how does Ivan Illyich view his own death and what is the meaning of his final words

For Iván Ilych, the last two hours seem a single revelatory instant. For the others watching, his pain seems to be continuing. As he dies, he hears someone by his side saying "It is finished!" (171), and repeats the words to himself: "ŒDeath is finished'" (171). He stops in the middle of a sigh, stretches out, and dies.

Ironically, his death helps him to escape the barriers that have constrained him for all of his adult life. Tolstoy uses the metaphor of the train, which seems to be moving in one direction but in fact is going the other way. At last, at the sight of the light, Iván Ilych realizes that his pained agonies and questioning have not been a descent into a horrible pit. He has been moving toward a revelation, toward compassion and acceptance. This realization is more substantial than the rest of his life put together. As he dies, Iván Ilych realizes what his life has been missing. For him, there is no more gap between behavior and truth. His whole being is caught up in "an unchanging moment," a blissful spiritual awakening. Those watching him see agony, but Iván Ilych dies at peace.