Part 54

"I Tt has become a common belief in certain Arab countries that when a patient becomes brain-dead, he should be given ‘comfort and rest’ through an injection that kills him. People who hold this view argue that, according to the principles of modern medicine, a brain-dead person is, for all effective purposes, dead; and that it is just a matter of time before he completely dies. They say, “We should give him this injection to free him of the pain he is experiencing as long as he is alive.” It should be said to them: You are not really bringing him comfort, but are rather preventing him and others from much goodness. As long as he remains barely alive, and if he is from the people of Eemaan (faith) and Ihsaan, his sins will continue to be atoned for and he will be raised in rankings. Ibn Mas’ood # reported that the Prophet # said,

Sa bs us ote a bs Ye i og ye a i

5) Visiting A Sick Non-Muslim

Some scholars have disliked the practice of visiting a disbeliever who is sick; they argue that one honors a patient by visiting him and that a Muslim should not confer honor upon a disbeliever. Other scholars have ruled that it is permissible to visit a sick disbeliever if it is at least hoped that he will accept Islam. This latter view is more in harmony with the practice of the Prophet 3. Anas Ibn Maalik & said, “A young boy of the Jews would serve the Prophet # and once became sick. The Prophet #% went to visit him and he # said to him,

“Accept Islam,’ and the boy accepted Islam.)

“No Muslim is afflicted with the harm of sickness or anything else, except that Allah removes his sins just as a tree removes (or sheds) its leaves.” (Bukhaaree: 5667).

By remaining even barely alive, he might benefit from a righteous person’s supplication, which Allah 4 then accepts; and consequently, he may become cured - and Allah 8@ is upon all things capable. Or, through the supplications of Muslims, he may be forgiven his sins. Also, when he stays alive, the sins of his family - who become afflicted with sadness and anxiety - are also atoned for. Abu Hurairah 4 reported that the Prophet 3 said,

“No Muslim is afflicted with fatigue, with sickness, with grief, with harm, or with sorrow, even if it is a thorn that pricks him - except that Allah pardons some of his sins for it (ie., for that affliction).” (Bukhaaree: 5642, and others).

As long as he remains alive, others are allowed to show their filial dutifulness, especially if the patient is a father or mother, for the children of the patient will continue to receive rewards for visiting and taking care of their parent. Because of these and other reasons, the heinousness of the aforementioned view - the proponents of which claim to want to bring comfort to the patient, arguing that death is better for him - should become clear.

{1 Related by Bukhaaree (5656), Ahmad (12381), and Abu Daawood (3095).

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Sa’eed Ibn Al-Musayyib related that his father said, “When Abu Taalib was in the final stages of dying, the Messenger of Allah 2 went to him and said,

“Say: None has the right to be worshipped but Allah, a phrase I will use as evidence with Allah on your behalf.)

6) The Best Time To Visit A Sick Person

There is no hadith in which the Prophet # mentioned a specific time for visiting the sick. That being the case, it is permissible to visit a sick person at any time during the day or night, as long as they are not burdened or annoyed by the untimeliness of the visit; after all, the main purpose of a visit is to console and comfort the sick, and not to bother them. The best time to visit the sick differs from place to place, era to era. In some societies, it is deemed proper etiquette to visit a sick person during the night, and in other societies, during the day. Since there is no hadith that specifies the best time, one should follow what is considered proper etiquette in the society he lives in. Al-Mirwadheé said, “Accompanying my father, I visited a sick person during the night; this occurred during the month of Ramadan. My’ father later said to me, ‘During Ramadan, sick people are visited during the night.”” Where it is customary for people to take a noon-nap, one should avoid visiting both the sick and the healthy. AlAthram said, “It was once said to Abu ‘Abdullah, ‘So and so is sick’; this took place in the middle of the day during summer. Abu ‘Abdullah answered, ‘This is not a time of visitation.’” If, however, in another society it is customary for people to visit one another around noontime, then it is not disliked for the people of that society to visit one another at that time.

7) Making The Visit Short A visitor should not stay too long with a sick patient, who is

") Related by Bukhaaree (6681), Muslim (24), Ahmad (23162), and AnNassaaee (2035).

mainly preoccupied with his pain and suffering. Staying too long for a visit is burdensome for the sick patient, who needs a lot of rest. It is therefore proper etiquette in Islam to make the visit short. Ibn Taawoos related that his father said, ‘’The best visit is the lightest one (i.e., shortest and least burdensome one).” AlAouzaa’ee said, “I once went to Basrah, intending to visit Muhammad Ibn Seereen. [When I reached him,] I found kim to be sick...so we would then visit him and remain standing [during the visit] (i.e, we would keep the visits short and not long enough to sit down and get comfortable)...” And,Ash-Sha’bee once said, “A visit from the village idiots is a sharper blow upon the family of the patient than the actual sickness of their relative: they (the village idiots) come at an inappropriate time, and they remain seated [with the patient] for a long time.”

However, it might occur that the patient sincerely wants a visitor to stay for a long time and to visit often; in such a situation, it is better for the visitor to fulfill the wishes of the patient, thus making him feel happy and comforted. Such was the case after Sa‘ad Ibn Mu’aadh # became injured during the Battle of AlKhandagq. The Prophet # ordered for a tent to be erected in the Masjid, so that the Prophet # could have easy access to visit him." And which Companion would not want the Prophet # to remain with him for a long time and to visit him frequently!

8) Where The Visitor Should Sit

It is recommended for the visitor to sit beside the head of the patient, for this was the practice of the Prophet #¢ and of righteous people who came after him. Anas 4 said, “A young boy of the Jews who would serve the Prophet # once became sick. The Prophet # went to visit him; he (the Prophet #) sat beside his head and said to him, ‘Accept Islam’...” In another narration, Ibn ‘Abbaas # said, ‘When the Prophet # would visit a sick person, he #% would sit beside his head...”!7!_ And Ar-

'] Bukhaaree related this hadith (463). "1 Related by Bukhaaree in Al-Adab Al-Mufrad (536), and Al-Albaanee ruled that it is authentic (416).

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Rabee’ Ibn ‘Abdullah said, “I went with Al-Hasan #% to visit Qataadah , who was ill. Al-Hasan # sat beside his head, asked him [how he was feeling], and then supplicated for him...” By sitting beside the head of the patient, the visitor makes the patient feel a sense of closeness to him; also, among other benefits, the visitor is better situated to place his hand over the sick person and supplicate for him.

9) Asking The Patient About His Situation And Saying Comforting Words To Him

It is from the proper etiquette of visiting a sick person to ask him about his situation and his sickness. In the previously related hadith of ‘Aaisha %, she said, ‘When the Messenger of Allah arrived at Al-Madeenah, both Abu Bakr and Bilal & became ill with a strong fever. I entered upon both of them and said, ‘O my father, how do you find yourself? And O Bilal, how do you find yourself? ...’”

It is also proper etiquette to say comforting words to the patient, such as, “No matter, you will get better, by the will of Allah’; or, “This sickness is not dangerous, and Allah will cure you, Insha Allah (if Allah wills)’; or any similar comforting phrase, as long as the signs of approaching death are not present. The visitor should say comforting words for the sake of the patient, for such words often help, as is well-known through long-standing experience, to quicken the patient's recovery.

Related Issue: When a patient complains about his illness, he can do so in two ways.

First, he does so from a sense of impatience and annoyance; no doubt, this is disliked, for it indicates the weakness of his Eemaan and his dissatisfaction with Allah’s Divine Preordainment and Decree. Second, he is not really complaining, but is simply informing others about his situation, without being concerned with what people think, and without being attached to people or hoping

[1] Related by Bukhaaree in Al-Adab Al-Mufrad (537), and Al-Albaanee said, “‘Tts chain is authentic (417).”

from them; to be sure, this is permissible. Al-Qaasim Ibn Muhammad related that ‘Aaisha # once said, “O, my head.” The Messenger of Allah # then said,

wo 2315 al des es ot, ow yf ab

“Tf that were to occur (i.e., ‘Aaisha’s death) while I am still alive, then I would ask [Allah] to forgive you and I would supplicate for you.”

‘Aaisha % said, ‘Waa Thukliyaa (Usually said when one’s child dies; here, however, that is not the intended meaning, for people would also say this expression when some affliction or calamity befell them). By Allah, I indeed think that you love for me to die. If that occurred (i.e., her death), you would spend the end of your day (ie., the night) with one of your wives.” The Prophet # then said, “Rather it is I who says: O, my head...”") And in another hadith, Ybn Mas’ood # said, “I entered upon the Prophet #, who was suffering from a high fever. I touched him with my hand and said, ‘Verily, you are suffering from a high fever and are experiencing severe pain.’ He # said,