An acquaintance of mine passed away a few years ago who ended up becoming a dear friend…but only after his death.

I used to lke him as he never really treated me harshly like many of the other kids at the Sunday Arabic school. But all in all, even since our last encounter our relationship was no more than “Asalaamu Aleikum” “Waaleikum Asalaaam” with a little small talk in between.

His Janaza was the first I had ever attended. I remember it being a beautiful sunny day. As I was getting dressed up to leave I looked at the picture of my uncle Ibrahim. I remembered the last time seeing him…I remembered my friend who had died…and I thought, the world is just a litter sadder today.

Then one day I fell asleep, and found myself looking down at someone very close to me. His body torn to pieces, lying in the garage of the house I had been living in at he time. I was crying…and smiling…all at the same time. I smiled because I knew he was far away from the torment of the world, I knew he was happier now than he would ever have been in this Dunya. Yet I missed him so much…and so I cried.

“Don’t worry”, said my friend who passed away, “He’s in a better place now”. I looked over to see him standing there, looking the same (I believe) as I saw him last. He was without a worry on his face…I knew he was happy, and I was happy for him too. “Death is a gift” he said, and I understood perfectly what he meant.

Allah subhanna wa taala, sends you messages in dreams sometimes so that you may understand or so that he may guide you. I don’t know if this dream was a Ruqya(divine dream)…but truly without Allah subhanna wa taala we would completely be lost.

I woke up weak and confused…the likeness of a baby just coming out of its mother’s womb. I was the middle of the night, maybe 2am…I didn’t know what to do. So I went to work…It was the only place I could be alone…and there was no way that I was going back to sleep. I drove in the middle of the night…ready for death to come. I thought it was my turn to go, and so I said over and over “Allah bless me in death, and in what is after death.”-- (Allahuma Barickly Fil Mawt, Wa Fima Baad Al-Mawt). At that moment I had no fear of death because I would have died in the remembrance of Allah subhanna wa taala. Today I am a little wiser then that, alhamdullilah.

When I stepped in my office and checked my email I found a message on my email waiting there for me to tell me that today was the one year anniversary of my friend’s death.

I gained so much knowledge from that day alhamdullilah...in so many different ways. I thank Allah subhanna wa taala for teaching me and for guiding me. For it is to him that we return and to him that we owe our life.

May Allah grant us Janaat Al-Firdaus.