What is the ruling on gathering for condolences during the three days after the death of a deceased person, and hiring a reciter to recite the Qur'an, then gathering for the completion of the recitation and the supplication of the completion?

The questioner : People among us have become accustomed to the fact that when a member of the family dies, people gather for condolences during the first three days. They recite the Noble Qur'an during this period and complete as many recitations of the Qur'an as they can. Afterwards, they gather and one of the scholars or one of the women recites the supplication for the completion of the Qur'an, which they take from a book titled *Supplication for the Completion of the Qur'an* authored by Ahmad ibn Muhammad al-Barak. This author states that he wrote this book in India as a gift for the month of Ramadan so that Muslims may benefit from it. It contains the supplication for the first year and the last year, the supplication for the middle night of Sha'ban, and this phrase caught my attention because of my knowledge of the weakness of the hadiths regarding the specific designation of the middle night of Sha'ban. Then, as part of the supplication, the book mentions Surat al-Fatihah, verses from Surat al-Baqarah, Ali 'Imran, and other surahs. Among the words included is that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said to the Bedouin: "Submit to Islam." He said: "Who testifies, O Muhammad, that what you say is the truth?" So the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) called out to a tree on the right bank of the valley, and it came to him, splitting the earth as it went. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) made it a witness and said to it: "O tree! Who am I?" It said: "You are the Messenger of Allah, truly." So it returned to its place, declaring the message with its speech. Another statement about the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) is that he sheltered the camel, guaranteed the gazelle, spoke to the lizard, and addressed the snake, and the dry stick in his hand turned green. They repeat this supplication according to the number of completed recitations of the Qur'an, and they ask Allah in it that its reward be a charity for the deceased. Is it permissible to recite for the deceased? How authentic is what is mentioned in this book? Please inform us of what you know about this matter, may Allah reward you with good.

The Shaykh : I did not have any copy of this book that the questioner mentioned, nor do I know about it. However, regarding what was mentioned about the gathering of the deceased's family for condolences for three days, reciting the Qur'an, and dedicating its reward to the deceased, this is among the religious innovations (bid'ah) that did not come from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). The scholars disliked people gathering for condolences in their homes or in a specific place. The common outcome is that when such a gathering occurs, especially the gathering of women, it is inevitably accompanied by wailing or lamentation, and both are forbidden (haram). The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: . Therefore, it is obligatory for Muslims to abandon these religious innovations and to look to the way of those who came before them from the Companions and the Tabi'un who followed them with excellence, and to follow their path. There is no doubt that the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) were afflicted with the deaths of their loved ones like other people, and this did not occur among them. The utmost that is reported in this regard is that when the news of the death of Ja'far ibn Abi Talib (may Allah be pleased with him) came, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: .
As for dedicating the Qur'an to the deceased, or reciting the Qur'an for the deceased, the scholars differed on whether its reward reaches him or not. The correct view is that its reward reaches him. However, hiring someone to recite the Qur'an for him is what is forbidden (haram), because reciting the Qur'an is an act of devotion (qurbah), and it is not valid to take a wage for an act of devotion. If they hire a person to recite the Qur'an for the deceased, the lease contract is forbidden, and the reciter does not own the wage by that, nor does he have any reward from his recitation, because he intended something other than the Face of Allah with it. The deceased does not benefit from it at that time, because it is not accepted such that reward and merit follow from it. In that case, the deceased's family who spent this money are losers, and the deceased misses out on the reward they were hoping for.
As for what he mentioned regarding the verses he referred to, the verses that indicate the truthfulness of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him): the verses indicating the truthfulness of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) are many, and the greatest of them is this great Qur'an, which remains a prophetic miracle (mu'jizah) until the command of Allah (Mighty and Majestic) comes. It is established for the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) many cosmic, terrestrial, and celestial signs. Whoever wants to review them should refer to what the scholars have mentioned regarding that, such as *Al-Bidaya wa al-Nihayah* by Ibn Kathir, and such as what the Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah concluded his book *Al-Jawab al-Sahih* with, for it contains sufficient and convincing evidence.