When Luís Figo made the move from Barcelona to their sworn enemy Real Madrid, he was called a traitor and a sell-out in addition to the death threats he received. That was 22 years ago and during these past 2.2 decades, the fans’ view of such moves has dramatically changed although not 180 degrees, people now understand, at least to some degree, that a soccer player has a very limited career, you will be hard pressed to find a profession where people need to start thinking about retirement once they hit thirty years old.
You have a very limited time to collect as much money as possible, to enjoy the rest of your life.
If you are a professional footballer you learn to endure attacks, and maybe even the abuse that fanatics might throw your way, for the sake of collecting as much money as possible during your valuable years.
This is exactly how Islam sees this worldly life, a ticking clock during which you seek to collect the biggest number of “rewardable deeds” the only worthy investment is one that will last forever, the afterlife.
Following the right religion that Allah wants for you will cause you some hardships, and will deprive you of the instant gratification of desires that we all crave from time to time, but who cares since it all leads to – take this – actual everlasting paradise? Which is a real thing that exists. It’s just a matter of choosing between going there or enjoying a few years of dopamine hits and then going to eternal hell. Because unfortunately, that ticking clock towards death, has no wires to cut, to stop the countdown.
