How was the guidance of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) in visiting the sick?
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner : This questioner, Ibrahim Abu Hamid, asks in this question: How was the guidance of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) in visiting the sick?
The Shaykh : He (peace and blessings be upon him) used to visit the sick, comfort them, and open their hearts through his visits. He would sometimes recite ruqyah (healing by Qur'anic recitation) over them. Likewise, a person should visit his sick brothers, whether they are in hospitals or in their homes, because doing so brings them joy. Bringing joy to the sick person is half of the cure, in reality, because his spirit expands, his chest opens up, and he forgets the pain, especially if the visitor is someone of value in the community. In that case, the reward for the visit is multiplied. It is also recommended for the visitor to bring joy to the patient and say to him, "You are better off today than yesterday." A person is better off than he was yesterday, whether he is in recovery or his illness has increased. If he is in recovery, it is health and well-being. If his illness has increased, it is reward and recompense. The visitor should remind him, for example, of repentance, but in a way that the patient does not feel that his end is near. For instance, he can say to him, "You are now, praise be to Allah, and if you are prevented from the worldly life, you have become free to engage in righteous deeds, such as reading the Qur'an, dhikr (the remembrance of Allah), and istighfar (seeking forgiveness), and similar words that benefit him without making him feel that you see his end is near."
The questioner : May Allah reward you.
The Shaykh : Likewise, it is also recommended to ask him about how he performs his wudu' (the ablution for prayer) and his ritual purity, and how he performs his salah (the ritual prayer), because some people pray incorrectly. For example, some people visited a sick man in his country, in the sick man's country, and asked him, "How is your prayer? How is your purity?" He told him, "As for the prayer, for the last fifteen days I have been combining and shortening, and I am not traveling." Look at how he assumed that whenever combining is permissible, shortening is permissible. The matter is the opposite: whenever shortening is permissible, combining is permissible, but not vice versa. It is possible that combining is permissible while shortening is not. Combining in the home town is permissible if its conditions are met, but shortening is not permissible.
Likewise, some people, for example, assume that if a sick person is unable to indicate with his head, he prays with his finger. He would raise his finger while standing, then bend it slightly while bowing, and bend it more while prostrating. This is a mistake. To our knowledge, no scholar has said that a sick person prays with his finger. You should inform him, for example, saying, "Pray standing. If you cannot, pray sitting, indicating with your bowing and prostration, and make your prostration lower than your bowing. If you cannot do that, pray on your side, indicating with your head. The matter is broad." You should also clarify to him that if it is difficult for him to pray every prayer at its time, he may combine the Zuhr (the midday prayer) with the 'Asr (the afternoon prayer), and the Maghrib (the sunset prayer) with the 'Isha' (the night prayer).
The important thing is that the successful one makes his visit to the sick person a visit that is also teaching, so that he benefits and he is benefited.
Part of this is also to remind him of his will. He should say, "O so-and-so, if you have a will regarding a debt upon you, or zakah (the obligatory alms), or kaffarah (expiation), or something similar, inform him of what is obligatory upon him in this matter." Yes.
The questioner : May Allah reward you and bless you, O honorable Shaykh?
The Shaykh : He (peace and blessings be upon him) used to visit the sick, comfort them, and open their hearts through his visits. He would sometimes recite ruqyah (healing by Qur'anic recitation) over them. Likewise, a person should visit his sick brothers, whether they are in hospitals or in their homes, because doing so brings them joy. Bringing joy to the sick person is half of the cure, in reality, because his spirit expands, his chest opens up, and he forgets the pain, especially if the visitor is someone of value in the community. In that case, the reward for the visit is multiplied. It is also recommended for the visitor to bring joy to the patient and say to him, "You are better off today than yesterday." A person is better off than he was yesterday, whether he is in recovery or his illness has increased. If he is in recovery, it is health and well-being. If his illness has increased, it is reward and recompense. The visitor should remind him, for example, of repentance, but in a way that the patient does not feel that his end is near. For instance, he can say to him, "You are now, praise be to Allah, and if you are prevented from the worldly life, you have become free to engage in righteous deeds, such as reading the Qur'an, dhikr (the remembrance of Allah), and istighfar (seeking forgiveness), and similar words that benefit him without making him feel that you see his end is near."
The questioner : May Allah reward you.
The Shaykh : Likewise, it is also recommended to ask him about how he performs his wudu' (the ablution for prayer) and his ritual purity, and how he performs his salah (the ritual prayer), because some people pray incorrectly. For example, some people visited a sick man in his country, in the sick man's country, and asked him, "How is your prayer? How is your purity?" He told him, "As for the prayer, for the last fifteen days I have been combining and shortening, and I am not traveling." Look at how he assumed that whenever combining is permissible, shortening is permissible. The matter is the opposite: whenever shortening is permissible, combining is permissible, but not vice versa. It is possible that combining is permissible while shortening is not. Combining in the home town is permissible if its conditions are met, but shortening is not permissible.
Likewise, some people, for example, assume that if a sick person is unable to indicate with his head, he prays with his finger. He would raise his finger while standing, then bend it slightly while bowing, and bend it more while prostrating. This is a mistake. To our knowledge, no scholar has said that a sick person prays with his finger. You should inform him, for example, saying, "Pray standing. If you cannot, pray sitting, indicating with your bowing and prostration, and make your prostration lower than your bowing. If you cannot do that, pray on your side, indicating with your head. The matter is broad." You should also clarify to him that if it is difficult for him to pray every prayer at its time, he may combine the Zuhr (the midday prayer) with the 'Asr (the afternoon prayer), and the Maghrib (the sunset prayer) with the 'Isha' (the night prayer).
The important thing is that the successful one makes his visit to the sick person a visit that is also teaching, so that he benefits and he is benefited.
Part of this is also to remind him of his will. He should say, "O so-and-so, if you have a will regarding a debt upon you, or zakah (the obligatory alms), or kaffarah (expiation), or something similar, inform him of what is obligatory upon him in this matter." Yes.
The questioner : May Allah reward you and bless you, O honorable Shaykh?