In the Islamic paradigm of human reform, visiting the sick and meeting with them holds special importance and value, because this virtuous moral conduct is pleasing to God and plays a significant role in strengthening human relationships, intimacy, and brotherhood.
It has been narrated from the Noble Prophet (PBUHH) that one of the rights of a Muslim over another Muslim is that when he becomes ill, he should be visited.[1]
The importance and value of visiting the sick is such that, despite Islam’s strictness regarding leaving the mosque during I’tikaf (Spiritual retreat), one of the permitted cases in which a person in I’tikaf may leave the mosque is to visit a sick person.
Because of the importance of this serious duty and obligatory right, Imam Sajjad (AS), when mentioning his neighbors and friends, implores God, the Exalted to grant them success in visiting their sick. “O God, assist my neighbors and friends to uphold Your tradition in visiting their sick”.[2]
In what follows, some of the effects and etiquettes of visiting the sick will be discussed.
The Effects of Visiting the Sick
Visiting the Sick is like Visiting God
The Prophet of Islam (PBUHH) said: On the Day of Resurrection, God will reproach one of His servants and say: My servant, what prevented you from visiting Me when I became ill? The servant will reply: O Lord, You are pure and exalted; You are the Lord of the servants; You do not fall ill, nor do You suffer pain or sickness.
God will say: Your believing brother fell ill and you did not visit him. By My might and majesty, had you visited him, you would have found Me with him; then I would have fulfilled your needs. This is among the honors of My believing servant, and I am God, the All-Forgiving, the Most Merciful.[3]
Attaining God’s Mercy
The Messenger of God (PBUHH) said: “Whoever goes to visit a sick person continues to walk amid God’s mercy until he sits down; when he sits beside the sick person, he becomes immersed in God’s mercy”.[4]
Imam Sadiq (AS) also said: “If a believer visits a believing sick person in the early morning, seventy thousand angels accompany him. When he sits with the sick person, divine mercy envelops him, and the angels seek forgiveness for him until nightfall; and if he visits at night, the same state will be for him until morning”.[5]
Receiving God’s Reward for Visiting the Sick
Imam Sadiq (AS) said: “Whoever visits a sick Muslim, God appoints seventy thousand angels to surround his house, glorifying God, declaring His oneness, and magnifying Him until the Day of Resurrection, while half of their acts of worship are recorded for the one who visited the sick person”.[6]
Attaining Paradise through Visiting the Sick
Imam Ali (AS) said: “I heard the Prophet of Islam (PBUHH) saying: The person who goes to visit his Muslim brother walks among the gathered fruits of Paradise, and when he sits beside the sick person, God’s mercy envelops him. If he visits him in the morning, seventy thousand angels pray for him until evening, and if he visits him in the evening, seventy thousand angels pray for him until morning”.[7]
The Visitation of Angels in the Grave until the Day of Resurrection
It has been narrated from Imam Baqir (AS) that Moses (AS), in his supplication, said: “O God, explain how great the reward of one who visits the sick is. It was revealed: I appoint an angel to visit him in his grave until the Day of Resurrection”.[8]
The Angels’ Seeking Forgiveness for Him
Imam Sadiq (AS) said: “If a believer visits a believing sick person in the early morning, seventy thousand angels accompany him. When he sits beside the sick person, divine mercy envelops him, and the angels seek forgiveness for him until nightfall; and if he visits at night, the same state will be for him until morning”.[9]
Forgiveness of Sins
The Messenger of God (PBUHH), in the final sermon he delivered before his passing, said: “Whoever goes to visit a sick person, for every step he takes in this regard (until the moment he returns home) … seventy thousand thousand sins are erased from his record of deeds”.[10]
The Acceptance of the Sick Person’s Supplication on his Behalf
Imam Sadiq (AS) said: “Whoever visits a sick person for the sake of God, whatever the sick person asks of God on his behalf will be granted”.[11] He also said: “Visit the sick and ask them to supplicate for you, for the supplication of the sick is accepted like the supplication of the angels”.[12]
The Etiquette of Visiting the Sick
Observing the Appropriate Time for Visiting
Rest and calmness are among the most basic and primary needs of a sick person, and they play a major role in recovery. Therefore, the visitor should keep the visit brief so that the patient’s rest is not disturbed.
Amir al-Muminin Ali (AS) said: “The servant who receives the greatest reward from God when visiting the sick is the one who keeps his sitting short, unless the patient himself wishes and asks him to stay”.[13]
Sometimes a person goes to visit the sick and, out of ignorance or other reasons, tires the patient to such an extent that the visit itself becomes more distressing than the illness. In this regard, Imam Sadiq (AS) said: “A complete visit is that you place your hand on his arm and then depart quickly, for the visit of a foolish and talkative person is more burdensome for the sick than his illness”.[14]
Bringing a Gift When Visiting the Sick
One of the servants of Imam Sadiq (AS) says: “One of the Imam’s servants became ill, and a group of us went out to visit him. On the way, we encountered the Imam. He asked: Where are you going? We said: We are going to visit so-and-so.
He said: Stop, and we stopped. He then said: Have you taken an apple, a pear, a little perfume, or a piece of fragrant wood as a gift? We said: No, we do not have any of these with us. He said: Do you not know that the sick person finds comfort in whatever is brought to him?”.[15]
Sitting Beside the Patient and Showing Affection
Another etiquette of visiting the sick is to express affection and kindness. In this regard, the Prophet of Mercy (PBUHH) said: “A complete visit is that the visitor places his hand on the body of the sick person and asks about his condition”.[16]
Imam Sadiq (AS) said to a man who had left his sick companion in order to go to the mosque to perform prayer: “Your sitting beside your sick companion and taking care of him is more valuable than your praying in the mosque”.[17]
Strengthening the Patient’s Morale
Another etiquette of visiting the sick is to console the patient and strengthen his morale, and to say things such as that his illness will soon pass, that God will grant him health and well-being, and similar words that bring reassurance.
The Noble Prophet (PBUHH) said: “Whenever you visit the sick, give them hope in life; although this does not change what has been decreed nor prevent death, it brings comfort to the patient’s heart”.[18]
Supplicating for the Patient
From some narrations it is understood that supplication at the bedside of a sick person is closer to acceptance, for God’s special grace accompanies broken hearts, and a believing patient benefits from this virtue.
The Noble Prophet (PBUHH) said: “The visitor of a sick person becomes immersed in divine mercy, and when he sits beside the patient, he is enveloped by God’s mercy. It is recommended to supplicate for the patient and say: O God, Lord of the seven heavens and Lord of the seven earths and all that is in them, and all that is between them and beneath them, and Lord of the Mighty Throne, grant him healing by Your healing, cure him with Your remedy, grant him well-being from Your afflictions. O God, make his complaint during this illness an expiation for his past and remaining sins”.[19]
Feeding the Sick When Visiting Them
Illness, on the one hand, weakens a person and limits his ability to take care of his personal needs, and on the other hand, restricts his capacity to work and earn a livelihood. In such a situation, feeding the sick is among the commendable duties and virtuous behaviors that bring great reward in the sight of God the Exalted.
The Messenger of God (PBUHH) said in this regard: “Whoever feeds a sick person according to what he desires, God will host him with the fruits of Paradise”.[20]
Being Considerate When Eating in the Presence of the Sick
Another matter that must be observed when visiting the sick is to refrain from eating foods that the patient is deprived of or not permitted to eat. The Prophet (PBUHH) forbade the visitor from eating, especially if it is harmful for the patient, and said: “This causes the reward of his visit to be nullified”.[21]
Attending to the Needs of the Sick
The Messenger of God (PBUHH) said: “Whoever helps a person who is physically weak in his affairs, God will help him in his own affairs, and on the Day of Resurrection, He will appoint angels to assist him in passing through the terrors of that Day, crossing the pits of the Fire, and crossing the Sirat toward Paradise in complete safety and security”.[22]
Requesting Supplication from the Sick Person
Imam Sadiq (AS) said: “When one of you visits his believing brother, let him pray for him and ask him to pray for him, for the supplication of the sick is like the supplication of an angel”.[23]
He also said: “Whoever visits a sick person for the sake of God, the sick person will not ask God for anything on behalf of the visitor except that God will grant it”.[24]
Not Expecting Hospitality When Visiting the Sick
Since the purpose of visiting the sick is to express affection, fulfill the rights of brotherhood, and attain reward and merit, one who visits a patient should not expect hospitality. The patient himself is struggling with illness, and his family is occupied with caring for him. Therefore, visitors should strive to assist them, rather than becoming an additional burden and causing them further hardship.[25]
Gratitude for Well-Being
It is narrated from Imam Baqir (AS) that when you see an afflicted person, say three times, without letting him hear you: “All praise is for God who has protected me from this affliction, and had He willed, He could have afflicted me”. Whoever says this will never be afflicted by that calamity. He also said that the Noble Prophet (PBUHH) said: “When you see afflicted people, praise God, but do not let them hear you, for that saddens them”.[26]
Conclusion
A person who visits the sick can, through proper speech, behavior, and etiquette, have a significant impact on the patient’s recovery and well-being. Such etiquettes include:
observing the appropriate time for visiting, bringing a gift for the patient, sitting beside the patient and showing affection, strengthening the patient’s morale, supplicating for the patient, feeding the patient, fulfilling the patient’s needs, requesting supplication from the patient, not expecting hospitality from the patient, and expressing gratitude for well-being.
Moreover, visiting the sick brings about numerous worldly and otherworldly effects and blessings, such as: visiting the sick being equivalent to visiting God, attaining God’s mercy, receiving God’s reward, benefiting from Paradise, the visitation of angels to the visitor in the grave until the Day of Resurrection, the angels’ seeking forgiveness for the visitor, the forgiveness of sins, and the acceptance of the sick person’s supplication on behalf of the visitor.
Notes
[1] . Tabarsi, Makarim al-Akhlaq, p.359.
[2] . Imam Zayn al-Abidin, al-Sahifa al-Sajjadiyya, Supplication 26.
[3] . Hurr Amili, al-Shia, vol.1.
[4] . Nuri, Mustadrak al-Wasail, vol.2, p.78.
[5] . Kulayni, al-Kafi, vol.3, p.120.
[6] . Ibid, vol.3, p.120.
[7] . Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Musnad Ahmad, vol.2, p.47.
[8] . Ibn Babawayh, Thawab al-Amal wa Iqab al-Amal, p.194.
[9] . Kulayni, al-Kafi, vol.3, p.120.
[10] . Ibn Babawayh, Thawab al-Amal wa Iqab al-Amal, p.292.
[11] . Ibn Babawayh, Thawab al-Amal wa Iqab al-Amal, p. 289.
[12] . Tabarsi, Mishkat al-Anwar, p.281.
[13] . Kulayni, al-Kafi, vol.3, p.118.
[14] . Tabarsi, Makarim al-Akhlaq, p. 360.
[15] . Ibid, p. 360.
[16] . Tusi, al-Amali, p. 639.
[17] . Kulayni, al-Kafi, vol.4, p.545.
[18] . Karajki, Kanz al-Fawaid, vol.1, p.379.
[19] . Daylami, Irshad al-Qulub, vol.1, p.44.
[20] . Rawandi, Salwat al-Hazin (Supplications), p.230.
[21] . Ibn Ashath, al-Jafariyyat, p.200.
[22] . The Tafsir Attributed to Imam Hasan al-Askari, p.635.
[23] . Tabarsi, Makarim al-Akhlaq, p.361.
[24] . Ibid, p.361.
[25] . Ibn Ashath, al-Jafariyyat, p.200.
[26] . Tabarsi, Makarim al-Akhlaq, p.351.
References
- Ahmad ibn Hanbal; Musnad Ahmad, Beirut: Dar Ihya al-Turath al-Arabi, 1415 AH.
- Daylami, Hasan ibn Muhammad; Irshad al-Qulub, vol. 4, Beirut: Muassasat al-Alami, 1398 AH.
- Hurr Amili, Muhammad ibn Hasan; Wasail al-Shia, Qom: Muassasat Al al-Bayt, 1409 AH.
- Ibn Ashath, Muhammad ibn Muhammad; al-Jafariyyat al-Ashathiyyat, Tehran: Maktabat al-Naynawa al-Haditha [n.d.].
- Ibn Babawayh, Muhammad ibn Ali; al-Amali, Qom: Muassasat al-Batha, 1407 AH.
- Ibn Babawayh, Muhammad ibn Ali; Thawab al-Amal wa Iqab al-Amal, Qom: al-Rida Publishing, 1368 SH.
- Imam Abu Muhammad al-Hasan ibn Ali al-Askari, The Tafsir, Qom: Madrasat al-Imam al-Mahdi (AS), 1409 AH.
- Imam Zayn al-Abidin (AS), al-Sahifa al-Sajjadiyya; edited by Ali Ansarian, Damascus: Cultural Counsellor’s Office of the Islamic Republic of Iran, 1405 AH.
- Karajki, Muhammad ibn Ali; Kanz al-Fawaid; edited by Abdullah Numa, Qom: Dar al-Dhakhair, 1410 AH.
- Kulayni, Muhammad ibn Yaqub; al-Kafi, Tehran: Dar al-Kutub al-Islamiyya, 1407 AH.
- Nuri, Husayn; Mustadrak al-Wasail, Qom: Muassasat Al al-Bayt (AS), 1407 AH.
- Rawandi, Qutb al-Din; Salwat al-Hazin bi al-Daawat, Qom: Madrasat al-Imam al-Mahdi, 1366 SH.
- Tabarsi, Abu al-Fadl Ali ibn Hasan; Mishkat al-Anwar fi Ghurar al-Akhbar, Najaf: al-Maktaba al-Haydariyya [n.d.].
- Tabarsi, Hasan ibn Fadl; Makarim al-Akhlaq, Qom: Madrasat al-Nashr al-Islam, 1414 AH.
- Tusi, Muhammad ibn Hasan; al-Amali, Qom: Dar al-Thaqafa, 1414 AH.
Source of the article | Adapted from: Isazadeh, Isa, Conduct toward Coreligionists, Research Institute for Islamic Sciences and Culture, 1402 SH, pp. 45–56.
