What are the acts of worship that reach the deceased?
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The questioner : Praise be to Allah, and may peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah.
What are the acts of worship that are dedicated to the deceased and whose benefit reaches them?
The Shaykh : Yes, first of all, may Allah bless you. The original ruling regarding dedicating acts to the deceased is not prescribed and is not a recommended practice, whether it is charity, 'Umrah, Hajj, or anything else. What is prescribed is supplication. The evidence for this is the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family)Riyad as-Salihin 949 Is this hadith in the context of an action or in the context of supplication? I am asking you?
The questioner : An action.
The Shaykh : An action. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) shifted from performing an action for the deceased to making supplication for him, which indicates that this is what is prescribed. As for the action itself, it is not prescribed. But does the action benefit the deceased if it is dedicated to him, or not? We say that what the Sunnah has brought is valid, such as charity, for the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) permitted Sa'd ibn Ubadah (may Allah be pleased with him) to give charity ... for his mother, and he permitted the man who said: and he permitted the man who was performing the talbiyah on behalf of Shubrumah, saying: Mishkat al-Masabih 2529 and he permitted making up the fast of a vow and performing Hajj on behalf of the one who is unable and whose inability is not expected to end. So what the Sunnah has brought, we rule upon it. Do we extend this analogy to all actions? The scholars have differed on this. Some said that the original ruling is that a person's action is for whom?
The student: For himself.
The Shaykh : For himself, as Allah (Mighty and Majestic) said:[An-Najm 53:39] and He said: [Al-Baqarah 2:286] And what has been made an exception in the Sunnah is to be followed strictly, and the rest, no, does not benefit.
And some said that these matters brought by the Sunnah are specific cases, meaning they are not general terms, but specific cases. So we do not know if someone were to ask the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) for permission to recite tasbih for his father or to recite the Qur'an for his father, would he prevent him or not? We do not know. And if the Sunnah has brought this principle, meaning the principle of the permissibility of dedicating acts of worship, then the general application is more appropriate. This is the choice of Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him), and likewise before him, Imam Ahmad said: Any act of worship one performs and dedicates its reward to a Muslim, whether deceased or living, benefits him. But despite that, we do not prefer this, and we say that supplication for the deceased is better. One supplication is better than a thousand dirhams. Make the action for yourself, for you are in need of it. When you die, you will wish that you had even one good deed. And make the supplication for your deceased one. This is the Sunnah. Yes.
What are the acts of worship that are dedicated to the deceased and whose benefit reaches them?
The Shaykh : Yes, first of all, may Allah bless you. The original ruling regarding dedicating acts to the deceased is not prescribed and is not a recommended practice, whether it is charity, 'Umrah, Hajj, or anything else. What is prescribed is supplication. The evidence for this is the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family)
When a man dies, his deeds come to an end, except for three: A continuous charity, knowledge by which people derive benefit, pious son who prays for him.
إذا مات الإنسان انقطع عمله إلاّ من ثلاث: صدقة جارية، أو علم ينتفع به، أو ولد صالح يدعو لهThe questioner : An action.
The Shaykh : An action. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) shifted from performing an action for the deceased to making supplication for him, which indicates that this is what is prescribed. As for the action itself, it is not prescribed. But does the action benefit the deceased if it is dedicated to him, or not? We say that what the Sunnah has brought is valid, such as charity, for the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) permitted Sa'd ibn Ubadah (may Allah be pleased with him) to give charity ... for his mother, and he permitted the man who said:
O Messenger of Allah, my mother died suddenly. I think that if she had been able to speak, she would have given charity. May I give charity on her behalf? He said: Yes.
يا رسول الله إنّ أمّي افتلت نفسها إنّي أظنّها لتصدقت لو تكلّمت أفتصدّق عنها؟ قال: نعمHe asked whether he had performed the pilgrimage on his own behalf, and when he replied that he had not, he said, “Perform the pilgrimage on your own behalf, then perform it on behalf of Shubruma."
أحججت عن نفسك؟ قال: لا، قال: حجّ عن نفسك ثمّ حجّ عن شبرمةThe student: For himself.
The Shaykh : For himself, as Allah (Mighty and Majestic) said:
And that there is not for man except that [good] for which he strives
وأن ليس للإنسان إلاّ ما سعىAllah does not charge a soul except [with that within] its capacity. It will have [the consequence of] what [good] it has gained, and it will bear [the consequence of] what [evil] it has earned. "Our Lord, do not impose blame upon us if we have forgotten or erred. Our Lord, and lay not upon us a burden like that which You laid upon those before us. Our Lord, and burden us not with that which we have no ability to bear. And pardon us; and forgive us; and have mercy upon us. You are our protector, so give us victory over the disbelieving people."
لها ما كسبت وعليها ما اكتسبتAnd some said that these matters brought by the Sunnah are specific cases, meaning they are not general terms, but specific cases. So we do not know if someone were to ask the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) for permission to recite tasbih for his father or to recite the Qur'an for his father, would he prevent him or not? We do not know. And if the Sunnah has brought this principle, meaning the principle of the permissibility of dedicating acts of worship, then the general application is more appropriate. This is the choice of Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him), and likewise before him, Imam Ahmad said: Any act of worship one performs and dedicates its reward to a Muslim, whether deceased or living, benefits him. But despite that, we do not prefer this, and we say that supplication for the deceased is better. One supplication is better than a thousand dirhams. Make the action for yourself, for you are in need of it. When you die, you will wish that you had even one good deed. And make the supplication for your deceased one. This is the Sunnah. Yes.