What is the authenticity of the hadith: "Whoever performs Hajj and does not visit me has wronged me"?
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The questioner : Honorable Shaykh, peace be upon you, and Allah’s mercy and blessings.
The Shaykh : And upon you be peace, and may Allah have mercy on you and send His blessings. There is a hadith from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) that says:
The questioner : "Whoever performs Hajj and does not visit me has wronged me." What is the authenticity of this hadith?
The Shaykh : This hadith is fabricated to the highest degree of fabrication, and there is nothing more fabricated than this hadith. Why? If this hadith were taken at face value, visiting the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) would be among the most obligatory duties, because it indicates that whoever does not visit him has wronged him. And wronging the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) is disbelief. Who wrongs the Messenger of Allah?
Only a disbeliever wrongs him. Therefore, this hadith is fabricated and invalid. It is not permissible for anyone to mention it except in conjunction with an explanation of its invalidity and fabrication. Visiting the grave of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) for one who does not travel specifically for it is a recommended practice (sunnah), like visiting the graves of the others. And you visit the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) to greet him, not to call upon him, nor to make supplication at his grave. We have previously mentioned how many categories are there for visiting graves? Five, yes, and we explained them previously, so whoever wishes may refer back to that.
However, it is recommended for a person when he heads to Madinah that his greatest intention be visiting the mosque, which is the one to which journeys are made, and in which prayer is better than a thousand prayers in any other place except the mosque of the Ka'bah. This is how it should be for one who wishes to visit Madinah. When he arrives there, we then say it is recommended for you to visit the grave of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and the graves of his two companions, yes.
The Shaykh : And upon you be peace, and may Allah have mercy on you and send His blessings. There is a hadith from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) that says:
The questioner : "Whoever performs Hajj and does not visit me has wronged me." What is the authenticity of this hadith?
The Shaykh : This hadith is fabricated to the highest degree of fabrication, and there is nothing more fabricated than this hadith. Why? If this hadith were taken at face value, visiting the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) would be among the most obligatory duties, because it indicates that whoever does not visit him has wronged him. And wronging the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) is disbelief. Who wrongs the Messenger of Allah?
Only a disbeliever wrongs him. Therefore, this hadith is fabricated and invalid. It is not permissible for anyone to mention it except in conjunction with an explanation of its invalidity and fabrication. Visiting the grave of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) for one who does not travel specifically for it is a recommended practice (sunnah), like visiting the graves of the others. And you visit the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) to greet him, not to call upon him, nor to make supplication at his grave. We have previously mentioned how many categories are there for visiting graves? Five, yes, and we explained them previously, so whoever wishes may refer back to that.
However, it is recommended for a person when he heads to Madinah that his greatest intention be visiting the mosque, which is the one to which journeys are made, and in which prayer is better than a thousand prayers in any other place except the mosque of the Ka'bah. This is how it should be for one who wishes to visit Madinah. When he arrives there, we then say it is recommended for you to visit the grave of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and the graves of his two companions, yes.
Source
قناة «فضيلة الشيخ محمد بن صالح العثيمين»، لقاء[19 من 31] ما صحة حديث من حج ولم يزرني فقد جفاني؟!! الشيخ ابن عثيمين - مشروع كبار العلماء — youtube.com
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.