Ruling on praying in a mosque next to a cemetery
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We find in some Islamic countries that the followers of the Sufi paths perform the ritual prayer in the mosque, while there is a cemetery nearby, or what they call the tomb of the shaykh. When they are rebuked for this, they claim that this cemetery is far from the mosque, and you find many of them who do not cite any evidence for this action.And they claim that, saying: That this mosque is separate from the tomb,Meaning: that there is a distance between them. What is the validity of the prayer in that mosque?
If the mosque is not in the cemetery and there is no grave in it, the prayer in it is valid.
The questioner: But there is a grave next to it, not far away.
The Shaykh: Even if it is in the vicinity of the cemetery, as long as the cemetery is not in front of the mosque but on the right or on the left, there is nothing wrong with it, based on the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): (The earth has been made for me a place of prostration and a source of purity) . However, if the mosque was built on the grave, the prayer in it is not valid. And if a deceased person is buried in the mosque, it is obligatory to dig up the grave and bury the deceased with the graves of the people.
If the mosque is not in the cemetery and there is no grave in it, the prayer in it is valid.
The questioner: But there is a grave next to it, not far away.
The Shaykh: Even if it is in the vicinity of the cemetery, as long as the cemetery is not in front of the mosque but on the right or on the left, there is nothing wrong with it, based on the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): (The earth has been made for me a place of prostration and a source of purity) . However, if the mosque was built on the grave, the prayer in it is not valid. And if a deceased person is buried in the mosque, it is obligatory to dig up the grave and bury the deceased with the graves of the people.