❖ Ruling on Entering the Graveyard and Descending into the Grave While Wearing Shoes ❖
Question:
Is it permissible to enter the graveyard or descend into a grave while wearing shoes? What is the Sharʿī ruling, and is there any Hadith that prohibits it?
Answer by:
Fadhīlat al-ʿĀlim Ḥāfiẓ Qamar Ḥasan ḥafiẓahullāh
Fadhīlat al-Bāḥith Afẓal Ẓahīr Jamālī ḥafiẓahullāh
Narrated by Bashīr رضي الله عنه:
"While I was walking with the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, he passed by the graves of the polytheists and said three times: 'They have preceded much good.' Then he passed by the graves of the Muslims and said: 'They have attained much good.' Suddenly, the Prophet ﷺ saw a man walking among the graves wearing shoes. He said: 'O you wearing the two sandals, woe to you! Remove your sandals!' The man looked up and, upon recognizing the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, immediately took off his shoes and cast them aside."
➤ [Sunan Abī Dāwūd: 3230]
Shaykh Ibn ʿUthaymīn رحمه الله stated:
✔ Walking with shoes in the graveyard is contrary to the Sunnah.
✔ The preferred and respectful manner is to remove one's shoes when entering a graveyard.
✔ However, if there is a valid reason—such as:
◈ Presence of thorns
◈ Extreme heat, mud, or slippery ground
◈ General hardship of walking barefoot
—then it is permissible to wear shoes out of necessity.
➤ [Majmūʿ Fatāwā Ibn ʿUthaymīn: 17/202]
✔ Entering a graveyard with shoes is discouraged (makrūh), but not strictly forbidden.
✔ The prohibition in the Hadith is interpreted as discouragement, not absolute prohibition.
✔ In cases of need, wearing shoes in the graveyard or while descending into the grave is permissible.
Question:
Is it permissible to enter the graveyard or descend into a grave while wearing shoes? What is the Sharʿī ruling, and is there any Hadith that prohibits it?
Answer by:
Fadhīlat al-ʿĀlim Ḥāfiẓ Qamar Ḥasan ḥafiẓahullāh
Fadhīlat al-Bāḥith Afẓal Ẓahīr Jamālī ḥafiẓahullāh
❀ Hadith Evidence:
Narrated by Bashīr رضي الله عنه:
"While I was walking with the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, he passed by the graves of the polytheists and said three times: 'They have preceded much good.' Then he passed by the graves of the Muslims and said: 'They have attained much good.' Suddenly, the Prophet ﷺ saw a man walking among the graves wearing shoes. He said: 'O you wearing the two sandals, woe to you! Remove your sandals!' The man looked up and, upon recognizing the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, immediately took off his shoes and cast them aside."
➤ [Sunan Abī Dāwūd: 3230]
❀ Scholarly Explanation:
Shaykh Ibn ʿUthaymīn رحمه الله stated:
✔ Walking with shoes in the graveyard is contrary to the Sunnah.
✔ The preferred and respectful manner is to remove one's shoes when entering a graveyard.
✔ However, if there is a valid reason—such as:
◈ Presence of thorns
◈ Extreme heat, mud, or slippery ground
◈ General hardship of walking barefoot
—then it is permissible to wear shoes out of necessity.
➤ [Majmūʿ Fatāwā Ibn ʿUthaymīn: 17/202]
Conclusion:
✔ Entering a graveyard with shoes is discouraged (makrūh), but not strictly forbidden.
✔ The prohibition in the Hadith is interpreted as discouragement, not absolute prohibition.
✔ In cases of need, wearing shoes in the graveyard or while descending into the grave is permissible.
