Reciting the Qur'an-e-Kareem in the Qabrastaan

Q. An Imam told me that it is not permissible to recite the Qur'an-e-Kareem in the Qabrastaan ​​(graveyard). Is this true?

A. After "tadfin" (burial), it is mustahab (recommended) to recite some verses of the Qur'an-e-Karim, especially the beginning of Surah Al-Baqarah by the deceased's head and the end of the same Surah by his feet. In his Tafseer, Fath-ul-Qadeer, 'Allaamah Shawkaani (Rahimahullah) mentions the following Hadith:

Hadhrat 'Abdullah Bin 'Umar (Radiyallahu anhu) reports that Rasulullah (Sallallaahu 'Alaihi Wasallam) said:

"When someone among you dies, do not keep him (for too long). Take him quickly to his grave (bury him quickly) and recite the beginning and the end of Surah Al-Baqarah by his head and feet respectively."

Moreover, 'Allaamah An-Nawawi (Rahimahullah) mentions this same Hadith in his book Al-Azkaar and says that it is reported by Hadhrat 'Abdullah Bin 'Umar (Radiyallahu anhuma) in Shu'bul Imam of Baihaqi and he adds that this Hadith has a strong chain of transmission (Sanad Hassan).

In Tabrani, there is another similar Hadith reported by another Sahaabi (Radiyallahu anhu). Commenting on this Hadith, 'Allaamah Hafiz Al Haithami says that its narrators are trustworthy.

Moreover, in Sharh-us-Sudur 'Allaamah Jalaaluddin Al Suyuti (Rahimahullah) has reported several Ahaadith which indicate why it is preferable and the benefits of reciting certain Surahs such as At-Takaathur, Al-Ikhlaas, Yaasin etc. in the graveyard. Those who claim that it is not permissible to recite the Qur'an-e-Kareem in the Qabrastaan ​​are probably referring to a Hadith of Muslim Shareef where Rasulullah (Sallallaahu 'Alaihi Wasallam) says:

"Do not convert your houses into graves. Surely, Satan flees from a house where Surah Al-Baqarah is recited."

According to them, through this Hadith, Rasulullah (Sallallaahu 'Alaihi Wasallam) wanted to say that the graveyard is a place where the recitation of the Qur'an-e-Kareem is not performed. However, the scholars of Islam interpret this Hadith differently. The 'Ulama are of the opinion that Rasulullah (Sallallaahu 'Alaihi Wasallam) made the comparison to a grave because the occupant of a grave cannot perform Tilaawat-ul-Qur'an unlike the occupants of a house. In other words, it is a warning to the Muslims who behave like a murdah (dead person) by neglecting Tilaawat-ul-Qur'an. If the occupants of a house behave like a murdah, what else will such a house be called if not a Qabr (grave)?

This interpretation is supported by a Hadith of Bukhari Sharif where Rasulullah (Sallallaahu 'Alaihi Wasallam) said:

"The difference between a person who performs Zikrullah and one who does not is like the difference between a living person and a dead person."

According to this Hadith, a person who performs Zikrullah is a living person while one who does not, is like a murdah (dead person).

In light of the Hadith of Bukhari Sharif, the interpretation of the Hadith of Muslim Sharif will be as follows: Do not live in your house without performing Zikrullah (Tilaawat-ul-Quran) like the dead in their graves. The Hadith of Muslim Sharif is therefore in no way a prohibition on reciting the Qur'an-e-Karim in the Qabrastaan. Those who maintain the contrary are in error. Their deduction from the Hadith of Muslim Sharif is erroneous. Moreover, there are many Ahaadith which recommend the recitation of the Qur'an-e-Kareem in the cemetery. This leads to the principle of the Shari'ah which says that a law mentioned in a text (mantuq) has priority over a law deduced from a text (mafhum). Therefore, the recommendation of the Tilaawat‎‎-ul-Qur'an in the cemetery being a "mantuq" law will have priority over the Hadith of Muslim Shareef which is a "mafhum" (deduced) law, in case few people limit themselves to maintaining their deduction.

It is necessary to highlight here the inconsistency of the argumentation of those who say that the recitation of the Qur'an-é-Kareem in the cemetery is forbidden while these same people say that it is Sunnah to read Surah Fatiha in the Janaazah Namaz‎‎. Indeed, in a Hadith, it is said that Rasulullah (Sallallaahu 'Alaihi Wasallam) went to the grave of a person, buried the previous night, where he performed the Janaazah Namaz‎‎.

Moreover, it is reported in another Hadith that in the presence of Hadhrat 'Abdullah Bin 'Umar‎ (Radiyallahu anhuma‎), Hadhrat Abu Hurairah (Radiyallahu anhu‎) performed in the midst of the qabars, the Janaazah Namaz‎‎ of Hadhrat 'Aisha (Radiyallahu anha‎) and Hadhrat Ummi Salmah (Radiyallahu anha) in Jannat-ul-Baqi. So we ask those who claim that it is forbidden to recite the Qur'an-e-Karim in the Qabrastaan ​​and at the same time say that it is Sunnah to recite Surah Fatiha in the Janaazah Namaz‎‎ to tell us whether or not Rasulullah (Sallallaahu 'Alaihi Wasallam), and Hadhrat Abu Hurairah (Radiyallaahu Anhu‎) recited Surah Fatiha in the Janaazah Namaz‎‎ ? If the answer is yes, then how do they explain the "prohibition" of reciting the Qur'an-e-Karim in the Qabrastaan ​​when Rasulullah (Sallallaahu 'Alaihi Wasallam) and Hadhrat Abu Hurairah (Radiyallahu anhu‎) have proven the opposite through their practice.

As for the question that is posed here, any person endowed with intelligence will say, after the explanations given above, that it is indeed permissible to recite the Qur'an-e-Karim in the Qabrastaan.

[English version of "Réciter le Qour'aan-é-Karîm dans le Qabrastaan" – Al Haadi – Vol. 1 No. 7]