Building mosques over graves is forbidden and an abomination
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
This is a letter received from (S) in Shabwah, Democratic Yemen. He says in his letter: There is a mosque in our village, and in this mosque there is a shrine which our ancestors claim belongs to one of the awliya (close friends of Allah). They call him "al-Habib." The mosque consists of three large rooms arranged in the direction of the qiblah (the direction of prayer). This shrine is located in the front room, and we pray in the middle room. Nothing separates the middle room from the one containing the shrine except a wall. What is the ruling on our prayer in this mosque? Please inform us; may Allah reward you.
Answer: Building mosques over graves is forbidden and an abomination. The Prophet (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.
The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade building over graves and making them into mosques. It is also authentically reported from him (peace and blessings be upon him) that: Therefore, it is not permissible to pray in this mosque. Rather, it must be demolished if it was built over the grave.
As for if the grave was added to the mosque and the mosque is old, and the grave is newer, then the grave is removed. It is dug up and its remains are transferred to a specific pit in the public cemetery. Its surface is leveled like the rest of the mosque, and the mosque remains as it is, and prayer is performed in it. The grave is removed if it is the later addition, meaning the remains, i.e., the traces of the deceased such as bones and the like, are transferred to a pit in the public cemetery, and its surface is leveled like the grave, in accordance with the other graves.
As for this grave, it is leveled. The ground is leveled after the remains are transferred, and prayer is performed in the mosque. This is if the grave is the later addition. As for if the grave is old, then the mosque is the one that is demolished, the one that was built over it; because it was founded on other than taqwa (mindfulness of Allah), because it contains disobedience to the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), and imitating the Jews and the Christians in their vile deeds. And Allah is the One to be sought for help. Yes.
The presenter: May Allah bless you. He says: If our prayer in this mosque is not valid, what should we do, knowing that it is the only mosque in the village?
The Shaykh: The answer to this has been given previously. If the mosque is the old one and the grave is newer, the grave is removed. The grave, meaning it is dug up and its remains are transferred to a pit in the public cemetery, and its place is leveled, and prayer is performed in the mosque. As for if the mosque was built over it and the grave is old, then this mosque is demolished and replaced, meaning: another mosque is built in another place where there is no grave. Yes.
The presenter: May Allah reward you.
Answer: Building mosques over graves is forbidden and an abomination. The Prophet (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 تتخذوا القبور مساجد فإني أنهاكم عن ذلكThe Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade building over graves and making them into mosques. It is also authentically reported from him (peace and blessings be upon him) that:
He forbade plastering them, sitting on them, and building over them
نهى عن تجصيصها والقعود عليها والبناء عليهاAs for if the grave was added to the mosque and the mosque is old, and the grave is newer, then the grave is removed. It is dug up and its remains are transferred to a specific pit in the public cemetery. Its surface is leveled like the rest of the mosque, and the mosque remains as it is, and prayer is performed in it. The grave is removed if it is the later addition, meaning the remains, i.e., the traces of the deceased such as bones and the like, are transferred to a pit in the public cemetery, and its surface is leveled like the grave, in accordance with the other graves.
As for this grave, it is leveled. The ground is leveled after the remains are transferred, and prayer is performed in the mosque. This is if the grave is the later addition. As for if the grave is old, then the mosque is the one that is demolished, the one that was built over it; because it was founded on other than taqwa (mindfulness of Allah), because it contains disobedience to the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), and imitating the Jews and the Christians in their vile deeds. And Allah is the One to be sought for help. Yes.
The presenter: May Allah bless you. He says: If our prayer in this mosque is not valid, what should we do, knowing that it is the only mosque in the village?
The Shaykh: The answer to this has been given previously. If the mosque is the old one and the grave is newer, the grave is removed. The grave, meaning it is dug up and its remains are transferred to a pit in the public cemetery, and its place is leveled, and prayer is performed in the mosque. As for if the mosque was built over it and the grave is old, then this mosque is demolished and replaced, meaning: another mosque is built in another place where there is no grave. Yes.
The presenter: May Allah reward you.
Source
binbaz.org.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.