TOPIC: PRAYING AT GRAVES & CONDITIONS OF INTERCESSION

QUESTION:
I was in a converstation with a follower of the sufi way of islam and that person asked me what did i think about praying at the graves, or about religious scholars interceding during the day of judgement. i told that person that praying to someones grave is shirk and no one can interceed except the prophet. and i wanted to know what was the ruling of the people of knowledge on this matter and where can i look for proof ?

ANSWER:
Praise be to Allaah. 

1 – The issue of praying at graves 

Praying at graves is of two types: 

The first type is praying to the occupant of the grave. This is major shirk which puts a person beyond the pale of Islam, because prayer is an act of worship, and it is not permissible to do any act of worship to anyone other than Allaah. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): 

“Worship Allaah and join none with Him (in worship)”

[al-Nisa’ 4:36] 

“Verily, Allaah forgives not (the sin of) setting up partners (in worship) with Him, but He forgives whom He wills, sins other than that, and whoever sets up partners in worship with Allaah, has indeed strayed far away”

[al-Nisa’ 4:116] 

The second type is praying to Allaah in the graveyard. This covers a number of issues: 

1 – Praying the funeral (janaazah) prayer at the graveside, which is permissible. 

Example: if a person dies and you are not able to offer the funeral prayer for him in the mosque, then it is permissible for you to offer the prayer for him after he is buried. 

The evidence for this is that this is what the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) did. It was narrated from Abu Hurayrah that a black man or a black woman used to clean the mosque, and he (or she) died. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) asked about him and they said, “He died.” He said, “Why did you not tell me? Show me to his grave (or her grave).” So he went to the grave and offered the funeral prayer. (Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 458; Muslim, 956). 

2 – Praying the funeral prayer in the graveyard, which is permissible 

Example: a person dies and you are not able to offer the funeral prayer for him in the mosque, so you go to the graveyard and offer the prayer there before he is buried. 

Shaykh ‘Abd al-Azeez ibn Baaz (may Allaah have mercy on him) said: “It is permissible to offer the funeral prayer for the deceased inside the graveyard just as it is permissible to offer the funeral prayer for him after he is buried, because it was proven that a woman used to clean the mosque and she died. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) asked about her and they said, ‘She died.’ He said, ‘Why did you not tell me? Show me to her grave.’ So they showed him and he offered the prayer for her, then he said, ‘These graves are filled with darkness for their occupants, but Allaah illuminates them by my prayer over them.’” (Narrated by Muslim, 956.)

From Fataawa al-Lajnah al-Daa’imah, 8/392 

3 – Praying in the graveyard – apart from the funeral (janaazah) prayer – this prayer is invalid and does not count, whether it is an obligatory prayer or a naafil prayer. 

The evidence for that is as follows: 

(i) The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “All the earth is a mosque apart from the graveyards and bathrooms.” (Narrated by al-Tirmidhi, 317; Ibn Maajah, 745; classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh Ibn Maajah, 606).

(ii) The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “May Allaah curse the Jews and the Christians, for they have taken the graves of their Prophets as places of worship.” (Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 435; Muslim, 529).

(iii) Praying in graveyards may be a means that leads to worshipping the graves, or to imitating those who worship graves. Hence, because the kaafirs used to prostrate to the sun as it was rising and setting, the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) forbade us to pray when the sun is rising or setting, lest that be taken as a means that leads to worshipping the sun instead of Allaah, or to resembling the kuffaar. 

4 – Praying towards the graveyard, which is haraam, according to the correct opinion. 

Example: you pray with a graveyard or grave in the direction of your qiblah, but you are not praying in the graveyard, rather you are praying on some other ground that is close to the graveyard, with no wall or barrier between you and it. 

The evidence for this being haraam: 

(i) It was narrated that Abu Marthad al-Ghanawi said: The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Do not sit on graves, or pray towards them.” (Narrated by Muslim, 972). This indicates that it is haraam to pray towards graveyards or towards graves or towards a single grave.

(ii) The reason why it is not allowed to pray towards a graveyard is the same as the reason why it is not allowed to pray towards a grave. So long as a person is facing towards the grave or graveyard in such a way that it may be said that he is praying towards it, then this comes under the prohibition, and if it comes under the prohibition then it is not valid, because the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said, “Do not pray …” The prohibition here is on praying, so if a person prays towards a grave, he is combining obedience and disobedience, and it is not possible to draw closer to Allaah in such a manner. 

Note: If there is a wall between you and the graveyard, then the basic principle is that it is acceptable to pray in this case and it is not prohibited. Similarly, if there is a street or a considerable distance which would mean that you cannot be regarded as praying towards the graves, then this is acceptable. And Allaah knows best. 

See al-Mughni, 1/403; al-Sharh al-Mumti’ by Ibn ‘Uthaymeen, 2/232. 

2 – The issue of intercession 

You were mistaken when you said that no one will intercede on the Day of Resurrection except the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him). Rather the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) will intercede and so will others among the believers. See Question no. 11931. 

But we will add here an issue that was not mentioned there, which is that there are conditions attached to intercession: 

1 – Permission must be granted by Allaah to the intercessor to intercede.

2 – Allaah must approve of the one for whom intercession is to be made. 

The evidence for these two conditions is the verses in which Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): 

“And there are many angels in the heavens, whose intercession will avail nothing except after Allaah has given leave for whom He wills and is pleased with”

[al-Najm 53:26] 

“and they cannot intercede except for him with whom He is pleased”

[al-Anbiya’ 21:28] 

As for the imaginary intercession which the idol-worshippers think their gods perform for them, this is an invalid intercession, for Allaah does not permit intercession unless He is pleased both with the intercessor and those for whom intercession is made. 

See al-Qawl al-Mufeed Sharh Kitaab al-Tawheed by Shaykh Muhammad ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may Allaah have mercy on him), p. 336-337. 

The fact that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and the believers will intercede does not justify asking them to intercede, as some people do when they ask the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) to intercede for them even after his death.
http://www.islam-qa.com/en/ref/13490/intercession

What’s a Wahhabi Anyway?

ITHINK my first exposure to the word Wahhabi was in America—from a newspaper or television item about Muslims. And since this sort of anti-intellectual emotionalism designed to hold an audience is quite typical in the world of entertainment (for which TV “news” is quite well-known), I didn’t pay much attention to it. The word was pushed to the back of my mind with all the other anti-Islam rhetoric I’d heard over the years.

I can’t recall my first exposure to the word Salafi, but one of my earliest memories of hearing this term is when I began to study Islam for myself (My parents converted to Islam the year I was born).

Fortunately, I was raised to think critically, so labels and name-calling always held very little appeal to me—even if the label or name was praiseworthy.  So when I found myself in a lighthearted Internet exchange with a convert to Islam who believed that calling oneself Salafi was an absolute must, I was genuinely intrigued. I wanted to understand why he felt this way.

“Why not just call yourself Muslim?” I asked.

“That’s not enough,” he said.

“Why not? It was enough to Allah and the Prophet, sallallahu’alayhi wa sallam.”

“But the word Muslim only tells us that someone is not a disbeliever. There are many types of Muslims. The label Salafi distinguishes us from other Muslims.”

“I think following Islam properly distinguishes us from other Muslims. That’s what it means to follow the Sunnah,” I argued.

“But what does it mean to follow the Sunnah?” he asked. “So many Muslims claim to be Sunni, but they aren’t. Salafi tells people that the Islam you follow adheres to what the Prophet, sallallahu’alayhi wa sallam, originally taught.”

“And what if I call myself Salafi and I still don’t follow Islam as it was originally taught? It’s the same issue with the word Sunni,” I said.

“Today, Sunni just means you’re not Shiite, so we need a different label.”

I felt a bout of mental exhaustion come over me. “And when people who aren’t really Salafi start calling themselves Salafi, what do we do then?”

I shook my head at the computer screen, internally grateful for the wisdom of my parents.

“To me, it’s as simple as this,“ I said. “Call yourself Muslim, and let people know what that means. And if we still disagree, we do our best to find the truth according to how Islam was originally taught and understood, and we follow that.”

“But it’s obligatory to call yourself Salafi though.”

“No,” I disagreed. “It’s obligatory to be Salafi—if we’re going by its true definition and not by how people use or abuse it.”

I added, “Just like it’s obligatory to be Sunni—or any other word that means to follow the Sunnah. If I’m following Islam properly, not using the latest ‘correct’ label isn’t going to harm me in front of Allah. And if I’m not following Islam properly, using the latest ‘correct’ label isn’t going to save me in front of Allah.”

• • •

“She’s a Wahhabi,” a man said to my friend.

“But is being a Wahhabi wrong?” she asked in response.

The man grew silent. Perhaps this was the first time he was forced to think critically on this issue. In the world of insults and pejoratives, critical analysis was generally not allowed—or expected.

“But I really wanted to know,” my friend said to me later as she recounted the incident.

“Are you a Wahhabi?” she asked me finally, a bit hesitant in her inquiry. I could tell this question had been weighing on her for some time. I wished I could clarify everything for her. But I myself was confused by why a fellow Muslim would refer to me in terms typically used in anti-Islam propaganda.

“To be honest,” I said to her, “I don’t even know what that means.”

“Well,” she said with a sigh, “he says we should follow Tassawuf.”

I rolled my eyes. Here we go again, I thought. When would this ever end?

“And that means…?”

She laughed in response. “I honestly don’t know.”

“Well, you should find out,” I said. “As for me, I say we should follow the Sunnah of the Prophet,sallallahu’alayhi wa sallam—as he and his Companions understood it. People can call that whatever they want.” I shook my head. “But I call it what Allah calls it—Islam.”

• • •

“Wahhabis say you shouldn’t follow a madhhab,” a respected sheikh of Tassawuf told his students. “But you must follow a madhhab….”

I sighed. It was difficult to be patient through this argument, especially as it was being repeated by a dear friend. I was so exhausted from this back-and-forth that I wondered if I had any energy left to discuss it.

Here we go…

I decided to let the “Wahhabi” label pass this time. Years ago, I’d come to accept that some people simply could not think outside of “labels” and focus on actual beliefs, so I left well enough alone.

“Well, I don’t know what Wahhabis say,” I said. “But I don’t see any problem with following amadhhab. In fact,” I added, “I don’t recall meeting anyone who says you shouldn’t.”

My friend was stumped. “But…”

“Look,” I said, deciding that for this case, the use of labels might do the conversation some good, “the difference between Salafis and Sufis has nothing to do with whether or not you must follow a specific school of thought. It has to do with ‘aqeedah.”

There was a brief pause. “What’s ‘aqeedah?” she asked hesitantly.

“Our creed or foundational belief. This is what creates different sects in Islam—differences in belief.Fiqh is a different matter altogether.”

“What’s the difference?” The question was asked sarcastically, but I sensed she really wanted to hear the answer.

“Well, let’s look at the issue of worship in Islam,” I said. “That we must pray the five prayers is an issue of ‘aqeedah. But where you place your hands after bowing, for example, is an issue of fiqh.” I added, “’Aqeedah involves the foundational beliefs about the prayer. And fiqh involves our understanding of certain details like where we place our hands or what breaks wudhoo’ and so on. 

“The different madhhabs are concerned with only fiqh issues,” I told her. “None of the famous four schools differed on ‘aqeedah. Actually,” I added for emphasis, “by definition, they were all Salafi.”

I sensed that my friend was doubtful. But I went on.

“This issue of following madhhabs is a distraction,” I said. “It has nothing to do with being Sufi or Salafi. There are Sufis who follow Hanafi fiqh, and there are Salafis who follow Hanafi fiqh—”

“But the Salafis won’t blindly follow,” she interjected.

“Even if that’s true,” I said, “the difference between these two groups—or between any groups—has nothing to do with whether or not I blindly follow a certain scholar. It concerns only one question,Must we follow Islam as it was originally taught and understood, or is Islam open to new understandings?

“If your answer is yes to the first question,” I said, “you are following the Sunnah. If your answer is yes to the second question, you’re not following the Sunnah—by your own admission.”

• • •

“What’s a Wahhabi?” someone asked as I entered the teacher’s staff room. I suppose it’s just the irony of life that I happened to hear this question at the international school where I worked in Saudi Arabia.

And I thought I’d left these discussions in America.

“Well,” one of my colleagues replied, “the Wahhabis believe that you’re allowed to pray to only Allah. But we believe you can pray through saints and sheikhs.”

I stiffened.

I hated to interject—after all, this was not my conversation—but I had to speak up.

“No,” I said, prompting the women to turn and acknowledge my presence for the first time. “That’sthe difference between Muslims and pagans.”

My colleague creased her forehead in disapproval and voiced protest. “No,” she insisted, “it’s theWahhabis who believe in worshipping only Allah. And they’re extreme: No calling on intermediaries. No religious rites at graves. No asking the dead for assistance…”

I shook my head emphatically. “No, that’s called Islam.”

• • •

So what is a Wahhabi?

I really can’t say. Because I don’t know.

And I imagine the term “Wahhabi” is like all labels, tags, and simplifications: The meaning depends on who’s using the word and why.

But I can tell you what a Muslim is.

Because Islam is all I know and believe in.

My prayer is that my brothers and sisters—who have been taught something different—will one day join me and millions of other Muslims…

In following Islam.

---

Umm Zakiyyah is the internationally acclaimed author of the If I Should Speak trilogy and the novels Realities of Submission and Hearts We Lost. To learn more about the author, visit themuslimauthor.com or join her Facebookpage.

I Didn’t Expect the Reply to Come So Quick

Bismillah al Rahman al Raheem

Shaykh Khaled al-Wuhaybi narrates:

This is a story that has a lesson to be learned, it happened to me personally and was not conveyed to me (perhaps some of you have heard it from me before, but I repeat it as a reminder).

Here I am writing it to you as it occured, so that perhaps a reader may benefit from it …

Or it may find someone desperate, and send hope to his heart …

Or find someone who was haste, and stopped supplicating to his Lord!!

On Wednesday 22/4/1423 of the Hijri Calendar

During the time of Duhr (Noon) prayers, in the Holy Mosque in Mecca, I was standing close to the chamber of the Muezzin (one who calls to prayer), when a brother signalled to me to fill a gap in the row next to him after the Iqamah has been called. So I went forward.

After we completed the prayer, I went to the back a little to sit with my legs crossed and be more comfortable while I do my Tasbeeh (Glorify and Praise Allah). I looked at that man beside me, and he appeared as if his body is worn out like the poor of the Sacred Mosque. He had the appearance of stillness and humility, and had placed his hands on his thighs as he supplicated to his Lord with humbleness. I put my hand into my pocket reaching for the money which I had tied into groups of 1 Riyal, 5 Riyals, and 10 Riyals.

I took out 5 Riyals and placed it hidden in the palm of my hand and approached him, extending my arm to him to shake his hand. We shook hands and he felt the money in my palm, then pulled his hand quickly away without taking the money or even knowing how much was in my hand, telling me: May Allah reward you greatly

I said: Won’t you accept it?

He did not respond, so I felt that he is being modest, which is why he did not accept it.

So I placed it back in my pocket. I stood back a little, and performed theSunnah, and noticed the man turning to me again and again as if he is waiting for me to finish my prayers!!

When I completed my prayers, he came next to me and greeted me, and then asked: How much was it that you were going to give me?

I said: I offered you and you refused to take it, so why would it matter if it was one riyal or a hundred?!

So he said: By Allah, how much was it that you were going to give me?

I said: Do not ask me by Allah, this matter between me and you has finished!

He said: I was supplicating to my Lord about my dire need for five Riyals, so How much was it you were going to give me?

I said: By Allah, who there is no God worthy of worship besides Him, the amount which I was offering you was 5 Riyals!

The man started weeping.

I asked him: Do you need more?

He said: no

Then he said: Subhan Allah, you were placing the money in my hand as I was still asking my Lord for it!!

I said: Why then did you pull your hand away without taking it?

He said: I didn’t expect the reply to come so quick

I said: Subhan Allah, Indeed Allah is All-Hearing, Close to those who ask Him, Answering their call; He will not come down to you Himself to give you what you asked, but truly he will facilitate for you one of his slaves to fulfill for you what you need!

I offered him the five riyals again, and he took it, and refused to take anything extra.

Indeed, Glory to Allah, the Great, who said of Himself: {And when My slaves ask you (O Muhammad) concerning Me, then (answer them), I am indeed near. I respond to the invocations of the supplicant when he calls on Me …} (Al Baqarah 2:186)

Original Arabic: http://www.ahlalhdeeth.com/vb/showthread.php?t=257678