Bukhari)

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