Explanation of the hadith of Buraydah (may Allah be pleased with him): (I forbade you from visiting graves, so visit them...)

The Shaykh : Here is a question about two hadiths. First: Buraydah said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: It was narrated by Muslim. The question: We ask you to explain the hadith? Naturally, explaining this hadith requires a special lecture; therefore, we are explaining these portions of this hadith in a way that allows for brevity and conciseness. First: The Messenger (peace be upon him) said: The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade the Muslims, both women and men, from visiting graves in the early days of Islam. This was to block the means to harm, because they were new to Islam and, on the other hand, they were recently familiar with disbelief, shirk (associating partners with Allah), and idolatry. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) feared that if he permitted them to visit graves, they would commit acts of shirk and idolatry at the graves, just as they used to do before the mission of the Messenger (peace be upon him) in the pre-Islamic age of ignorance. So, to cut off evil and sever the root of shirk, he said: This was in the early days of Islam, when he forbade the Muslims, both women and men, from visiting graves in a general prohibition. After the time that Allah willed had passed, until faith became firmly established in their hearts and they knew what is permissible to do when visiting graves, he then permitted them, (peace be upon him), in a general permission that included both women and men, according to the correct opinion. He said: So, after the Messenger (peace be upon him) forbade visiting graves in a general prohibition, he permitted visiting graves in a general permission and explained in other hadiths the wisdom behind visiting graves. He said (may Allah’s prayers and peace be upon him): There is no doubt that women need to remember the Hereafter just as men do, if not more so than men. Therefore, restricting the permission to visit graves to men only, while it contradicts hadiths that explicitly state the permissibility of a person visiting graves, also contradicts the wisdom and purpose for which the Messenger (peace be upon him) permitted visiting graves, which is to remember the Hereafter. Women, as he (peace be upon him) said: , are in need of remembering the Hereafter just as men are. Therefore, after the Messenger forbade visiting graves, he permitted it. It is permissible for women and men to visit graves, but on the condition that the visit is in accordance with the Shari'ah. For example, it is not permissible for men to visit graves and turn the cemetery into a café, as they do in many of what they call the three days and forty days, and so on. We see men sitting on chairs around the grave and engaging in what is permissible and what is not permissible. This is not permissible in Islam. Visiting graves was legislated for the wisdom we mentioned: to remember the Hereafter and to greet the dead, as is established. Part of completing the visit to graves is for the visitor to greet the one being visited with the greeting that the Messenger prescribed and practiced, which is: . Likewise, if women visit graves for the same purpose, to remember the Hereafter and to greet the dead, that is fine. But if they visit while displaying their adornment, and they sit, talk, make loud noises, and wail, then all of this makes the visit forbidden. The prescribed visit is for two purposes: first, to remember the Hereafter, and second, to greet the dead.

The questioner: Shaykh?

The Shaykh: Yes.

The questioner: In some narrations it says...

The Shaykh : In several narrations.

The questioner : ... .

The Shaykh : We said we wanted to comment briefly; we did not want to open the door to questions. Now, among the etiquettes of visiting graves is not to walk in the cemetery with shoes on. That is, the one who wants to pass between the graves must walk barefoot. This is one of the etiquettes that Muslims have generally neglected, except for a few of them. This sister of mine is asking me about this question, and I cannot give you the answer now except by mentioning the evidence, and the discussion would be long. So, after we finish answering these questions and other questions that may be there, you may direct questions before the time runs out. I say: Whoever visits graves is in a state of choice. Either he visits from a distance and does not pass between the graves, and he says, "Peace be upon you," and so on. And if he wants to reach the grave of a loved one, a friend, a mother, a father, and so on, he must take off his shoes. This is because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) saw a man walking between the graves in his sandals and said: . The "sabtayniyyah" (leather sandals) is the sandal that has no hair on it. In the past, we have progressed a lot and no longer wear such sandals. They used to wear sandals made of leather. Of course, the base is leather, but the hair remains on the leather. You would see a man walking in a sandal that has this hair, as Allah created it originally. They would tan this leather and not remove the hair, then make a sandal from it. So this sandal is a sandal. If the hair is removed from this sandal, before or after, it is called a "sabtayniyyah." So that man who was walking between the graves was wearing sandals like our sandals today that have no hair on them. So they are "sabtayniyyah" sandals. The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) rebuked him and said: Meaning: If you are compelled to walk between the graves, then out of respect for the graves, do not step on them with your sandals. If there is a necessity or need to pass between the graves to reach the specific grave intended, he must take off his sandals. Otherwise, we limit ourselves to greeting from a distance.