Nasai

150. Commentary:

➊ "Forerunner" refers to the person who goes ahead of the caravan to arrange their encampment and other necessities.

➋ The rank of the companions (Sahabah) of the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam is higher than that of his brothers, because all the brothers are from among the followers (ummah), while the companions are exclusively those who directly benefited from him.

➌ This hadith indicates the legitimacy of visiting graves in the prescribed (masnun) manner, and it also shows that greeting the inhabitants of the graves and supplicating for them is a recommended (masnun) act.

➍ Desiring to meet righteous people and mentioning their virtues is permissible.

➎ This hadith also clearly demonstrates the virtue of the Ummah of Muhammad (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam), and that at the Pond of Kawthar, the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam will be the forerunner. Subhan Allah! Blessed is this honor and virtue for the Ummah whose forerunner will be the Leader of the Universe, sallallahu alayhi wa sallam.

Hadith Commentary:
Vocabulary of the Hadith:
(1)
DUHMUN BUHMUN:
Pure black.
DUHMUN:
Plural of "Adham",
which means black,
and BUHMUN:
Plural of "baheem",
meaning of one color,
a black horse is called "farasun baheem".
(2)
FARATUN:
One who reaches the water before the people,
the singular and plural are the same.
RAJULUN FARATUN,
QAWMUN FARATUN.
"HALLUMMA" means "Come!"—it is used for masculine,
feminine, singular, dual, and plural, for all.
(3)
SUHQAN:
BU’DAN BU’DAN, meaning:
"Sahaqahumullahu sahqan"—may Allah keep them far away.
Benefits and Issues:
(1)
You (the Prophet) expressed the desire to see the later members of your Ummah; there is no objection in this,
such that there would be any need for unnecessary interpretation, as some Arabic and Urdu commentators have resorted to forced explanations.
You ﷺ, despite Allah’s protection and safeguarding, expressed the desire for martyrdom in the path of Allah,
even though no enemy could martyr you,
the purpose was to express the virtue and loftiness of martyrdom.
Similarly, the desire to see (the later Ummah) is only to express love and affection for your Ummah,
how could those who have not yet come into the world be seen?
(2)
"As-salamu alaykum!" is a supplicatory phrase,
meaning: May Allah grant you peace and safety! It is not an address,
for which the dead would need to reply.
It is not correct to use weak ahadith as evidence for such matters,
because these words are said when entering the graveyard,
not when going to a specific grave.
And since a person does not know when his death will come,
therefore the words "in sha Allah" are used in this supplication,
even though death is a definite and certain thing,
the words "in sha Allah" do not contradict its certainty,
thus this phrase is also used for definite and certain matters.
(3)
The noble Companions (radi Allahu anhum) asked you:
"Are we not your brothers?" So you ﷺ replied:
«أَنْتُمْ أَصْحَابِي وَإِخْوَانُنَا الَّذِينَ لَمْ يَأْتُوا بَعْدُ» "You are my companions,
our brothers are those Muslims who will come later."
That is:
You have attained a lofty and high honor,
in the presence of which there is no need to call you brothers,
just as if someone is called a believer, there is no need to call him a Muslim.
From this it is understood that, based on ﴿إِنَّمَا الْمُؤْمِنُونَ إِخْوَةٌ﴾, the Messenger is also a brother to his followers,
and this does not diminish his status.
Therefore, if you are the best of mankind and the leader of mankind,
this does not negate your being human,
you ﷺ are human,
even though you are the most excellent and highest of humans.
The Companions (radi Allahu anhum) are both your brothers and your companions,
but the later Muslims are your brothers only on the basis of religion and faith,
not companions.
(4)
Those who will be prevented from the Hawd al-Kawthar, which will be in the plain of resurrection,
you will call them your companions,
you will call out to them,
then you ﷺ will be answered:
«هَلْ تَدْرِي مَا أَحْدَثُوا بَعْدَكَ؟» or « إِنَّهُمْ قَدْ بَدَّلُوا بَعْدَكَ» and in some narrations:
«لَا تَدْرِيْ مَا أَحْدَثُوا بَعْدَكَ» «لَا عِلْمَ لَكَ بِمَا أَحْدَثُوْا بَعْدَكَ» and similar words are mentioned,
from which it is established without any doubt that you ﷺ do not have knowledge of the unseen or complete knowledge.
In the presence of these explicit words, to say (that the Prophet’s calling them his companions)
was not due to lack of knowledge,
but rather so that they would first have hope
that they would receive water, and then when they are turned away from the Hawd and their hope is shattered,
they would be punished more severely—
if this is not an extremely weak interpretation, then what is? In the presence of authentic ahadith, what evidence or indication is there for this fabricated claim? Will they be turned away after reaching the Hawd? When in reality,
the angels will stop them from even approaching.
Also, will they hear your voice, "these are my companions,"
so that they would have hope
that perhaps we will get water?
Then what is the meaning of «أُنَادِيهِمْ» "I will call out" "Ala hallumma"? Also, as soon as you ﷺ hear the reply, you will say:
«سُحْقًا سُحْقًا» so how will hope arise? And what is the meaning of «لَا عِلْمَ لَكَ،
هَلْ تَدْرِي»? After this, to interpret that perhaps before "ashabi" there is a hidden interrogative hamzah—
that is, "Are these my companions?"—this is an even worse interpretation.
If the interrogative hamzah is omitted,
then what is the purpose of «أُنَادِيهِمْ» "I will call out" "Ala hallumma" "Come!"? For what purpose is the call being made,
and what is the need for this reply? «لَا عِلْمَ لَكَ مَا أَحْدَثُوا بَعْدَكَ» And this interpretation is extremely ridiculous,
that you are saying in the world:
that such and such people will come to my Hawd,
so knowledge of the Hereafter is out of the question.
Is this an expression of knowledge or of lack of knowledge,
that such people will try to come to my Hawd whom I will consider my own,
whereas in reality they will not be following my path,
and when I come to know the real truth,
then I will say:
«سُحْقًا سُحْقًا».
In this way, in opposition to these agreed-upon ahadith, the narration of Musnad al-Bazzar is presented,
that you ﷺ said:
«حَیَاتِيْ خَیْرٌلَکُمْ وَمَمَاتِیْ خَیْرٌلَکُمٌ،
تُعْرَضُ عَلَيَّ أَعْمَالُکُمْ،
فَمَا کَانَ مِنْ حَسَنٍ شَکَرْتُ اللہ عَلَیْہِ،
وَمَا کَانَ مِنْ شَيْءٍ اسْتَغْفَرْتُ اللہَ لَکُمْ» "My life is better for you,
and my death will also be better for you.
Your deeds will be presented to me,
if they are good,
I will praise and thank Allah for them, and if they are bad,
I will seek forgiveness from Allah for you."
Now, it is clear,
if this hadith is authentic, it cannot be contrary or in opposition to the agreed-upon narrations,
because this statement of yours ﷺ is about the Barzakh period, and the aforementioned narrations are about the period after the occurrence of the Resurrection.
The following points are established from this hadith: 1.
After the period of your ﷺ life is the period of your death,
and those who declare you ﷺ to be the Knower of the Unseen or the possessor of complete knowledge are deniers of your death,
they consider you alive,
whereas this narration explicitly indicates your death.
2.
"Tu’radu ‘alayya a‘malukum" "Your deeds will be presented to me"—from this it is understood
that you do not know, or you are not the Knower of the Unseen,
otherwise what would be the need to present the deeds to you? The things which you ﷺ are informed about,
you come to know, and those which you are not informed about,
you do not know,
the addressees of "a‘malukum" are your ﷺ Companions (radi Allahu anhum) and those who followed your path,
there is no alteration, abrogation, or addition/subtraction in this.
Those who abandoned your ﷺ way or your path,
they are not included in this,
therefore it is said about them:
«إِنَّهُمْ لَمْ يَزَالُوا مُرْتَدِّينَ عَلَى أَعْقَابِهِمْ» "These people kept turning back from the religion on their heels" or it is said:
«لَا عِلْمَ لَكَ بمَا أَحْدَثُوا بَعْدَكَ» or «يَرْجِعُونَ عَلَى أَعْقَابِهِمْ»,
«لَا تَدْرِيْ مَا أَحْدَثُوا بَعْدَكَ»,
«لَا تَدْرِيْ مَا عَمِلُوْا بَعْدَكَ» and others,
from these various wordings it is as clear as daylight
that the deeds of these hypocrites,
apostates, and innovators are not presented to you ﷺ,
if they had been presented,
then you would not have said the aforementioned words.
If the meaning of this hadith is:
that the deeds of the entire Ummah are presented to you,
and you seek forgiveness for all,
by which all would be forgiven,
then why would people of your Ummah enter Hell? And why would you intercede for them repeatedly? And in the end, some people will be taken out only by Allah’s mercy, as has been detailed earlier in the discussion of intercession.

Benefits and Issues:
➊
The inhabitants of the graves are in great need of the prayers of their Muslim brothers.
To pray for them with sincerity is their right.
Not to have prayers requested from them,
nor to ask them for the fulfillment of needs or the removal of difficulties.

➋
In addition to the aforementioned supplication, other supplications for visiting graves are also found in authentic hadiths.
For example, it is mentioned in Sahih Muslim:
"Peace be upon you, O inhabitants of the dwellings, from among the believers and the Muslims, and indeed we, if Allah wills, shall join you. I ask Allah for well-being for us and for you." (Sahih Muslim, Book of Funerals, Hadith 975)

Benefits and Issues:

➊
One should visit the graves of Muslims by going to the graveyard.

➋
The purpose of visiting graves is to supplicate for the forgiveness (maghfirah) of the deceased and to remember death; it is not for seeking anything from them.

➌
The purpose of saying "as-salamu alaykum" is not to make them hear, but rather to supplicate for their peace. The use of the word "you" as an address is to admonish one's own heart that these people were among us until recently, and used to converse with us, and today they are in need of our prayers.

➍
A monotheist (muwahhid) member of the ummah is a religious brother of the Prophet, because all Muslims are brothers to one another. However, being brothers does not necessitate equality in rank. Just as the sons of Ya‘qub (alayhis salam) were brothers among themselves, but the rank that Yusuf (alayhis salam) attained was not attained by any of his brothers.

➎
The Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) will recognize members of his ummah by the marks of ablution (wudu), not because he is observing all the actions of his followers.

➏
The forerunner of a caravan is the person who reaches the resting place before the other members of the caravan and arranges for their accommodation and needs. The meaning of the hadith is that when you rise from your graves on the Day of Resurrection, I will have reached the Hawd (Pond) before you, so that when you arrive, I may give you water from the Hawd al-Kawthar.

➐
Only those people will be entitled to drink from the Hawd al-Kawthar who remained steadfast upon Islam and died in a state of Islam.

➑
A camel drinks a great deal of water, and since water was scarce in Arabia, people would prepare ponds for their camels and fill them with water so that the camels would not remain thirsty. For this reason, they would not allow other people's camels to drink from them. In the same way, the people of innovation (ahl al-bid‘ah) or apostates (murtadd) will be prevented from drinking from the Hawd al-Kawthar.

Benefits:

➊ At the time of visiting the graveyard, it is Sunnah and recommended to recite the aforementioned supplication. However, to infer from this that the dead can hear is not established here; rather, this is a supplication for their peace and well-being, not a statement about whether the dead can hear or not.

➋ «وَدِدْتُ أَنَّا قَدْ رَأَيْنَا إِخْوَانَنَا» The scholars say that, based on this hadith, it is permissible to desire to perform good deeds and to wish to meet the virtuous and righteous. And from your statement «وَدِدْتُ أَنَّا قَدْ رَأَيْنَا اِخْوَانَنَا», the intended meaning is the wish that we could have seen our brothers during their worldly life. Qadi Iyad rahimahullah says: One opinion is that what is meant is the desire to meet after death. Imam Baji explains that in your statement «بَلْ أَنتُمْ أَصْحَابِي» (“Rather, you are my companions”), there is no negation of the brothers of the Companions; rather, you have mentioned the companionship of the Companions as an additional rank. That is, the noble Companions radi Allahu anhum are both companions and brothers, and those who come later are brothers but not Companions. As in the statement of Allah the Exalted «إِنَّمَا الْمُؤْمِنُونَ إِخْوَةٌ» [الحجرات: 10] “The believers are but brothers,” which clarifies this position. [نووي: 137/3]

➌ The linguists state that al-ghurra is the whiteness on a horse’s forehead, and at-tahjeel is the whiteness on a horse’s legs and forearms. A group of scholars have deduced from this hadith that ablution (wudu) is a special distinction and characteristic of the Ummah of Muhammad, by which Allah the Exalted has increased the honor and virtue of this Ummah. Some other scholars say that ablution itself is not exclusive to this Ummah, but rather, on the Day of Resurrection, the radiance of the limbs of ablution is the unique distinction of this Ummah. [شرح النووى: 134/3]

➍ Who are those people who will be turned away from the Hawd al-Kawthar? There are different opinions among the scholars regarding this.

1. By this are meant the hypocrites and apostates; it is possible that they will be raised with the radiance of the limbs of ablution, and seeing this sign, the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam will call out to them, then it will be made known to him that these are not those people who were promised to reach the Hawd al-Kawthar, but rather, they had deviated from the religion.

2. The intended meaning is those who were Muslims during the Prophet’s lifetime but became apostates after his passing. Even though the radiance of ablution will not be upon them, due to personal acquaintance, the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam will recognize them. Then it will be made known to him that these people became apostates after him.

3. By this are meant the people of disobedience and those who committed major sins, who died upon the belief in tawhid, and those innovators (ahl al-bid‘ah) who, due to their innovations, are not outside the fold of Islam. According to this last opinion, these people will not be eternally in Hell; rather, their punishment will be increased, then Allah the Exalted will have mercy on them and admit them to Paradise without punishment. [نووي: 135/3، 136]

Hadith Authentication:
[وأخرجه مسلم 249، من حديث ما لك به]

Jurisprudential Explanation:
➊ Visiting graves and going to the graveyard without undertaking a journey is permissible so that prayers may be made for the deceased and death may be remembered. It should be noted that the prohibition of visiting graves has been abrogated.
➋ It is also permissible for women to visit the graves of their close relatives, such as brothers, as is established from authentic ahadith. For example, see: [صحيح بخاري 1383، صحيح مسلم 974، دار السلام : 2256]
◄ Umm al-Mu’minin Sayyidah A’ishah radi Allahu anha went to the grave of her brother Abdur Rahman ibn Abi Bakr radi Allahu anhu. [ديكهئے المستدرك للحاكم 376/1 ح 1392، وسنده صحيح و صححه الذهبي]
◈ However, it should be remembered that it is prohibited for women to visit the graves of non-relatives, such as those of famous elders among the general public. See: [سنن ابي داود 3123 وسنده حسن]
◈ In fact, the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam cursed those women who frequently visit graves. See: [سنن ابن ماجه 1576، وسنده حسن] and [سنن الترمذي 1056، وقال : حسن صحیح]
➌ The supplication “as-salamu alaykum” is a prayer; it does not mean that the deceased hears it, because if a person hears a greeting, it is obligatory to reply, and there is no hadith stating that the dead reply to greetings.
➍ The Prophet Muhammad sallallahu alayhi wa sallam calling the believing and righteous members of his ummah who come later “brothers” is a great expression of love and compassion from him; otherwise, a prophet and messenger is the imam, beloved guide, and obeyed leader of his followers, not merely an elder brother (!). Understand this well.
◈ It is not established from the pious predecessors (salaf salihin) that they used to go around saying that Allah’s Messenger is our elder brother and that he should be respected like an elder brother.
➎ The Pond of Kawthar (Hawd al-Kawthar) is a reality, from which innovators and wrongdoers will be turned away.
➏ The Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam will recognize his followers on the Day of Judgment by the radiance of their ablution (wudu) limbs. For example, see: [تمهيد 261/20، 262 وسندہ حسن]
➐ The Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam was not the knower of the unseen (‘alim al-ghayb); rather, only Allah is the knower of the unseen.
➑ In times of severe innovations, misguidance, disbelief, and widespread oppression, acting upon the Book and the Sunnah is a deed of great virtue.