All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah. To proceed:
A debt is a right of another person that stays upon the debtor until it is settled. The Prophet and the scholars weighed the matter of debt so heavily that not even dying for the sake of Allah, among the greatest of deeds, removes it.
Few deeds are greater than dying for the sake of Allah . The one who dies for His sake is promised forgiveness, mercy and eternal bliss, and Allah , the Lord of the worlds, places him in the company of those upon whom He has bestowed His favour. Allah says:
﴿وَمَنْ يُطِعِ اللَّهَ وَالرَّسُولَ فَأُولَئِكَ مَعَ الَّذِينَ أَنْعَمَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِمْ مِنَ النَّبِيِّينَ وَالصِّدِّيقِينَ وَالشُّهَدَاءِ وَالصَّالِحِينَ وَحَسُنَ أُولَئِكَ رَفِيقًا﴾
“And whoso obeys Allah and the Messenger (Muḥammad ), then they will be in the company of those on whom Allah has bestowed His Grace, of the Prophets, the Ṣiddīqūn (those followers of the Prophets who were first and foremost to believe in them), those who died for the sake of Allah, and the righteous. And how excellent these companions are!” [Q 4:69]
Yet the Messenger of Allah told us that even this exalted rank does not erase one thing: the rights of other people that a man has taken upon himself in the form of debt.
It is important, however, to distinguish between those who incur debt out of genuine necessity, with a sincere intention and every effort to repay it, and those who treat the rights of others with negligence and disregard. May Allah protect us from being burdened by debt.
The blameworthy debt addressed here is that which a person had the means to repay but neglected to settle; or for which he left sufficient wealth but failed to leave instructions for its repayment; or which he incurred through extravagance and foolishness, only to die without having fulfilled his obligation.
How Lightly We Have Come to Treat Debt
Debt has never been easier to take on. A purchase that once required a visit to a lender, a conversation and a promise made face to face can now be completed with the touch of a card or a phone. Credit is offered at the checkout, spending limits are raised without being requested, and the price of almost anything can be divided into small monthly instalments so that its full weight is hardly felt.
Many of these arrangements are made even more appealing by the promise of interest-free payments, giving the impression that one can borrow without any additional cost or consequence. Yet the reality is not always so straightforward. Some agreements may not charge interest provided payments are made on time, but require the borrower to agree, from the outset, to pay interest if they miss a payment or fail to settle the debt within a specified period. Even if the borrower intends to pay on time and never actually incurs any interest, agreeing to a contract that obliges them to pay ribā (interest) in the event of late payment is itself prohibited according to many scholars. The absence of interest in practice does not necessarily make the agreement permissible when the contract itself contains a condition requiring its payment.
But even where an agreement is genuinely free of interest and such conditions, the ease of spreading payments can encourage people to spend beyond their means, accumulating several small debts that together become a considerable burden. What appears to be a convenient payment option can quietly become a financial obligation that follows a person for months or even years.
In a society that increasingly uses no physical money, nothing passes from hand to hand. A figure on a screen goes up, and another figure is promised for later. The ease of the transaction can conceal the seriousness of the obligation, but the debt remains real, and so does the responsibility to repay it.
This ease has changed how people regard what they owe. Debt was once entered into out of need, with caution and a firm intention to repay. Today it is often treated as an ordinary feature of life, a routine arrangement rather than a right that belongs to another human being. Because the money is never held in the hand, the seriousness of owing it is easily forgotten.
The ruling of the Sharīʿah has not changed with the method of payment. A debt remains a right of another person that stays upon the debtor until it is settled. Borrowing on interest is a separate and graver matter, which requires a separate article.
“Except Debt”
ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿAmr ibn al-ʿĀṣ narrated that the Messenger of Allah said:
يُغْفَرُ لِلشَّهِيدِ كُلُّ ذَنْبٍ إِلَّا الدَّيْنَ
“All the sins of the one who dies for the sake of Allah are forgiven except debt.” (Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, no. 1886)
It was reported by Muslim (d. 261 AH/875 CE), and also by Aḥmad (d. 241 AH/855 CE) and al-Ḥākim (d. 405 AH/1014 CE), from ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿAmr .
Abū Qatādah narrated that the Messenger of Allah stood among them and mentioned that striving in the way of Allah and belief in Allah are the best of deeds. A man stood and said: “O Messenger of Allah, if I am killed in the way of Allah, will my sins be expiated?” The Messenger of Allah said:
نَعَمْ، إِنْ قُتِلْتَ فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ، وَأَنْتَ صَابِرٌ مُحْتَسِبٌ، مُقْبِلٌ غَيْرُ مُدْبِرٍ
“Yes, if you are killed in the way of Allah while you are patient, seeking reward, advancing and not retreating.”
Then the Messenger of Allah said, “How did you say it?” The man repeated: “If I am killed in the way of Allah, will my sins be expiated?” The Messenger of Allah said:
نَعَمْ، وَأَنْتَ صَابِرٌ مُحْتَسِبٌ، مُقْبِلٌ غَيْرُ مُدْبِرٍ، إِلَّا الدَّيْنَ، فَإِنَّ جِبْرِيلَ قَالَ لِي ذَلِكَ
“Yes, while you are patient, seeking reward, advancing and not retreating, except debt, for Jibrīl told me that.” (Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, no. 1885)
The Severity of the Matter
Muḥammad ibn Jaḥsh said: We were sitting one day in the place where funerals were laid down with the Messenger of Allah . He raised his head towards the sky, then placed his palm on his forehead and said, “Subḥān Allāh! What severity has been sent down!” We remained silent and were afraid. The following day I asked him, “O Messenger of Allah, what is this severity that has been sent down?” He said:
فِي الدَّيْنِ، وَالَّذِي نَفْسِي بِيَدِهِ، لَوْ أَنَّ رَجُلًا قُتِلَ فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ، ثُمَّ أُحْيِيَ، ثُمَّ قُتِلَ مَرَّتَيْنِ، وَعَلَيْهِ دَيْنٌ، مَا دَخَلَ الْجَنَّةَ حَتَّى يُقْضَى عَنْهُ دَيْنُهُ
“It concerns debt. By the One in Whose hand is my soul, if a man were killed in the way of Allah, then brought back to life, then killed twice, and he owed a debt, he would not enter Paradise until his debt was paid off on his behalf.” (Al-Bayhaqī, as-Sunan al-Kubrā, vol. 11, p. 312, no. 11067)
It was also reported by an-Nasāʾī (d. 303 AH/915 CE), no. 4698, and by al-Bayhaqī (d. 458 AH/1066 CE) in Shuʿab al-Īmān, vol. 7, p. 373, where the wording differs slightly in the number of times the man is killed. Al-Ḥākim also reported it in al-Mustadrak, vol. 2, p. 25, and al-Albānī (d. 1420 AH/1999 CE) graded it ḥasan in Ṣaḥīḥ Sunan an-Nasāʾī, no. 4367.
The Statements of the Early and Classical Scholars
An-Nawawī (d. 676 AH/1277 CE) said, on the words “except debt”:
وَأَمَّا قَوْلُهُ : إِلَّا الدَّيْنَ، فَفِيهِ تَنْبِيهٌ عَلَى جَمِيعِ حُقُوقِ الْآدَمِيِّينَ، وَأَنَّ الْجِهَادَ وَالشَّهَادَةَ وَغَيْرَهُمَا مِنْ أَعْمَالِ الْبِرِّ لَا يُكَفِّرُ حُقُوقَ الْآدَمِيِّينَ، وَإِنَّمَا يُكَفِّرُ حُقُوقَ اللَّهِ تَعَالَى
“As for his saying , ‘except debt’, it draws attention to all the rights owed to other people, and establishes that and that striving in the way of Allah, dying for His sake and other righteous deeds do not expiate the rights owed to people. Rather, they expiate what pertains to the rights of Allah.” (An-Nawawī, al-Minhāj Sharḥ Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim ibn al-Ḥajjāj, vol. 13, p. 29)
How Merciful Allah Is, and How Just He Is!
Out of His immense mercy, Allah forgives His servants when they sincerely repent to Him for their shortcomings and violations of His rights, such as neglecting what He has commanded or falling into what He has prohibited. Yet, out of His perfect justice, He does not allow the rights of His creation to be disregarded. When we wrong others, we are required to seek their forgiveness, restore their rights and rectify the harm we have caused. Such is the perfection of Allah’s mercy and justice: He forgives those who repent to Him, while ensuring that the rights of those who have been wronged are not forgotten.
Ibn Ḥajar al-ʿAsqalānī (d. 852 AH/1449 CE) said:
وَأَمَّا الْحَدِيثُ الْآخَرُ الصَّحِيحُ: إِنَّ الشَّهِيدَ يُغْفَرُ لَهُ كُلُّ شَيْءٍ إِلَّا الدَّيْنَ؛ فَإِنَّهُ يُسْتَفَادُ مِنْهُ أَنَّ الشَّهَادَةَ لَا تُكَفِّرُ التَّبِعَاتِ، وَحُصُولُ التَّبِعَاتِ لَا يَمْنَعُ حُصُولَ دَرَجَةِ الشَّهَادَةِ…
“As for the other authentic ḥadīth, ‘The one who dies for the sake of Allah is forgiven everything except debt’, it is understood from it that dying for the sake of Allah does not expiate at-tabiʿāt (the claims and dues owed to other people), and that the existence of such outstanding at-tabiʿāt does not prevent a person from attaining the rank of martyrdom.” (Ibn Ḥajar, Fatḥ al-Bārī, vol. 10, p. 193)
Ibn ʿAbd al-Barr (d. 463 AH/1071 CE) listed the lessons to be drawn from the narrations on debt. Among them he said:
وَمِنْهَا أَنَّ الْمَرْءَ يُحْبَسُ عَنِ الْجَنَّةِ مِنْ أَجْلِ دَيْنِهِ حَتَّى يَقَعَ الْقِصَاصُ، وَمِنْهَا أَنَّ الْقَضَاءَ عَنِ الْمَيِّتِ بَعْدَهُ فِي الدُّنْيَا يَنْفَعُ الْمَيِّتَ فِي الْآخِرَةِ، وَمِنْهَا أَنَّ الْمَيِّتَ إِنَّمَا يُحْبَسُ عَنِ الْجَنَّةِ بِدَيْنِهِ إِذَا كَانَ لَهُ وَفَاءٌ وَلَمْ يُوصِ بِهِ وَلَمْ يُشْهِدْ عَلَيْهِ، وَالْوَصِيَّةُ بِالدَّيْنِ فَرْضٌ عِنْدَ الْجَمِيعِ إِذَا لَمْ يَكُنْ عَلَيْهِ بَيِّنَةٌ، فَإِذَا لَمْ يُوصِ بِهِ كَانَ عَاصِيًا، وَبِعِصْيَانِهِ ذَلِكَ يُحْبَسُ عَنِ الْجَنَّةِ، وَاللَّهُ أَعْلَمُ
“Among the lessons derived from this is that a person may be held back from Paradise on account of his debt until the matter of retribution and the settlement of rights takes place. Another is that settling a deceased person’s debt on his behalf in this worldly life, after his death, benefits him in the Hereafter. Another is that the deceased is only held back from Paradise on account of his debt if he had sufficient means to repay it but neither left instructions for its repayment nor had witnesses attest to it. Leaving instructions concerning a debt is obligatory according to all the scholars when there is no evidence establishing that debt. Therefore, if he fails to leave such instructions, he is disobedient, and it is because of this disobedience that he is held back from Paradise. And Allah knows best.” (Ibn ʿAbd al-Barr, at-Tamhīd, vol. 23, p. 238)
He also noted:
وَقَدْ قِيلَ إِنَّ قَوْلَ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ وَتَشْدِيدَهُ فِي الدَّيْنِ كَانَ مِنْ قَبْلِ أَنْ يَفْتَحَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ مَا يَجِبُ مِنْهُ الْفَيْءُ وَالصَّدَقَاتُ لِأَهْلِهَا
“It has also been said that the Messenger of Allah’s statements and his sternness concerning debt were before Allah granted him access to the wealth from which fayʾ and charity were to be distributed to those entitled to them.” (Ibn ʿAbd al-Barr, at-Tamhīd, vol. 23, p. 239)
Al-Qurṭubī (d. 671 AH/1273 CE), in his commentary on Sūrat Āl ʿImrān, defined the debt that holds a person back from Paradise, closely following the wording of Ibn ʿAbd al-Barr:
الدَّيْنُ الَّذِي يُحْبَسُ بِهِ صَاحِبُهُ عَنِ الْجَنَّةِ، وَاللَّهُ أَعْلَمُ، هُوَ الَّذِي قَدْ تَرَكَ لَهُ وَفَاءً وَلَمْ يُوصِ بِهِ، أَوْ قَدَرَ عَلَى الْأَدَاءِ فَلَمْ يُؤَدِّهِ، أَوِ ادَّانَهُ فِي سَرَفٍ أَوْ فِي سَفَهٍ وَمَاتَ وَلَمْ يُوَفِّهِ. وَأَمَّا مَنِ ادَّانَ فِي حَقٍّ وَاجِبٍ لِفَاقَةٍ وَعُسْرٍ وَمَاتَ وَلَمْ يَتْرُكْ وَفَاءً فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ لَا يَحْبِسُهُ عَنِ الْجَنَّةِ إِنْ شَاءَ اللَّهُ، لِأَنَّ عَلَى السُّلْطَانِ فَرْضًا أَنْ يُؤَدِّيَ عَنْهُ دَيْنَهُ، إِمَّا مِنْ جُمْلَةِ الصَّدَقَاتِ، أَوْ مِنْ سَهْمِ الْغَارِمِينَ، أَوْ مِنَ الْفَيْءِ الرَّاجِعِ عَلَى الْمُسْلِمِينَ. قَالَ : مَنْ تَرَكَ دَيْنًا أَوْ ضَيَاعًا فَعَلَى اللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِ، وَمَنْ تَرَكَ مَالًا فَلِوَرَثَتِهِ
“The debt on account of which a person is held back from Paradise – and Allah knows best, is that for which he left behind sufficient means of repayment but did not leave instructions for it to be paid; or he was able to repay it but failed to do so; or he incurred it through extravagance or foolishness and died without settling it. As for the one who incurred debt to fulfil a necessary obligation because of poverty and hardship, and then died without leaving behind sufficient means to repay it, Allah will not hold him back from Paradise, if Allah wills. This is because it is an obligation upon the ruler to settle his debt on his behalf, whether from the general funds of charity, from the share allocated to those in debt, or from the fayʾ (public revenues) that belong to the Muslims. The Prophet said: ‘Whoever leaves behind a debt or dependants in need of care, then their responsibility falls upon Allah and His Messenger; and whoever leaves behind wealth, it belongs to his heirs.’” (Al-Qurṭubī, al-Jāmiʿ li-Aḥkām al-Qurʾān, vol. 4, p. 274)
Jalāl ad-Dīn as-Suyūṭī (d. 911 AH/1505 CE), commenting on the words “except debt” in Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, no. 1886, wrote:
إِلَّا الدّين قَالَ النَّوَوِيّ والقرطبي: فِيهِ تَنْبِيه على جَمِيع حُقُوق الْآدَمِيّين وَأَن الْجِهَاد وَالشَّهَادَة وَغَيرهمَا من أَعمال الْبر لَا تكفر حُقُوق الْآدَمِيّين وَإِنَّمَا تكفر حُقُوق الله تَعَالَى
“‘Except debt’: an-Nawawī and al-Qurṭubī said: in it is a pointer to all the rights of people, and that striving in the way of Allah, dying for His sake and other righteous deeds do not expiate the rights of people; rather, they expiate the rights of Allah, the Most High.” (As-Suyūṭī, Sharḥ as-Suyūṭī ʿalā Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, vol. 4, p. 477)
The Statements of Contemporary Scholars
ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn Bāz (d. 1420 AH/1999 CE) was asked about the ruling on the one who is killed in the way of Allah. He answered:
وَأَمَّا حُكْمُهُ عِنْدَ اللَّهِ، فَإِنْ قُتِلَ صَابِرًا مُحْتَسِبًا مُقْبِلًا غَيْرَ مُدْبِرٍ، مُوَحِّدًا لِلَّهِ قَاصِدًا وَجْهَهُ الْكَرِيمَ، فَإِنَّهُ تُكَفَّرُ عَنْهُ خَطَايَاهُ وَيَكُونُ مِنْ أَهْلِ الْجَنَّةِ؛ لِأَنَّهُ جَاءَ فِي الرِّوَايَةِ الْأُخْرَى عَنِ الرَّسُولِ أَنَّهُ قَالَ: إِلَّا الدَّيْنَ، قَالَ: أَخْبَرَنِي بِهِ جِبْرَائِيلُ آنِفًا، فَالدَّيْنُ مَعْنَاهُ أَنَّ صَاحِبَهُ لَا يَرْجِعُ إِلَيْهِ دَيْنُهُ، بَلْ يُعْطَى حَقَّهُ، إِمَّا بِأَنَّهُ يُرْضِيهِ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ مِنْ فَضْلِهِ وَإِحْسَانِهِ، وَإِمَّا أَنْ يُعْطَى مِنْ حَسَنَاتِ هَذَا الشَّهِيدِ مَا يُقَابِلُ هَذَا الدَّيْنَ، فَالشَّهِيدُ عَلَى خَيْرٍ، وَصَاحِبُ الدَّيْنِ لَا يَضِيعُ حَقُّهُ، بَلِ اللَّهُ يُرْضِيهِ عَنْهُ سُبْحَانَهُ بِمَا يَشَاءُ جَلَّ وَعَلَا
“As for his standing before Allah, if he is killed while remaining patient, seeking reward from Allah, advancing and not retreating, affirming the oneness of Allah and seeking His Noble Face, then his sins will be expiated and he will be among the people of Paradise. For it has been reported in another narration from the Messenger of Allah that he said: ‘Except debt.’ He also said: ‘Jibrīl has just informed me of this.’ What this means concerning debt is that the creditor will not be deprived of what is owed to him. Rather, he will be given his right, either by Allah satisfying him on the Day of Resurrection through His bounty and kindness, or by granting him from the good deeds of this martyr an amount corresponding to the debt. Thus, the martyr remains in a state of goodness, and the creditor’s right will not be lost. Rather, Allah will satisfy him concerning his right in whatever manner He wills, Mighty and Majestic
” (Ibn Bāz, Fatāwā Nūr ʿalā ad-Darb, vol. 18, p. 261)
In another answer he said:
وَأَنَّ صَاحِبَ الدَّيْنِ لَا يَضِيعُ حَقُّهُ، بَلْ يُرْضِيهِ اللَّهُ عَنْ حَقِّهِ، وَيُعْطِيهِ حَقَّهُ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ، وَلَا يَضِيعُ عَلَيْهِ شَيْءٌ، وَالشَّهِيدُ يُغْفَرُ لَهُ كُلُّ شَيْءٍ، لَكِنَّ الدَّيْنَ الَّذِي عَلَيْهِ يَقْضِيهِ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ ، لَا يَضِيعُ عَلَى صَاحِبِهِ
“And the creditor’s right will not be lost. Rather, Allah will satisfy him concerning his right and grant him what is due to him on the Day of Resurrection, and nothing of it will be lost to him. The martyr is forgiven everything, but the debt he owes will be settled on his behalf by Allah, Mighty and Majestic, and the creditor will not lose what is rightfully his.” (Ibn Bāz, Fatāwā Nūr ʿalā ad-Darb, vol. 4, p. 338)
Muḥammad Nāṣir ad-Dīn al-Albānī (d. 1420 AH/1999 CE) was asked whether the debt prevents the one who dies for the sake of Allah from entering Paradise. He answered:
لَا، لَيْسَ هُنَاكَ حَدِيثٌ يَقُولُ: إِنَّ هَذَا الشَّهِيدَ الْمَدِينَ لَا يَدْخُلُ الْجَنَّةَ، وَإِنَّمَا الْحَدِيثُ يَقُولُ: يُغْفَرُ لِلشَّهِيدِ كُلُّ ذَنْبٍ لَهُ إِلَّا الدَّيْنَ. تُغْفَرُ ذُنُوبُهُ كُلُّهَا إِلَّا الدَّيْنَ، لَكِنْ كَوْنُهُ يَدْخُلُ الْجَنَّةَ أَوْ لَا يَدْخُلُ الْجَنَّةَ هَذِهِ قَضِيَّةٌ أُخْرَى، يَعْنِي: نَحْنُ لَا نَقْدِرُ نَقُولُ عَنْ غَيْرِ الشَّهِيدِ إِنَّهُ إِذَا كَانَ مَاتَ مَدِينًا لَا يَدْخُلُ الْجَنَّةَ، عَنْ غَيْرِ الشَّهِيدِ، فَمَا بَالُكَ بِالشَّهِيدِ؟ لَكِنَّنَا نَقُولُ: إِنَّهُ مَوْتُ الشَّهِيدِ وَعَلَيْهِ دَيْنٌ يَمْنَعُ أَنْ يُغْفَرَ عَنْهُ هَذَا الذَّنْبُ فَقَطْ وَهُوَ الدَّيْنُ، بَيْنَمَا الذُّنُوبُ الْأُخْرَى تُغْفَرُ لَهُ
“No. There is no ḥadīth which states that this martyr who is in debt will not enter Paradise. Rather, the ḥadīth states: ‘Every sin of the martyr is forgiven except debt.’ All of his sins are forgiven except debt. However, whether he enters Paradise or does not enter Paradise is a separate matter. That is to say, we cannot even say concerning someone who is not a martyr that, if he dies while owing a debt, he will not enter Paradise. This is concerning someone who is not a martyr, so what, then, of the martyr? Rather, what we say is that when a martyr dies while owing a debt, this prevents that particular sin alone, namely the debt, from being forgiven, whereas his other sins are forgiven.” (Al-Albānī, al-Hudā wa-n-Nūr, tape no. 141, in Jāmiʿ Turāth al-ʿAllāmah al-Albānī fī al-ʿAqīdah, vol. 9, p. 402)
Muḥammad ibn Ṣāliḥ al-ʿUthaymīn (d. 1421 AH/2001 CE), in his explanation of Riyāḍ aṣ-Ṣāliḥīn, said of the ḥadīth of Abū Qatādah :
أَمَّا الْحَدِيثُ الثَّانِي فَفِيهِ دَلِيلٌ عَلَى أَنَّ الشَّهَادَةَ إِذَا قَاتَلَ الْإِنْسَانُ فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ صَابِرًا مُحْتَسِبًا مُقْبِلًا غَيْرَ مُدْبِرٍ فَإِنَّ ذَلِكَ يُكَفِّرُ عَنْهُ خَطِيئَاتِهِ وَسَيِّئَاتِهِ إِلَّا الدَّيْنَ، إِذَا كَانَ عَلَيْهِ دَيْنٌ فَإِنَّهُ لَا يَسْقُطُ بِالشَّهَادَةِ؛ لِأَنَّهُ حَقُّ آدَمِيٍّ، وَحَقُّ الْآدَمِيِّ لَا بُدَّ مِنْ وَفَائِهِ
“As for the second ḥadīth, it contains evidence that when a person fights in the way of Allah, remaining patient, seeking reward from Him, advancing and not retreating, then martyrdom expiates his mistakes and sins, except for debt. If he owes a debt, it is not discharged by martyrdom, because it is a right belonging to another person, and the rights of people must be fulfilled
” (Ibn ʿUthaymīn, Sharḥ Riyāḍ aṣ-Ṣāliḥīn, vol. 2, p. 526)
In his notes on al-Kāfī of Ibn Qudāmah (d. 620 AH/1223 CE), explaining why the one who dies on the battlefield is not given the funeral prayer, he said:
وَشَهِيدُ الْمَعْرَكَةِ لَا يَحْتَاجُ إِلَى شَفَاعَةٍ لِأَنَّهُ مَغْفُورٌ لَهُ كُلُّ شَيْءٍ إِلَّا الدَّيْنَ، وَلِهَذَا كَانَ النَّبِيُّ قَبْلَ أَنْ يَفْتَحَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ يَسْأَلُ عَمَّنْ عَلَيْهِ دَيْنٌ لَمْ يُخَلِّفْ وَفَاءً فَلَا يُصَلِّي عَلَيْهِ
“The one who dies on the battlefield is not in need of intercession, because everything is forgiven for him except debt. For this reason, before Allah granted the Prophet conquests, he would ask about a deceased person who owed a debt and had not left behind sufficient means to repay it, and he would not offer the funeral prayer over him
.” (Ibn ʿUthaymīn, Taʿlīqāt ʿalā al-Kāfī, vol. 2, p. 366)
The One Who Intends to Repay
The seriousness of debt does not make every borrower blameworthy. Abū Hurayrah narrated that the Prophet said:
مَنْ أَخَذَ أَمْوَالَ النَّاسِ يُرِيدُ أَدَاءَهَا أَدَّى اللَّهُ عَنْهُ، وَمَنْ أَخَذَ يُرِيدُ إِتْلَافَهَا أَتْلَفَهُ اللَّهُ
“Whoever takes the wealth of people intending to repay it, Allah will repay it on his behalf; and whoever takes it intending to destroy it, Allah will destroy him.” (Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, no. 2387)
The Debt That the Prophet Treated Seriously
Jābir ibn ʿAbd Allāh narrated:
تُوُفِّيَ رَجُلٌ فَغَسَّلْنَاهُ وَكَفَّنَّاهُ، ثُمَّ أَتَيْنَا بِهِ النَّبِيَّ لِيُصَلِّيَ عَلَيْهِ، فَتَخَطَّى خُطًى ثُمَّ قَالَ: عَلَيْهِ دَيْنٌ؟ قُلْنَا: نَعَمْ، دِينَارَانِ. قَالَ: فَانْصَرَفَ، فَتَحَمَّلَهُمَا أَبُو قَتَادَةَ، فَأَتَيْنَاهُ، فَقَالَ أَبُو قَتَادَةَ: الدِّينَارَانِ عَلَيَّ. فَقَالَ النَّبِيُّ : حَقُّ الْغَرِيمِ، وَبَرِئَ مِنْهُمَا الْمَيِّتُ؟ قَالَ: نَعَمْ. قَالَ: فَصَلَّى عَلَيْهِ. فَقَالَ بَعْدَ ذَلِكَ بِيَوْمٍ: مَا فَعَلَ الدِّينَارَانِ؟ فَقَالَ: إِنَّمَا مَاتَ أَمْسِ. فَعَادَ عَلَيْهِ كَالْغَدِ فَقَالَ: قَدْ قَضَيْتُهُمَا. فَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ : الْآنَ بَرَّدْتَ عَلَيْهِ جِلْدَهُ
“A man died, so we washed him and shrouded him, then brought him to the Prophet for him to pray over him. He took a few steps, then said, ‘Is there a debt upon him?’ We said, ‘Yes, two dīnārs.’ So he turned away, and Abū Qatādah took them upon himself. We came to him, and Abū Qatādah said, ‘The two dīnārs are upon me.’ The Prophet said, ‘The right of the creditor is due, and the deceased is free of them?’ He said, ‘Yes.’ So he prayed over him. Then, a day later, he said, ‘What became of the two dīnārs?’ He said, ‘He only died yesterday.’ Then he came back to him the next day and said, ‘I have paid them.’ The Messenger of Allah said, ‘Now you have cooled his skin for him.’” (Al-Bayhaqī, as-Sunan al-Kubrā, vol. 11, pp. 555–556, no. 11512)
Aḥmad also reported it (no. 14536), and al-Haythamī (d. 807 AH/1405 CE) said that its chain is ḥasan.
How many times have we borrowed money at the last minute without considering the seriousness of the matter? How many times have we “borrowed” a pound or five pounds from a friend at a gathering and then forgotten the loan? If this is the weight of debt upon one who died for the sake of Allah, then it is more grave for those who did not.
The Duʿāʾ for Debt
Warning against debt is not the whole of the Sunnah. The Prophet also taught his Ummah what to ask of Allah , both to be spared the burden of debt and to be helped out of it.
The Duʿāʾ Taught to the One Who Could Not Pay
ʿAlī narrated that a mukātab (a slave who had entered into a contract to purchase his freedom) came to him asking for help, and he taught him this supplication:
أَنَّ مُكَاتَبًا جَاءَهُ، فَقَالَ: إِنِّي قَدْ عَجَزْتُ عَنْ مُكَاتَبَتِي فَأَعِنِّي، قَالَ: أَلَا أُعَلِّمُكَ كَلِمَاتٍ عَلَّمَنِيهِنَّ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ؟ لَوْ كَانَ عَلَيْكَ مِثْلُ جَبَلِ صِيرٍ دَيْنًا أَدَّاهُ اللَّهُ عَنْكَ، قَالَ: قُلِ: اللَّهُمَّ اكْفِنِي بِحَلَالِكَ عَنْ حَرَامِكَ، وَأَغْنِنِي بِفَضْلِكَ عَمَّنْ سِوَاكَ
“A mukātab came to him and said, ‘I am unable to pay my contract, so help me.’ He said, ‘Shall I not teach you words that the Messenger of Allah taught me? Even if you owed the like of Mount Ṣīr in debt, Allah would pay it off for you.’ He said, ‘Say: O Allah, suffice me with what You have made lawful instead of what You have made unlawful, and enrich me by Your bounty so that I need none besides You.’” (Sunan at-Tirmidhī, no. 3563)
At-Tirmidhī (d. 279 AH/892 CE) said: “This ḥadīth is ḥasan gharīb” (hādhā ḥadīthun ḥasanun gharīb). Al-Ḥākim also reported it and said that its chain is ṣaḥīḥ. The editors of the Risālah edition of the Musnad (no. 1319), however, graded the chain of Aḥmad weak because of ʿAbd ar-Raḥmān ibn Isḥāq.
Seeking Refuge from Debt
ʿĀʾishah narrated that the Prophet used to supplicate in his prayer, and among his words was:
اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَعُوذُ بِكَ … مِنَ الْمَأْثَمِ وَالْمَغْرَمِ. قَالَتْ: فَقَالَ لَهُ قَائِلٌ: مَا أَكْثَرَ مَا تَسْتَعِيذُ مِنَ الْمَغْرَمِ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ! فَقَالَ: إِنَّ الرَّجُلَ إِذَا غَرِمَ حَدَّثَ فَكَذَبَ، وَوَعَدَ فَأَخْلَفَ
“O Allah, I seek refuge in You … from sin and from debt.” She said: Someone said to him, “How often you seek refuge from debt, O Messenger of Allah!” He said, “When a man is in debt, he speaks and lies, and he promises and breaks his promise.” (Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, no. 589; Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, no. 832)
Commentary on the Duʿāʾ
Ibn Ḥajar al-ʿAsqalānī, explaining the words “from sin and from debt” in the chapter on seeking refuge from them, said:
وَالْمُرَادُ الْإِثْمُ وَالْغَرَامَةُ، وَهِيَ مَا يَلْزَمُ الشَّخْصَ أَدَاؤُهُ كَالدَّيْنِ
“What is meant is sin and gharāmah, which is what a person is bound to pay, such as a debt.” (Ibn Ḥajar, Fatḥ al-Bārī, vol. 11, p. 177)
An-Nawawī said, on the Prophet’s seeking refuge from al-maghram:
وَأَمَّا اسْتِعَاذَتُهُ مِنَ الْمَغْرَمِ وَهُوَ الدَّيْنُ، فَقَدْ فَسَّرَهُ فِي الْأَحَادِيثِ السَّابِقَةِ فِي كِتَابِ الصَّلَاةِ: أَنَّ الرَّجُلَ إِذَا غَرِمَ حَدَّثَ فَكَذَبَ وَوَعَدَ فَأَخْلَفَ، وَلِأَنَّهُ قَدْ يَمْطُلُ الْمَدِينُ صَاحِبَ الدَّيْنِ، وَلِأَنَّهُ قَدْ يَشْتَغِلُ بِهِ قَلْبُهُ، وَرُبَّمَا مَاتَ قَبْلَ وَفَائِهِ فَبَقِيَتْ ذِمَّتُهُ مُرْتَهَنَةً بِهِ
“As for his seeking refuge from al-maghram, which is debt, he has explained it in the earlier aḥādīth in the Book of Prayer: that when a man is in debt he speaks and lies, and promises and breaks his promise. And because the debtor may delay the one to whom he owes, and because his heart may become occupied with it, and he may die before paying it, so that his account remains pledged to it.” (An-Nawawī, al-Minhāj Sharḥ Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim ibn al-Ḥajjāj, vol. 17, p. 29)
Al-Mubārakfūrī (d. 1353 AH/1934 CE), in his commentary on the ḥadīth of ʿAlī , quoted aṭ-Ṭībī (d. 743 AH/1343 CE):
قَالَ الطِّيبِيُّ: طَلَبَ الْمُكَاتَبُ الْمَالَ فَعَلَّمَهُ الدُّعَاءَ، إِمَّا لِأَنَّهُ لَمْ يَكُنْ عِنْدَهُ مِنَ الْمَالِ لِيُعِينَهُ فَرَدَّهُ أَحْسَنَ رَدٍّ عَمَلًا بِقَوْلِهِ تَعَالَى: ﴿قَوْلٌ مَعْرُوفٌ وَمَغْفِرَةٌ خَيْرٌ﴾، أَوْ أَرْشَدَهُ إِشَارَةً إِلَى أَنَّ الْأَوْلَى وَالْأَصْلَحَ لَهُ أَنْ يَسْتَعِينَ بِاللَّهِ لِأَدَائِهَا وَلَا يَتَّكِلَ عَلَى الْغَيْرِ، وَيَنْصُرُ هَذَا الْوَجْهَ قَوْلُهُ: وَأَغْنِنِي بِفَضْلِكَ عَمَّنْ سِوَاكَ
“Aṭ-Ṭībī said: The mukātab (a slave who had entered into a contract to purchase his freedom) asked for financial assistance, so he taught him the supplication. This was either because he did not have any wealth with which to assist him, so he responded to him in the best possible manner, acting upon the saying of Allah: ‘Kind words and forgiveness are better’ [Q 2:263]; or he was guiding him, indicating that what was better and more beneficial for him was to seek Allah’s assistance in fulfilling his financial obligation rather than relying upon others. (Al-Mubārakfūrī, Tuḥfat al-Aḥwadhī, vol. 10, p. 7)
On the words “with what You have made lawful instead of what You have made unlawful,” he said:
أَيْ مُتَجَاوِزًا أَوْ مُسْتَغْنِيًا مِنْهُ
“That is, going beyond it, or being independent of it.” (Al-Mubārakfūrī, Tuḥfat al-Aḥwadhī, vol. 10, p. 7)
Conclusion
Debt is a right of people that is not expiated even by dying for the sake of Allah, which expiates the sins that concern the rights of Allah .
The scholars distinguished between the debt for which a person is held back and the debt of one who borrowed out of real need and was unable to pay. The first is held against the one who neglected to settle it, to leave instructions, or to avoid extravagance; the second, they said, does not keep him from Paradise, if Allah wills. They also stressed that the creditor’s right is not lost, and that Allah is the One who will give every right to its owner.
The remedy is to borrow only out of need and with a firm intention to repay, to settle debts promptly, to record and bequeath them, to seek forgiveness from creditors, and, on behalf of the deceased, to pay what he owed. Alongside this, the believer asks Allah for sufficiency through what is lawful, with the supplication that the Prophet taught, and seeks refuge in Him from the burden of debt.
We ask Allah to grant us the ability to fulfil the rights of others, to free us from the burden of debt, and to forgive us and those who have gone before us. And Allah knows best.
References
- Muslim ibn al-Ḥajjāj (d. 261 AH/875 CE), Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, ed. Muḥammad Fuʾād ʿAbd al-Bāqī, Kitāb al-Imārah, nos. 1885–1886; Kitāb al-Masājid, no. 589.
- Al-Bukhārī, Muḥammad ibn Ismāʿīl (d. 256 AH/870 CE), Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, nos. 832 and 2387.
- Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal (d. 241 AH/855 CE), al-Musnad (Risālah edition), nos. 1319, 7051, 14536, 17657 and 22476.
- At-Tirmidhī (d. 279 AH/892 CE), as-Sunan, no. 3563.
- An-Nasāʾī (d. 303 AH/915 CE), as-Sunan, no. 4698.
- Al-Ḥākim (d. 405 AH/1014 CE), al-Mustadrak ʿalā aṣ-Ṣaḥīḥayn (ʿIlmiyyah edition), vol. 1, p. 721; vol. 2, pp. 25 and 119.
- Al-Bayhaqī (d. 458 AH/1066 CE), as-Sunan al-Kubrā, ed. ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿAbd al-Muḥsin at-Turkī, vol. 11, p. 312 (no. 11067) and pp. 555–556 (no. 11512); Shuʿab al-Īmān, vol. 7, p. 373.
- Al-Qāḍī ʿIyāḍ (d. 544 AH/1149 CE), Ikmāl al-Muʿlim bi-Fawāʾid Muslim, vol. 6, p. 304.
- An-Nawawī, Yaḥyā ibn Sharaf (d. 676 AH/1277 CE), al-Minhāj Sharḥ Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim ibn al-Ḥajjāj, vol. 13, p. 29; vol. 17, p. 29.
- Ibn Ḥajar al-ʿAsqalānī (d. 852 AH/1449 CE), Fatḥ al-Bārī (Salafiyyah edition), vol. 10, p. 193; vol. 11, p. 177.
- Ibn ʿAbd al-Barr (d. 463 AH/1071 CE), at-Tamhīd (Moroccan edition), vol. 23, pp. 238–239.
- Al-Qurṭubī, Muḥammad ibn Aḥmad (d. 671 AH/1273 CE), al-Jāmiʿ li-Aḥkām al-Qurʾān, vol. 4, p. 274.
- As-Suyūṭī, Jalāl ad-Dīn (d. 911 AH/1505 CE), Sharḥ as-Suyūṭī ʿalā Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, vol. 4, p. 477.
- Al-Haythamī (d. 807 AH/1405 CE), Majmaʿ az-Zawāʾid, vol. 3, p. 39.
- Aṭ-Ṭībī (d. 743 AH/1343 CE), quoted in al-Mubārakfūrī, Tuḥfat al-Aḥwadhī.
- Al-Mubārakfūrī (d. 1353 AH/1934 CE), Tuḥfat al-Aḥwadhī, vol. 10, p. 7.
- Ibn Bāz, ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz ibn ʿAbd Allāh (d. 1420 AH/1999 CE), Fatāwā Nūr ʿalā ad-Darb, vol. 4, pp. 337–338; vol. 18, pp. 260–261.
- Al-Albānī, Muḥammad Nāṣir ad-Dīn (d. 1420 AH/1999 CE), Ṣaḥīḥ Sunan an-Nasāʾī, no. 4367; al-Hudā wa-n-Nūr, tape no. 141, in Jāmiʿ Turāth al-ʿAllāmah al-Albānī fī al-ʿAqīdah, vol. 9, p. 402.
- Ibn ʿUthaymīn, Muḥammad ibn Ṣāliḥ (d. 1421 AH/2001 CE), Sharḥ Riyāḍ aṣ-Ṣāliḥīn, vol. 2, p. 526; Taʿlīqāt ʿalā al-Kāfī, vol. 2, p. 366.
- Ibn Qudāmah (d. 620 AH/1223 CE), al-Kāfī.
Qurʾānic passages cited: [Q 2:263], [Q 4:69].
