This ḥadith also shows how weighty an amānah (entrusted property or duty) is, and that if a person does not hurry to discharge it, it may detain him; for that reason he said, “I disliked that it should hold me back.”

If this is true of an amānah, it is even more so with a debt: a person must settle his debt as soon as it falls due, unless the creditor grants him extra time—in that case a delay is permissible. If the creditor does not consent, the debtor must hasten to pay. For this reason the scholars—may Allah have mercy on them—maintained that the obligation of ḥajj is suspended for anyone who is in debt until he repays it, because debt is a matter of great gravity.

Before Allah granted him the conquests, the Prophet ﷺ, when a deceased man was brought for the funeral prayer, would ask, “Does he owe any debt?” If they answered, “No,” he would step forward and offer the prayer. If they replied, “Yes,” he would ask, “Does he have the means to repay?” Should they say, “Yes,” he would proceed and pray; but if they said, “No,” he would step back and not pray over him—he would forgo the funeral prayer for a person who died owing debt.

On one occasion a man from the Anṣār was brought for the funeral prayer. The Prophet ﷺ took a few steps, then asked, “Does he owe any debt?” They said, “Yes, O Messenger of Allah—three dinars, and he has no means to repay.” He stepped back and said, “Pray over your companion.” The people’s faces showed their dismay: how could the Prophet ﷺ refrain from praying for him? Then Abū Qatādah, may Allah be pleased with him, stepped forward and said, “O Messenger of Allah, the debt is on me.” Thereupon the Prophet ﷺ advanced and performed the prayer.

Regrettably, nowadays you find many people who remain in debt even though they are able to