Source: http://english.almaaref.org/

The Holy Prophet (pbuh&hh) has said: "You have not been created for extinction, but for eternal existence".

What is death? Does a man become 'nothing' after death? Is death the end of the soul as well as the body?

In the eyes of those who believe that life is just an evolution of matter, death is The End; nothing remains, there is no life-hereafter.

In the eyes of those who believe that the soul and matter are not created by God, death is just a means of re-emerging in a new form - either better or lesser than the previous one.

For the former, the life is an end in itself. A man, who has such a belief, must always strive to get as much enjoyment from this life as possible. Every possible material comfort must be acquired, even if other people get hurt in this process. This materialistic point of view does not leave any room for any compassion, charity, mercy or altruistic feelings like self- denial, or giving others preference over oneself. After all, this is the only life which he possesses; moreover, he is not supposed to give any account of his actions anywhere after he is dead, So why should he suffer for the sake of the others?

Incidentally, one often hears political leader of the communist world exhorting people to practice self-denial, to sacrifice their comfort for the sake of their fellow citizens. But they fail to realize that this self-sacrifice for a "higher cause" does not go hand in hand with the materialistic theory of "no God, no soul, and no life-hereafter”‌. The Utopia which communism envisages will never materialize for the simple reason that this "one and the only life”‌ theory leaves no room for anyone to compromise his comforts for the sake of someone else.

The latter theory of coming to life again and again teaches its adherents that the condition, in which he finds himself, is a "result"‌ (reward or punishment) of his actions in his former life. And as such he should accept it with humility and resignation without trying to improve his lot. (If your poverty is the result of your 'Karma', what is the use of your trying to remove it? How can you supersede the decree of God?) Such a belief may be good for the ruling classes but not for the oppressed masses of the world.

So, what is death? Shifting of the lamp from one place to another place. For instance, suppose there is a hut having many holes. If a lamp is placed in it, its light would be emitted through those holes. But as soon as that lamp is moved out of that hut it will make the hut dark. Similarly, so long as the lamp of soul remains in the body it manifests its existence known through the light, which comes out from limbs like eyes and ears etc. But as soon as this lamp of soul is removed from the body, all its manifestations also cease and the body becomes dark. This is Death. This was just and explanatory example.
Otherwise …

Part 2