Visiting the dargah every thursday

Q. My mother and sisters make it a duty to visit the dargah (mausoleum or tomb where a holy man is believed to be buried) every Thursday. However, according to my husband, it is not permissible for a woman to visit the dargah. I would like to know whether there are any restrictions for women regarding this, and what are the things that can or cannot be asked from the Pir Sahib?

A. It is pure Shirk and Kufr to invoke or supplicate to anyone other than Allah Ta'ala. Dua is an act of Ibaadah, and Ibaadah is reserved exclusively for Allah Ta'ala. Every day, we affirm this more than twenty times by reciting Surah Al-Fatiha in Salah:

"You alone do we worship, and You alone do we ask for help." (1:4)

Therefore, it is sheer hypocrisy to invoke or request our needs from anyone else, while at the same time declaring:

"You alone do we worship, and You alone do we ask for help." (1:4)

According to a Hadith, Rasulullah (Sallallaahu 'Alaihi Wasallam) addressed Hadhrat Abdullah bin Abbaas (Radiyallahu ‘anhuma) with the following words:

"When you have to ask, then ask Allah Ta'ala; and when you seek help, then seek it from Allah Ta'ala."

Allah Ta'ala is the Supreme Creator; it is He who created the entire universe. Allah Ta'ala’s attribute of creation is so essential that He used this very attribute to distinguish between Himself and His creation. It is on this basis that He made it known that He alone is deserving of worship and that He alone should be invoked.

At the beginning of Surah 16 (An-Nahl), Allah Ta'ala demonstrates over the course of several verses that He alone is the Creator of everything in the universe. Finally, in verse 17 of this same Surah, He condemns those who worship beings incapable of creation, drawing a clear distinction between the Creator and the created:

"Is he who cannot create like Him Who can create?"

Here, Allah Ta'ala emphasises that worship and supplication are exclusively for the One who can create. No one besides Allah Ta'ala possesses this ability. It is therefore evident that only Allah Ta'ala is worthy of worship and supplication. No one else deserves to be worshipped or invoked.

In verse 20 of the same Surah, Allah further clarifies:

"Those that you call upon besides Allah cannot create anything, but have themselves been created."

This verse clearly shows that all beings besides Allah are created, and thus, they do not deserve our worship or supplication. In this regard, the Prophets (Alaihimus Salaam), the angels, the Auliya, and the Pirs are all alike (i.e., they are all created beings). Therefore, they do not deserve to be worshipped or invoked, as they are incapable of creating even the smallest mosquito.

Shaykh Shah Waliyullah Dehlavi (Rahimahullah) stated:

"Whoever goes to Ajmeer to the grave of Salar Mas'ud (Rahimahullah) or any other [saint] to ask him for helphas committed a sin whose gravity exceeds that of murder and Zina. Such a person is comparable only to those who worship idols fashioned by their own hands, or who invoke Laat and ‘Uzza (two idols that the mushrikeen of Makkah used to worship)."

It is written in Majaalisul-Abraar:

"Seeking assistance from those in the grave, asking them for help, sustenance, health, children, calling upon them for debt repayment, the removal of difficulties, or to fulfil one’s needs, is akin to the idolaters who invoked their idols. All of this is unanimously prohibited by the A’immah (Rahimahumullah)."

Shaykh Muhammad Tahir (Rahimahullah) said:

"Some people visit the graves of the Prophets (Alaihimus Salaam) and pious figures in order to perform Salah at their graves and to invoke them (the Prophets and pious individuals) for their needs. No scholar has permitted such actions, because Ibaadah, supplication for one’s needs, and seeking help must be addressed exclusively to Allah."

Hadhrat Shaykh Abdul Qaadir Jilaani (Rahimahullah) said:

"Adhere to the fear of Allah Ta'ala and obedience to Him. Do not fear anyone else, and never place your hope in anyone else. Present your needs to Allah Ta'ala and seek them from Him alone."

As for women visiting the dargah or Qabrastaan (graveyard), the ‘Ulama hold differing opinions. Some scholars maintain that it is prohibited, based on Ahaadith reported on this subject, while others consider it permissible in light of other Ahaadith. However, according to those scholars who permit it, this permissibility is conditional on the absence of fitnah.

Given that women are more emotionally vulnerable, and that there is a high likelihood they may be drawn into impermissible (haraam) practices or become a source of fitnah for men, many ‘Ulama regard it as impermissible for women to visit the dargah or Qabrastaan in the current context.

According to a Hadith in Tirmizi reported by Hadhrat Abu Hurairah (Radiyallahu 'anhu), Rasulullah (Sallallaahu 'Alaihi Wasallam) cursed women who visit graves frequently. In another Hadith narrated by Hadhrat Abdullah bin Abbaas (Radiyallahu ‘anhuma), Rasulullah (Sallallaahu 'Alaihi Wasallam) cursed all women who visit graves. (Abu Dawood)

May Allah guide us to the Straight Path. Aameen.

[English version of "Visiter le dargah chaque jeudi" – Al Haadi – Vol. 2 No. 7]