Making of Graves
Fou’ad: Hey Ja’afar, will you please allow me to ask you a question concerning Shia’as & Sunnis?
Ja’afar: Ask and how much I love to be sentient & dependable who understands things by study and research...... and not be a barbarian following every crow cawing in the air or shrieking loud.....without
knowing its trustworthiness or its rottenness.
Fou’ad: Do you believe my word is right, that truth is with us (Sunnis)?
Ja’afar: Certainly I am in the forefront for people who believe in facts which are true and I certainly did not take Shia’aism but that I found it to be true; and you know that my mother, father, brothers and my whole family has not one Shia’a, and truly, I embraced Shia’aism because I found truth in it & if I knew truth of your words, I would be the first to accept it.
Fou’ad: You Shia’as build buildings over graves of Prophets, Imams, Scholars & Pious people and pray near them and this is nothing but polytheism (Kufr) and just as polytheists bow down to idols, you Shia’as also pray & bow down to graves of God men.
Ja’afar: We ought to be factual and not make - believers; we do not see ‘this was said by this or that man’ but rather see truth clear from Book of ALLAH, from Prophet’s (PBUH & HP) traditions and conduct of righteous ancestors.
Fou’ad: Yes, and me too. I love to know things by way of knowledge & understanding and not by blind following.
Ja’afar: Firstly: We Shia’as are not specific for building graves ----- for all Muslims ----- build graves for Prophets, Imams and such other great persons; here are some examples for you.....
Grave of the Holy (PBUH & HP) and that of the two Caliphs is certainly built and decorated with a costly Mausoleum and a Grand Cupola.
Graves of Prophets, among them Hazrat Ibrahim (AHS), in the City of ‘Khalil’ in Jordan and there are big Cupolas and decorated buildings over these graves.
Grave of Prophet Moses (AHS) which has a massive building and is located between Cities of Qods and Amman.
Grave of Abu Haneefah, with a huge building housing it & decorated with a Cupola.
Grave of Abu Hurairah inEgypt ;
there is a shrine and a Cupola on it.
Grave of Abdul Qader in Baghdad with a big courtyard, a shrine and aCupola .......
and many such graves of Prophets, graves of Saints & Godly - people and Religious Scholars; they all have shrines built upon them with Cupolas and they all have special Boards to take care of these Graves and Buildings and make regular maintenance of them saving them from deterioration and dilapidation; and most Islamic Countries are full of such shrines and tombs; and Muslims of different Sects have from day one had a liking for such things and suggested people to build them and never for one day even, did they stopped people from constructing such shrines, tombs or buildings over graves. Thus, we Shia’as are not the only ones who build Shrines or Tombs or Mausoleums and duly embellish them; all other Sects have the same feelings as us ------ for they also construct Mausoleums and build Tombs & Shrines for their Religious Leaders, Preachers etc.
Secondly, we ------ Shia’as ----- or all Muslims when they pray facing Graves of Saints, Imams or Prophets, certainly do not pray them but pray ALLAH All Mighty.
And I assure you that during Prayers we concentrate towards Qibla and not towards these Graves and if we were to pray to these Graves with the intention of Prayers, we would then have to change the direction of Qibla towards them!
Fou’ad: Why then do you people not pray behind these Graves so as to make them your Qibla?
Ja’afar: Verily we do not pray to the Graves when we are praying facing them or behind them, but divert our attention towards the Qibla and surely these Graves ------ sorry to say ------ happen to be in front of us, hence we pray without intention (towards these Graves).
And this cannot be, except as if one prays in front of a beautiful building, would it mean that he is praying to this building taking it as a deity?
And many Muslim Scholars say: It is permissible to pray even in Temples of polytheists and if idols are in front of him, his prayers are for ALLAH; would this mean that he is praying to these idols like a pagan, an atheist, a heathen?
Fou’ad: If making Tombs, Shrines and Mausoleums over Graves is not polytheism ------ as you said ------ and all Muslims permit it, then how were the Tombs & Shrines of Imams and others destroyed and pulled down saying that this is polytheism and constitutes Prayers to other than ALLAH, and Scholars in Hejaz issued a Fatwa in this regard as well?
Ja’afar: They did not issue such a Fatwa except a few Scholars from Hejaz only during those times and as such, a few Sheikhs from Medina told me: When the declaration to destroy the Shrines & Tombs came, all Scholars from Hejaz opposed it, repelling it as not something polytheistic rather a pointer towards Islamic Shariah as ALLAH says ….
And whosoever respecteth the Signs of ALLAH verily it is (the reflection) of the piety of the hearts …..where
of from the Scholars some were served an expulsion order & were banished, expelled and removed from their positions and status.
Accordingly, none gave such a Fatwa but only a few Scholars from Hejaz.
Fou’ad: And I wasthinking .......
Had such Shrines and Tombs been (Shirk) polytheistic, why then not Scholars and learned people warned of such practices from the times of the Holy Prophet (PBUH & HP) till today and why did they not prohibited them? And how come Muslims did not know of it during 13 Centuries?
Ja’afar: And I may add to yourinformation .......
The Holy Prophet (PBUH & HP) himself endorsed making of Graves & Shrines and Cupolas and did not prohibit them. Hence, Hajr Ismael in Ka’aba is the burial place of Prophet Ismael and his motherHagar !
And these Graves of Prophets ------ Abraham, Moses and others ------ around Jerusalem, were there during the days of the Holy Prophet (PBUH & HP) and are there even today, and the Holy Prophet (PBUH & HP) did not ever prohibit them nor did his Caliphs!
And had it been illegal or prohibited, the Holy Prophet (PBUH & HP) would have ordered its demolition and abstained from it. And since he did not do this, we know that it is certainly permissible and legal.
In the same way, when the Holy Prophet (PBUH & HP) died, he was buried in his room and its door was closed thus bringing his Grave in the centre of the room with a roof and walls. And if any of his companions had heard from the Holy Prophet ( P.B.U.H. & H.P. ) about any prohibition of making Tombs, Shrines etc. they would not have buried him there & if they had buried him there, they would have ordered it to be pulled down so as not to have a Shrine over his Grave.
Since they did not do any such thing, we know that making Shrines, Tombs over Graves is not Haram (Illegal) then how can it be Shirk (Polytheism)?
Fou’ad: I thank you for guiding me to truth and I am grateful to you; and I know now that making of graves is neither illegal nor is it polytheistic and those who declare it to be so, do not have any proof from religion to substantiate their claim and I am ever thankful to you for this information.
Ja’afar: And I thank you for accepting the truth after knowing it & following it when you see it and you walk on with guidance from intellect and correct logic; hence I wish to add to your insight into truth and knowledge of religion do you have time left for me to talk with you?
Fou’ad: I am really eager for dialogue of truth, so please speak whatever you wish to, I am all ears.
Ja’afar: Be steadfast on the saying that making of Shrines, Tombs, and Mausoleums over Graves ‘is permitted and not at all prohibited’.
Fou’ad: Yes and I am with you on this.
Ja’afar: I now wish to say that making Mausoleums, Tombs and Cupolas over Graves of Saints and God - men is all grateful /desirable, and the person is rewarded by ALLAH who performs this noble act.
Fou’ad: How so?
Ja’afar: Says ALLAH:
….
And whosoever respecteth the Signs of ALLAH verily it is (the reflection) of the piety of the hearts; hence everything which helps you in the realisation of ALLAH, is desirable and grateful in Islam.
Fou’ad: Yes, but how can be building of Shrines or Tombs over Graves be considered as Signs( شعائر
) of ALLAH ?
Ja’afar:( شعائر
) Signs are things, which glorify the religion in world’s sight and do not stipulate its (Signs) illegitimacy!
Fou’ad: Is faith ennobled by these Buildings and Mausoleums?
Ja’afar: Yes.
Fou’ad: And how is this?
Ja’afar: Making Graves of Great Persons of Islam and constructing Domes over them and protecting them from deterioration & decadence is tantamount to showing respect, reverence, veneration to these Great Personalities without doubt.
Forexample :
If a person comes with a Rose and places on the grave, is not this person showing respect & admiration and love & devotion to the dead person?
Fou’ad: Correct.
Ja’afar: How can then constructing a majestic building on the Grave & adorning it with a Dome notbe
construed as respect, veneration and adoration for the person buried in it? And respect for Great Personalities of Islam, Imams and Saints is respect for Islam, appreciation of Faith for which these Great Persons called the people to it and lead them towards it.
Does not a person who respects Chief of a Group, or an Apostle or a Member of an Ideology praising & eulogising this Group & Religion & Ideology?
Fou’ad: Yes, it is as you say.
Ja’afar: So building (Shrines, Tombs, and Mausoleums) over Graves of god - men is a mark of respect for them and towards ALLAH and Islam and everything which marks respect for ALLAH and in it is glory to Islam is certainly Signs of ALLAH towards which ALLAH has proclaimed:
وَمَن يُعَظِّمْ شَعَائِرَ اللَّـهِ فَإِنَّهَا مِن تَقْوَى الْقُلُوبِ
Fou’ad:Then .....
demolishing
(desecrating) Graves of Prophets, God - men and Imams is an insult to the religion, vilification of Islam’s honourbecause
their demolition is an affront to our Leaders and disrespect to them which is tantamount to insult to Islam.
Ja’afar: And I embraced Shia’a Islam, follow the path of Ahl - e - Bayt (A.H.S.), and have even changed my name from Waleed toJa’afar .....
for
this very reason! This was because I blindly followed suggestions of others without ascertaining the facts but now I have searched the Truth and have found it. A man should always leave behind religious - bigotry and open his mind (chest) to accept Truth, search forTruth .....
surely
, you will reach it.
Fou’ad: Me after these exchanges will see with open eyes all these matters and shall confirm Truth until I reach it wherever itbe
! And I am thankful to you all my life and please allow me to leave as I have an appointment with a gentleman.
Ja’afar: Please may ALLAH protect you.
Fou’ad: I give you in the protection of ALLAH.
Ja’afar: Proceed with safety and protection (from ALLAH).
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Author: Ayatullah Seyyed Muhammad Sadiq Shirazi
