Burying each deceased person in a separate grave
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Fatwa number ( 17966 )
Q: One of our relatives was buried in the Ta'if cemetery adjacent to the mosque of Ibn 'Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him). We noticed that their graves are hollowed out within the ground and built with bricks, approximately two meters in length, 70 cm in width, and about one meter and 20 cm in height. This was on Friday, 15/3/1416 AH.
The question: What is your opinion, Your Eminence, regarding such graves, given that they do not have a side chamber (lahd)? We also inform Your Eminence that when asked about the cemetery and its age, and that it is small, how it accommodates the number of dead over these many years, especially since the graves are large in size, three workers at the cemetery informed us. One of them, who has worked there for about twenty years, said: After a year and a half to two years have passed since the burial of the deceased, his bones are collected, a hole is dug in the same grave, then he is buried, the grave is leveled anew, and another person is buried in it, and so on. Especially since this method is convenient for the workers, as it avoids the process of digging again and building with bricks.
A : It is obligatory that each deceased person be buried in a separate grave. A side chamber (lahd) should be made for him facing the qiblah, and the lahd should be sealed with bricks or the like. A group should not be buried in one grave unless there is great hardship in burying each person separately, due to a large number of deaths caused by a plague, killing, or the like. In such a case, there is no harm in burying two or three people in one grave, and the best of them in religion should be placed closest to the qiblah, as the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) did with the martyrs of Uhud. As for what was mentioned in the question regarding digging up the grave after a period of time has passed since the burial of the deceased, collecting his remains in one side of his grave, and then burying another deceased person in his place, this is an action that is not permissible in the Shari'ah.
And success is from Allah, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and his Companions.
Q: One of our relatives was buried in the Ta'if cemetery adjacent to the mosque of Ibn 'Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him). We noticed that their graves are hollowed out within the ground and built with bricks, approximately two meters in length, 70 cm in width, and about one meter and 20 cm in height. This was on Friday, 15/3/1416 AH.
The question: What is your opinion, Your Eminence, regarding such graves, given that they do not have a side chamber (lahd)? We also inform Your Eminence that when asked about the cemetery and its age, and that it is small, how it accommodates the number of dead over these many years, especially since the graves are large in size, three workers at the cemetery informed us. One of them, who has worked there for about twenty years, said: After a year and a half to two years have passed since the burial of the deceased, his bones are collected, a hole is dug in the same grave, then he is buried, the grave is leveled anew, and another person is buried in it, and so on. Especially since this method is convenient for the workers, as it avoids the process of digging again and building with bricks.
A : It is obligatory that each deceased person be buried in a separate grave. A side chamber (lahd) should be made for him facing the qiblah, and the lahd should be sealed with bricks or the like. A group should not be buried in one grave unless there is great hardship in burying each person separately, due to a large number of deaths caused by a plague, killing, or the like. In such a case, there is no harm in burying two or three people in one grave, and the best of them in religion should be placed closest to the qiblah, as the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) did with the martyrs of Uhud. As for what was mentioned in the question regarding digging up the grave after a period of time has passed since the burial of the deceased, collecting his remains in one side of his grave, and then burying another deceased person in his place, this is an action that is not permissible in the Shari'ah.
And success is from Allah, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and his Companions.
Source
www.alifta.gov.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.