Satan at the time of death

14 May 2018 Ref-No#: 660

السلام علیکم ورحمة الله وبركاته

I’ve heard that Satan comes to a person at the time of his death in the form of his mother or father that passed away, and warns him that Oh son! Oh daughter! do not die on Islam, we died on Islam and Islam tended to be the false religion. And in this way tries to convert them to Christianity or Judaism.

Please comment on its authenticity and confirm if it is mentioned in some hadith.

جزاك الله خيرا

Answer

Wa’alaykum as Salam wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu,

When Shaytaan was expelled from Jannah, he took an oath that he will lead mankind and Jinn astray. In Surah al-A’raaf, Allah Ta’ala mentions:

قَالَ فَبِمَا أَغْوَيْتَنِي لَأَقْعُدَنَّ لَهُمْ صِرَاطَكَ الْمُسْتَقِيمَ (16) ثُمَّ لَآتِيَنَّهُم مِّن بَيْنِ أَيْدِيهِمْ وَمِنْ خَلْفِهِمْ وَعَنْ أَيْمَانِهِمْ وَعَن شَمَائِلِهِمْ ۖ وَلَا تَجِدُ أَكْثَرَهُمْ شَاكِرِينَ (17)

(Iblis) said: “Because You have sent me astray, surely I will sit in wait against them (human beings) on Your Straight Path.
Then I will come to them from before them and behind them, from their right and from their left, and You will not find most of them as thankful ones (i.e. they will not be dutiful to You).” (Verses 16 and 17)

Thus, it is definite that Shaytaan will try his best to misguide us throughout our lives. And, before death, he will utilise all his energies and efforts, since that is indeed his last chance.

It is precisely for this reason that the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) sought protection from the devil especially at the time of death. In a narration of Sunan Abi Dawood it is mentioned that the he (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) used to make the following Dua:

….وَأَعُوذُ بِكَ أَنْ يَتَخَبَّطَنِي الشَّيْطَانُ عِنْدَ الْمَوْتِ….(رواه ابو داود (1/568)

As for the narration in your question, we have not found it in any of the books of Ahadith which are at our disposal. Imam Qurtubi (may Allah be pleased with him) did narrate it in his book, at-Tadhkirah fi Ahwaal al-Mawtaa wa Umoor al-Aakhirah (29-30) and said it was narrated from the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam). He furthermore quotes this from Sharh Risaalah Ibn Abi Zayd, and Kashf ‘Uloom al-Aakhirah. However, no Sanad (chain of transmission) or ruling on the narration is given.

Imam Qurtubi (may Allah be pleased with him) then relates that he heard one of his own respected teachers, Imam Abul-‘Abbaas Ahmad bin Umar al-Qurtubi, say, “I visited our teachers brother, Shaykh Abu Ja’far Muhammad al-Qurtubi at Cordova and found him  to be close to death. It was said to him, ‘Say Laa ilaaha illallaah’, to which he replied, ‘No! No!’

When he became conscious, we related to him what had occurred. He said,

‘Two devils came to me, one on my left and the other on my right. One of them said, ‘Die as a Jew, for verily it is the best of religions,’ while the other said, ‘Die as a Christian, for truly it is the best of religions.’ So I answered them saying, ‘No! No! How dare you say such a thing to me!’” at-Tadhkirah fi Ahwaal al-Mawtaa wa Umoor al-Aakhirah (30)

From the afore-mentioned it is clear that we cannot attribute this to the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam). Rather, it has been the experiance of some people, amd may or may not happen to others.

References

باب ما جاء أن الميت يحضر الشيطان عند موته وجلساؤه في الدنيا وما يخاف من سوء الخاتمة
«روي عن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم أن العبد إذا كان عند الموت قعد عنده شيطانان الواحد عن يمينه والآخر عن شماله، فالذي عن يمينه على صفة أبيه، يقول له: يا بني إني كنت عليك شفيقاً ولك محباً، ولكن مت على دين النصارى فهو خير الأديان، والذي على شماله على صفة أمه، تقول له: يا بني إنه كان بطني لك وعاء، وثديي لك سقاء، وفخذي لك وطاء، ولكن مت على دين اليهود وهو خير الأديان» ، ذكره أبو الحسن القابسي في شرح رسالة ابن أبي زيد له، وذكر معناه أبو حامد في كتاب كشف علوم الآخرة ……..
……. “قال عبد الله بن أحمد بن حنبل : حضرت وفاة أبي ـ أحمد ـ وبيدي الخرقة لأشد لحييه ، فكان يعرق ثم يفيق ويقول بيده : لا بعد ، لا بعد . فعل هذا مراراً !! فقلت له : يا أبت أي شيء ما يبدو منك ؟ فقال : إن الشيطان قائم بحذائي عاض على أنامله يقول : يا أحمد فُتَّنِي ، وأنا أقول : لا بعد ، لا حتى أموت”.
قلت : ” سمعت شيخنا الإمام أبا العباس أحمد بن عمر القرطبي بثغر الإسكندرية يقول : حضرت أخا شيخنا أبي جعفر أحمد بن محمد بن محمد القرطبي بقرطبة وقد احتضر. فقيل له : قل : لا إله إلا الله ، فكان يقول : لا ، لا.
فلما أفاق ذكرنا له ذلك ؟
فقال : أتاني شيطانان عن يميني وعن شمالي ، يقول أحدهما : مت يهودياً فإنه خير الأديان ، والآخر يقول : مت نصرانياً فإنه خير الأديان .
فكنت أقول لهما: لا لا . فكان الجواب لهما ، لا لكما .
قلت : ومثل هذا عن الصالحين كثير ، يكون الجواب للشيطان ، لا لمن يلقنه الشهادة ” “التذكرة في أحوال الموتى وأمور الآخرة” (29-30)

  • Hidden
  • Hidden
  • Hidden