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:

We learned that reciting surah mulk after maghrib is of great benefit aur ise kisi ke liye baqshe toh inshallah allah use qabar ke azab se mehfooz rakhengey. I would like to know if we have to recite this surah only after maghrib? Or can it be done during the day also for this purpose? Also please let me know what else can we recite for the parents who are no more. Thank you very much for your time and kind help. May allah bless you all for this help. 

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Answer:

Recite surah mulk sunnah

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.

Your Question: We learned that reciting surah mulk after maghrib is of great benefit aur ise kisi ke liye baqshe toh inshallah allah use qabar ke azab se mehfooz rakhengey.

Al-Muwatta Hadith 15.19

Yahya related from Malik from Ibn Shihab that Humayd ibn Abd ar-Rahman ibn Awf had told him that the Messenger of Allah (saws) said that Surat al-Ikhlas (Sura 112) was equal to a third of the Qur'an, and that Surat al-Mulk (Sura 67) pleaded for its owner.

Beloved brother in Islam, to the best of our knowledge there is nothing in the authentic and established Sunnah or practice of the Messenger of Allah (saws) whereby he guided or encouraged the believers to recite the Surah 67 Al-Mulk only after the Magrib prayers; thus it would not be guidance to invent such limitations and restrictions when Allah and His Messenger (saws) have not imposed limitations. One may recite the blessed Surah al-Mulk as often and whenever one wills and pleases.

Secondly, there is absolutely no mention in any of the authentic and established traditions of the Messenger of Allah (saws) whereby he (saws) guided that one could recite the Surah Al-Mulk (or any other Surah) and transfer the rewards towards the deceased; nor is there any authentic evidence in the Sunnah that the recitation of the Surah Al-Mulk relieves the deceased from the ‘azaab-e-qabar’ or torments of the grave.

To allocate rewards to a particular deed, when Allah and His Messenger (saws) have not specified the rewards is to invent something oneself and attribute it to Allah and His Messenger (saws)….such inventions and innovations done without any authority from Allah and His Messenger (saws) is a grave sin in the Sight of Allah Subhanah.

The Glorious Quran is a book of guidance only for those who are alive and willing to listen to good caution; thus know with absolute conviction that the recitation of the Quran can bring about absolutely no good for those who are already dead, nor is there even an iota of evidence that the Messenger of Allah (saws) ever recited any Surah of the Glorious Quran with the intention to transfer its rewards to the deceased, or to bring about any good or benefit for those who were dead!

Your Question: I would like to know if we have to recite this surah only after maghrib? Or can it be done during the day also for this purpose?

It is not Sunnah to recite the Quran and transfer its rewards to the deceased, nor is it part of Sunnah to restrict the recitation of the Surah Al-Mulk only after Magrib prayers.

Al-Tirmidhi Hadith 2137 Narrated by Abdullah ibn Mas'ud

Allah's Messenger (saws) said, "If anyone recites a letter from Allah's Book he will be credited with a good deed, and a good deed gets a tenfold reward. I do not say that ‘Alif-Lam-Mim’ are one letter, but ‘Alif’ is a letter, ‘Lam’ is a letter and ‘Mim’ is a letter."

One may recite the blessed Surah Al-Mulk or any other part of the Glorious Quran whenever and as often as one wills and pleases; it is expected that their Lord will bestow the due and full reward upon those who recite the Glorious Quran.

Your Question: Also please let me know what else can we recite for the parents who are no more.

Abu Hurayrah reported that the Prophet (saws) said:

'When a person dies all his good deeds cease except for three:

1. Sadaqa Jaariya. (continuous acts of charity. ie. a person who did or spent something in the way of Allah and people are still benefiting from it. Things like mosques, orphanages, wells, planting of trees and the like, which outlive the person who died and benefits the ummah.)

2. Ilm un Naafe'ah.(beneficial knowledge. ie. a person who spread knowledge of Islam and people are still benefiting from it after his death. Things like lectures, writing books, good advice he gave to people, or any other knowledge of Islam that the person helped in spreading the word of Allah.)

3. Ibn us Saleh. (righteous children who pray for him. ie. his children who regularly pray to Allah to forgive their father/mother who died.)

Beloved brother in Islam, in light of the above guidance of the Messenger of Allah (saws) the Book of Records of the deceased is sealed, except for three things:

1. Continuous acts of charity done by the deceased.
2. Beneficial knowledge spread by the deceased.
3. and, Righteous children who supplicate for them.

Beloved brother, if your parents brought you up with righteousness and guided and taught you to fear Allah and worship Him Alone, then rest absolutely assured that every good deed that you do in your life, your parents will also receive a share of that good deed done by you without your rewards being diminished in the least…..because it is they who strove to guide you to the Straight Path.

The absolutely best deed a righteous child can and should do for their deceased parents is constantly supplicate Allah Subhanah to have Mercy upon his deceased parents, forgive them their sins, bestow upon them comfort and security in their graves, and grant and raise them to a honorable status and rank in the Hereafter. These supplications made by a righteous off-spring are enormously beneficial for their deceased parents.

Thus beloved brother, one need not recite any particular Surah, nor does one need to fast, nor offer special prayers and transfer its rewards to their deceased parents, for such transfers are not in accordance with the Sunnah. The truth is that if the parents were the ones who strove to guide their children to the Straight Path of Islam, then every good their off-springs do, their parents will also receive a reward for the deeds done by their righteous off-spring because it was they who were responsible for striving to guide them to the Truth. The more righteous an off-spring is and the more good deeds an off-spring does, the more rewards his/her parents will receive from Allah Subhanah. And what truly benefits one deceased parents is the supplications that a righteous off-spring makes to Allah Subhanah for his/her parents.

Sahih Muslim Hadith 6470 Narrated by Abu Hurayrah

Allah's Messenger (saws) said: ‘He who called (people to righteousness, there would be reward (assured) for him like the rewards of those who adhered to it, without their rewards being diminished in any respect. And he who called (people) to error, he shall have to carry (the burden) of its sin, like those who committed it, without their sins being diminished in any respect.’

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

Your brother and well wisher in Islam,

Burhan