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:

If some one dies can he or she will be benifited by reading Quran and arranging other ritual ceremonies like QUL etc.If yes please quote Hadith if not then what shall we do for his/her Maghfrah
Thanks and best regards
Akhtar Khan 

(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:

Qul fatihah for deceased

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 6 Surah Anaam verse 164:

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.

Abu Hurairah reported that The Prophet (saws), said, 'When a person dies all his good deeds cease except for three:

1.      a continuous act of charity,

2.      beneficial knowledge, and

3.      a righteous offspring who prays for him'.''

Related by Muslim and Abu Dawood.

In light of the above guidance of the Quran it is absolutely clear that every soul will draw the meed or merit of its own deeds; and in light of the absolutely clear guidance of the Messenger of Allah (saws) all the deeds of a deceased are ceased except for three:

1. continuous act of charity: ie. the charity done by the deceased like building a school, or a hospital, or a mosque, or a well, etc. which is still being utilized for the good of man even after his death….the deceased shall earn a reward for such continuous deeds of charity even after his death.
2. beneficial knowledge: ie. if the deceased strove and exhorted someone to believe and obey their Lord Creator, or the deceased gave someone a copy of the Glorious Quran, or some good advice, etc….then he will continue to receive the rewards of every good that person did on his advice.
3. righteous offspring: ie. the near and loved ones who constantly supplicate their Lord to forgive their deceased loved one.

For absolutely all acts of worship, it is absolutely imperative that the believers always follow what is Declared by Allah and practiced by His Messenger (saws). There is absolutely no evidence that the Messenger of Allah (saws), his noble family, or any of his noble companions ever gathered people at the house of the deceased after a certain number of days (1,3, 9, 10, 11, 40, etc.) to collectively make dua, or recite the Glorious Quran, or perform the ‘fatihah’, or recite the ‘qull’, or perform the ‘tasbeeh’, or enjoy a feast in the name of the deceased! Without an iota of a doubt, such commemorations are no more than innovations which have unfortunately crept into the pure and perfect deen of Islam; and the believers who sincerely fear Allah and the Last Day must strive to absolutely abstain from all such innovations.

Sahih Muslim Hadith 1885 Narrated by Jabir ibn Abdullah

That the Prophet of Allah (saws) said in a sermon: “The best speech is that which is embodied in the Book of Allah, the Al Quran; and the best guidance is the guidance given by me, Mohamed (saws). The most evil affairs are the innovations (bida), and every innovation (bida) is an error.”

Sunan of Abu-Dawood Hadith 4515 Narrated by Ali ibn AbuTalib

That the Prophet of Allah (saws) said: “If anyone introduces an innovation (bida in religion), he will be responsible for it. If anyone introduces an innovation (bida) or gives shelter to a man who introduces an innovation (bida), he is cursed by Allah, by His Angels, and by all the people!”

But what one can and must do is make constant supplication for his deceased brother/sister in faith to the Merciful Lord, and beseech Him to be Merciful on the departed soul, forgive his/her sins and grant them an honorable place in Paradise. This was the practice and the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah (saws).

Instead of visiting, consoling, helping, and assisting the family of the deceased to come to terms with their grief, the ignorant amongst the people burden them with such innovations as ‘fatihah’, and ‘qull’, and ‘tasbeeh’, etc., where the deceased’s family are made to run around to accommodate the gatherers, buy or borrow copies of the Quran which would be read over the deceased, and prepare an enormous amount of food as a feast for those who gather for such self-invented rituals!! Not satisfied with putting this physical and financial burden upon the bereaved family, some amongst the most ignorant even go to the extent of repeating this innovated ritual on the 1^st, 2^nd, 3^rd, 9^th, 10^th, 30^th and 40^th day of the death of the deceased! Allah is our witness, this innovated ritual of what is known today as ‘fatihah’ or ‘qull’ over the deceased neither helps the deceased in any way whatsoever, nor does it help console nor lightens the burden of the bereaved family!

But the ‘deen’ of mercy and the one who was sent as a ‘mercy to the worlds’, Prophet Mohamed (saws) guided the believers to earnestly supplicate the Lord Most Merciful to have mercy on their deceased brother or sister, help and assist the bereaved family in any and every which way they can, feed them during these trying days, share their grief, and help them to bring their lives back to normal as soon as possible.

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