The Final Taste
by Hazrat Maulana Yunus Patel Saheb (rahmatullah ‘alayh)
There is an incident narrated of a Sahabi (radiyallahu ‘anhu), who, on coming across the verse: “Every soul shall taste of death…” read it so many times that a voice was finally heard saying: ‘Your recitation has already caused the death of 4 Jinn.'
In Arabic, the word ‘Za'iqa' means “to taste”.
We should connect this ayah (verse) with what we understand of ‘taste'. Sometimes the taste is bitter, sometimes, it is sweet, and sometimes it is bitter-sweet. We have sugar-coated pills because everyone wants to taste sweetness. Everyone wants a taste of enjoyment.
Our beloved Allah Ta'ala is informing us of the final taste of this worldly life, and that taste is the taste of death.
Death is an indisputable reality, and each one has to experience it. Allah Ta'ala tells us: “Every Nafs (soul) shall taste of death.”
Since the taste of death is a must for everyone that enters this world, we need to work on developing our spiritual appetite for death.
If we want sweetness in death, then our actions will have to be sweet. I do not think we need to even ask if there is anyone that would like a death which is ‘bitter'.
Maulana Yusuf (rahmatullah ‘alayh) delivered his last bayaan (talk) in Lahore, Pakistan. It was during this talk that he had a heart attack, and it was on the way to the hospital that he passed away. He was only in his 40s, so his death was very sudden and unexpected.
A woman, who was deeply grieved over his death, had a dream in which she saw Maulana Yusuf (rahmatullah ‘alayh). She asked him: ‘How did you pass away?'
He replied: “The Tajalli of Allah Ta'ala was so intense whilst giving that talk that I could not bear it. A beautiful rose was then brought to me, and as I smelt it, my soul departed.”
A few days later, Maulana Umar Palanpuri (rahmatullah ‘alayh), who was a close friend of Maulana Yusuf (rahmatullah ‘alayh), saw him in a dream and asked him: ‘Did you meet Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam)?'
He replied: ‘Yes. Come, I will also take you.' – and in the dream, he takes Maulana Umar Palanpuri (rahmatullah ‘alayh) with him.
This is what we call the “sweetness” of death.
To make our death sweet, we will have to make our a'mal (actions) sweet. We cannot expect roses and flowers to grow if we plant thorns.
If we do A'mal-e-Saleha (righteous deeds), then Allah Ta'ala promises a pleasurable life (Hayatan Tayyibah) together with success in the next life.
“Whoever, male or female, has acted righteously, while being a believer, We shall certainly make him live a good life, and shall give such people their reward for the best of what they used to do.”
[Surah an-Nahl: 97]
If not, then read the incidents of the nations of the past and the bitter end they met.
May Allah Ta'ala protect us all, Aameen.