—even those who never fought for it—yet their hearts have become captive to the dunya, Allah protect us. The present world is all they think about, asleep or awake, sitting or standing, night and day. The well-known proverb has now come true for many: “Permissible is whatever ends up in one’s hand, whether lawful or unlawful.” Likewise, the Prophet’s words ﷺ have been fulfilled in them: “A time will come upon people when a man will not care whether the wealth he takes is from what is lawful or from what is unlawful.” Allah’s refuge is sought!

People today are fighting over the dunya—over nothing but the dunya. What is astonishing is that a person chases the very world that was created for his service, behaving as though he were created to serve it, Allah preserve us. He serves it with utter devotion, wearing out his body, his mind, his intellect, his comfort, and even his enjoyment of family life. Then what? He might lose it all in an instant: he leaves his house and never returns, or lies down on his bed and never wakes up. We witness this with our own eyes.

We see striking examples: a man contracts a marriage but dies before consummating it, though he yearned for it and pinned his hopes on it—death cut him off. Others are found carrying their wedding invitations in their cars, only to die with those cards still inside. Of what benefit, then, is the dunya when its deception reaches this level?

For that very reason the Prophet ﷺ—ever compassionate, gentle, and solicitous toward the believers—told us that what he truly feared for us was that the dunya would be laid open before us and we would begin to compete over it. That is exactly what has come to pass. So beware, my brother: let not the life of this world delude you, and let not the Deceiver beguile you concerning Allah—you.