Is there a word regarding your visit to al-Baqi' as published in the newspaper yesterday, and is visiting al-Baqi' prescribed?
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The questioner : He says: May the Shaykh be respected, it was published in the Riyadh newspaper, issue number 13 of the fifth month of this year, that Your Eminence visited al-Baqi' and the publisher stated that this visit took place yesterday, which is the date of the publication. Is there a word regarding this visit and is it prescribed, since we see discussion on this topic? I ask for guidance.
The Shaykh : As for visiting al-Baqi', it is prescribed without doubt, because it is the graves of the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them), the Salaf of the Ummah, and the righteous among the servants of Allah. Just as it is prescribed for us to visit our graveyards, it is prescribed to visit al-Baqi'. However, he says "yesterday." If he means the recent yesterday, then this is not correct, because my visit to Madinah was more than a month ago. But if he means "yesterday" as in the day before today, even if it was ten years ago, then this is correct. Allah knows best his intention. But if he wrote "yesterday" and meant that I visited it on the twelfth of this month, then this is not correct, because I am still here and the visit was old. But perhaps, and Allah knows best, it was published at this time because they were flipping through their papers and maybe they found it and said, "Let us publish it." I do not know, and what is the reason?
And know that the Arabic language is broad. It says "tomorrow" for the day that follows your day, and it says "tomorrow" for the day that is thousands of years after your day.[Al-Hashr 59:18] And what does "tomorrow" mean? The Day of Resurrection. Where are you? And there are distances between them that Allah knows best. Likewise, "yesterday" in the Arabic language is broad. It may be intended to mean the day before your day, meaning the day immediately before your day, or it may be intended to mean the day before your day by a long time.
The Shaykh : As for visiting al-Baqi', it is prescribed without doubt, because it is the graves of the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them), the Salaf of the Ummah, and the righteous among the servants of Allah. Just as it is prescribed for us to visit our graveyards, it is prescribed to visit al-Baqi'. However, he says "yesterday." If he means the recent yesterday, then this is not correct, because my visit to Madinah was more than a month ago. But if he means "yesterday" as in the day before today, even if it was ten years ago, then this is correct. Allah knows best his intention. But if he wrote "yesterday" and meant that I visited it on the twelfth of this month, then this is not correct, because I am still here and the visit was old. But perhaps, and Allah knows best, it was published at this time because they were flipping through their papers and maybe they found it and said, "Let us publish it." I do not know, and what is the reason?
And know that the Arabic language is broad. It says "tomorrow" for the day that follows your day, and it says "tomorrow" for the day that is thousands of years after your day.