Sunday, August 28, 2005

LESSON OF THE DAY 303

Ayah of the Day:
And do not let their wealth and their progeny appeal to you; God only wants to afflict them thereby in this world, and their souls may perish while they are in denial. [9: 86]

Hadith of the Day:
The (significance of) this world (in comparison) to the Hereafter is similar to one of you dipping his finger in the ocean and then seeing (the amount of water that) has stuck to it. [Muslim]

Wise Quote of the Day:
If you devote yourself to God in this world, He will admit you among His chosen servants in the Hereafter. Such devotion, however, demands sacrifice and self denial, the two instruments that make union with God possible. [Al Hujwiri]

Guidance of the Day:
One of the obvious mercies that God bestows upon his servants is that many of those Muslims who live in forgetfulness of their lives to come are made to suffer a long illness before their death. The result is that detachment from the world and meditation on the Hereafter is gradually forced on them so that when the time comes they are thoroughly prepared.

This is why the notion of euthanasia does not arise in a Muslim climate. The current attitude that life must be prolonged at any cost has crept in, however, especially among Muslim medical practitioners, and by the same token the Islamic concern in providing the Muslim with a dignified death has weakened. To insist on saving someone's life at all costs may mean in many instances keeping him in intensive care with tubes coming out of every single orifice, unable to speak or say the shahada, and distracted by the frantic activities of the staff.

It is much more important to allow a Muslim to die as he should than to try save his life at the cost of robbing him of the opportunity to do so. For dying should be attended by godly people who will remind him to say La ilaha illa Llah by simply repeating it in his ear, not by commanding him to say it. They should also recite surah Ya Sin and other portions of the Qur'an and continuously pray for him. The dying should be helped to remain in a state of ritual purity, and they should be reminded of the immensity of God's mercy, of the expected intercession by the Prophet, may God's blessings and peace be upon him, and of other hopeful things. In this way the dying person may die hoping for God's mercy and expecting His forgiveness. [Man & The Universe]

Food for Thought:
Persistence and obstinacy are evil, there is honor in admitting one's faults. Those who are full of themselves are likely to be empty.

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