Written by: Sheikh Hafiz Zubair Ali Zai (may Allah have mercy on him)
Assalamu Alaikum Wa Rahmatullahi Wa Barakatuhu,
Sir I am writing from Ahmad Khan Phaladion, Sindh province. There is an issue where some people say that when the Ahl-e-Hadith do not believe in rituals like Qul, Khatm, and Chehlum, then what do they do when they go to the graveyard? What was the practice of the Prophet (PBUH) when he visited the graveyard? Is reciting the Quran in the graveyard prohibited? People also say that you are against reciting the Quran for the deceased. ER
Answer:
Wa Alaikum Assalam Wa Rahmatullahi Wa Barakatuhu,
There are several objectives for visiting the graveyard:
➊ It is the Sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). He (PBUH) used to pray for the deceased when he visited the graveyard. Lady Aisha (RA) narrates that:
Note (1): Excessive visits to graves by women are prohibited, as narrated by Abu Hurairah (RA):
Note (2): It is forbidden for women to visit the graves of non-relatives. A summary of a hadith from Sunan Abi Dawood is that the Prophet (PBUH) (to instruct his Ummah) said to his beloved daughter Fatima (RA): "If you had gone to the cemetery..." then he expressed harsh words.
(Hadith 3123, and its chain is good, and Al-Hakim authenticated it on the conditions of Al-Bukhari and Muslim 1/373, 374, and Al-Dhahabi agreed with him! Al-Mundhiri and Al-Haythami also deemed it good)
The narrator of this severe warning hadith, Rabi’ah bin Saif, is considered trustworthy and truthful by the majority of scholars of hadith.
See: Nayl al-Maqsood Manuscript 2/714 Hadith 3123, and Umdat al-Masa’i in the Investigation of Sunan al-Nasa’i Manuscript 1/188 Hadith 1881
This hadith proves that it is forbidden for women to visit the graves of non-relatives.
In Sahih Muslim, the Prophet (PBUH) said:
➋ Visiting the graveyard refreshes the memory of death and the Hereafter. It serves as a reminder and a lesson, as mentioned earlier.
➌ Visiting the graveyard allows one to seek forgiveness for the deceased Muslims. The Prophet (PBUH) would sometimes visit the graveyard of Baqi’ al-Gharqad in
the last part of the night and pray: “O Allah, forgive the inhabitants of Baqi’ al-Gharqad.”
(Sahih Muslim 974, Darussalam: 2255)
For detailed evidence, refer to the eminent scholar Sheikh Albani's book "Kitab al-Janaiz" and others.
In summary, the Ahl-e-Sunnah (Ahl-e-Hadith) visit the graveyard to pray for the deceased and to remember death and the Hereafter. By doing this, they also follow the blessed Sunnah of the Prophet (PBUH). The Ahl-e-Hadith do not engage in false (contrary to the Quran and Sunnah) practices or speak false words at the graves. Practices such as seeking intercession from the dead, presenting the deceased as a means to Allah, engaging in shirk and bid'ah activities, placing cloths on graves, performing Qul, Chehlum, and reading the Quran to dedicate its reward to the dead have no basis in the Quran, Hadith, consensus, or the sayings of the pious predecessors. Therefore, all these practices are false, and the Ahl-e-Hadith completely abstain from them.
You can witness for yourself the idolatrous practices and actions contrary to the Quran and Sunnah being carried out at the graves and refute them yourself.
In this regard, Allama Jalaluddin Suyuti (died 911 AH) wrote in the context of the worship of idols:
It should be remembered here that it is established from an authentic hadith that traveling for the purpose of gaining special rewards and blessings is only permissible to three mosques: Masjid al-Haram, Masjid al-Nabawi, and Masjid al-Aqsa.
See: Sahih al-Bukhari 1189 and Sahih Muslim 1397
Once Abu Huraira (RA) traveled to Mount Sinai, and Basrah bin Abi Basrah al-Ghifari (RA) said to him: "If I had known before you went, you would not have gone." Then he narrated the hadith of the Prophet (PBUH) to him.
See: Muwatta Imam Malik 1/109 Hadith 239, and its chain is authentic
Ibn Hibban (Mawrid az-Zam’an: 1024) has deemed it authentic, and this narration, with some variations in its text, is also found briefly in Sunan Abi Dawood (1046), Sunan al-Tirmidhi (491, who said: ‘Hasan Sahih’), Sahih Ibn Khuzaymah (1738), and Al-Mustadrak by Al-Hakim (1/278, 279, who authenticated it on the conditions of Al-Bukhari and Muslim, and Al-Dhahabi agreed with him).
It is known that traveling to Mount Sinai for the purpose of gaining rewards is not permissible, so traveling to graves for this purpose is also not permissible.
This is why Shah Waliullah Dehlawi al-Hanafi (died 1176 AH) wrote:
Tell these people that there is no evidence for the rituals of Qul, Khatm, and Chehlum in the Quran and Hadith.
Reciting the Quran and dedicating its reward to the deceased is also not proven by any evidence. The verse:
establishes that the reward of reciting the Quran does not reach the deceased.
Hafiz Ibn Kathir ad-Dimashqi (died 774 AH) wrote:
I hope this issue is now clear to you. Insha’Allah, and our duty is only to convey the message.
(9 Rabi' al-Awwal 1426 AH)
Assalamu Alaikum Wa Rahmatullahi Wa Barakatuhu,
Sir I am writing from Ahmad Khan Phaladion, Sindh province. There is an issue where some people say that when the Ahl-e-Hadith do not believe in rituals like Qul, Khatm, and Chehlum, then what do they do when they go to the graveyard? What was the practice of the Prophet (PBUH) when he visited the graveyard? Is reciting the Quran in the graveyard prohibited? People also say that you are against reciting the Quran for the deceased. ER
Answer:
Wa Alaikum Assalam Wa Rahmatullahi Wa Barakatuhu,
There are several objectives for visiting the graveyard:
➊ It is the Sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). He (PBUH) used to pray for the deceased when he visited the graveyard. Lady Aisha (RA) narrates that:
“He (PBUH) stood by the graves for a long time, then he raised his hands three times, then he returned, and I also returned...”
(Sahih Muslim, Book of Funerals, Chapter: What is Said When Entering Graves and Praying for Their Dwellers, Hadith 974, Darussalam numbering: 2256)
Abdullah bin Abi Mulaika (a trustworthy jurist Tabi’i) narrates:Then the Prophet (PBUH) informed his noble wife Aisha (RA) that Jibreel (AS) had come and said: “Your Lord commands you to go to the dwellers of Al-Baqi’ (graveyard) and seek forgiveness for them.”
(Muslim: 974 mentioned above)
From this hadith, two issues are established:“One day Aisha (RA) came back from the graveyard, and I asked her: 'O Mother of the Believers, where have you come from?' She replied: 'From the grave of my brother Abdur-Rahman bin Abi Bakr.' I said to her: 'Didn't the Prophet (PBUH) forbid visiting graves?' She said: 'Yes, he forbade it, then he commanded to visit them.’”
(Al-Mustadrak by Al-Hakim 1/376 Hadith 1392, and Al-Bayhaqi 4/78, and its chain is authentic, and Al-Dhahabi and Al-Busairi authenticated it, among others. See Ahkam al-Janaiz by Al-Albani p. 181)
- Firstly, the prohibition on visiting graves is abrogated.
- Secondly, it is permissible for women to occasionally visit the graves of their close relatives.
Note (1): Excessive visits to graves by women are prohibited, as narrated by Abu Hurairah (RA):
“The Prophet (PBUH) cursed women who frequently visit graves.”
(Sunan al-Tirmidhi, Book of Funerals, Chapter: What is Disliked About Women Visiting Graves, Hadith 1056, and he said: 'This is a good authentic hadith.' Ibn Hibban authenticated it, Al-Ihsan: 3178, and its chain is good)
Note (2): It is forbidden for women to visit the graves of non-relatives. A summary of a hadith from Sunan Abi Dawood is that the Prophet (PBUH) (to instruct his Ummah) said to his beloved daughter Fatima (RA): "If you had gone to the cemetery..." then he expressed harsh words.
(Hadith 3123, and its chain is good, and Al-Hakim authenticated it on the conditions of Al-Bukhari and Muslim 1/373, 374, and Al-Dhahabi agreed with him! Al-Mundhiri and Al-Haythami also deemed it good)
The narrator of this severe warning hadith, Rabi’ah bin Saif, is considered trustworthy and truthful by the majority of scholars of hadith.
See: Nayl al-Maqsood Manuscript 2/714 Hadith 3123, and Umdat al-Masa’i in the Investigation of Sunan al-Nasa’i Manuscript 1/188 Hadith 1881
This hadith proves that it is forbidden for women to visit the graves of non-relatives.
In Sahih Muslim, the Prophet (PBUH) said:
Buraidah (RA) narrates that the Prophet (PBUH) said:“Visit the graves, for they remind you of death.”
(Hadith 976, Darussalam numbering: 2259)
“I had forbidden you from visiting graves, but now you may visit them, and do not speak idle words.”
(Sunan al-Nasa'i 4/89 Hadith 2035, and Sunan al-Kubra by al-Nasa'i 2160, and its chain is authentic, Umdat al-Masa’i 1/203)
➋ Visiting the graveyard refreshes the memory of death and the Hereafter. It serves as a reminder and a lesson, as mentioned earlier.
➌ Visiting the graveyard allows one to seek forgiveness for the deceased Muslims. The Prophet (PBUH) would sometimes visit the graveyard of Baqi’ al-Gharqad in
the last part of the night and pray: “O Allah, forgive the inhabitants of Baqi’ al-Gharqad.”
(Sahih Muslim 974, Darussalam: 2255)
For detailed evidence, refer to the eminent scholar Sheikh Albani's book "Kitab al-Janaiz" and others.
In summary, the Ahl-e-Sunnah (Ahl-e-Hadith) visit the graveyard to pray for the deceased and to remember death and the Hereafter. By doing this, they also follow the blessed Sunnah of the Prophet (PBUH). The Ahl-e-Hadith do not engage in false (contrary to the Quran and Sunnah) practices or speak false words at the graves. Practices such as seeking intercession from the dead, presenting the deceased as a means to Allah, engaging in shirk and bid'ah activities, placing cloths on graves, performing Qul, Chehlum, and reading the Quran to dedicate its reward to the dead have no basis in the Quran, Hadith, consensus, or the sayings of the pious predecessors. Therefore, all these practices are false, and the Ahl-e-Hadith completely abstain from them.
You can witness for yourself the idolatrous practices and actions contrary to the Quran and Sunnah being carried out at the graves and refute them yourself.
In this regard, Allama Jalaluddin Suyuti (died 911 AH) wrote in the context of the worship of idols:
"And this is why you find many misguided people supplicating at the graves of the pious, showing humility and humbleness, and worshipping them with their hearts in a manner they do not do in the houses of Allah (mosques), nor even in the early morning hours before Allah, and they hope for blessings and answered prayers at these graves that they do not hope for in the mosques."
(Al-Amr Bil-Ittiba’ Wa An-Nahy Anil-Ibtida’ p. 23)
It should be remembered here that it is established from an authentic hadith that traveling for the purpose of gaining special rewards and blessings is only permissible to three mosques: Masjid al-Haram, Masjid al-Nabawi, and Masjid al-Aqsa.
See: Sahih al-Bukhari 1189 and Sahih Muslim 1397
Once Abu Huraira (RA) traveled to Mount Sinai, and Basrah bin Abi Basrah al-Ghifari (RA) said to him: "If I had known before you went, you would not have gone." Then he narrated the hadith of the Prophet (PBUH) to him.
See: Muwatta Imam Malik 1/109 Hadith 239, and its chain is authentic
Ibn Hibban (Mawrid az-Zam’an: 1024) has deemed it authentic, and this narration, with some variations in its text, is also found briefly in Sunan Abi Dawood (1046), Sunan al-Tirmidhi (491, who said: ‘Hasan Sahih’), Sahih Ibn Khuzaymah (1738), and Al-Mustadrak by Al-Hakim (1/278, 279, who authenticated it on the conditions of Al-Bukhari and Muslim, and Al-Dhahabi agreed with him).
It is known that traveling to Mount Sinai for the purpose of gaining rewards is not permissible, so traveling to graves for this purpose is also not permissible.
This is why Shah Waliullah Dehlawi al-Hanafi (died 1176 AH) wrote:
"And the truth according to me is that the grave, the place of worship of one of the saints of Allah, and Mount Sinai are all the same in prohibition, and Allah knows best."
(Hujjatullah al-Baligha 1/192, from the chapters of Salah/Mosques)
Tell these people that there is no evidence for the rituals of Qul, Khatm, and Chehlum in the Quran and Hadith.
Reciting the Quran and dedicating its reward to the deceased is also not proven by any evidence. The verse:
"And that man will have nothing except what he strives for."
(Surah An-Najm: 39)
establishes that the reward of reciting the Quran does not reach the deceased.
Hafiz Ibn Kathir ad-Dimashqi (died 774 AH) wrote:
"And from this noble verse, Imam Shafi'i (may Allah have mercy on him) and his followers deduced that the reward of recitation does not reach the deceased because it is not from their deeds or earnings. This is why the Prophet (PBUH) did not encourage or instruct his Ummah to do so, neither explicitly nor implicitly. This practice was not transmitted from any of the Companions (RA). If it were good, they would have preceded us in doing it."
(Tafsir Ibn Kathir, edited by Abdul Razzaq al-Mahdi, 6/38, Surah An-Najm: 39)
I hope this issue is now clear to you. Insha’Allah, and our duty is only to convey the message.
(9 Rabi' al-Awwal 1426 AH)
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