Someone is being congratulated on a new beginning, while someone else is being bid farewell forever from the stage of life. Some are busy thinking about how to earn more money, while others are being carried on the shoulders of four men toward their graves. Whether at the center of power or outside it—ultimately, death spares no one. The one who escapes today may face their end tomorrow—but how many people truly reflect on this? Some leave power after a long reign, while others struggle through life—yet in the end, everyone must depart. Wealth and children remain behind, new people take the seats of power, and sometimes, the morning’s well-known figure is forgotten before the evening—this is the race of life! In the course of life, amidst the relentless flow of time, how much of a mark does one truly leave behind?
In this short-lived existence, people chase after wealth and power with relentless desperation. An endless cycle of restlessness and lamentation! Justice or injustice—many do not care. They forget about the rights of others. Human greed knows no bounds. They take a morsel from here, grab a handful from there. But one day, death arrives and quenches all hunger. Even before the body decays in the soil, the heirs engage in disputes over the inheritance. Another group fights over the vacant seat of power. Humans wish to devour the whole world, yet, in reality, the world devours all of humanity. Some manage to leave a lasting identity, a few are honored, but most fade away into oblivion. Those who leave behind traces of light in the past pave the way for the future. Without sacrifice, endurance, meditation, and devotion, nothing of true value is attained.
For this fleeting world, people go to great lengths. They build houses, amass mountains of wealth. Yet history has never found anyone whom the world did not deceive. Countless examples exist of how a little power can turn a person into a monster. But those who restrain their greed, who use their power for the benefit of others rather than for harm, who do not unjustly take away the rights of others—such people are embraced by society and their communities. Even death itself honors them. The afterlife will welcome them as well. If someone’s departure brings tears to another’s eyes, if a sigh escapes in remembrance—”He was a good person”—then there is no greater achievement in life. The death of the honored is never ugly.
In one corner of the world, a festival of indulgence is taking place, while in another, cries of farewell echo. Nothing stops for anyone! The loudspeakers celebrating a birth and the prayers of a funeral procession can exist on opposite walls at the same time. However, the one who has just arrived has endless opportunities ahead, but what is the departing soul taking with them? The wealth of this world will remain in this world. Power and position will not accompany anyone. If one does not take good deeds as provisions, the afterlife will be a failure, and life in this world will also be wasted. If one does not leave behind righteous children, their wealth will turn into the lava of destruction for their descendants. When regret finally comes, there will be no chance for repentance. That is why it is necessary to take charge while there is still time—to organize a life of good deeds.
Nothing in life will be of use—except good deeds. Nothing will accompany one from this world—except righteous actions. Power will become a source of loss if we fail to remain humane or fulfill our responsibilities properly. If people curse us, if our name is written in their sighs of sorrow—then all our achievements and efforts will be in vain. In that case, our wealth, our children, and our family will become the cause of our downfall. If we do not build the afterlife while living in this world, sorrow will be inevitable—an everlasting sorrow. Speaking the truth, living with integrity, and adhering to the promises of the Creator—these are essential for our own sake. If people feel relieved at our departure, then it is necessary to reassess our existence as human beings. If we fail to realize this now, regret will surely follow in the end.
