Asalaamu alaikum
Alhamdulillah and someone asked Shaick al-Munajjid:
Etiquette of visiting graves: what is to be recited and
said.
Question: Brother:
As-Salaam-Ala-Kum
What is permissibe to read when visiting someones
(muslims) grave. Is it permissible to recite passages from
the Qurran for instances Al-Fathia, or other chapters/surah
from the Qurran at the grave, and make dua. Is there any
evidance in any Hadith or any kind of Daleel that Prophet
Muhammad (PBUH) did this. (i.e. reading passages from
the Qurran etc) Please clearly give detailed reference if
possible. What was Prophet Muhammad (PBUH)'s
practice when he visited the grave of someone. In many
parts of the muslim world muslims read passages from the
Qurran when they visit the graves of their relatives.
Is this permissible. Is there any daleel or proof to prove this
practice. Is this a Bidah? Please, if possible explain
in detail. Explain to me the practice of Prophet Muhammad
(PBUH).
May Allah keep us away from any kind of innovation
(Bidah) in the Deen and keep us firmly on the Qurran and
the sunnah inshallah (Ameen).
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.
Our Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) allowed
us to visit graves after initially forbidding such visits. The main
purpose for visiting graves is to learn a lesson and remember the
Hereafter. Buraydah ibn al-Husayb (may Allaah be pleased with him)
said: “The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) said: ‘I used to forbid you to visit graves, but (now) go and
visit them, for they will remind you of the Hereafter.” (Reported by
Muslim). Imaam al-Nawawi said in al-Majmoo’ (5/285): “The
prohibition was because they were still close to the time of jaahiliyyah,
when they may still have said words of falsehood (when visiting
graves). But once the basic principles of Islam were well-established
and its rules were clearly understood, they were permitted to visit
graves.”
A number of rules apply to visiting graves, and this action brings a
number of benefits. These include:
1.The visitor benefits by remembering death and the deceased
person, and by recalling that his ultimate fate will be either
Paradise or Hell. This is the main purpose of visiting graves.
2.The deceased person benefits from the kind treatment of the
visitor who, when he enters the graveyard, greets him with
salaam, prays for him and asks forgiveness for him. This applies
only in the case of Muslims. Buraydah said: “The Messenger of
Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) used to
teach them, when going out to graveyards, to say: ‘Al-salaamu
‘alaykum ahl al-diyaar min al-mu’mineen wa’l-muslimeen, wa
innaa in shaa’ Allaah bikum la-laahiqoon. As’ala Allaaha lana wa
lakum al-‘aafiyah (Peace be upon you, O people of the graves,
believers and muslims. If Allaah wills, we will follow you soon.
I ask Allaah to keep us and you safe).’” (Reported by Muslim,
1620)
3.It is permitted to visit the grave of a non-Muslim only for the
purpose of learning a lesson. Abu Hurayrah (may Allaah be
pleased with him) said: “The Prophet (peace and blessings
of Allaah be upon him) visited the grave of his mother. He wept,
and made the people around him weep. He said: ‘I asked my
Lord for permission to ask for forgiveness for her, but He did
not give me permission. I asked Him for permission to visit her
grave, and He gave me permission, so visit graves, for they
remind us of death.’” (Reported by Muslim, 1622).
4.The visitor should not say anything wrong when visiting a grave,
such as praying to the dead or asking them for help, or taking the
grave as a place of worship. Abu Sa’eed al-Khudri said: “The
Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him) said: ‘I forbade you to visit graves before, but now go and
visit them, for there are lessons to be learned from them, but do
not say anything that will anger your Lord.’” (Reported by
Ahmad and classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Ahkaam
al-Janaa’iz). Shaykh al-Islam (Ibn Taymiyah) said in Majmoo’
al-Fataawaa (24/326): “Visits to graves are of two types: visits
that are sanctioned by sharee’ah and visits that constitute bid’ah.
Approved types of visits include the funeral (janaazah) prayer,
which serves the purpose of praying for the deceased. The
innovated type of visits are those made by people guilty of shirk
in order to pray to the dead and seek help from them…”
5.Visiting graves should not include travelling with the express
purpose of visiting a grave, because of the hadeeth of Abu
Hurayrah (may Allaah be pleased with him) according to which
the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)
said: “No journey should be made with the express purpose of
visiting a place except in the case of three places: al-Masjid
al-Haraam (in Makkah), the Mosque of the Messenger of Allaah
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) (in Madeenah)
and al-Masjid al-Aqsaa (in Jerusalem). (Agreed upon)
6.It is not permitted to read (or recite) Qur’aan when visiting
graves – which is the point raised in the question – because there
is no basis in the sunnah for doing so. Shaykh al-Albaani said in
Ahkaam al-Janaa’iz (p. 241): “… if it were right, then the
Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him) would have done it and would have taught his Sahaabah to
do it, especially as ‘Aa’ishah (may Allaah be pleased with her) –
who was the most beloved of people to him – asked him what
she should say when visiting graves. He taught her to say salaam
and to make du’aa’, but he did not teach her to recite al-Faatihah
or any other passage from the Qur’aan. If it was right to read
Qur’aan (when visiting graves), he would not have hidden this
from her… This argument is further strengthened by the hadeeth
‘Do not make your houses into graveyards, for the Shaytaan
flees from a house in which Soorat al-Baqarah is recited.’
(Reported by Muslim)… This indicates that graves are not the
proper place for recitation of the Qur’aan, as the Prophet
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) encouraged the
reading of Qur’aan at home and forbade making houses like
graveyards where Qur’aan is not recited.”
7.Part of the etiquette of visiting graves is that the visitor should
raise his hands when making du’aa’, because of the hadeeth of
‘Aa’ishah in which she said: “The Messenger of Allaah
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) went out one night,
and I sent Bareerah to follow him and see where he went. He
went to (the graveyard of) Baqee’ al-Gharqad, stood at the
bottom of al-Baqee’, then he raised his hands, then he went on.
Bareerah came back to me and told me about this. In the
morning I asked him, ‘O Messenger of Allaah, where did you go
last night?’ He said, ‘I was sent to the people of al-Baqee’ to
pray for them.’” (Reported by Ahmad in al-Musnad, 23471 and
by Maalik in al-Muwatta’, 511. Classed as hasan by al-Albaani
in Ahkaam al-Janaa’iz). The one who visits a graveyard should
not face the graves when he prays, rather he should face the
direction of the Ka’bah, because the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) forbade prayer facing graves.
This is a summary of the etiquette and rules to be observed when
visiting graves. One of the most important references on this topic is
Ahkaam al-Janaa’iz wa bida’ihaa by al-‘Allaamah Shaykh
Muhammad Naasir al-Deen al-Albaani, which may be consulted by
anyone requiring further information. And Allaah is the source of
strength.
Allahumma salli wasalallim ala Nabiyyina Muhammad. Wasalaam.
Modou Mbye
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