Source: “Ahkam wa Masail in the Light of the Qur’an and Hadith”, Volume 02
Referenced from: Fatāwā Ghaznawiyyah, Page 16
Answered by: Mawlānā ʿAbd al-Jabbār ʿAbdullāh al-Ghaznawī (ʿAfā Allāhu ʿanhumā)
As-Salāmu ʿAlaikum wa Rahmatullāhi wa Barakātuh
What do the scholars of Dīn and reliable muftis of Sharīʿah say about the following issue:
There is an old and very small mosque, within which there exists a grave. The founder of the mosque now intends to demolish the current structure and build a new mosque on the same land.
Can this be done by leveling the grave and including its land into the mosque area? Is such an act permissible under Islamic law?
Based on the following evidences and principles, if a grave is very old (ʿatīq), and necessity demands, then removing its physical structure and including the land into the mosque space—after it becomes unmarked and indistinguishable—does not appear to be prohibited in Sharīʿah.
In Tafsīr al-Khāzin, it is narrated:
قال عبد الرحمن بن شبابة: بين الركن والمقام وزمزم تسعة وتسعون نبيًّا، وإن قبر هود وصالح وشعيب وإسماعيل عليهم الصلاة والسلام في تلك البقعة.
ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Shabābah said: Between the Black Stone (Rukn), the Maqām Ibrāhīm, and the well of Zamzam lie the graves of 99 Prophets—including the graves of Hūd, Ṣāliḥ, Shuʿayb, and Ismāʿīl (peace be upon them) in that very area.
Similarly, Mullā ʿAlī al-Qārī, in Sharḥ Mishkāt, writes:
وذكر غيره أن قبر إسماعيل عليه السلام في الحِجر تحت المِيزاب، وأن في الحطيم بين الأسود وزمزم قبر سبعين نبيًا.
And others have stated that the grave of Ismāʿīl (عليه السلام) is in the Ḥijr under the water spout (Mīzāb), and that within the area between the Black Stone (Ḥajar al-Aswad) and Zamzam lie the graves of seventy Prophets.
These narrations indicate that the presence of unmarked and indistinguishable graves within a mosque’s area is not, in itself, forbidden by Sharīʿah.
✔ Including an unmarked, ancient grave within the area of a mosque is permissible if:
This ruling does not apply to visible, recent, or honored graves, especially of Muslims, where removing or building over them is strictly prohibited.
وَاللّٰهُ أَعْلَمُ بِالصَّوَابِ
And Allah knows best what is correct.
Written by: Mawlānā ʿAbd al-Jabbār ʿAbdullāh al-Ghaznawī (ʿAfā Allāhu ʿanhumā)
Referenced from: Fatāwā Ghaznawiyyah, Page 16
Referenced from: Fatāwā Ghaznawiyyah, Page 16Answered by: Mawlānā ʿAbd al-Jabbār ʿAbdullāh al-Ghaznawī (ʿAfā Allāhu ʿanhumā)
❖ Question:
As-Salāmu ʿAlaikum wa Rahmatullāhi wa Barakātuh
What do the scholars of Dīn and reliable muftis of Sharīʿah say about the following issue:
There is an old and very small mosque, within which there exists a grave. The founder of the mosque now intends to demolish the current structure and build a new mosque on the same land.
Can this be done by leveling the grave and including its land into the mosque area? Is such an act permissible under Islamic law?
❖ Answer:
Based on the following evidences and principles, if a grave is very old (ʿatīq), and necessity demands, then removing its physical structure and including the land into the mosque space—after it becomes unmarked and indistinguishable—does not appear to be prohibited in Sharīʿah.
❖ Evidential Basis from Classical Sources:
In Tafsīr al-Khāzin, it is narrated:
قال عبد الرحمن بن شبابة: بين الركن والمقام وزمزم تسعة وتسعون نبيًّا، وإن قبر هود وصالح وشعيب وإسماعيل عليهم الصلاة والسلام في تلك البقعة.
ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Shabābah said: Between the Black Stone (Rukn), the Maqām Ibrāhīm, and the well of Zamzam lie the graves of 99 Prophets—including the graves of Hūd, Ṣāliḥ, Shuʿayb, and Ismāʿīl (peace be upon them) in that very area.
Similarly, Mullā ʿAlī al-Qārī, in Sharḥ Mishkāt, writes:
وذكر غيره أن قبر إسماعيل عليه السلام في الحِجر تحت المِيزاب، وأن في الحطيم بين الأسود وزمزم قبر سبعين نبيًا.
And others have stated that the grave of Ismāʿīl (عليه السلام) is in the Ḥijr under the water spout (Mīzāb), and that within the area between the Black Stone (Ḥajar al-Aswad) and Zamzam lie the graves of seventy Prophets.
❖ Derived Ruling:
These narrations indicate that the presence of unmarked and indistinguishable graves within a mosque’s area is not, in itself, forbidden by Sharīʿah.
- If a grave is ancient, has no markers, and is no longer identified, and the land is needed for mosque expansion, it may be permissibly included in the mosque’s foundation after removal and leveling, without any Sharʿī restriction.
- However, this ruling applies only when the grave is no longer honored, visible, or visited, and there is genuine necessity (e.g., space limitation, expansion, etc.).
❖ Conclusion:
✔ Including an unmarked, ancient grave within the area of a mosque is permissible if:
- The grave is leveled or indistinct,
- There is a need for mosque reconstruction or expansion,
- And it does not lead to disrespect of the deceased, nor to bid‘ah or veneration of graves within mosques.
This ruling does not apply to visible, recent, or honored graves, especially of Muslims, where removing or building over them is strictly prohibited.
وَاللّٰهُ أَعْلَمُ بِالصَّوَابِ
And Allah knows best what is correct.
Written by: Mawlānā ʿAbd al-Jabbār ʿAbdullāh al-Ghaznawī (ʿAfā Allāhu ʿanhumā)
Referenced from: Fatāwā Ghaznawiyyah, Page 16