I am really confused on what a person can and cannot do for the dead.
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:
I am
really confused on what a person can and cannot do for the dead.
You
said, that reciting Quran or any Surah for the dead is an innovation (bidaa)
and that a son/daughter cannot fast for their deceased parents.
But
follwoing is what i read on another Islamic website (Islamonline.com) : "Abdullah
ibn Buraydah reported that his father (may Allah be pleased with him) said:
“While I was sitting with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon
him), a woman came to him and said: ‘I gave my mother a slave-woman in charity,
and now my mother has died.’ He said: ‘You have got your reward, and your right
of inheritance has brought your gift back to you.’ She said, ‘O Messenger of
Allah, she still had one month to fast – can I fast it on her behalf?’ He said,
‘FAST IT ON HER BEHALF.’ She said, ‘She never went to Hajj – can I perform Hajj
on her behalf?’ He said, ‘Perform Hajj on her behalf." (Reported by
Muslim)
This
website also stated the following:
"Many
scholars include reading of the Qur’an in this category of permissible good
works that one may do on behalf of one’s deceased parents or relatives. They
have done so based on their reasoning that there is no reason to exclude such
an act from the above general permissions granted by the Prophet (peace and
blessings be upon him)"
I have
attached the following link for you to read in detail and then provide the
answer.
Awaiting
your reply.
May
Allah bless you for your hard and sincere work.
(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:
Deeds for the dead
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 none worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that
Muhammad (saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.
Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 74 Surah
Muddaththir verse 38:
38 Every soul will be (held) in pledge for
its (own) deeds.
Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 6 Surah
Anaam verse 164:
164 Say: "Shall I seek for (my) Cherisher other than Allah when He
is the Cherisher of all things (that exist)?" Every soul draws the meed of its acts on
none but itself: no bearer of burdens can bear the burden of
another. Your goal in the end is toward
Allah: He will tell you the truth of the things wherein ye disputed.
Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 41 Surah
Ha-Meem verse 46:
46 Whoever works righteousness benefits his own soul; whoever works evil it is against his own soul: nor is thy Lord
ever unjust (in the least) to His servants.
Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 3 Surah
Ale-Imraan verse 25:
25 But how (will they fare) when We gather them together against a day
about which there is no doubt and each soul will be paid out just what it
has earned without (favor or injustice)?
Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 59 Surah
Hashr verse 18:
18 O ye who believe! Fear Allah and let every soul look to what
(provision) he has sent forth for the morrow. Yea fear Allah: for Allah is well-acquainted
with (all) that ye do.
Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 2 Surah Baqarah
verse 286:
286 On no soul doth Allah place a burden greater than it can bear. It gets every good that it earns and it
suffers every ill that it earns.
Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 35 Surah
Fatir verse 18:
18 Nor can a bearer of burdens bear another's burden. If one heavily laden should call
another to (bear) his load not the least portion of it can be carried (by the
other) even though he be nearly related. Thou canst but admonish such
as fear their Lord unseen and establish regular Prayer and whoever purifies
himself does so for the benefit of his own soul; and the destination (of all)
is to Allah.
Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 2 Surah
Baqarah verse 134:
They were a people who passed away. They
shall receive the reward of what they earned, and you shall have the reward of
what you will earn. And you will not be questioned as to what they did.
Dear and beloved brother in Islam, in light of the above
and various other verses of the Glorious Quran, the guiding principle in Islam
is that every soul draws the meed of its acts on none but itself. Just as one cannot do evil deeds and transfer
them to another, one cannot do good deeds and by themselves, transfer them to
their loved ones.
Abu Hurairah reported, "The Prophet
(saws) said, 'When a person dies all his good deeds cease except for
three:
- a
continuous act of charity (which the deceased did in his own lifetime),
- beneficial
knowledge (which the deceased left behind),
- and
a righteous son (children) who prays for him'.''
Related by Muslim and Abu Dawood.
Abu Hurairah reported, "The Prophet
(saws) said, 'The righteous works that continue to benefit a believer after his
death include the knowledge that he taught and spread among others, a righteous
son (children) whom he leaves behind, or a copy of the Qur'an that he bequeaths
to his inheritors, or a mosque that he builds, or a rest house that he builds
for the wayfarers, or a canal of water that he digs for the benefit of others,
or a charity that he gives out of his property during his life while he is
sound of health. He will continue to receive reward for all these even after
his death.'
Related by Ibn Maajah.
Allah and His Messenger (saws) have been extremely clear
regarding what benefits the deceased; and all the rites and rituals do in the
name of their deceased loved ones like ‘fatihah’, ‘urs’, ‘quran khani’, etc.
have absolutely no legal basis in either the Quran or the authentic and
established Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah (saws).
Sahih Al-Bukhari Hadith 9.418 Narrated
by Ibn Abbas
A woman came to the
Prophet (saws) and said, "My mother vowed to perform the Hajj but she died
before performing it. Should I perform the Hajj on her behalf?" He (saws)
said, "Yes! Perform the Hajj on her behalf. See, if your mother had been in debt, would
you have paid her debt?" She said,
"Yes." He (saws) said, "So you should pay what is for Him, as
Allah has more right that one should fulfill one's obligations to Him."
If one who was dying instructed her off-spring or loved
one to do so something specific for them like Hajj or Umrah or charity etc.; or
one who has died intended or vowed to perform the pilgrimage or give charity,
etc.; or one who had missed or vowed some fasts and intended to fulfill them,
but death overtook them before they could fulfill their vow or intention…..the
Messenger of Allah (saws) indeed permitted the off-spring or a loved one of the
deceased to fulfill the intention or vow of their deceased loved one.
But for one from themselves to start doing deeds for their
deceased loved ones, or make it a annual ritual to do something in the name of
their deceased loved ones, etc…..such acts have absolutely no basis or legality
or permissibility in Islam.
If one trusts, obeys, and follows the guidance and
commands of Allah and His Messenger (saws),
one 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), one 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 alone. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only
Source of Strength.
Your brother and
well wisher in Islam,
Burhan
Wister