Remembering The Grave

Remembering the Grave

A Khutbah by Yusha Evans

Opening

بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيمِ

Introduction: The One Promise Made to All

Today I'll try to be short and sweet. I'm only going to talk about something that is synonymous to all human beings. You know, there's a lot of things that people are promised.

You're promised a good job if you go to school. You're promised good pay if you get that good job. You turn on the TV, I don't know how many promises you might see a day. You're promised that if you sign up for this service you'll get this month's free. There's all kinds of promises that are delivered to people these days. And, you know, that's part of the marketing of this life.

It's trying to sell you something. Everybody's always trying to sell you something by making promises. You know, Allah has tried to sell us something by making us promises.

He's sold us Jannah by giving him back our free will and doing what he wants us to do with our lives. He's promised us hell if we refuse that offer. But there's one thing he's promised every single human being.

It doesn't matter where they come from, what country or what land you came from. It doesn't matter what language you speak. It doesn't matter how rich or how poor you are. It doesn't matter what job you have, had or are going to have. It doesn't matter whether you were a Muslim, a Buddhist, an atheist, a Hindu. No religion, agnostic.

Allah has made one promise to every single human being:

"Every soul will taste death."

Reference: Surah Ali 'Imran (3:185), Surah Al-Anbya (21:35), Surah Al-'Ankabut (29:57)

And the word that Allah uses is so beautiful ذَائِقَةُ You'll taste it because it's not the end. It's just the beginning. Death is only the beginning.

The Worthlessness of This World

But it is a promise that Allah has made to every single human being that you will end this little phase in this dunya which means nothing. This dunya that in the eyes of Allah is not worth the wing of a mosquito.

This world which the Prophet ﷺ was with his companions one day and they passed by a dead carcass on the side of the road. And he picked it up and said, which one of you? And it was deformed by the way. He said, which one of you would buy this carcass from me for one dirham? They said, Ya Rasulullah, none of us would take it even if you offered it for free. He said, know that this world and everything that is in it means less to Allah than this dead carcass means to you.

So this phase that we're living in now, Allah has promised every soul will taste the end of it. And then Allah goes on to promise us:

"Everything will perish except His Face."

Reference: Surah Al-Qasas (28:88)

Allah has created everything in this life for it to perish one day. It was never meant to exist permanently. It will all disappear except the face of Allah.

The Two Ways to Meet Death

So I'm going to tell you about an event today that will come to every single one of you. It will reach you, it will find you no matter where you go. No matter how far you try to hide yourself, this event will find you.

And this event will find you in only one of two ways. And I'm going to describe those two ways today. And that's the only two ways. There's no middle, there's no fourth, there's no third. One of two ways you will reach this incident.

The Prophet ﷺ, and this is narrated in an authentic hadith by Al-Bara' ibn Azib, may Allah be pleased with him. This is narrated by Imam Ahmed. It's also narrated in Abu Dawood and Al-Hakim. That the Prophet ﷺ was once accompanying a funeral and he came to a grave. And we came to the side of the grave that had not been dug out yet.

The niche that hasn't been dug out yet. The Prophet ﷺ was standing next to that spot. And let me tell you something brothers and sisters. I love the way the Prophet ﷺ taught people. Because he brought reality in their lives. He stood next to the grave and told them a story.

Seeking Refuge from the Punishment of the Grave

He said ﷺ, seek refuge with Allah from the punishment of the grave. He told them seek refuge with Allah from

the punishment of the grave. And they said, We seek refuge. He said, say it again. He said, say it again.

He taught us to never pray one salah without finishing it. But asking Allah from the trials of life and death and the punishment of the grave.

So he was standing in this grave and he told us this. And then he told us to sit down. So we sat down as if we had birds on top of our heads. Meaning that they were paying extreme attention.

The Death of the Believer

And he said, when the believing servant, and this is one of the two ways in which this taste of death will reach you. He said, when the believing servant reaches the end of his stay in this sijn, this prison that he's been encapsulated in for his entire life. When the believer reaches the end of that, angels with bright faces descend and they sit down in front of him as far as he can see.

And then the angel of death comes and sits next to his head and says:

"O soul tayyiba, O good soul, O purified soul, come out to the mercy of Allah and His great reward."

Reference: Musnad Ahmad, Hadith 18534; Sunan Abi Dawud, Hadith 4753

You see, that's the last word the believer will hear in this life. Someone as Allah tells us in Surah Al-Fussilat:

"That those who say they believe in Allah and they remain steadfast, that angels will descend at their death and they will tell them three things: Don't be afraid. Don't even be sad. Don't even be worried. Don't have any stress today. But have glad tidings of the jannah that was promised to you by Allah."

Reference: Surah Fussilat (41:30)

So this is the last word the believer will hear. And then that soul is so desirous to come out that it comes forth as a drop of water descending from a water jug. Just smoothly comes out.

And those angels that are around have brought with them a shroud, a kafan from Jannah. And they have brought with them beautiful smelling scents to embalm and wash the soul in.

When the soul falls out, the angel of death can't even hold it for one second. And those angels take it from him. And they begin passing it around. And you know what they're doing with that soul? They're smelling it. They're smelling its fragrance. And they're enjoying holding this beautiful pure soul.

And they immediately they wrap it in that shroud from Jannah. And then as they ascend up into the heavens to take this soul back to Allah:

وَإِنَّا لِلَّهِ وَإِنَّا إِلَيْهِ رَاجِعُونَ

"To Allah we belong and to Him we return."

Reference: Surah Al-Baqarah (2:156)

The Soul Ascends to the Heavens

They reach the lowest heaven. And they knock and they ask for entrance. And it is asked, who is this with you? And they will say, this is so and so. The son of so and so. Calling him by his best names. And every angel in that heaven will accompany it to the next one.

And the same thing will happen. And then when that soul reaches the seventh heaven above which is only the Arsh of Allah. Allah will say, take the magnificent book of deeds of my slaves and place it in Illiyun. Place his book in Illiyun. Because that's where his record belongs with honor and dignity.

And then they will place this soul back in the grave gently.

The Interrogation of the Believer

And the interrogators of the Akhirah, the last trial of the believers will occur. The angels Munkar and Nakir will enter. And if this believer has lived his life the way Allah wanted him to, then his salah will come and stand next to his head. And I'm hoping I'm getting all four of these right. His sadaqah will come and stand next to his side. His good deeds will stand by his feet.

And when the angels come to approach his head, these good deeds will say, you can't come from here. Because these angels are interrogators. They're rough. Allah created them with no mercy. The salah will say, you can't have entry here. We're protecting him.

When they go to the side, you can't come this way. His good deeds, his sadaqah is protecting him. When they come from his feet, you can't come from this way either.

So those angels will ask him to sit up. And I'm gonna tell you more details about this later tonight. The angels will tell him, sit up. Because we can't yank him up because he's being protected. So please, sit up. When he sits up, the first thing he will ask is, let me pray. Let me pray. And the angels will say, you'll have time for that. There'll be plenty of time for that.

First you need to answer my three questions:

مَن رَّبُّكَ

"Who is your Lord?"

And this person whom Allah has given a istiqamatul janan, a steadfast heart, will respond immediately:

رَبِّيَ اللَّهُ

Second Khutbah Opening

الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ، وَالصَّلَاةُ وَالسَّلَامُ عَلَى رَسُولِ اللَّهِ وَعَلَى آلِهِ وَصَحْبِهِ أَجْمَعِينَ، وَالَّذِينَ تَبِعُوهُم بِإِحْسَانٍ إِلَى يَوْمِ الدِّينِ، أَشْهَدُ أَنْ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَحْدَهُ لَا شَرِيكَ لَهُ، وَأَشْهَدُ أَنَّ مُحَمَّدًا عَبْدُهُ وَرَسُولُهُ، أَمَّا بَعْدُ

But That's Only One of Two Ways

But that's only one of two ways. There's another way. And the other way is not as good.

For that person, when this taste of death reaches them angels will descend with dark faces and they will line up in front of him or her as far as they can see. Then the angel of death will come with a shroud from Jahannam of stinking smelling sackcloth of the harshest worst fibers that any human being can ever imagine.

And the angel sits next to this person's head and the person sees this. He sees all of it. She sees all of it. No one around can see this but they're watching. They're seeing it. People are seeing this instantaneously.

Every second of every day someone is seeing this incident happen. How? Allah knows. We don't even know nor care to ask. It's happening.

The Death of the Disbeliever

Then the angel says:

"O soul khabeethah, O dirty filthy soul, come out to the anger of Allah and His wrath."

Reference: Musnad Ahmad, Hadith 18534; Sunan Abi Dawud, Hadith 4753

And the soul realizes what is about to happen to it so it seeks to escape this and it runs around in the body. Then the angel of death has no choice but to reach in and snatch it out. And the Prophet said, it's like taking a stick of thorns placing it in a wet ball of wool or a ball of wool and just pulling it back out. It just tears everything.

The pain is so intense that on the day of judgment the pain of this death will still be visible on the people's faces when they resurrected.

At the time of Bani Israel there were a few pious people who went to a graveyard and they made dua to Allah to bring someone from those graves to tell them their experience. And so a person was brought out of the grave and he said, what is the matter with you? Why did you bring me out for this? I have been dead over 100 years and the pain of that death just now subsided for me. Put me back.

So that soul is ripped out and the angels don't want to touch it. No one wants to touch it. They grab it and they just immediately shove it into that cloth. No one is gonna touch it nor smell it because it smells, as the Prophet says, of one of the most stinking, foul corpses of the earth.

Then they take that soul and try to ascend to Allah. And they ask for entry into the first heaven. And they say, who is this? They'll say, this is so and so, the son of so and so, calling him by his worst names. Calling him by the worst of names.

Then a voice will be heard from among the seven heavens. Allah will respond, send it back. Send it back despised and rejected into the day of judgment. It can't even enter in. Allah says, send it back. So they throw it and fling it back into the ground.

And the Prophet said:

"Whoever assigns a partner to Allah, it is as if he has fallen from the sky and the birds have snatched him or the winds have just flung him away."

Reference: Surah Al-Hajj (22:31)

That is what is waiting for them.

The Interrogation of the Disbeliever

And then when they reach back to their grave, these two angels Munkar and Nakir come in. And this person has no protection from them. This person has no protection from them. So they just snatch him up.

And they ask him:

مَن رَّبُّكَ

"Who is your Lord?"

And they're not gonna wait around for you to think. They don't want you to figure it out. They're gonna say, who is your Lord? Tell me now.

They'll say, I don't know. Money, myself, my family, my job. That was my rabb, that's what I served. What you served is what your heart is gonna speak. There's no lying in the akhirah. You're gonna be honest.

Who is your Lord? My Lord was Jesus. Rap, movies, movie stars. Whatever it was, that's what you're gonna say.

And they're gonna smash you over the head with a hammer. That will turn you into dust. And when you scream, the Prophet said, every living thing on earth, except humans and jinn hear it.

And I would let you hear what's going on in the graves. The Prophet said, but if I did so, I'm afraid you would never bury anyone ever again. Then they sit him, they put him back together, sit him up again.

وَمَا دِينُكَ

"What was your religion?"

I don't know. Christianity, Buddhism, Atheism. Myself. Smashed again.

Third time:

وَمَن نَّبِيُّكَ

"Who was your Prophet?"

They will say, I don't know. I heard the people say such and such about such and such. That's all I know. It's not good enough. They smash him and sit him back down.

And Allah says, my soul, my slave is a liar. He's a liar. And the grave squeezed him when he came in and doesn't let him go.

The Punishment in the Grave

And then Allah says, place his soul, his record in Sijjin. Place his record in Sijjin because that's where he's going. That's where he will end up in a prison for the rest of his life, for the rest of his existence, for the rest of eternity. So place his record where it belongs.

And then a door to Jannah is opened in his grave. And it is told that had you believed, this would be your resting place. And then that door closes to never be opened again, ever.

Then a door to Jahannam is opened and it is said because of your actions, this is where you will reside. And they furnish his home from Jahannam, his new home, his grave. And he is told every morning and every evening, this is where you will rest.

And then an evil, ugly, filthy looking person comes and sits next to the head. And this person in the grave says, who are you? I've never seen something so awful. I've never seen something so ugly, so despicable. That person will say, I am your bad deeds to keep you company until the day of judgment. But I am now your companion until Yawm al-Qiyamah.

You Are Deciding Your Death Today

You see, these are two different endings. Two different ways of entering into the realities of Akhira. But they're quite different. They're quite different. They're polar opposites. There couldn't be any two different things.

But those things are being decided right now. How you will meet your death, you're deciding it today. Which one of these two deaths wait for you is being played out right now in your life.

Every choice you make, every decision you take, you are setting yourself up for one of these two endings. And only you and Allah know which one of those two you are setting yourselves up for.

You need to ask yourselves every time you go to perform an action, will this action bring me the ending that I want? Because if it doesn't, you should leave it alone. You should run away from it as much as you can. You should run away from it. Because that ending is waiting for everyone.

The Two Duas in the Grave

One of two ways. And these two people, I want to tell you something about them. These two people as they're sitting in their graves, one of them every day will be making a dua. And the other one will be making a dua.

The believer who has been promised the mercy of Allah, the pleasures of Jannah, he has one dua for Allah every day:

رَبِّ أَقِمِ السَّاعَةَ

"My Lord bring the day of judgment quickly. Because I want what is promised to me."

And the other person in the grave is saying:

رَبِّ لَا تُقِمِ السَّاعَةَ

"My Lord, never allow the hour to be established."

Please, never allow the hour to be established. He would rather be tortured in his grave for eternity than face Allah on the day of judgment because he knows what's waiting for him.

So these are two totally different ways to end your life. There are many different ways to live your life. You can live your life however you want to each his own as they say. Eat, drink and be merry. Enjoy it while you got it. You only live once. No, no, no, you only die once.

You live forever. You die only once. So you can live your life however you want, but you will die one of two ways. And that decision is all in your hands. You can't blame anyone for that, except for yourselves.

Advice from Imam Al-Qurtubi

I wanna finally as an ending point because we're gonna continue on with this tonight, Inshallah. I want to give you some advice and admonishment, first and foremost to myself from one of our great salaf, Imam Qurtubi rahimahullah ta'ala. He said something very, very beautiful.

He said, Where is the wealth that you have gathered and amassed in this life? Where is that? Where is the money that you worked so hard for? Have you prepared yourself for the great day of terror? Have you prepared for it?

Just like the Prophet, when someone asked him, when is the hour? He said, what have you prepared for it?

Who cares when it comes? What have you done to prepare for it? It could come today. Would you be ready?

He said, There is no money in your hand when you're dying. And even if there was, it couldn't do you any good. You cannot bribe death.

He said, the wealth and pride that you have enjoyed in this life, Allah has replaced them on your death with humiliation and poverty. Because the really bankrupt person is the person who stands in front of Allah with no deeds. The commodity on the day of judgment is deeds. That's it. Nothing else. Deeds. That's your only commodity left.

He says, what has become of you, O prisoner of your own burdens? O you who have been taken away from your family and your home. And he's talking to a person who's already left. What was it that concealed the right path from you? What was it that was in your life that blinded you from the straight path of Allah? What is it that you put in your life that kept you from the Sirat al-Mustaqim?

What was it that caused you to have no interest in making provisions for the long journey of Akhirah that's waiting you? What caused you to delay? O you who were deceived by this world, this journey to the intense day of terror is inevitable for you. It's inevitable.

That is the day when you will stand in front of the sovereign, the judge, and the blows that were struck by your hands, the places where your feet took you, the words that were uttered by your tongue, the actions of your limbs, and all of your faculties will be counted against you on that day. If Allah has mercy on you, you will go to Jannah. If Allah doesn't, you will go to hell.

Wake Up from Negligence

O negligent ones who ignore the important matters of life, how long will you be negligent? How long will you neglect Allah in your life? How long? Do you think you have enough time to keep doing it? Death is not gonna send you an email, a text message. It's not gonna give you any warning.

Do you think that this matter is easy? Do you think that death in Akhirah is easy? Do you think that this is insignificant in your life? Do you think that the situation you lived your life in will help you now on this day?

Do you think your wealth will save you when your actions have already condemned you? Or do you think your regrets will help you when your feet are slipping across the Sirat? Do you think your regret will do any good for you on that day? It'll only be a weight that throws you deeper.

Know by Allah, you're all wrong. Do you think your friends and family will be there to help you when Allah is gathering you together to throw you into the deepest parts of hell? Do you think anybody is gonna help you? Do you think your family is gonna be there? They're gonna be worried about themselves. Your friends, you won't find them.

Your only friend on that day will be your deeds. It's your only friend. Know by Allah, you are wrong and you will come to know.

You were not content with what Allah gave you. You went after the haram. You weren't content with what Allah gave you, halal. You had to chase the haram. You never listened to the warnings that were given to you. You never had enough of your feel of that which Allah told you to stay away from.

You weren't deterred by your life without guidance. You are happy with the things you've accumulated, but you never think of what lays ahead.

All you who are sleeping and you are unaware, how long will your slumber last? Do you think that you'll be left alone and you won't be brought to account tomorrow? Or do you think that death can be bribed? Or do you think that death distinguishes between the lion and the gazelle? The tyrant and the tyrannized. The predator and the prey. Death doesn't distinguish between any of them.

Know by Allah, wealth and children can never ward off death from you. Nothing can benefit those who will be forgiven except righteous deeds. Nothing can benefit you if you want to be forgiven except righteous deeds.

Take Provision for the Akhirah

So good news to those who listen. Those who understand. Those who practice what they preach. Those who are deterred by their own selves from following their desires. Those who know that the victor is only the one who pays attention.

Know that man will have nothing except for what he strives for. And he will see it all with Allah.

So wake up from this negligence and make righteous deeds the provision for which you equip yourselves for, for the next life. Quit amassing this dunya. Can't take you anywhere. You can't take it with you. Equip yourself with the one commodity that you will take. Your deeds, your actions, what you do.

You know I was raised here in the south. And there's a statement that the deeds make the man. The deeds make the man. And that's never been a truer statement. The deeds make you who you are. And that will be known on the day of judgment.

Do not wish to abstain the status of the righteous ones when you are weighing yourself down with your sin. Doing immoral deeds when Allah is watching you even when you're by yourself. Do not be so deceived by hopes and wishes that you neglect to strive for the akhirah.

For one poet once said, Take provision from this life to equip your akhirah. Strive for Allah and do good deeds. Do not accumulate too much of this world. For that accumulation will eventually leave your hands. Would you like to accompany other people who have provisions and yet you do not?

Closing

Brothers and sisters, this is the haq of this life. This is the reality of this life. Death, it's the only reality. It's the only thing I can promise all of you. Death will come and it will come swiftly and without warning.

So you have to prepare yourself for that today. InshaAllah. And we ask Allah to protect us from an evil ending and grant us a righteous ending.

Closing Dua

Glory be to You, O Allah, and all praise is for You. I bear witness that there is no deity except You. I seek Your forgiveness and I repent to You.

O Allah, I seek refuge with You from the punishment of the grave.

End of Khutbah