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The Afterlife in Islam: Lessons from Ibrahim ibn Adham
Desert traveler approaching a saint beneath a tree
Introduction: A Journey Toward True Awareness
There was once a soldier wandering the desert near Kufa, exhausted and lost beneath the burning sun. Dust clung to his clothes, and his patience thinned with each passing step. In the distance, he saw a man sitting beneath a lone tree, calm and still, as if the desert’s heat had made a covenant not to disturb him.
The soldier approached and asked, “Are you a slave?”
The man lowered his gaze and replied, “Yes.”
“Then tell me,” said the soldier, “where are the city dwellings? Where is everyone?”
“Follow me,” said the man.
And so the soldier followed until they reached a graveyard.
The Lesson Beneath the Sand
Rows of silent stones stretched before them. Confused and irritated, the soldier barked, “I asked for the city, not the graveyard!”
The man pointed toward the graves.
“This,” he said, “is where the living dwell.”
Thinking he was mocked, the soldier struck the man and dragged him toward the true city.
When they arrived, people rushed out in horror. “What have you done?” they cried. “That man is Ibrahim ibn Adham, the scholar and saint of this land!”
The soldier froze.
When asked why he did not reveal his identity, Ibrahim replied softly,
“He asked if I was a slave. He never asked to whom.”
The Slave Who Saw Beyond the World
Those who knew Ibrahim ibn Adham were not surprised. He lived as if the veil between this world and the next was already thin. His awareness of Allah (swt) colored everything in his speech, his patience, even his pain.
When asked, “What did you say when he struck you?” he answered,
“I prayed that Allah grant him Paradise, for I knew I would be rewarded because of him, and I did not want him to be punished because of me.”
This is ihsan to worship Allah as though you see Him, and if you cannot see Him, to know that He sees you.
It is the state of the heart when dunya no longer deceives, when every moment becomes an act of remembrance, and when even being wronged becomes an opportunity to forgive for Allah’s sake.
The True City of the Living
“But why,” they asked him, “did you take him to the graveyard when he asked for the city?”
Ibrahim looked toward the horizon where the graves shimmered in the afternoon sun and said,
“When people move into towns, they come and go. But when they move there” he pointed to the graves “they settle, and I have never seen anyone leave that dwelling.”
Then, almost to himself, he whispered,
“That is where the living truly are.”
It was not despair that spoke through him, but a profound awakening, the realization that this world is transient, a manzil (rest stop) between two journeys. The Qur’an reminds us:
“Every soul will taste death, and you will only be given your full compensation on the Day of Resurrection.”
The city of the dead, he was saying, is not an end. It is the beginning of what truly lasts.
Seeing Through the Eyes of the Hereafter
The companions of the Prophet ﷺ lived with the same clarity. ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab (ra) would say, “Call yourself to account before you are called to account.”
To them, life was not a possession, but a trust. The Prophet ﷺ said:
“Be in this world as if you were a stranger or a traveler.”
This was not a call to abandon the world, but to reframe it to live in it without belonging to it.
Conclusion: Where Life Truly Begins
Ibrahim ibn Adham’s words echo like wind through the centuries: “That is where the living truly are.”
For those whose hearts are awake, the grave is not darkness but dawn. The afterlife is not tomorrow; it begins the moment our illusions end.
Tomorrow, inshaAllah, we step closer to that unseen life that begins when ours ends.
Applying This Teaching to Our Personal Lives
1. Reflect at the Graveyard
Sunnah: The Prophet ﷺ said, “Visit the graves, for they remind you of the Hereafter.” (Sahih Muslim 976)
Benefit: It awakens humility and detachment from worldly illusion.
Science: Reflection on mortality improves gratitude and long-term focus according to positive psychology studies on “mortality salience.”
2. Practice Forgiveness in the Moment
Sunnah: “The strong man is not the one who can overpower others, but the one who controls himself when angry.” (Sahih al-Bukhari 6114)
Benefit: Forgiving releases cortisol and increases serotonin, stabilizing mood and reducing inflammation.
3. Remind Yourself: “I Am a Slave of Allah”
Sunnah: The Prophet ﷺ said, “The happiest of people on the Day of Resurrection will be the one who said, ‘I am the slave of Allah.’”
Benefit: This surrender reduces anxiety and perfectionism, shifting the brain from ego-defense to trust and calm.
FAQ: The Afterlife in Islam
1. What happens immediately after death in Islam?
The soul enters barzakh, an unseen realm between this world and the next, where it experiences peace or regret until Resurrection.
2. Does visiting graves benefit the dead?
Yes, supplication (dua) for the deceased reaches them, and they find comfort through it.
3. Why do scholars emphasize remembrance of death?
Because it purifies intention, softens the heart, and aligns priorities toward what truly lasts.
4. Is it morbid to think about death often?
No, it is spiritually healthy. The Prophet ﷺ called it “the destroyer of pleasures,” not to depress us but to awaken us.
5. How can one prepare for the afterlife daily?
Through sincerity in small deeds, daily repentance, and gratitude, living each day as if it were the final gift from Allah.
Footnotes
Kasser, T., & Sheldon, K. M. (2000). Time Affluence as a Path Toward Personal Happiness. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.
Davidson, R. J. (2003). The Emotional Life of Your Brain. Oxford University Press.
Newberg, A. & Waldman, M. R. (2009). How God Changes Your Brain. Ballantine Books.
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