Does the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) hear the greeting of the one who visits him?

If someone comes to the grave of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) to pray and greet him, does he hear and see him? And is this belief shirk (associating partners with Allah) or not?

Answer: It is prescribed (mashru') for a Muslim, when he visits the mosque of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), to begin by praying in his mosque, may the prayers and peace of Allah be upon him. If it is possible to do so in the Noble Garden, that is better. Then he turns to the grave of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and stands before him with good manners and a lowered voice, then he greets the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and his two companions (may Allah be pleased with them both).
Abu Dawud narrated with a good chain from Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: A group of scholars cited this hadith as evidence that he (peace and blessings be upon him) hears the greetings of the Muslims to him when his soul is returned to him. Others among the scholars said that this hadith is not explicit in that, and it does not indicate that this is specific to those who greet him at his grave; rather, the apparent meaning of the hadith encompasses all Muslims in general.
It is established from him, may the prayers and peace of Allah be upon him, that he said: Abu Dawud, al-Nasa'i, and Ibn Majah narrated it with a good chain. And his saying, peace and blessings be upon him, preceded: .
These hadiths and what came with their meaning indicate that he (peace and blessings be upon him) is informed of the prayers and greetings of those who pray and greet him. They do not indicate that he hears them. Therefore, it is not permissible to say that he hears them unless there is a correct, explicit evidence to rely upon. Indeed, these matters and their like are matters of divine legislation (tawqifiyyah), and there is no room for opinion in them. And Allah, the Exalted, said: [Al-Nisa: 59]. We have referred this issue to the Great Qur'an and the authentic Sunnah, and we did not find anything indicating that he (peace and blessings be upon him) hears the prayers and greetings of those who pray and greet him. Rather, the Sunnah indicates that he is informed of them, and some of them explicitly state that it is the angels who convey them to him. And Allah, the Exalted, knows best.
As for the claim that he (peace and blessings be upon him) sees the Muslim, this has no basis. There is nothing in the verses or hadiths indicating this. Also, he, may the prayers and peace of Allah be upon him, does not know the conditions of the people of this world or what happens among them, because the dead person's connection with the people of this world and his knowledge of their conditions has been severed, as the evidence for this has been mentioned previously. What is narrated in this chapter of stories and dream visions, and what some of the people of Sufism mention regarding his (peace and blessings be upon him) presence among them and his knowledge of their conditions, and likewise what some of those who celebrate his (peace and blessings be upon him) birth mention regarding his presence among them, all of this is not authentic and it is not permissible to rely on it. Because the legislative evidence is limited to the speech of Allah, the Exalted, the speech of His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), and the consensus of the verified scholars. As for opinions, dreams, stories, and analogies, they have no place in this chapter, and nothing of them is relied upon to establish any of what we have mentioned.
And Allah is the Giver of success, and He is sufficient for us and is the best Disposer of affairs. And may Allah send prayers and peace upon our Prophet Muhammad and his family and his followers with excellence until the Day of Judgment.