Hereafter
Hadith 40 of 42
Title
Be as a stranger in this world
Arabic
كُنْ فِي الدُّنْيَا كَأَنَّكَ غَرِيبٌ أَوْ عَابِرُ سَبِيلٍ. وَكَانَ ابْنُ عُمَرَ يَقُولُ: إِذَا أَمْسَيْتَ فَلَا تَنْتَظِرِ الصَّبَاحَ، وَإِذَا أَصْبَحْتَ فَلَا تَنْتَظِرِ الْمَسَاءَ، وَخُذْ مِنْ صِحَّتِكَ لِمَرَضِكَ، وَمِنْ حَيَاتِكَ لِمَوْتِكَ.
Translation
Be in this world as though you were a stranger or a traveller on the road. Ibn ʿUmar would add: When evening comes, do not wait for morning; when morning comes, do not wait for evening. Take from your health for your sickness, and from your life for your death.
Narrator
ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿUmar
Source
Bukhārī 6416
Commentary
The traveller does not furnish the motel. He knows he is leaving. This is not a call to poverty — it is a call to posture. Live in the dunyā as a guest, and you will not resent its losses.