What is the ruling on giving a sermon at the grave?
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The questioner : In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
Peace be upon you and Allah's mercy and blessings.
The Shaykh : And peace be upon you, and the mercy of Allah and His blessings.
The questioner : What is the ruling on giving a sermon at the grave? We have heard some say that it was not reported from the Messenger, and we have heard others say that it is a recommended practice.
The Shaykh : Yes, the statement that it was not reported in an absolute sense is not correct, and the statement that it is a recommended practice is not correct. The reason for this is that it was not reported that the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) would stand at the grave or in the cemetery when a funeral was present, then admonish the people and remind them. This is what we have heard, and it is a religious innovation. It may lead in the future to something greater; it may lead to the speaker talking about the deceased man present, such as saying, "Look at this man; yesterday he was playing, yesterday he was mocking, yesterday he was such and such. Now he is in his grave, detained."
Or he may talk about a person, for example a merchant, saying, "Look at so-and-so; yesterday he was in palaces, cars, servants, and attendants, and now look at his state."
Therefore, we see that this should not be done, because this is not from the Sunnah. The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) did not, when he finished burying the dead or while waiting for the burial of the dead, stand up and preach to the people, ever. We have not known this from our previous scholars either, who are closer to the Sunnah than we are, nor have we known this from the eras before them.
So, the people in the era of Abu Bakr, nor 'Umar, nor 'Uthman, nor 'Ali, as far as we know, did not do this. And the best of guidance is the guidance of those who came before, if it agrees with the truth.
As for the admonition that is considered conversation in a gathering, there is nothing wrong with it. It is established in the Sunan that the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) went out or came to al-Baqi' al-Gharqad, and there were people burying a dead person of theirs, but the dead person had not yet been placed in the grave, meaning they were digging the grave. He sat down, and his Companions sat around him, and he began to talk to them about the state of a person at death and the state of a person after burial, in a calm manner, not in the form of a sermon.
It is also established from him in the two Sahihs and others that he sat on the edge of his daughter's grave while she was being buried, and he said (peace and blessings be upon him)Sahih al-Bukhari 4945 They said, "O Messenger of Allah, then for what purpose do we work?" He said, Jami` at-Tirmidhi 2136.
So, the conclusion is that the admonition is yes, yes.
-And upon you be peace and the mercy of Allah and His blessings. May Allah keep you in goodness. In goodness. May Allah preserve you.
A person standing up to preach, this is undoubtedly not from the Sunnah, and it is not appropriate, given what you have learned about what will happen in the future.
As for the admonition, like a person sitting with his companions around him, or he begins to talk about what is appropriate, this is good, following the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). Yes.
The questioner : In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
Noble Shaykh, how do we answer the statement in the hadith that supplication averts the decree, when all matters are decreed before the creation of the heavens and the earth?
The Shaykh : Yes, we answer that Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, has decreed things fifty thousand years before the creation of the heavens and the earth. He decreed that this matter which was about to happen from the calamity was decreed to be prevented, and that is supplication. So supplication is decreed, and likewise the calamity that was about to descend is decreed.
So this matter which was prevented from the calamity, or which was lifted from the calamity after it descended due to supplication, was decreed from the beginning that it would be lifted by this supplication, or that it would be prevented by this supplication. So supplication is written from the beginning, and the calamity is written from the beginning. If a person supplicates that Allah, Mighty and Majestic, lift the calamity after it has descended, and it is lifted by his supplication, as is observed now, a person supplicates and the calamity is lifted.
So this means that Allah has written in the Preserved Tablet that this calamity will descend and that it will be lifted by what? Supplication. So each of them is written.
Peace be upon you and Allah's mercy and blessings.
The Shaykh : And peace be upon you, and the mercy of Allah and His blessings.
The questioner : What is the ruling on giving a sermon at the grave? We have heard some say that it was not reported from the Messenger, and we have heard others say that it is a recommended practice.
The Shaykh : Yes, the statement that it was not reported in an absolute sense is not correct, and the statement that it is a recommended practice is not correct. The reason for this is that it was not reported that the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) would stand at the grave or in the cemetery when a funeral was present, then admonish the people and remind them. This is what we have heard, and it is a religious innovation. It may lead in the future to something greater; it may lead to the speaker talking about the deceased man present, such as saying, "Look at this man; yesterday he was playing, yesterday he was mocking, yesterday he was such and such. Now he is in his grave, detained."
Or he may talk about a person, for example a merchant, saying, "Look at so-and-so; yesterday he was in palaces, cars, servants, and attendants, and now look at his state."
Therefore, we see that this should not be done, because this is not from the Sunnah. The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) did not, when he finished burying the dead or while waiting for the burial of the dead, stand up and preach to the people, ever. We have not known this from our previous scholars either, who are closer to the Sunnah than we are, nor have we known this from the eras before them.
So, the people in the era of Abu Bakr, nor 'Umar, nor 'Uthman, nor 'Ali, as far as we know, did not do this. And the best of guidance is the guidance of those who came before, if it agrees with the truth.
As for the admonition that is considered conversation in a gathering, there is nothing wrong with it. It is established in the Sunan that the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) went out or came to al-Baqi' al-Gharqad, and there were people burying a dead person of theirs, but the dead person had not yet been placed in the grave, meaning they were digging the grave. He sat down, and his Companions sat around him, and he began to talk to them about the state of a person at death and the state of a person after burial, in a calm manner, not in the form of a sermon.
It is also established from him in the two Sahihs and others that he sat on the edge of his daughter's grave while she was being buried, and he said (peace and blessings be upon him)
There is none of you but has his place written for him in Paradise or in the Hell- Fire.
ما منكم من أحد إلا وقد كتب مقعده من الجنة ومقعده من النارWork, for everyone is facilitated for what he was created.
اعملوا فكل ميسر لما خلق لهSo, the conclusion is that the admonition is yes, yes.
-And upon you be peace and the mercy of Allah and His blessings. May Allah keep you in goodness. In goodness. May Allah preserve you.
A person standing up to preach, this is undoubtedly not from the Sunnah, and it is not appropriate, given what you have learned about what will happen in the future.
As for the admonition, like a person sitting with his companions around him, or he begins to talk about what is appropriate, this is good, following the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). Yes.
The questioner : In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
Noble Shaykh, how do we answer the statement in the hadith that supplication averts the decree, when all matters are decreed before the creation of the heavens and the earth?
The Shaykh : Yes, we answer that Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, has decreed things fifty thousand years before the creation of the heavens and the earth. He decreed that this matter which was about to happen from the calamity was decreed to be prevented, and that is supplication. So supplication is decreed, and likewise the calamity that was about to descend is decreed.
So this matter which was prevented from the calamity, or which was lifted from the calamity after it descended due to supplication, was decreed from the beginning that it would be lifted by this supplication, or that it would be prevented by this supplication. So supplication is written from the beginning, and the calamity is written from the beginning. If a person supplicates that Allah, Mighty and Majestic, lift the calamity after it has descended, and it is lifted by his supplication, as is observed now, a person supplicates and the calamity is lifted.
So this means that Allah has written in the Preserved Tablet that this calamity will descend and that it will be lifted by what? Supplication. So each of them is written.