By Shaykh Mohammed ibn Haroon Abasoomer
Edited by Bilal Ali
Question:
Is there a narration which documents that the Messenger of Allah (upon him blessings and peace) ever performed an act of worship (‘ibadah) like reciting the Qur’an and asking Allah to forward the reward to any of his deceased relatives?
Answer:
Isal al-thawab (to perform a virtuous act and grant the reward to any person, alive or deceased) is permissible and in fact (mustahabb) meritorious.
There are essentially two forms of isal al-thawab:
1. Conveying the reward of charitable deeds.
2. Conveying the reward of physical deeds that do not entail wealth, e.g. salat, fasting, dhikr, recitation of the Holy Qur’an, tawaf of the Ka’bah, etc.
The first form is unanimously acceptable by the Ahl al-Sunnah wa ‘l-Jama’ah.
The second form is correct according to the Hanafi and Hanbali madhhabs and several Shafi’i and Maliki scholars as well.
As for the reward of du’a (which is separate from the above), the unanimous agreement of the scholars is that its reward indeed reaches and benefits the deceased (Nawawi, al-Adhkar).
Hafiz Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allah have mercy on him) states that if one accepts the charitable form of isal al-thawab and refutes the physical form, it should be asked of him: “What is the proof that the recitation of the Holy Qur’an does not reach the deceased?”
‘Allamah Qurtubi states, “Just as the reward of charitable deeds benefit the deceased, similarly, the recitation of the Holy Qur’an, du‘a’ and isghtifar also do the same because all of them are regarded as sadaqah (charity) in the Shari‘ah.’ (Qurtubi, al-Tazkirah 71)
He, thereafter, mentioned two narrations recorded in Sahih Muslim which prove that even salat and dhikr of Allah (such as tasbih, takbir, and tahlil) were all classified as sadaqah by the Messenger of Allah (upon him blessings and peace).
Hence, there remains no dispute on the issue of whether the reward of Qur’anic recital benefits the deceased or not.
We will now, for academic reasons, mention some textual proofs that substantiate both forms of isal al-thawab.
1. The Messenger of Allah (upon him blessings and peace) slaughtered sheep during his farewell hajj and made intention for himself and all those (alive, deceased, and those to come) who bring faith on his prophethood. (Sahih al-Bukhari)
Imam Bukhari has reported on the authority of Sayyiduna ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) that Sayyiduna Sa‘d ibn ‘Ubadah (may Allah be pleased with him) was absent when his mother passed away. When he returned, he asked the Messenger of Allah, “Will it be of any benefit if I give charity on her behalf?” The Messenger of Allah (upon him blessings and peace) replied in the affirmative. (Sahih Bukhari hadith no.2762)
Hafiz Ibn Hajar al-‘Asqalani (may Allah have mercy on him) states in his monumental commentary of Sahih Bukhari entitled Fath al-Bari: “This hadith proves the permissibility of charity on behalf of the deceased and that the reward will reach him.”(Ibn Hajar, Fath al-Bari 5: 477, hadith no.2761)
Sayyiduna ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) reports a man once asked the Messenger of Allah (upon him blessings and peace), “O Messenger of Allah! My father has passed away and he did not perform hajj. Can I perform hajj on his behalf?” The Messenger of Allah (upon him blessings and peace) enquired of him, “If your father had any debt, would you have paid it.?” The man replied, “Yes.” Upon this, the Messenger of Allah (upon him blessings and peace) said, “In that case, the din of Allah has more right.”(Sunan al-Nasa’i hadith no.2631)
A separate incident of a similar nature has been recorded by Imam Bukhari in his Sahih (hadith no.6698). Hafiz Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allah have mercy on him), the famous student of Hafiz Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him), after quoting the above hadiths, states: “These quotations all indicate that when the living carry out any deed on behalf of the deceased the reward will reach him (benefit him).”(Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah, Kitab al-Ruh 161)
Sayyiduna Lajlaj (may Allah be pleased with him), a companion of the Messenger of Allah (upon him blessings and peace), had bequested his son that after he left this world his son should recite the beginning and end of Surat al-Baqarah at the head side of his grave. Sayyiduna Lajlaj (pronounced Lajlaaj) then mentioned that he had heard of this [practice] from the Messenger of Allah (upon him blessings and peace). (Tabarani, al-Mu‘jamul al-Kabir; Hafiz Haythami regarded the narrators of the tradition reliable. Refer to Majma‘ al-Zawa’id 3:44)
It has also been transmitted that this was the practice of Sayyiduna ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him). (Bayhaqi, al-Sunan al-Kubra 4:56). The narration was classified as hasan (fair) by Imam Nawawi and Hafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on them). (Nawawi, al-Adhkar 212 hadith no.493; al-Futuhat al-Rabbaniyyah 3:194)
‘Allamah Qurtubi (may Allah have mercy on him) states that “some of our scholars have based the permissibility of isal al-thawab of the recitation of the Qur’an on the hadith of Sahih al-Bukhari (hadith no.216, 1361) and Sahih Muslim wherein there is mention of the Messenger of Allah (upon him blessings and peace) placing fresh tree branches on two graves and saying, ‘Perhaps their punishment will be lightened through it as long as the branches do not dry up.’” (Scholars explain that the reason for this lightened punishment is the tasbih that the fresh branches will recite).
‘Allamah Qurtubi further states, “If the tasbih of trees can benefit the deceased, then why not the recitation of the Qur’an by a believer in Allah?” (Qurtubi, al-Tazkirah 70)
Hafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on him) has mentioned in a reply to a query on whether the reward of recitation of the Qur’an reaches the deceased that it is mustahabb (meritorious) for one to observe this form of [isal al-thawab] abundantly. (See Shaykh ‘Abdullah Siddiq al-Ghumari’s Tawdih al-Bayan li Wusul Thawab al-Qur’an 2) Besides these there are numerous other narrations of this nature.
It thus becomes abundantly clear through the abovementioned hadiths that isal al-thawab is totally permissible in all its forms and is in fact a highly virtuous act. This is the view of the overwhelming majority of the classical scholars (muhaddithin and fuqaha’) of Islam. (See Ibn al-Qayyim’s Kitab al-Ruh 153; Ibn al-Hajar, Fath al-Bari 5:477 hadith no.2761; Suyuti, Sharh al-Sudur 402, 403 Dar ibn Kathir; Marghinani, al-Hidayah 1:296-297; Ibn al-Humam, Fath al-Qadir 3:65-66; Ibn ‘Abidin, Radd al-Muhtar 2:243 H.M. Sa‘id Company)
If, after understanding the above, one still denies the validity of the physical form of isal al-thawab then the following method can under no circumstance be refuted, which is that after one carries out a physical form of worship (i.e. salat, fasting, recitation of the Holy Qur’an, etc.) he should make a du‘a to Almighty Allah that He first accepts the noble deed. He should then ask Allah to grant the reward to such and such a person. In this way, if Allah accepts the du‘a, the reward will automatically be conveyed to that specific person, alive or deceased.
This method has been prescribed by great scholars such as Imam Nawawi and Hafiz Ibn Hajar so as to avoid all differences of opinion. We have already mentioned that there is no doubt in the deceased benefiting from the du‘as of the living. In a narration of Sahih Muslim, the Messenger of Allah (upon him blessings and peace) has mentioned that one the three things that will benefit the deceased is the du‘a of his pious children. (Sahih Muslim 4199)
Lastly, we would like to mention that this issue is not something connected to beliefs. Instead it is a secondary issue which entails a difference of opinion as well. (Fatawa Ibn Salah 1:149) Hence, no one can claim that either party is guilty of perpetrating an act of bid‘ah (innovation), bearing in mind that the majority of the scholars accept all forms of isal al-thawab. (See Ibn al-Qayyim, Kitab al-Ruh)
An incident of Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal has been recorded by Imam Abu Bakr al-Khallal in his Kitab al-Jami‘ as well as in his booklet entitled Amr bi ’l Ma‘ruf wa Nahi ‘an al-Munkar in which Imam Ahmad is reported to have approved of the recitation of the beginning and end of Surat al-Baqarah for the deceased (See Shaykh Muhammad ‘Awwamah’s Athar al-Hadith 162-163)
As for your specific query on the validity of reciting the Qur’an from one’s home, it should suffice to state that there is no difference – in this instance – between recitation in the graveyard or in the home just as there is no difference in making du‘a for the deceased in the graveyard or from the home. Further, allow us to ask the question: what is the evidence for the invalidity of reciting the Qur’an from one’s home and dedicating its reward to the deceased?
And Allah Almighty knows best.
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