Travelling with the Intention of Visiting the Noble Grave
Question: Some people travel to Madinah with the sole intention of visiting the blessed grave (rawdah) of the Prophet ﷺ. What is the ruling on this?
Answer: Travelling to Madinah solely for the purpose of visiting the grave of the Prophet ﷺ is not permissible. However, travelling to Madinah Munawwarah for the purpose of praying in the Prophet’s Mosque is permissible, because the Prophet’s Mosque is one of the three blessed mosques for which travel is permitted, and apart from Masjid al-Haram, one prayer in the Prophet’s Mosque carries the reward of a thousand prayers in any other mosque.
And travel with the intention of earning reward is not permitted to any mosque other than these three mosques: Masjid al-Haram, the Prophet’s Mosque and Masjid al-Aqsa. Accordingly, this prohibition includes the entire earth and all graves; therefore, travel for the purpose of praying near these places and graves, seeking blessing, or worship is not correct.
However, the wisdom in visiting graveyards is that visiting a graveyard refreshes the remembrance of the Hereafter, and this reminder of the Hereafter can be obtained by going to the graveyard of any city. The fact is that no city or village is free of a graveyard, and by visiting these graves the remembrance of the Hereafter can be refreshed, and the people of the graveyard benefit from the prayers of those who come to visit (them).
However, the matter of the noble grave of the Prophet ﷺ is different; therefore, making it a festival has been forbidden, just as a festival recurs again and again, so in the same way repeated visits to this grave have been prohibited. The Prophet ﷺ said:
لا تتخذوا قبرى عيدا وصلوا على حيث كنتم فإن صلاتكم تبلغني حيث كنتم [Sunan Abi Dawud, Kitab al-Manasik, Bab Ziyarat al-Qubur, no. 2042. And Musnad Ahmad 367/2]
Muhaddith al-Asr al-Albani said the hadith is sahih.
“Do not make my grave a festival, and send blessings and salutations upon me wherever you are, for your salutations reach me wherever you may be.”
Also, the Prophet ﷺ said:
ما من مسلم يسلم على إلا رد الله على روحي حتى ارد عليه السلام [Musnad Ahmad 527/2. Sunan Abi Dawud, Kitab al-Manasik, Bab Ziyarat al-Qubur, no. 2041]
Allamah al-Albani (may Allah have mercy on him) said the hadith is hasan.
“When a Muslim sends salutations upon me, Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, returns my soul to me so that I may return his salutation.”
Whether the Muslim is far or near, this prophetic instruction includes everyone.
However, all the hadiths that are cited regarding the virtue of visiting the grave of the Prophet ﷺ are either da’if (weak) or fabricated (mawdu’). Let us look at some examples of fabricated (mawdu’) hadiths:
“Whoever visits me after my death, it is as if he visited me during my life.”
Another mawdu’ hadith is as follows:
“Whoever visits my grave, or whoever visits me, I will be an intercessor or a witness for him.”
A third mawdu’ hadith is narrated as follows:
“Whoever visits my grave, my intercession becomes obligatory for him.”
A fourth fabricated hadith that is narrated is:
“Whoever performs Hajj and does not visit me has wronged me.”
All the above-mentioned hadiths are baseless and false, and have no reality whatsoever; the scholars have made clear that these hadiths have no foundation.
Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him) refuted al-Akhna’i. Likewise, Ibn Abd al-Hadi refuted al-Subki. Also, al-Alusi refuted al-Nabhani. Therefore, one should not be deceived by those people who are spreading and propagating these da’if or mawdu’ hadiths, and are translating and printing them.
Let it not be understood from our discussion that restricting travel for the sake of visiting the grave of the Prophet ﷺ is intended to diminish the status and esteem of the Prophet ﷺ. That is not the case; rather, the love of the Prophet ﷺ sits in the hearts and souls of those who follow and obey him, and this love cannot be diminished in any way by distance from his grave. And Allah knows best!
