Before You Die
Life is an exceptionally brief tenure in a temporary world, yet the consequences of how we utilize our allocated time resonate into eternity. Before the doors of opportunity close permanently, every individual faces the primary imperative of realigning their heart, intentions, and worship toward their Creator. Below is a comprehensive, step-by-step guide outlining ten vital spiritual objectives to accomplish before death, accompanied by essential foundational reading recommendations.
- I Will Read the Book of the Universe and Work to Attain True Faith
The primary purpose of a human being being sent to this world is to break free from an unexamined, superficial faith and attain a unshakable, verified and deeply rooted belief by seeing the Artist through the manifestations of the Most Beautiful Names (esmâ-i hüsnâ) in the universe, and to act within the circle of His approval.
“The wisdom and purpose of human beings being sent to this world is to recognize the Creator of the Universe, to believe in Him, and to worship Him.”
(The Rays, 7th Ray – Risale i Nur Collection)
- I Will Understand That the World Is Mortal and Will Not Bind My Heart to That Which Is Doomed to Cease
“For that which is doomed to cease cannot be truly beautiful. It should not be loved—and cannot be loved—with a heart created for Eternal Love and acting as a mirror to the Eternally Besought One.”
(The Words, 17th Word, 2nd Station- Risale i Nur Collection)
“The world is a guesthouse. As for human beings, they will stay in it for a short time; they are guests with many duties, and within a short lifespan, they are obligated to procure the provisions required for eternal life.”
(The Words, 20th Word- Risale i Nur Collection)
- I Will Place the Five Daily Prayers at the Center of My Life
Before death arrives, the single greatest debt of gratitude and servitude that eternalizes the capital of life is to establish the daily prayer.
“I wonder how much loss is suffered by a person who spends twenty-three hours on this short worldly life and does not spend a single hour on that long eternal life; how much they oppress their own soul, and how contrary to reason they act!”
(The Words, 4th Word- Risale i Nur Collection)
- I Will Make the Sunnah My Guide for Life
Transforming every moment of life into worship is achieved by conforming all actions—from eating and drinking to interpersonal relations—to the exemplary manner of Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him).
“To completely and practically follow every kind of the Sunnah is accessible only to the elite of the elite. Even if not in practice, seeking it through intention, purpose, supportive adherence, and commitment is within everyone’s power.”
(The Flashes, 11th Flash- Risale i Nur Collection)
- I Will Attain Sincerity and Do Everything Purely for the Sake of Allah
When death knocks on the door, rather than the quantity of the deeds left behind, what truly matters is how much of them were performed purely for Allah.
“In your actions, divine approval must be the objective. If He is pleased, it matters not if the whole world is offended. If He accepts it, it has no negative impact if all people reject it.”
(The Flashes, 21th Flash- Risale i Nur Collection)
- I Will Frequently Remember Death Through the Contemplation of Death Before I Die
The most effective way to awaken from the sleep of heedlessness and to shatter greed and long-term worldly ambitions (the desire to live as if one will never die) is to contemplate death.
“You are a guest here. And from here, you will go to another place. A person who is a guest does not attach their heart to something they cannot bring along with them. Just as you depart from this lodging, you will also leave this city. And likewise, you will leave this mortal world. Therefore, strive to depart with honor and dignity.”
(The Epitomes Of Light (Mathnawi Al Nuriya)- Risale i Nur Collection)
- I Will Abandon Egotism (Ego/Selfhood) and Understand My Impotence and Poverty
This objective entails breaking free from the illusion of personal strength, and admitting one’s infinite helplessness, weakness, and absolute neediness before the Creator.
“Four things are required on the path of helplessness, dear one: Pure poverty, pure helplessness, pure gratitude, and pure passion.”
- I Will Strive to Establish True Brotherhood with Believers
This involves abandoning bad character traits that pollute the heart—such as jealousy, obstinacy, backbiting, and enmity—and living in total solidarity with fellow believers.
“O unjust person who harbors malice and enmity toward a believer! Just as if you were on a ship or in a house where there were nine innocent people and one criminal along with you, you know to what degree a person who tries to sink that ship or burn down that house acts unjustly. You would cry out with a yell that would make the heavens hear his cruelty. Even if there were one innocent person and nine criminals, that ship could not be sunk according to any law of justice.”
“In exactly the same way, while a believer—who is a divine house and a heavenly ship —possesses not nine, but perhaps twenty innocent qualities such as faith, Islam, and neighborliness, attempting or desiring the spiritual sinking, burning, destruction, and ruining of that spiritual home of a body on account of a single criminal attribute that harms you or displeases you is a cruel oppression as heinous and tyrannical as that.”
(The Letters, 22th Letter- Risale i Nur Collection)
- I Will Avoid Sins and Don the Armor of Piety
Against the terrifying spiritual destruction of the end times, this objective means protecting oneself and one’s family by performing mandatory duties and refraining from major sins.
“In these days, I considered the principles of piety and righteous deeds, which are held as paramount after faith in the eyes of the Wise Qur’an. Piety is abstaining from forbidden things and sins; righteous action is moving within the boundary of commands and earning good deeds.”
(The Kastamonu Letters- Risale i Nur Collection)
- I Will Utilize Every Minute of Life for the Account of the Hereafter
Knowing that time passes faster than a flash of lightning, instead of chasing the empty desires of the lower self, one must prepare in advance for the permanent afterlife like a serious trader.
“It is a guesthouse. Therefore, eat, drink, and give thanks within the permission of the Generous Host Who built it. Act and move within the framework of His law. Then do not look back; exit and go. Do not meddle foolishly or redundantly. Do not engage meaninglessly with things that part from you and do not belong to you, and do not tie yourself down or drown in temporary affairs.”
(The Words, 17th Word- Risale i Nur Collection)
O Allah! For the sake of “Bismillâhirrahmânirrahîm”, send blessings and peace upon the person Sent as a Mercy to the Worlds, and upon all his family and companions, in a manner worthy of Your mercy and his honor. And grant us mercy through a mercy that will leave us in need of no one’s mercy among Your creation besides You. Amen!
