Question Summary:
I did not speak to Nabi (ﷺ), will that constitute kufr? Question Detail:
Asalaamualaikum, I had a question regarding aqeedah. Alhamdulillah I have gone for Umrah and Hajj. When visiting the grave of the Prophet sallahu alayhi wa Salam I know you should go with the best adab and convey your salaams. I have heard from scholars that you can also testify your faith/speak to him as he certainly hears you and replies, when you are visiting his grave. When I was actually there, I just gave salaam, knowing full well that he is alive in his grave and replies. I did not say anything further because I was not sure how it all worked when there are so many people there speaking at the same time and there is this lead barrier between his grave and where we are standing. And I felt like it was so close to the boundary of permissibility in Shar’iah. Now after trying to find information regarding this online , I have just decided to trust my teachers and next time if I am able to visit our beloved Prophet I intend to speak to him. But before I decided to trust my teachers, was I out of the fold of Islam? should I repeat my Hajj? I usually trust my teachers a lot/depend on them for advice all the time but I also try to exercise some caution because just because someone is a traditional scholar does mean they are always right and really I had no knowledge of the topic. JazaaKAllahu khairan Wa alaikum Sallam
Answer :
In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
As-salāmu ‘alaykum wa-rahmatullāhi wa-barakātuh.
May Almighty Allah accept your Hajj and Umrah. Aameen
It is our belief that Nabi (ﷺ) is alive and replies to the greeting of a believer.
This is understood from the following Ahadeeth:
ما من أحد يسلم على إلا رد الله علي روحي حتى أرد عليه السلام
Translation: The Prophet (ﷺ) said: If any one of you greets me, Allah returns my soul to me and I respond to the greeting.
(Sunan Abu-Dawood, Kitaab Al-Manaasik)
عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ، قَالَ: قَالَ رَسُولُ اللهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: " مَنْ صَلَّى عَلَيَّ عِنْدَ قَبْرِي وُكِّلَ بِهَا مَلَكٌ يَبْلُغَنِي، وَكُفِي بِهَا أَمْرَ دُنْيَاهُ وَآخِرَتِهِ، وَكُنْتُ لَهُ شَهِيدًا أَوْ شَفِعيًا " هَذَا لَفْظُ حَدِيثُ الْأَصْمَعِيِّ، وَفِي رِوَايَةِ الْحَنَفِيِّ قَالَ: عَنِ النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ قَالَ: مَنْ صَلَّى عَلَيَّ عِنْدَ قَبْرِي سَمِعْتُهُ، وَمَنْ صَلَّى عَلَيَّ نَائِيًا أَبْلَغْتُهُ
Translation: Prophet (ﷺ) said: Whoever invokes blessings on me at my grave, I hear him, and whoever invokes blessings on me from afar, I am informed about it.
(Shuabul Imaan)
عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ مَسْعُودٍ , رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ ، قَالَ : قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ : إِنَّ لِلَّهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ مَلائِكَةً سَيَّاحِينَ فِي الأَرْضِ يُبَلِّغُونِي عَنْ أُمَّتِي السَّلامَ
Translation: Prophet (ﷺ) said: Indeed, there are many Angels of Allah Taa’la who travel the Earth and bring the Salam of my Ummati to me.
(Baihaqi, Sunan Al-Daarimy, Saheeh Ibn-Hibbaan)
You state you made salaam to Nabi (ﷺ) that is sufficient. It is not necessary to speak to Nabi (ﷺ). Accordingly, not speaking to Nabi (ﷺ) will not constitute kufr and your Imaan is intact.
And Allah Ta’āla Knows Best
Muhammad I.V Patel
Student Darul Iftaa
Lusaka, Zambia
Checked and Approved by,
Mufti Ebrahim Desai.
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