Dear Islamic brothers! We now know that only after sailing across an ocean of hardships and difficulties can a person then enter Paradise. We also learn that only after abandoning nafs-related desires can one attain freedom from Hell.

When giving a sermon in Kufa, the fourth Caliph of Islam, Sayyiduna ꜤAlī رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ said:  

O people! More than anything, I fear you shall succumb to misplaced hopes and fulfilling desires of the nafs. Misplaced and wishful hopes cause you to forget the Hereafter, whilst fulfilling the nafs’ desires leads you away from the truth.

Be aware, for the world will soon turn its back, and the Hereafter will soon arrive. Each of these has its desirers. Become those who desire the Hereafter, and do not become those who desire the world. Act today, as this is not the time accountability shall occur. We will instead be held accountable tomorrow (on the Day of Judgement), when we will have no further opportunity for good deeds.^[1]

When the third Caliph of Islam, ꜤUthmān bin ꜤAffān رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ was asked why he would cry so much whenever he saw a grave, he answered, “I think about how alone I will be, as nobody will be with me in the grave.”  

He continued further:

Whoever considers their world to be a prison, his grave will become Paradise. Whoever considers their world to be Paradise, his grave will become a prison. Death is a message of freedom for he who spent his life imprisoned. He who refrained from pursuing his desires in this world, will receive full reward in the Hereafter.