Prayer upon the Angels
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Visiting the grave of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him)
Question: There are many hadiths that encourage, and some that make obligatory, visiting the grave of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) or visiting his mosque. Are these authentic or fabricated?
Answer: No hadith has been established from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) regarding the visiting of his grave. Rather, the hadiths that have been transmitted specifically concerning the visiting of his grave (may Allah’s prayers and peace be upon him) are all either fabricated and false, or weak to the extreme such that it is not permissible to act upon them. What is established is the encouragement to visit graves in general,As the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said:Musnad Ahmad 1236, 1237Sahih, because of corroborating evidence; this is a da'eef isnad because of the weakness of Ali bin Zaid and Rabee'ah bin an-Nabighah and his father are unknown], Sahih because of corroborating eviden (Darussalam) .
So what is established from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) is the encouragement to visit graves for the sake of taking a lesson, making du'a for the dead, and seeking forgiveness for them, without traveling and without making a journey.
As for visiting his grave specifically, no hadith has been established regarding it. Rather, the hadiths transmitted regarding it are either weak and extremely weak, or false attributed to the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), as the Imams of Islam have explained, such as al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar, Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah, al-Hafiz Ibn 'Abd al-Hadi, and other Imams of hadith.
[Prayer upon the Angels]
Question: Is it permissible to send prayers upon the angels because of their virtue and high status? And if it is permissible, is it permissible for me to include the prayer upon them with the prayer upon the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) in the tashahhud of the prayer, or not?
Answer: Sending prayers upon the angels is prescribed. You say: “Upon them be prayer and peace,”And you say: “Upon them be peace”; because they are honored servants, and they are a creation among the creations of Allah, and Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) has favored them over others,As Allah the Exalted said regarding them: [Al-Anbiya: 26] ,And as Allah the Exalted said: [Al-Infitar: 10, 11] ,And Allah the Exalted said: [Abasa: 15, 16] and so on. So they have their status, their virtue, and their honor, and it is prescribed to send prayers and peace upon them. There is no harm in that; rather, this is prescribed.
Question: And is it permissible to include the prayer upon them with the prayer upon the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) in the tashahhud?
Answer: No, the prayer in the tashahhud is restricted to what has been transmitted,But in our saying: “Peace be upon us and upon the righteous servants of Allah.” This includes every righteous servant in the heavens or on the earth, and the angels are included in it.
Question: There are many hadiths that encourage, and some that make obligatory, visiting the grave of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) or visiting his mosque. Are these authentic or fabricated?
Answer: No hadith has been established from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) regarding the visiting of his grave. Rather, the hadiths that have been transmitted specifically concerning the visiting of his grave (may Allah’s prayers and peace be upon him) are all either fabricated and false, or weak to the extreme such that it is not permissible to act upon them. What is established is the encouragement to visit graves in general,As the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said:
I used to forbid you to visit the graves, but now visit them, for they remind you of the Hereafter
كنت نهيتكم عن زيارة القبور، فزوروها فإنها تذكر بالآخرةSo what is established from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) is the encouragement to visit graves for the sake of taking a lesson, making du'a for the dead, and seeking forgiveness for them, without traveling and without making a journey.
As for visiting his grave specifically, no hadith has been established regarding it. Rather, the hadiths transmitted regarding it are either weak and extremely weak, or false attributed to the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), as the Imams of Islam have explained, such as al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar, Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah, al-Hafiz Ibn 'Abd al-Hadi, and other Imams of hadith.
[Prayer upon the Angels]
Question: Is it permissible to send prayers upon the angels because of their virtue and high status? And if it is permissible, is it permissible for me to include the prayer upon them with the prayer upon the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) in the tashahhud of the prayer, or not?
Answer: Sending prayers upon the angels is prescribed. You say: “Upon them be prayer and peace,”And you say: “Upon them be peace”; because they are honored servants, and they are a creation among the creations of Allah, and Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) has favored them over others,As Allah the Exalted said regarding them:
Rather, they are [but] honored servants.
بَلْ عِبَادٌ مُكْرَمُونَ(10) And indeed, [appointed] over you are keepers, (11) Noble and recording;
وَإِنَّ عَلَيْكُمْ لَحَافِظِينَ كِرَامًا كَاتِبِينَ(15) [Carried] by the hands of messenger-angels, (16) Noble and dutiful.
بِأَيْدِي سَفَرَةٍ كِرَامٍ بَرَرَةٍQuestion: And is it permissible to include the prayer upon them with the prayer upon the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) in the tashahhud?
Answer: No, the prayer in the tashahhud is restricted to what has been transmitted,But in our saying: “Peace be upon us and upon the righteous servants of Allah.” This includes every righteous servant in the heavens or on the earth, and the angels are included in it.