How to cheat death
In the arms of the angel
Fly away from here
From this dark cold hotel room
And the endlessness that you fear
You are pulled from the wreckage
Of your silent reverie
You’re in the arms of the angelMay you find some comfort here
Angel — Sarah McLachlan
Death, is inevitable. Yet, it is preventable.
We do anything we can to prevent death.
We eat healthy, exercise, avoid cigarettes & alcohol, as the forms of our effort to prevent death. But again, we can’t avoid death.
Yet again, death is written in our destiny. It has been predefined by God.
Wherever you may be, death will over come you.
Some verses in the Holy Quran specifically state about death:
قُلْ إِنَّ ٱلْمَوْتَ ٱلَّذِى تَفِرُّونَ مِنْهُ فَإِنَّهُۥ مُلَـٰقِيكُمْ ۖ ثُمَّ تُرَدُّونَ إِلَىٰ عَـٰلِمِ ٱلْغَيْبِ وَٱلشَّهَـٰدَةِ فَيُنَبِّئُكُم بِمَا كُنتُمْ تَعْمَلُونَ
Say, “Indeed, the death from which you flee — indeed, it will meet you. Then you will be returned to the Knower of the unseen and the witnessed, and He will inform you about what you used to do.” (Al Jumu’ah: 8)أَيْنَمَا تَكُونُوا۟ يُدْرِككُّمُ ٱلْمَوْتُ وَلَوْ كُنتُمْ فِى بُرُوجٍ مُّشَيَّدَةٍ ۗ وَإِن تُصِبْهُمْ حَسَنَةٌ يَقُولُوا۟ هَـٰذِهِۦ مِنْ عِندِ ٱللَّهِ ۖ وَإِن تُصِبْهُمْ سَيِّئَةٌ يَقُولُوا۟ هَـٰذِهِۦ مِنْ عِندِكَ ۚ قُلْ كُلٌّ مِّنْ عِندِ ٱللَّهِ ۖ فَمَالِ هَـٰٓؤُلَآءِ ٱلْقَوْمِ لَا يَكَادُونَ يَفْقَهُونَ حَدِيثًا
Wherever you may be, death will overcome you — even if you were in fortified towers.” When something good befalls them, they say, “This is from Allah,” but when something evil befalls them, they say, “This is from you.” Say, ˹O Prophet,˺ “Both have been destined by Allah.” So what is the matter with these people? They can hardly comprehend anything! (An-Nisa’: 78)وَمَا جَعَلْنَا لِبَشَرٍ مِّن قَبْلِكَ ٱلْخُلْدَ ۖ أَفَإِي۟ن مِّتَّ فَهُمُ ٱلْخَـٰلِدُونَ
And We did not grant to any man before you eternity [on earth]; so if you die — would they be eternal? (Al-Anbiya’: 34)كُلُّ مَنْ عَلَيْهَا فَانٍ
وَيَبْقَىٰ وَجْهُ رَبِّكَ ذُو ٱلْجَلَـٰلِ وَٱلْإِكْرَامِ
Every being on earth is bound to perish. Only your Lord Himself, full of Majesty and Honor, will remain ˹forever˺ (Ar-Rahman: 26–27)كُلُّ نَفْسٍ ذَآئِقَةُ ٱلْمَوْتِ ۗ وَإِنَّمَا تُوَفَّوْنَ أُجُورَكُمْ يَوْمَ ٱلْقِيَـٰمَةِ ۖ فَمَن زُحْزِحَ عَنِ ٱلنَّارِ وَأُدْخِلَ ٱلْجَنَّةَ فَقَدْ فَازَ ۗ وَمَا ٱلْحَيَوٰةُ ٱلدُّنْيَآ إِلَّا مَتَـٰعُ ٱلْغُرُورِ
Every soul will taste death. And you will only receive your full reward on the Day of Judgment. Whoever is spared from the Fire and is admitted into Paradise will ˹indeed˺ triumph, whereas the life of this world is no more than the delusion of enjoyment. (Ali Imran: 185)
Seeing my closest people die, is the most hurtful moment I’ve ever experienced.
First time of feeling such great loss was when my grandmother passed away. We heard bad news of her suddenly getting sick due to shortness of breath. We quickly flew to Banjarmasin. Just before boarding, we heard that she was already gone. I cried during the whole flight.
Back in 2017, my senior in college passed away suddenly while giving a speech at campus. She fell, unconscious, declared in coma and was put in Intensive Care Unit (ICU) immediately. It only took 2 days for her to finally face God.
It was an intense moment. I didn’t really know her that close, we were basically acquaintances. But, I cried for a week mourning her.
Another experience, probably the most traumatic one, was the death of my father. He suddenly fainted while queueing for a regular medical checkup at hospital. We were not present while he collapsed, he went straight to the Emergency Department (ED). When we arrived, it looks bad, already. He’s declared in coma. Took only 3 days for him to fight, apparently God couldn’t wait to see him. One detailed fact that I can never forget, I was crying apologizing and forgiving him in front of him (virtually, using a monitor), just 15 minutes before he breathed his last.
Those three moments, helped me understand idea of death. Well, experience is the best teacher, they said.
So, given the facts written in the Holy Quran, what can we do to ‘cheat’ death?
Well, of course, there’s no way to cheat death. But I think, there’s one way to feel like cheating death: By living the world to the fullest, and let death be your motivation. What?!
Memento mori
Remember to die
I once hear it on a seminar. Apparently it’s a well-known artistic reminder of the inevitability of death. I think it’s a really interesting concept to live your life.
“Let us prepare our minds as if we’d come to the very end of life. Let us postpone nothing. Let us balance life’s books each day. … The one who puts the finishing touches on their life each day is never short of time.” — Seneca
I think, the only way to cheat death is to put death as our motivation.
What will people remember of me when I die? What good deeds of me that people will honor even after I die?
As we discussed before, we don’t live forever, right? So, why don’t we enjoy this very second in the world, and do our best? Make purpose of your life. Create something. Make your life worthwhile.
I remember writings from my senior in college, Cebi, may he rest in peace. Some of his words really meant a lot. He wrote this:
Ambil langsung iPhone 11 yang lo idamkan, gak usah takut imei kena blokir dsb, bayar kalo emang cukup tabungannya. Bikin Vlog pertama lo, bikin Podcast pertama lo, bikin Project kecil iseng pertama lo. Non-profit? gapapa nanti juga lama kelamaan akan jelas kemana tujuannya project kamu ini. Buka app Traveloka lo, pilih destinasi yang lo mau kunjungin, sendiri, berdua, ramean, sekarang. Kantor bakalan ngerti kok kalau lo perlu ambil cuti. Kerjaan pada dasarnya kalau sudah settle ya setiap hari harusnya ada kerjaan yang menunggu, mau ditunda, atau dikebut, besok pasti ada aja lagi yang dikerjain. Tarik napas dikit bang, yakin kalau hal terindah di dunia sebenernya adalah cuma enaknya pupup lancar dan enaknya bisa makan apa aja. — Cebi (https://medium.com/@cebi/hang-loose-8d081bd883f0)
And when the time has come, let people remember your existence. Let them mourn your creation, your brilliant mind, your soul.
That’s how you cheat death.
