The Experience of Death

Death — the separation of the soul from the body — is described in the Islamic tradition with a vividness and specificity that transforms it from an abstract inevitability into a concrete spiritual reality that the believer should contemplate regularly. The Prophet encouraged frequent remembrance of death, calling it 'the destroyer of pleasures,' not to generate morbidity but to maintain the perspective that prevents the heart from becoming excessively attached to this temporary world.

The process of death begins with the arrival of the Angel of Death and his assistants, who have come to execute the divine command. Al-Ashqar describes the divergent experiences of this arrival based on the comprehensive hadith of Al-Bara ibn Azib. For the righteous believer, white-faced angels with white garments descend, their faces 'like the sun,' carrying shrouds and perfumes from Paradise. The Angel of Death addresses the departing soul gently: 'O pure soul, come out to the forgiveness of Allah and His pleasure.' The soul flows out 'like a drop of water from a water-skin' — easily and without resistance. The angels immediately wrap the soul in the Paradise shroud, and its fragrance reaches the highest heavens.

For the disbeliever, the experience is catastrophically different. Dark-faced angels descend with coarse garments. The Angel of Death announces: 'O wicked soul, come out to the anger of Allah and His wrath.' The soul desperately clings to the body, hiding in every limb to avoid extraction, until it is forcibly pulled 'as iron prongs are dragged through wet wool.' The wretched stench of the soul's state spreads through the heavens.

The moment of death also involves a lifting of the veil — the dying person sees realities that were hidden during life. The righteous see the beginning of their eternal reward, making their death a moment of longing and relief. The wicked see the beginning of their eternal consequence, making their death a moment of desperate refusal that cannot be sustained. The Quran describes the dying person's sudden clarity: 'We have removed from you your veil, and so your sight today is sharp.'

Al-Ashqar draws on this comprehensive picture to emphasize two practical implications. First, the quality of one's death is intimately connected to the quality of one's life. The ease or difficulty of the soul's departure is not random but reflects the condition of the soul that has been developed through years of choices, orientations, and acts of worship or rebellion. Second, remembering death regularly is among the most powerful tools for maintaining spiritual seriousness, because the inevitable approach of that specific moment calls the believer to live in a way they would not be ashamed of when that moment arrives.