Innovations in Condolence

Our brother is asking, along with another listener, Muhammad al-Tunisi. Our brothers are asking the Shaykh, may Allah preserve him, about the customs in condolences. Also, one of the brothers is asking with them, saying Muhammad Ahmad Shuy, a resident of Jeddah and from Chad. They are asking about the customs followed by some in condolences, such as feasts, reciting the Qur'an, the fortieth-day gatherings, the annual gatherings, and the like. They seek guidance from the Shaykh, may Allah preserve him?
Answer: These are customs that have no basis or foundation. Rather, they are from religious innovations and from the matters of the pre-Islamic age of ignorance. For example, holding a feast when a person dies, inviting the neighbors and relatives and the like, and holding it with weeping or recitation or the like. This is a religious innovation that is not permissible. Likewise, holding it on the fortieth day, or on the end of the week, or on the end of the month, or on the end of the year, all of this is from the innovations of the pre-Islamic age of ignorance. All of it is something that Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) has not prescribed.
What is prescribed for the family of the deceased is patience, seeking reward, and offering condolences. That is, they should offer condolences for what has befallen them by taking comfort in Allah and being pleased with what He (Glorified and Exalted is He) has decreed for them, and seeking reward from Him (peace and blessings be upon him). There is no harm in their preparing ordinary food for themselves to eat and for their needs. Likewise, if a guest comes to them, they may prepare ordinary food for him; there is nothing wrong with that. However, preparing it for the sake of the death, for the sake of the mourning gathering, for the sake of holding a mourning gathering, gathering people to recite the Qur'an or to recite hadiths or poems, or to weep and wail with them, all of this is from the newly invented religious innovations and has no basis in the pure Shari'ah.
It is prescribed for their relatives, neighbors, and the like to prepare food and send it to them. This is because they are occupied with the calamity. So if their neighbors or some of their relatives prepare food for them on the day of death, the next day, or the like, and send it to them to console them in their loss and to help them with the calamity, because they are occupied, they may not have the time to cook, or they may be too lazy to do so due to the severity of the calamity. This is a prescribed matter. It is established from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) that when the news of the death of Ja'far ibn Abi Talib (may Allah be pleased with him) came, when he was killed at Mu'tah in the Levant, and the news reached Madinah, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) ordered his family to prepare food for the family of Ja'far. He said: "Prepare food for them, for something has come to them that occupies them". That is, they sent them food from his family (peace and blessings be upon him) to the family of Ja'far, because something had come to them that occupied them. That is, it occupied them from preparing food. So this is a prescribed matter and there is no harm in it. Yes.
The presenter: May Allah reward you.