Question :
A question was asked regarding [the validity of] journeying to visit the graves of the righteous.
Fatwa in Brief: Visiting graves is a
reprehensible act (munkar); and it is [therefore]
not permitted.
Shaykh Ibn Baz, al-Buhuth Magazine,
no. 39, pp. 143-5
Response:
There is no harm in traveling to visit the righteous,
whether they are alive or dead.
Commentary:
Bukhari and Muslim include a report in which the Prophet
(upon him be peace) states that “a Muslim should only
exert effort in traveling to three mosques: my mosque,
the Haram mosque and the Aqsa mosque”. Yet, while
Muslims do not need to travel to pray in mosques other
than these three, there is nothing to prevent someone
from traveling to perform any other legally beneficial
act, such as jihad, or the search for knowledge,
or so as to gain a better living from God, to visit
one’s brothers, or to improve bonds within the family.
The merit of each of these acts is supported by verses
in the Qur’an.
The meaning of this hadith is merely that these
three mosques are better than all other mosques as far
as prayer is concerned. Indeed [it is said that],
praying in them doubles the reward a believer receives
[for this act of worship]. In their collections, Ahmad
and Ibn Majah include a hadith with a sound (sahih)
chain of transmission to the effect that a single prayer
in al-Haram mosque is equal to a thousand prayers in any
other mosque. Al-Bukhari and Muslim report that praying
in the mosque of Madina is equal to one thousand prayers
in any other mosque, except for the Haram mosque. Al-Tabrani
and Ibn Khuzaima, in his Sahih, and al-Bazar
include another hadith, with a strong (hasan)
chain of transmission, to the effect that praying in the
Aqsa mosque is worth five hundred prayers in a normal
mosque. And in another report, with a strong (hasan)
chain of tradition, in the [collections of] Ahmad and
Ibn Abu Shaiba, it is said that the main purpose of
travel is simply to pray in these mosques, because of
the benefits that this brings. It is also reported by
Abu Sa‘id al-Khudari that the Prophet (upon him be
peace) said that Muslims should not travel to a mosque
to pray except to the Haram mosque, my mosque, and the
Aqsa mosque.
On the basis of this evidence, it is recommended (Sunna),
or at least it is not prohibited, to travel to pray in
these mosques [al-Aqsa, al-Haram, and the Prophet’s
mosque]. In order to do so, and to gain the benefits of
praying there, s/he must endure the physical and
financial hardships of the journey. However, regarding
other mosques, there is no need to travel, or to endure
hardship, so as merely to pray in them. Indeed, some
scholars prohibit this form of journey.[1]
Yet, despite this, travelling to visit righteous people,
be they alive or dead, is not prohibited by Islam.[2]
Dr.
Yassir ‘Abd al-‘Azim
[1]
Al-Samhudi, Khulasat al-Wafa, p. 70.
[2]
‘Atiya Saqr, Fatawa Dar al-Ifta’ al-Misriyya,
no. 55. May 1997.