Page 54 - The Truth of the Life of This World

porary place in which to live and made it imperfect in order that it serve
as a reminder for the Hereafter.

Lessons to be Drawn from the Old Age of Celebrities

Growing old is unavoidable. Nobody, without exception, can escape it.
Yet seeing celebrities becoming older has a deeper influence on us since
their physical deterioration is openly observable. Witnessing the ageing of
people renowned for their fame, wealth and beauty is surely a reminder
of the shortness and insignificance of this life.
Every day it is possible to observe this fact from hundreds of examples
around us. An intelligent, healthy and famous person, once a symbol of
beauty or success, one day appears in newspapers, magazines and on tele-
vision with a physical or mental disability. This is the end that almost
everybody will meet. Yet celebrities hold a special place in our minds; the
way they grow old and lose their charms appeals to the emotions more
deeply. In the pages that follow, you will see photographs of some celebri-
ties. Each one is the clearest evidence that no matter how beautiful, suc-
cessful or young you are, the inevitable end for human beings is old age.

The Death of Man

Life slips away second by second. Are you aware that every day brings
you closer to death or that death is as close to you as it is to other people?
As we are told in the verse "Every soul shall taste death in the end; to
Us shall you be brought back." (Surat al-'Ankabut: 57) everyone who has
ever appeared on this earth was destined to die. Without exception they
all died, every one. Today, we hardly come across the traces of many of
these people who passed away. Those currently living and those who will
ever live will also face death on a predestined day. Despite this fact, peo-
ple tend to see death as an unlikely incident.
Think of a baby who has just opened its eyes to the world and a man
who is about to breathe his last. Both had no influence on their individual
birth or death whatsoever. Only Allah possesses the power to inspire the
breath of life or to take it away.

52 The Weaknesses of Man