If a person is forgetful of death and doesn’t remember death, he remains forgetful of the post-death period, then what will happen? His entire focus will be on the pre-death period, which is called love for immediate gain (76.27) A person who is forgetful of death will have his entire attention on the present, although the present will come to an end. Very soon death will arrive and everything will be over.
The Quran says this about death: كُلُّ نَفْسٍ ذَائِقَةُ الْمَوْتِ (3.185) (Every human being is bound to taste death) The hadith says: أَكْثِرُوا ذِكْرَ هَادِمِ اللَّذَّاتِ يَعْنِي الْمَوْتَ (Sunan Ibn Majah 4258) (Remember death much because it demolishes all desires) What is the meaning of demolishing desires?
What does it mean to demolish? To demolish means that death corrects the purpose of your life. Death corrects the goal of your life and gives it the right direction. If a person is forgetful of death and doesn’t remember death, he remains forgetful of the post-death period, then what will happen? His entire focus will be on the pre-death period, which is called love for immediate gain (76.27) A person who is forgetful of death will have his entire attention on the present, although the present will come to an end. Very soon death will arrive and everything will be over.