The ruling on one who bequeaths to be buried in a mosque
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
Question:
One of the listening brothers says: The sender is Muhsin 'Afiif from Yemen. He asks and says: Is it permissible for one who makes a bequest to have his grave placed in one of the mosques? Is it permissible to carry out his bequest? We observe that many mosques contain some graves. What is your guidance? Do we remove the bones of the dead from the graves so that the mosques are free of burial grounds? Guide us regarding these two matters. May Allah reward you with good.
Answer:
One who bequeaths to be buried in the mosques; his bequest is invalid, it is not carried out, it is not permissible to carry it out. Rather, it is obligatory that he be buried with the Muslims in the cemeteries, and it is never permissible to be buried in a mosque. This is an abomination, and it is from the practice of the Jews and the Christians, and it is one of the causes of shirk (associating partners with Allah).
Likewise, if a grave is found in a mosque, and the mosque is the older one, and the grave is the newer, later addition; it is obligatory to dig it up, and to transfer its bones and remains to the cemeteries in a specific pit, where it is placed and its surface is leveled like the other graves. It is never permissible for graves to remain in mosques.
As for if the mosque is the later addition, and the cemetery is the older one, and the mosque was built over the graves; then this mosque is demolished and removed; because it is the later addition. He (peace and blessings be upon him) said in the authentic hadith:Sahih Muslim 529 And he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Sahih Muslim 532 So making graves in mosques is from the practice of the Jews and the Christians, and it is one of the causes of shirk (associating partners with Allah), so one must beware of that. Yes.
The presenter : May Allah reward you with good, and may He do you good. So the graves, O Shaykh, that are inside the mosques are dug up, and thereby the mosques are cleared of graves?
The Shaykh : Yes. If the graves are the later additions, it is obligatory to dig them up, remove them, and transfer their bones to the cemeteries. Every set of remains, every set of remains of a dead person, is placed in a pit by itself, and its surface is leveled like the other graves. As for if the mosque is the new one, and the cemetery is the older one, and it was built over the grave to venerate the grave, then this mosque is demolished, it does not remain in the cemetery, it is removed; because it is the later addition. Yes.
The presenter : So whichever is the newer one; that is the one that is removed, whether it is the grave or the mosque?
The Shaykh : Yes, yes.
The presenter : May Allah bless you.
The Shaykh : Yes.
One of the listening brothers says: The sender is Muhsin 'Afiif from Yemen. He asks and says: Is it permissible for one who makes a bequest to have his grave placed in one of the mosques? Is it permissible to carry out his bequest? We observe that many mosques contain some graves. What is your guidance? Do we remove the bones of the dead from the graves so that the mosques are free of burial grounds? Guide us regarding these two matters. May Allah reward you with good.
Answer:
One who bequeaths to be buried in the mosques; his bequest is invalid, it is not carried out, it is not permissible to carry it out. Rather, it is obligatory that he be buried with the Muslims in the cemeteries, and it is never permissible to be buried in a mosque. This is an abomination, and it is from the practice of the Jews and the Christians, and it is one of the causes of shirk (associating partners with Allah).
Likewise, if a grave is found in a mosque, and the mosque is the older one, and the grave is the newer, later addition; it is obligatory to dig it up, and to transfer its bones and remains to the cemeteries in a specific pit, where it is placed and its surface is leveled like the other graves. It is never permissible for graves to remain in mosques.
As for if the mosque is the later addition, and the cemetery is the older one, and the mosque was built over the graves; then this mosque is demolished and removed; because it is the later addition. He (peace and blessings be upon him) said in the authentic hadith:
Allah cursed the Jews and the Christians that they took the graves of their prophets as mosques
لعن الله اليهود والنصارى؛ اتخذوا قبور أنبيائهم مساجدBeware of those who preceded you and used to take the graves of their prophets and righteous men as places of worship, but you must not take graves as mosques; I forbid you to do that.
ألا وإن من كان قبلكم كانوا يتخذون قبور أنبيائهم وصالحيهم مساجد، ألا فلا تتخذواا القبور مساجد، فإني أنهاكم عن ذلكThe presenter : May Allah reward you with good, and may He do you good. So the graves, O Shaykh, that are inside the mosques are dug up, and thereby the mosques are cleared of graves?
The Shaykh : Yes. If the graves are the later additions, it is obligatory to dig them up, remove them, and transfer their bones to the cemeteries. Every set of remains, every set of remains of a dead person, is placed in a pit by itself, and its surface is leveled like the other graves. As for if the mosque is the new one, and the cemetery is the older one, and it was built over the grave to venerate the grave, then this mosque is demolished, it does not remain in the cemetery, it is removed; because it is the later addition. Yes.
The presenter : So whichever is the newer one; that is the one that is removed, whether it is the grave or the mosque?
The Shaykh : Yes, yes.
The presenter : May Allah bless you.
The Shaykh : Yes.
Source
binbaz.org.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.