a door, not a Grave

A DOOR, NOT A GRAVE Before death, man thinks of himself to be the master of his destiny. Death takes him to a world where he is compelled to accept being wholly subordinated to God. There is a great lesson in a scene at the graveyard for those who contemplate. at the young man’s death, the imam (prayer leader) led the funeral prayer. he conducted the whole prayer very quickly, and after that, people immediately put on their shoes as though in a great hurry to finish the formality of attending the funeral prayer and returned to their activities. after the funeral prayers were said, the body was taken for burial at the adjacent graveyard. a few people accompanied the body to the grave. The graveyard was close by, and the grave was still being dug. People stood around in groups. some were relating stories of oppression. some complained about the severity of the weather. someone offered his knowledge about the prices of things. others were discussing the political leadership in the country. in other words, people were talking about different topics of interest. The above behaviour was the opposite of the way taught by the Prophet. at such times, the Prophet used to say the following supplication: “Peace be upon you, o dwellers of these graves! May God forgive you and us. you have preceded us, and