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

asak. I wud like to know if alright to go to grave of any pious person and recite only the dua said by our prophet(saw) or it is bida`a to visit any grave with a tomb or shrine built over it?

thank you for your site.may Allah reward you for the good work

a sister 

(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:

Travel to shrine

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.

Sa'id bin Al-Musayyib reported from Abu Hurairah that the Prophet (saws) said, "You should not undertake a special journey to visit any place (of worship) other than the three Mosques: the Sacred Mosque of Makkah, this mosque of mine (in Madinah), and Al-Aqsa Mosque (of Jerusalem)."

Related by Bukhari, Muslim, and Abu Daw'ud.

The Messenger of Allah (saws) absolutely forbade the believers to undertake a special journey with the intention to visit any place of worship, other than the three holy mosques in Makkah, Madhinah, and Jerusalem. Thus it would not be permissible for a believer who sincerely believes in Allah and the Last Day to make a special journey only to visit the grave of any deceased pious slave of Allah Subhanah.

But if the believer happens to be in a place or region where some deceased pious slave of Allah is buried, there is absolutely no harm in visiting the grave of such a person and making supplications for that deceased brother/sister as taught by the Messenger of Allah (saws).

Ibn Abbas reported: "Once the Prophet (saws) passed by graves in Madinah. He (saws) tumed his face toward them saying: 'Peace be upon you, O dwellers of these graves. May Allah forgive us and you. You have preceded us, and we are following your trail'."

Related by Tirmidhi.

Aishah reported: "I asked: 'What should I say when I pass by a graveyard, O Messenger of Allah (saws)?' He (saws) replied, 'Say, "Peace be upon the believing men and women dwelling here. May Allah grant mercy to those who have preceded us, and those who are to follow them. Certainly, Allah willing, we will join you"'.

Related by Muslim.

Under absolutely no circumstances can a believer who visits the grave of some pious deceased slaves of Allah invoke the deceased, or perform any rite or ritual for the deceased, or make any supplication or invocation to the deceased….for that then would a manifest act of ‘shirk’ in the Sight of Allah Subhanah.

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