What Should a Person Visiting the Sick Do?

And for this reason, the scholars said the one visiting the sick, should make him happy. He should say: "Masha Allah (what Allah wills), today you are in goodness", and similar statements. I mean, it is not necessary to say: “Today you are healthy.” Perhaps today he is sicker than yesterday. Instead he should say: “Today you are in goodness”, because all the affairs of a believer are good. If something bad happens to him, he is in goodness, and if something good happens to him, then he is also in goodness. So he says: “Today you are in goodness, Alhamdulilah (all praise be to Allah)”, and similar statements that make him joyful. Death is unavoidable, if this sickness is his end, then he will die. And if there is some time left for him in this world, he will remain alive. What’s important, as the people of ilm (Islamic knowledge) say, is to make him happy. Also he should remind him of repentance. However, he doesn’t directly say that to him because he might get annoyed and say: “If he didn’t see my illness as life threatening, he wouldn’t have reminded me of repentance.” Rather, he mentions verses and hadith that are related to praising those who repent, to remind him of repentance, if he has memorised them. Also, he should remind him of making a will. But he doesn’t say: “Make a will because your end is near”, because this will annoy him. Instead, he reminds him of stories that have happened. For example he says, so and so had a debt, and he was a resolute man, so he would instruct his family to pay his debt, and other similar wordings that will not offend him. The people of ilm said that if he sees from the sick person a desire to have ruqya recited on him, he should do so. He does nafth (dry spit) on him with that which came authentically from the Prophet ﷺ such as his statement: “O Allah! the Lord of mankind! Remove this disease and heal him, You are the only one who heals. There is no healing except Your healing, heal him with a healing that leaves no disease behind." Or like his saying: “Our Lord Allah, who is above the heavens, holy be Your name, Your will is done in the heavens and on Earth; just as Your mercy is in the heavens, bestow it upon the Earth. Forgive us our sins. You are the Lord of the good. Send down some of Your mercy and healing upon this pain so he will be healed.” Or he reads upon the sick Surah Al-Fatiha, because this surah is ruqyah, which is read upon those who are sick, bitten by a scorpion, snake or their likes. What’s important is that, if he sees that the sick would like to have ruqyah recited on him, then he should do so, so that he doesn’t ask for it. Because the Prophet ﷺ said: “I saw from my Ummah seventy thousand who will enter Paradise without any accounting or punishment.” And he said: “They are those who don’t ask for ruqyah, don’t use cauterization, don’t believe in bad omens, and put their trust in their Lord.” His statement, “they don’t ask for ruqya” means they don’t ask anyone to read ruqya on them. So, if you see him willing to have ruqya recited on him, do so to avoid making him request it. Also, if you see that the sick loves that you stay longer with him, then do so. You are upon goodness and reward, so extend your stay to enter joy into his heart. Perhaps this joy will be a cause for his healing. That’s because his happiness and the joy in his heart are from the greatest causes of his healing. So, if you see that he loves that you stay longer with him, extend your stay until you see him getting bored. But if you see him burdened and doesn't want you stay, but would like you to leave so his family can attend and comfort him, then don’t extend your stay. Ask about his condition and leave immediately.