The virtues of visiting the sick

When a person visits a sick person, 70,000 Farishta (angels) make Dua for him. Allah Ta'ala will grant him a garden in Jannah. Allah Ta'ala will keep him away from Jahannam, the distance between him and Jahannam will be that of a 60 years’ journey.

The Dua of the Farishta is guaranteed and is not rejected. Now, think of how powerful will the Dua of 70,000 Farishta be! A person receives this privilege by just visiting a sick person and that too, will not take much of one’s time. On top of that, the person will be given a garden in Jannah. A person who specialises in real estate valuation will have an accurate idea of the value of a land corresponding to its location. A piece of land situated in the city is much more valuable compared to one located in the countryside. In the same way, a small piece of land in a commercial centre may be more valuable than a large piece of agricultural land.

Someone who visits a sick person will not only receive a piece of land but an entire garden. In addition to that, it will not be a garden here in this Dunya, but in Jannah. A tiny portion in Jannah is much more valuable than this Dunya and whatever it contains. This may give us a small idea of the value of that garden in Jannah. That is not all. Allah Ta'ala will distance the person from Jahannam as well. In other words, he will be protected from the Fire or he will appear on the list of those who will go to Jannah. We should also remember that a person is deserving of this only when he does this action for the sake and pleasure of Allah Ta'ala.

An action done for Allah Ta'ala should be something which is permissible and done in the required way. For example, visiting a sick fiancée is not permissible and thus no reward will be accrued. On the contrary, a sin will be committed because an engagement does not render a girl halal and legal for a boy.

In order to receive this reward, we should only visit people whom we are allowed to according to the Shariah. In the same way, we should not miss Salah due to that because Salah in its prescribed time is more important. It is futile to give preference to something that is less important over something that is more important.

The essence of all this is Ikhlaas (sincerity). A sincere person is someone who is motivated to do an action solely for the sake of Allah Ta'ala. A simple action which is done with such a state of mind, like removing a small thorn from the street, may be a means of acquiring Jannah. The opposite is also true, that one may sacrifice his life on the battlefield, only to be flung into the Fire Jahannam simply because the act was devoid of Ikhlaas.

[English version of "Vertu ranne visite ene dimoune malade" – Al Jamiat Vol.8 No.2]