You've already chosen your companions in the Barzakh. Who are you walking with now
because when the ground pulls you in and the dirt covers you? It's not just your family who has gone ahead that's waiting for you on the other side. The friends you chose in
this life will be your companions in the next. Think about the faces you see every day, the voices you hear in your ear and the chats lighting up your phone. Which part of Barzakh
are they taking you to and which part of Barzakh are you taking them to? Because in Barzakh there is no escape from the company you've chosen. You are with the company you chose
Jameel Ibn Murrah says that Muwarriq Al-Ijli was one of my best friends in this dunya and he was like a brother to me. So one day I said to him, whoever of us dies first should
come to the other in a dream and tell them about what's happening after death. So he said Muwarriq died and then my wife sees a dream where he's knocking on the door to
visit. So she says I open the door and I tell him to come in to see Jameel and he says but how can I enter when I've already died? I just came to tell Jameel what Allah has done
for me just like we promised each other. So tell him that He made me from the Muqarrabin, those who are so close to Him. After birr al-walidayn when it comes to your connection with people, the most important relationships are those that are forged for the sake of
Allah. Barzakh is where you connect back to the family chosen for you in dunya and the friends that you chose in this dunya. And while you had no choice in the family that
was given to you in this dunya, you choose who your friends are going to be in the barzakh. You are the author of your barzakh remember? So maybe you used to blame qadr for the family that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala gave you. But who are you blaming for the friends that
you chose? So look around you now and then look at your phone. The people you choose to spend your time with, that's who's going to be your company in the barzakh and everything
beyond. Al-mar'u ma'a man ahabb, a person will be with those whom they love. This means we can expect to be with those we chose to admire or accompany, from our closest companions
to the celebrities that we follow online. But think of all the punishments of the grave and think of those that are known by those sins that caused them or those that call you to them. Then remove those people from your life now so that they're not a part of your
life then. You will be on the deen of your closest friends so be careful who you choose to be close with. And even if your friend is a Muslim, are they at the level you want
to be? You can either be lifted up by them or dragged down by them. And those that gather upon darkness, whether it's upon gossip or greed, will find that darkness in their graves.
But those that chose to come together for the sake of Allah, like working on a da'wah project, or feeding the homeless, or standing up for justice together, or maybe studying the deen together, or helping each other improve in their personal worship, then this light
that they gathered here will illuminate their graves together. Holding on to that friendship is as important as holding on to anything else when you're dying. And that's why Al-Bara' ibn 'Azib (رضي الله عنه) narrates that, I was sitting in a gathering with the Prophet
(ﷺ) and he said, do you know which handhold of faith is the strongest? Al-'Urwatu al-Wuthqa. So he said, the salah. He said, إِنَّ الصَّلَاةَ حَسَنَةً وَمَا هِيَ بِهَا
The Prophet (ﷺ) said, the prayer is great but that's not what I'm talking about. So the sahaba started to mention different acts of worship until the Prophet (ﷺ) saw that they weren't going to get it right. And then the
Prophet (ﷺ) said, the strongest handhold of faith is that you love for the sake of Allah and hate for the sake of Allah. And just as a good friend will be there for you here in your hardest times, they'll still be making du'a for you in your
hardest time in the grave, if they survive you. And when we all make it to the other side, you'll hopefully find them once again right next to you. If those who love each other for the sake of Allah have pulpits of light on the day of judgment, what do you
think their graves look like? So do they meet and socialize with each other now? One of the companions of a scholar named Asim al-Jahdari says that, I saw Asim in a dream two years
after his death. So I asked him, are you dead? He said, yes I am dead. He said, well where are you? He said, I swear by Allah that I am in a garden of paradise where I and some
of my companions go to the great Imam al-Muzani every morning and evening of Jum'ah. And I asked, well do you meet each other in body or soul? And he replied, our bodies have decayed,
wa innama tatalqa al-arwah, rather we come together in soul. And who do you most want to come together with? If you think of a best friend as someone who is there for you in
hard times, who makes du'a for you and who never forgets you, then who better than the Prophet (ﷺ) even though you never got to live with him in this dunya?
And that's why Uthman (رضي الله عنه), who did get to live with the Prophet (ﷺ), when he was going through his most difficult test under siege
in his home, he goes to sleep fasting and reading Qur'an. And he sees a dream of the Prophet (ﷺ) with Abu Bakr and Umar (رضي الله عنهما).
And the Prophet (ﷺ) comforts him and affirms him. And then he says, Ya Uthman, aftara indana al-layla, come break your fast with us tonight. And he wakes
up and he was assassinated. I want you to think about this. Over 12,000 people were killed in Gaza last Ramadan alone. How many of them do you think broke their fast with
the Prophet (ﷺ)? And if you knew that the Prophet (ﷺ) was waiting for you, no one else in the world is better company. And that's why when Bilal (رضي الله عنه) was dying, his wife was standing over him and
saying, wa huzna, wa huzna, what grief, what grief. And he said, bal quli wa farha, rather say what joy. Ghadan alqa al-ahibba, Muhammadan wa hizba. Tomorrow I will be with my beloved
once again, Muhammad (ﷺ) and his companions. So you too long for the Prophet (ﷺ)'s company, but are the ones standing with you now helping
you towards him or moving you away from him? And then imagine standing beside those who called you closer to Allah, ready to be greeted by the best of Allah's creation because you
chose your company wisely. At that moment, you'll see that yes, the Prophet (ﷺ) will know you and love you, but will you know everyone around him?
