Mu' meneen Brothers and Sisters,

As Salaam Aleikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.  (May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be upon all of you)

One of our brothers/sisters has asked this question:

Dear Brother Burhan,
You are doing a marvellous job and may Allah reward you with all the courage and patience.I really have no clue how I received your site address but whoever has forwarded the site to me may Allah reward him. I am getting very much interested in your site day by day and the way you answer the questions, by seeking Allah forgiveness and quoting the Ayaah from Quran relating to the answers you give is very amazing. I wish you all the best and pray to Allah that he protect you and all Momeens from evil doers.

Dear brother I heard that when a Bohri is buried their Imaam leaves a note in their grave to overcome the azaab of grave. I don`t know how far it is true but i am very much confused and surprised to hear that. Could u please clear my doubt ? May Allah bless you.
Jazak Allah Khair 

(There may be some grammatical and spelling errors in the above statement. The forum does not change anything from questions, comments and statements received from our readers for circulation in confidentiality.)

Answer:

Bohra imam note in grave

In the name of Allah, We praise Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can misguide, and whoever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright. We bear witness that there is no one (no idol, no person, no grave, no prophet, no imam, no dai, nobody!) worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that Muhammad(saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.

May Allah Subhanah reward you with the best of this world and the Hereafter for your kind comments of encouragement for our humble efforts in the propagation of the Truth. If our humble and modest efforts have helped even one brother or sister get closer to Allah and His Deen of Truth, then we would consider ourselves indeed fortunate to have been given this opportunity by the Lord Most Merciful to serve in His Cause. We hope, beg, and pray the Merciful Lord accepts our humble and weak efforts, forgives us our shortcomings, and saves you, us, and all the believers from the torment of the Hell Fire. Ameen.

Your Question: Dear brother I heard that when a Bohri is buried their Imaam leaves a note in their grave to overcome the azaab of grave. I don`t know how far it is true but i am very much confused and surprised to hear that. Could u please clear my doubt ?

Dear and Beloved Brother in Islam, it is indeed unfortunate but true that the High Priest of the Bohra sect does present a hand-written ‘note’ to some of his chosen followers, or those amongst his followers who can afford its exorbitant price, to be buried along with the body in the grave!

But Allah Subhanah is our witness, that no ‘note’ or nothing in the Universe can overcome the punishment of the grave or the Hereafter; the only thing that comes between a deceased and his due punishment is his own deeds and the Mercy of Allah Subhanah!

The people who in their gross ignorance of the Justice and Majesty of Allah Subhanah, purchase such ‘notes’ of insurance from their High Priests are due for a rude awakening in their graves! Allah Subhanah’s Mercy and Justice is not dependant on some unscrupulous High Priests desires for monetary gains nor his hand-written notes; for the criteria laid down by Allah Subhanah in His Glorious Quran is: faith in Allah, and the doing of righteous goods deeds in accordance to the guidance of Allah and His Messenger (saws).

Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 103 Surah Asr verses 1-3:

1 By (the Token of) time (through the Ages)

2 Verily Man is in loss!

3 Except such as have Faith and do righteous deeds; and (join together) in the mutual teaching of Truth, and of Patience and Constancy.

It is related in the ‘Seerah’ of the Prophet (saws), that the righteous son of the chief of the hypocrites Abdullah ibn Ubayy ibn Sulool, came to the Messenger of Allah (saws) at his father’s death and requested the Prophet (saws) to present to him his (saw’s) cloak with which he wished to bury his father. The Noble Prophet (saws), generous and merciful that he was, presented his own cloak to the son, and subsequently his father Abdullah ibn Ubayy was buried with it. Then the Prophet (saws) himself led and performed the funeral prayers for Abdulla ibn Ubayy and sought his forgiveness from Allah Subhanah. It is said that Allah Subhanah revealed this Aayah of Surah Taubah after this incident:

Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 9 Surah Taubah verse 80: Whether thou (O Prophet (saws)) ask for their forgiveness or not (their sin is unforgivable): if thou ask seventy times for their forgiveness, Allah will not forgive them! because they have rejected Allah and His Messenger; and Allah guideth not those who are perversely rebellious.

If one just stops and thinks for even a moment, that when the cloak of the Messenger of Allah (saws) used as the burial shroud, and his (saws) own supplication for the deceased sinner could not save the buried person from the Wrath of Allah; how could a paltry ‘note’ from a self-appointed High Priest who sells them for worldly gains, possibly overcome the punishment of the grave Decreed by Allah Subhanah! The ignorant people who facilitate such courageous ‘insurance’ notes from their High Priests, the people who buy them, the people who sell them, and the people who believe in such false ‘insurance’ schemes to overcome the results of their deeds in the graves; are indeed due for a rude awakening when they will be confronted with the Truth!

Sahih Al-Bukhari Hadith 6.294 Narrated by Abu Huraira

Allah's Messenger (saws) got up when the Verse "And warn your tribe of near kindred..." of the Quran (26:214) was revealed, and said, "O Quraish! Save yourselves! I cannot save you from Allah (if you disobey Him). O Bani Abd Manaf! I cannot save you from Allah (if you disobey Him). O Banu 'Abbas! The sons of 'Abdul Muttalib! I cannot save you from Allah (if you disobey Him). O Safiya, (the aunt of Allah's Messenger)! I cannot save you from Allah (if you disobey Him). O Fatima, the daughter of Muhammad! Ask what you wish from my property, but I cannot save you from Allah (if you disobey Him)."

Sahih Al-Bukhari Hadith 9.603 Narrated by Adi bin Hatim

Allah's Messenger (saws) said, "There will be none among you but his Lord will talk to him, and there will be no interpreter between him and Allah. He will look to his right and see nothing but his deeds which he has sent forward; and will look to his left and see nothing but his deeds which he has sent forward, and will look in front of him and see nothing but the (Hell) Fire facing him. So save yourself from the (Hell) Fire even with half a date (given in charity as a good deed!)."

If one trusts, obeys, and follows the guidance and commands of Allah and His Messenger (saws), he can be assured of never ever being misled; but if one believes, obeys and follows any other guidance, other than that of Allah and His Messenger (saws), he can be assured of being led astray.

Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is of me. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.

Your Brother in Islam,

Burhan