A woman asks: My son passed away at the age of fifteen. He would pray the obligatory prayers sometimes at home and sometimes in the mosque, but I see him in my dreams.
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner : This woman says that her son passed away at the age of fifteen. He would pray the obligatory prayers sometimes at home and sometimes in the mosque, but I see him in my dreams frequently, and he says, "Give us, give us." So I get up and give charity on his behalf to the poor. Is there any guidance in this matter, O honorable Shaykh?
The Shaykh : There is no doubt that for a person to pray with the congregation one time and leave it another time is a shortcoming on his part and a neglect of an obligatory duty, and he is sinful for that if he knows that praying in congregation in the mosques is obligatory. Accordingly, if a person dies while being short in his obligatory duties, what is recommended for his family is to supplicate for him for forgiveness and pardon, because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) guided to this in his saying:Sahih Muslim 1631 Perhaps the punishment in the grave may be lightened for a person by the supplication of his family and companions for him, and perhaps the punishment may be lifted from him entirely by supplicating for him. This is among the benefits of brotherhood in faith, for the believers supplicate for one another. [Al-Hashr 59:10] And every worshipper says in his prayer: "Peace be upon us and upon the righteous servants of Allah" But a person may not have a specific person in mind when making this general supplication. So if he supplicates for a specific person whom he knows was negligent in an obligatory duty or transgressed a prohibition during his lifetime, the punishment of this deceased may be lightened or lifted due to this supplication. Supplicating for the deceased is better than giving charity on his behalf, because if charity were better, the Prophet (may Allah's prayers and peace be upon him) would have guided to it when he said: Sahih Muslim 1631 I say, if charity were better, he would have said: "or a righteous son who gives charity for him" because the context of the hadith is regarding deeds, and charity is a deed. So when the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) turned from mentioning deeds to mentioning supplication, it is known that supplication is better. Supplicating for the deceased is better than reciting the Qur'an for him, better than giving charity for him, better than performing 'Umrah for him, and better than performing Hajj for him, except if the 'Umrah and Hajj are obligatory, in which case there is another consideration.
As for this woman giving charity every time she sees the deceased saying: "Give us, give us", I do not see that for her, because the rulings of the Shari'ah are not based on dreams and visions, and Satan may take the form of the deceased just as he takes the form of the living, except the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), for Satan does not take his form. So if a person sees the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) in a dream in a description that matches what has been transmitted of his description (may Allah's prayers and peace be upon him), then he has truly seen him. And even so, the rulings of the Shari'ah are not established by dreams. But they may be indications pointing to something. As for establishing rulings of the Shari'ah by them, that is not the case. Then, if there are indications pointing to something, let us look at whether this indication is correct in reality or not, according to the state of the person and the circumstances surrounding it. Yes.
The questioner : May Allah bless you.
The Shaykh : There is no doubt that for a person to pray with the congregation one time and leave it another time is a shortcoming on his part and a neglect of an obligatory duty, and he is sinful for that if he knows that praying in congregation in the mosques is obligatory. Accordingly, if a person dies while being short in his obligatory duties, what is recommended for his family is to supplicate for him for forgiveness and pardon, because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) guided to this in his saying:
When a man dies, his acts come to an end, but three, recurring charity, or knowledge (by which people) benefit, or a pious child, who prays for him (for the deceased).
إذا مات الإنسان انقطع عمله إلا من ثلاثة، إلا من صدقة جارية أو علم ينتفع به أو ولد صالح يدعو له"Our Lord, forgive us and our brothers who preceded us in faith and put not in our hearts [any] resentment toward those who have believed. Our Lord, indeed You are Kind and Merciful."
رَبَّنَا اغفِر لَنا وَلِإِخوانِنَا الَّذينَ سَبَقونا بِالإيمانِ وَلا تَجعَل في قُلوبِنا غِلًّا لِلَّذينَ ءامَنوا رَبَّنا إِنَّكَ رَءوفٌ رَحيمٌWhen a man dies, his acts come to an end, but three, recurring charity, or knowledge (by which people) benefit, or a pious child, who prays for him (for the deceased).
إذا مات الإنسان انقطع عمله إلا من ثلاث، إلا من صدقة جارية أو علم ينتفع به أو ولد صالح يدعو لهAs for this woman giving charity every time she sees the deceased saying: "Give us, give us", I do not see that for her, because the rulings of the Shari'ah are not based on dreams and visions, and Satan may take the form of the deceased just as he takes the form of the living, except the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), for Satan does not take his form. So if a person sees the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) in a dream in a description that matches what has been transmitted of his description (may Allah's prayers and peace be upon him), then he has truly seen him. And even so, the rulings of the Shari'ah are not established by dreams. But they may be indications pointing to something. As for establishing rulings of the Shari'ah by them, that is not the case. Then, if there are indications pointing to something, let us look at whether this indication is correct in reality or not, according to the state of the person and the circumstances surrounding it. Yes.
The questioner : May Allah bless you.