Riyadh al-Salihin from the words of the Master of the Messengers, peace be upon him.
Chapter: Instructing the dying to say 'La ilaha illa Allah' (There is no god but Allah).
On the authority of Mu'adh, may Allah be pleased with him, who said:
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:
"Whoever’s final words are 'La ilaha illa Allah' will enter Paradise."
Narrated by Abu Dawud.
From the benefits of the hadith:
The recommendation to instruct the dying to say 'La ilaha illa Allah'.
Not everyone is able to make this their final utterance on their deathbed.
Whoever concludes their life with 'La ilaha illa Allah' enters Paradise.
One should remain committed to Islam throughout their life.
Because that assists the person in remaining steadfast at the time of death.
On the authority of Abu Sa'id al-Khudri, may Allah be pleased with him, who said:
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:
"Instruct your dying ones to say 'La ilaha illa Allah'."
Narrated by Muslim.
From the benefits of the hadith:
The instruction should take place during the throes of death, not after.
Because it occurs during worldly life and is of benefit then.
As for one who has died, they have moved from the life of action to the life of reckoning.
And they do not benefit from witnessing and certainty [at that point].
If they had not believed beforehand.
People fight for the sake of 'La ilaha illa Allah'.
So let them be keen to die upon it.
A person’s happiness in this world and the Hereafter.
Is contingent upon their belief and their saying of 'La ilaha illa Allah'.
Chapter: What to say after closing the eyes of the deceased.
On the authority of Umm Salamah, may Allah be pleased with her, who said:
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, entered upon Abu Salamah.
His eyes were fixed open.
He closed them, then said:
"Indeed, when the soul is seized, the sight follows it."
Some of his family wailed.
He said:
"Do not supplicate against yourselves except for good."
"For the angels say 'Amin' to what you say."
Then he said:
"O Allah, forgive Abu Salamah."
"And raise his degree among the rightly guided."
"And be his successor for his descendants among those who remain."
"And forgive us and him, O Lord of the worlds."
"And make his grave spacious for him."
"And illuminate it for him."
Narrated by Muslim.
"His eyes were fixed open":
Meaning, his gaze was frozen.
He began looking at something without his eyes blinking or turning away.
"Some of his family wailed":
Meaning, they raised their voices in weeping.
"And raise his degree among the rightly guided":
Meaning, join him with those whom Allah has guided.
And who preceded others in faith in Allah and following the best of creation.
Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.
"And be his successor":
Meaning, be a guardian for them.
"His descendants":
Meaning, those he leaves behind.
"Among those who remain":
Meaning, those who stay behind.
"And make his grave spacious for him":
Meaning, widen his grave for him.
From the benefits of the hadith:
The recommendation to close the eyes of the deceased.
The Muslims have agreed upon this.
The departure of the soul from the body is followed by the sight.
The recommendation to supplicate for the deceased at the time of death.
And for their family and offspring.
Regarding matters of the Hereafter and this world.
The bliss of the grave is a reality.
And it is made spacious for the people of faith.
And illuminated for them within it.
Unlike the people of disbelief.
The angels are present with the deceased.
And they say 'Amin' to what people say in their presence.
The prohibition of supplicating at the time of death except for good.
The obligation to teach people in such situations.
So that they do not harm themselves.
Islam encourages patience.
And accepting the decree with faith.
And not being impatient or distressed.
Chapter: What is said in the presence of the deceased.
And what one whose loved one has died should say.
On the authority of Umm Salamah, may Allah be pleased with her, who said:
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:
"If you are present with the sick or the deceased,"
"Then say good things."
"For the angels say 'Amin' to what you say."
She said: When Abu Salamah died,
I came to the Prophet, peace be upon him.
I said: O Messenger of Allah,
Abu Salamah has died.
He said: "Say: O Allah, forgive me and him."
"And grant me a good successor in his place."
She said:
So Allah granted me someone better for me than him:
Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.
Narrated by Muslim in this manner.
"If you are present with the sick or the deceased":
Expressing doubt [in the narration].
And it was narrated by Abu Dawud and others:
"The deceased" without doubt.
"They say 'Amin' to what you say":
Meaning, they say 'Amin'.
"Grant me a successor": Meaning, compensate me.
From the benefits of the hadith:
The permissibility of informing a scholar of a man's death.
Or informing a friend of the death of their friend.
This is not the prohibited form of announcing death (na'i).
The scholar teaching others.
When a calamity occurs.
Patience and contentment.
With what Allah has decreed and ordained.
Whoever is patient and content with what Allah has decreed,
Allah compensates them with something better than what they lost.
For Allah compensated Umm Salamah,
With the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him.
The intensity of the certainty of the Companions, may Allah be pleased with them.
And their entrusting of their affairs to Allah, the Glorified and Exalted.
And their keenness to follow the Messenger, peace be upon him.
And to respond to his command and guidance.
On the authority of Umm Salamah, may Allah be pleased with her, who said:
I heard the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, say:
"There is no servant who is struck by a calamity,"
"And says:"
“Who say, when a misfortune striketh them: Lo! we are Allah's and lo! unto Him we are returning.” (2:156)
"O Allah, reward me in my calamity,"
"And replace it for me with something better."
"Except that Allah, the Exalted, rewards him in his calamity,"
"And replaces it for him with something better."
She said:
When Abu Salamah passed away,
I said as the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, commanded me.
So Allah replaced him for me with someone better than him:
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him.
Narrated by Muslim.
From the benefits of the hadith:
If a calamity befalls a Muslim,
They should praise Allah and recite the Istirja' (Inna lillahi...).
The believer seeks compensation from Allah, the Glorified and Exalted.
If the servant turns to their Lord,
He rewards them for what befell them and compensates them with something better.
The keenness of the Companions to implement the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him.
Out of faith and seeking reward.
On the authority of Abu Musa, may Allah be pleased with him:
That the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:
"When a servant's child dies,"
"Allah, the Exalted, says to His angels:"
"Have you taken the child of My servant?"
They say: Yes.
He says: "Have you taken the fruit of his heart?"
They say: Yes.
He says: "And what did My servant say?"
They say: He praised You and recited the Istirja'.
Allah, the Exalted, says:
"Build for My servant a house in Paradise,"
"And name it the House of Praise."
Narrated by al-Tirmidhi.
From the benefits of the hadith:
Allah’s honoring of His servants.
This is done by asking about their state when He tests them.
And by attributing them to Himself.
Allah’s care for His servants and His comforting of their hearts.
When calamities befall them.
The people of faith ascend from the station of patience,
To the station of contentment and praise.
And they are constant in reciting the Istirja'.
A clarification of the reward for the one who praises and is patient.
That Allah compensates them with a house in Paradise.
Called the House of Praise.
On the authority of Abu Hurayrah, may Allah be pleased with him:
That the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:
Allah, the Exalted, says:
"There is no reward for My believing servant with Me,"
"When I take his beloved one from the people of the world,"
"Then he seeks reward [from Me], except Paradise."
Narrated by al-Bukhari.
"His beloved one" is the dear, intimate friend,
Such as a child or a brother.
And everyone whom a person loves.
"Seeks reward" means he stores it [as a deed] and hopes for the reward of his death.
And patience regarding it is from Allah, the Exalted.
From the benefits of the hadith:
A clarification that whoever has a child taken from them,
And is patient over their loss, hoping for,
The reward from Allah, the Exalted,
Allah, the Exalted, compensates them for that with Paradise.
On the authority of Usamah ibn Zayd, may Allah be pleased with them both:
He said: One of the daughters of the Prophet, peace be upon him,
Sent for him,
Inviting him and informing him,
That a child of hers, or a son, was dying.
So he said to the messenger:
"Inform her that to Allah belongs what He takes,"
"And to Him belongs what He gives,"
"And everything with Him has a specified term."
"So tell her to be patient and seek reward."
And he mentioned the rest of the hadith.
Agreed upon.
Chapter: The permissibility of weeping for the deceased.
Without wailing or lamentation.
As for lamentation, it is forbidden.
There is a chapter for it in the Book of Prohibitions.
If Allah the Exalted wills.
As for weeping,
many hadiths have come down prohibiting it,
and stating that the deceased is punished by the weeping of their family.
These are interpreted and understood as applying to one who requested it in their will.
The prohibition only applies to weeping
that involves wailing or lamentation.
The evidence for the permissibility of weeping
includes many hadiths, among them
the report from Ibn 'Umar, may Allah be pleased with them both,
that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
visited Sa'd Ibn 'Ubadah,
accompanied by 'Abd al-Rahman Ibn 'Awf,
Sa'd Ibn Abi Waqqas,
and 'Abdullah Ibn Mas'ud, may Allah be pleased with them.
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, wept.
When the people saw the weeping of the Messenger of Allah,
the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him,
they also wept, so he said:
"Do you not hear?
Allah does not punish for the tears of the eye,
nor for the sadness of the heart,
but He punishes or shows mercy for this,"
and he pointed to his tongue.
It is agreed upon.
Among the benefits of the hadith:
[The Prophet's] visiting some of his followers and companions who were ill.
The permissibility of people gathering around the sick,
provided they do not cause them distress.
The permissibility of showing grief in front of the sick
to let them know their status in the hearts of their loved ones
and brothers, which is a form of enjoining good and forbidding evil,
and a clarification of the warning.
From Usamah Ibn Zayd, may Allah be pleased with them both:
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him,
had his daughter's son brought to him while he was dying,
and the eyes of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, overflowed with tears.
Sa'd asked him,
"What is this, O Messenger of Allah?"
He replied, "This is mercy
that Allah the Exalted has placed in the hearts of His servants,
and Allah only shows mercy
to those of His servants who are merciful."
It is agreed upon.
May Allah be pleased with him.
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him,
entered upon his son Ibrahim, may Allah be pleased with him,
while he was in his final moments.
The eyes of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him,
began to shed tears.
'Abd al-Rahman Ibn 'Awf said to him,
"Even you, O Messenger of Allah?"
He replied, "O Ibn 'Awf,"
and he followed it with another statement, saying:
"The eye sheds tears,
the heart grieves,
and we say nothing except what pleases our Lord.
And we, at your departure, O Ibrahim,
are indeed grieved."
Narrated by al-Bukhari.
Muslim narrated a portion of it.
"In his final moments" means he was dying.
"Shed tears" means they were weeping.
Among the benefits of the hadith:
The legitimacy of visiting the young who are ill.
The legitimacy of being present with the dying.
A demonstration of the mercy of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him,
toward people.
His tenderness when encountering that which reminds him of death.
His lack of impatience when calamities occur.
The permissibility of questioning someone
whose actions seem to contradict their apparent words,
in order to clarify the distinction,
as 'Abd al-Rahman Ibn 'Awf did
with the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him.
A clarification from the Prophet, peace be upon him,
regarding the reason for his weeping,
which was that what the people witnessed was
mercy and tenderness of heart toward the child,
not the impatience they had imagined.
The life of the righteous.