Leaving Empty Handed

In Shadharat adh-Dhahab it is related that one of the kings of Buwaih Dynasty, Fakhr ad-Daulah, said "I collected enough wealth for my children and their army to suffice for them for fifteen years to come."

But when he died, the keys to his treasures were with his sons who ignored his funeral. Consequently, the people searched for an appropriate cover for him. They eventually bought one from the caretaker of the mosque. All the while his sons and soldiers bickered among themselves until his corpse rotted.

When the disputing was over, the people had to lasso his corpse and pull it from a distance because of its horrid smell. As they pulled his corpse, it fell apart on the stairway of his castle.

Here was a king who owned a great portion of the worldly life, a legacy of two million dinars, eight hundred and fifty six thousand dirhams, and a sensational amount of 14,000 pieces of jewels, gems, pearls, diamonds, and gold. This is not to mention leaving behind incredible amounts of silverware, furniture, weapons and carpets.

But when he died no one attended to him, with nothing to cover him with except what they could scavenge from the caretaker of the mosque. This is the reality of this life. We come to this world empty handed and we will leave this world empty handed. Indeed, the wisest person is he who prepares himself for the afterlife by obeying Allah in the best of manners.

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