for an heir or any other person to assume responsibility for it, and it is valid to guarantee the debt on his behalf. This is borne out by the incident of Abū Qatādah: when the Messenger of Allah ﷺ asked, “Does he owe a debt?” they replied, “Yes.” He said, “Then pray over your companion.” Abū Qatādah said, “Pray over him, Messenger of Allah; the debt is on me,” whereupon he ﷺ led the funeral prayer. Nonetheless, the deceased’s liability is not cleared until the debt is actually paid, as indicated by the present ḥadith; for when Abū Qatādah later said, “I have paid it,” the Prophet ﷺ remarked, “Now you have cooled his skin.”

Even so, when the deceased’s debt is secured by collateral or a guarantor, the burden upon him is lighter. The Prophet ﷺ himself passed away while his coat of mail was mortgaged to a Jew, and Abū Qatādah undertook the debt of the deceased man, after which the Prophet ﷺ performed the prayer over him.

9 – The debt that keeps the deceased’s soul in pledge includes all private obligations to people—such as the price of purchased goods, wages, loans, property taken by force, borrowed items, dowries, blood money, and the like—and it likewise comprises Allah’s rights: zakāt, ḥajj, vows, expiations, and so forth. In Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī (1953) it is stated: “A debt owed to Allah has a stronger claim to be fulfilled.” By unanimous agreement of the scholars, debts are to be settled before any bequests are executed.

10 – The soul’s being “held in pledge” because of debt means that it is called to account for what it owes and is detained from its station until the debt is discharged.

The “soul” mentioned in this ḥadith refers to the spirit that has departed the body after life, as Imam Aḥmad (19616) narrates from Samurah: the Prophet ﷺ said, “Your companion is being detained at the gate of Paradise because of a debt he owes.” This ḥadith urges prompt repayment of debts.