Ruling on digging up graves located within the mosque enclosure and praying in it

Machine translationRead the Arabic original

Question:
We have a mosque, and there are two graves inside the enclosure. Is it permissible to move them, or should they remain? Please advise us.

Answer:
If the two graves were made in the mosque, they must be moved. They must be dug up, and their remains must be transferred to the public cemetery. It is not permissible for them to remain in the mosque ever. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said:

Allah cursed the Jews and the Christians that they took the graves of their prophets as mosques

لعن الله اليهود والنصارى اتخذوا قبور أنبيائهم مساجد

Sahih Muslim 529

and he said:

Beware of those who preceded you

ألا وإن من كان قبلكم

Sahih Muslim 532

meaning from the nations

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.

كانوا يتخذون قبور أنبيائهم وصالحيهم مساجد، ألا فلا تتخذوا القبور مساجد، فإني أنهاكم عن ذلك

Sahih Muslim 532

The scholars have stated explicitly that it is not permissible to bury in mosques, and that whenever something is buried in them, it must be dug up and moved to the public cemeteries.

Question: If I pass by this mosque, Shaykh, am I allowed to pray in it?

Answer: No, do not pray in it while there are graves in it. Do not pray with them.

Question: Were the graves before the mosque?

Answer: The mosque is demolished.

Source binbaz.org.sa

The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.

Similar fatwas