Written by: Fazilat al-Sheikh Ghulam Mustafa Zaheer Amanpuri Hafizahullah
Matam is a pre-Islamic custom. According to the consensus of scholars, it is an innovation and forbidden. Grief is reduced or eliminated by the principles of Islam. Non-Islamic methods increase grief.
Many Prophets, peace be upon them, suffered martyrdom unjustly, and indeed the history of Islam is full of martyrdoms, so should matam be considered permissible for each one? Then no day would be free from matam! Some people perform Husayni matam, while the honorable father of Sayyiduna Husayn, may Allah be pleased with him, Sayyiduna Ali, may Allah be pleased with him, was also martyred, and Sayyiduna Hasan, may Allah be pleased with him, the elder brother of Sayyiduna Husayn, may Allah be pleased with him, was also martyred. No one performs matam for them. Indeed, the martyrdom of Sayyiduna Husayn, may Allah be pleased with him, is true, a tragic event in human history, and every Muslim feels sorrow for it. This does not mean that we should perform matam for him. None among the Ahl al-Bayt performed matam for anyone’s martyrdom.
Some people do not tire of saying that mourning is proven by the Quran. The question to them is, did the scholars of Ahl al-Bayt and the scholars of the Ummah not read the Holy Quran? According to us, not only did they read it, but they also gained understanding, acted upon it, and propagated it. None of them claim that mourning is permissible, let alone provide proof of it from the Quran. Any stance against the predecessors of the Ummah is unheard of. To add to this, the scholars of the Ummah have declared mourning to be forbidden. Allah's hand is upon their consensus and agreement. They can never unite on misguidance. Each one of them was a guardian of the rights of Ahl al-Bayt, held reverence and love for them, and considered their respect obligatory.
Allama Abu Bakr Tartushi (520 AH) says:
[أما المأتم؟ فممنوعة بإجماع العلماء]
There is consensus among Muslims on the prohibition of mourning.
Reference: (Al-Hawadith wal-Bida': p. 175)
Sheikh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (728 AH) says:
Making the days of calamity into days of mourning is not the religion of Muslims, rather it is closer to ignorance.
Reference: (Iqtidā’ al-Ṣirāṭ al-Mustaqīm: 131/2)
He also says:
One of their foolishnesses is to hold mourning gatherings and lament over people who passed away many years ago. It is known that whether it is a martyr or any other deceased, such acts after their death have been declared forbidden by Allah and His Messenger.
Reference: (Minhaj-us-Sunnah: 52/1)
They also say:
Turning times of calamity into days of mourning is not Islam. This is something that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ did not do, nor did any of the early predecessors, nor the followers, nor the Ahl al-Bayt, nor anyone else. Although the family of Sayyiduna Ali رضي الله عنه was present at the time of his martyrdom, and the family of Sayyiduna Husayn رضي الله عنه was also present at the time of his martyrdom, many years passed, yet their family adhered to the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. They did not invent mourning, nor did they invent lamentation. Rather, they were patient and used to recite انا للہ وانا الیہ راجعون according to the command of Allah and the Messenger. Even if they cried, it was in the initial moments of the calamity, and they were sorrowful but in a permissible manner.
Reference: (حقوق اہل البیت: ص 46)
He also says:
There is an ignorant oppressive group, who are either atheistic hypocrites or misguided wretches. They express love for Sayyiduna Husayn رضي الله عنه and the Ahl al-Bayt, but they have turned the day of Ashura into a 'day of mourning'.
Reference: (الفتاوی الکبری: 200/1)،( مجموع الفتاویٰ: 307/25)
Allama Ibn Abi Al-Izz Hanafi (792 AH) says:
On the day of Ashura, nothing is established from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ except fasting; it is the Rafidah who invented the innovation of mourning and expressing grief on the day of the martyrdom of Sayyiduna Hussain رضي الله عنه.
Reference: (Al-Tanbih 'ala Mushkilat al-Hidayah: 930/2), (Fatawa Shami: 418/2)
The fatwa of the senior Arab scholars is:
Originally, this was the habit of the Pharaohs; before Islam, such practices used to occur among the Pharaohs, and then it spread to others beyond them. This is a rejected innovation, and it has no basis in Islam. The statement of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ refutes it: "Whoever introduces into our religion something new, it is rejected and false."
Reference: (Fatawa Islamiyyah: 312/1)
The very first mourning for Hussain in the world took place in Baghdad in 352 AH; before that, no mourning was done for Sayyiduna Hussain رضي الله عنه. What kind of religion is this that Muslims remained unaware of it for four hundred years?
