Visiting Graves - According to Quran and Hadith

Visiting graves

Visiting Graves is not Forbidden:-

There is some propaganda that it is sin or even Shirk to visit the graves. However, visiting graves is proved from Quran and Hadith:-

Al-Quran:-

84. And pray you never over any of their dead, and not stand over his grave. No doubt, they rejected Allah and His Messenger and died while they were disobedient.

In the above verse the Almighty forbade the Holy Prophet (Peace be upon him) to refrain from visiting the graves of Hypocrites. In proves that standing and praying for the deceased Muslim and Momin on his grave is allowable and according to the spirit of Quranic teachings.

Hadith:-

Ibn Buraida reported on the authority of his father that the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) said: I forbade you to visit graves, but you may now visit them; I forbade you to eat the flesh of sacrificial animals after three days, but you way now keep it as along as you feel inclined; and I forbade you nabidh except in a water-skin, you may drink it from all kinds of water-skins, but you must not drink anything intoxicating. (Book #004, Hadith #2131)

Pious and Noble believers are alive in their Graves:-

Anas b. malik reported Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) as saying: I came. And in the narration transmitted on the authority of Haddib (the words are): I happened to pass by Moses on the occasion of the Night journey near the red mound (and found him) saying his prayer in his grave. (Book #030, Hadith #585).

Authority of Prophets over the Angels:-

Abu Huraira reported that the Angel of Death was sent to Moses (peace be upon him) to inform of his Lord's summons. When he came, he (Moses) boxed him and his eye was knocked out. He (the Angel of Death) came back to the Lord and said: You sent me to a servant. who did not want to die. Allah restored his eye to its proper place (and revived his eyesight), and then said: Go back to him and tell him that if he wants life he must place his hand on the back of an ox, and he would be granted as many years of life as the number of hair covered by his hand. He (Moses) said: My Lord what would happen then He said: Then you must court death. He said: Let it be now. And he supplicated Allah to bring him close to the sacred land. Thereupon Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) said: If I were there, I would have shown you his grave beside the road at the red mound. (Book #030, Hadith #5851)

Wailing is prohibited in Islam:-

(32) Narrated Ibn 'Umar from his father: The Prophet said, "The deceased is tortured in his grave for the wailing done over him." (Book #23, Hadith #379)

The thing to learn out grave is that when a man is laid to rest in a grave; it is just the start of the accountability of his deeds in this world. This world is just like an examination hall. Death is the end of the time for solving the papers. If one has solved the papers correctly would get whatever he desires whereas the persons who spend their lives according to their sweet will by disobeying the Lord will get eternal punishment from the Lord.

Grave – Second Stage of human life.

This is a second stage. First stage is a living person. Second is the grave and the third one is when the humans would be raised from their graves when their fate will be finally decided i.e. they would go the paradise or hell. So the Quran says:-

22:7 And verily the Hour will come: there can be no doubt about it, or about (the fact) that Allah will raise up all who are in the graves.

What would help a human being in grave:-

In the grave, everybody knows that one has to face the consequence on his own. There would be no help from the father, mother, offspring or wealth. No one would go with him. What would help a human being would be his good deeds, his poise offspring who supplicates for him and his sadiqats. This is aspect is more precisely mentioned in the following hadith:-

Narrated Anas bin Malik: Allah's Apostle said, "When carried to his grave, a dead person is followed by “three, two of which return (after his burial) and one remains with him: his relative, his property, and his deeds follow him; relatives and his property go back while his deeds remain with him." (Book #76, Hadith #521)”


According to the Islamic belief the real home of a person, irrespective of the fact whether he is rich or poor, young or old, man or woman, black of white, is ‘grave’ where he will live till the day of judgment. According to Islam a grave is not just a heap of dust and soil but indeed it is a garden of the paradise for the believers and pious or a pit of the hell fire for the non-believers and sinners. Punishment in grave is proved from the sayings of Prophet (peace be upon him) in the following words:-
Narrated Ibn 'Abbas: The Prophet once passed by two graves and said, "These two persons are being tortured not for a major sin (to avoid). One of them never saved himself from being soiled with his urine, while the other used to go about with calumnies(to make enmity between friends)." The Prophet then took a green leaf of a date-palm tree, split it into (pieces) and fixed one on each grave. They said, "O Allah's Apostle! Why have you done so?" He replied, "I hope that their punishment might be lessened till these (the pieces of the leaf) become dry." (See the foot-note of Hadith 215). (Book #4, Hadith #217)
Abu Sa'id al-Khudri reported: I did not hear this hadith from Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) directly but it was Zaid b. Thibit who narrated it from him. As Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) was going along with us towards the dwellings of Bani an-Najjar, riding upon his pony, it shied and he was about to fall. He found four, five or six graves there. He said: Who amongst you knows about those lying in the graves? A person said: It is I. Thereupon he (the Holy Prophet) said: In what state did they die? He said: They died as polytheists. He said: These people are passing through the ordeal in the graves. If it were not the reason that you would stop burying (your dead) in the graves on listening to the torment in the grave which I am listening to, I would have certainly made you hear that. Then turning his face towards us, he said: Seek refuge with Allah from the torment of Hell. They said: We seek refuge with Allah from the torment of Hell. He said: Seek refuge with Allah from the torment of the grave. They said: We seek refuge with Allali from the torment of the grave. He said: Seek refuge with Allah from turmoil, its visible and invisible (aspects), and they said: We seek refuge with Allah from turmoil and its visible and invisible aspects and he said: Seek refuge with Allah from the turmoil of the Dajjal, and they said We seek refuge with Allah from the turmoil of the Dajjal. (Book #040, Hadith #6859)
Narrated 'Amra bint 'AbdurRahman: A Jewess came to ask 'Aisha (the wife of the Prophet) about something. She said to her, "May Allah give you refuge from the punishment of the grave." So 'Aisha ' asked Allah's Apostle "Would the people be punished in their graves?" Allah's Apostle replied in affirmative after seeking refuge with Allah from the punishment of the grave (and thus replied in the affirmative). Then one day, Allah's Apostle rode to go to some place but the sun eclipsed. He returned in the forenoon and passed through the rear of the dwellings (of his wives) and stood for the (eclipse) prayer, and the people stood behind him. He stood up for a long period and then performed a prolonged bowing which was shorter than the first bowing. Then he raised his head and prostrated. Then he stood up (for the second Raka) for a long while but the standing was shorter than that of the first Raka. Then he performed a prolonged bowing which was shorter than the first one. Then he raised his head and prostrated. Then he stood up for a long time but shorter than the first. Then he performed a prolonged bowing but shorter than the first. Then he raised his head and prostrated and finished the prayer and (then delivered the sermon and) said as much as Allah wished. And then he ordered the people to seek refuge with Allah from the punishment of the grave. (Book #18, Hadith #159)

Same aspect is mentioned in another hadith as under:-

“Two angels come to him and make him sit and ask him: What did you use to say about this man, Muhammad ? He will say: I testify that he is Allah's slave and His Apostle. Then it will be said to him, 'Look at your place in the Hell-Fire. Allah has given you a place in Paradise instead of it.' " The Prophet added, "The dead person will see both his places. But a non-believer or a hypocrite will say to the angels, 'I do not know, but I used to say what the people used to say! It will be said to him, 'Neither did you know nor did you take the guidance (by reciting the Quran).' Then he will be hit with an iron hammer between his two ears, and he will cry and that cry will be heard by whatever approaches him except human beings and jinns." (Book #23, Hadith #422)”

Muslims are taught by the Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) to seek refuge with Allah from the punishment of grave in the following words:-

Narrated 'Aisha: (the wife of the Prophet) Allah's Apostle used to invoke Allah in the prayer saying "Allahumma inni a'udhu bika min adhabil-qabri, wa a'udhu bika min fitnatil-masihid-dajjal, wa a'udhu bika min fitnatil-mahya wa fitnatil-mamati. Allahumma inni a'udhu bika minal-ma thami wal-maghrami. (O Allah, I seek refuge with You from the punishment of the grave and from the afflictions of Masi,h Ad-Dajjal and from the afflictions of life and death. O Allah, I seek refuge with You from the sins and from being in debt)." Somebody said to him, "Why do you so frequently seek refuge with Allah from being in debt?" The Prophet replied, "A person in debt tells lies whenever he speaks, and breaks promises whenever he makes (them)." 'Aisha also narrated: I heard Allah's Apostle in his prayer seeking refuge with Allah from the afflictions of Ad-dajjal. (Book #12, Hadith #795)