Ruling on congregational du‘aa’ for the deceased and paying the imam for reciting the du‘aa’

Question: 174715

In our state, people used to bring the imaam of the masjid and make him do a congregational dua for their relatives who are dead ( in front of the grave). I have five questions here ;

1) Do Allah accept prayer for the dead (near the grave) by anyone other than his righteous son? (As seen in a hadeeth) ..

2) Wont Allah accept the prayer of a righteous daughter? ..

3) Isn’t this congregational dua a bid’ah? ..

4) Paying the imaam for praying to Allah seems to be so horrible. Isn’t this wrong?.

5)My relative justified that imaams are paid so low here. So they who need extra money so as to maintain their family needs. Is this a right justification?

Answer

Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah and his family.

Firstly:

Offering du‘aa’for the deceased after the burial is prescribed in Islam and may be done by hisson and others, because of the hadeeth of ‘Uthmaan ibn ‘Affaan(may Allah be pleased with him) who said: When the Prophet (blessings and peaceof Allah be upon him) had finished burying a deceased person, he would standover him and say: “Pray for forgiveness for your brother, and ask that he bemade steadfast, for he is being questioned now.”

Narrated by Abu Dawood(3221); classed as saheeh by al-Albaaniin Ahkaam al-Janaa’iz,p. 198

It is mustahabbfor every Muslim to attend the burial and offer du‘aa’for the deceased.

Secondly:

The du‘aa’ ofa righteous daughter for her father is included in the words of the Prophet(blessings and peace of Allah be upon him): “When a man dies, all his gooddeeds come to an end except three: ongoing charity (sadaqahjaariyah), beneficial knowledge, or a righteouschild who will pray for him.” Narrated by Muslim (1631) from Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him).In Arabic, the word walad (translated here as“child”; the plural is awlaad) includes both male andfemale, as in the verse in which Allah, may He be exalted, says: “Allahcommands you as regards your children’s [awlaadikum](inheritance); to the male, a portion equal to that of two females” [an-Nisa’ 4:10].

Thirdly:

Congregational du‘aa’after the burial, if it happens occasionally and does not become a regularpractice, or if one of them offers du‘aa’ and theothers say Ameen, is regarded as permissible by someof the scholars.

But if they always do it this way everytime there is a funeral or they visit the deceased, or they single out aspecific time to gather, or they recite du‘aa’ in unison,then this is a kind of bid‘ah and innovation.

Shaykh Ibn Baaz (may Allah have mercy onhim) was asked: I see some people standing at the grave after burial of thedeceased and offering du‘aa’ for him. Is thispermissible? And is there a prescribed du‘aa’ to besaid after completion of the burial? Is the du‘aa’ tobe offered in congregation, such as if one person says du‘aa’and the others say Ameen to his du‘aa’?Or should each person offer du‘aa’ on his own? Pleaseadvise us, may Allah reward you with good.

Answer: The Sunnahthat is proven from the Messenger (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him)indicates that it is prescribed to offer du‘aa’ forthe deceased after burial. When the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah beupon him) had finished burying a deceased person, he would stand over him andsay: “Pray for forgiveness for your brother, and ask that he be made steadfast,for he is being questioned now.” There is nothing wrong with one person saying du‘aa’ and the others saying Ameen,or each person offering du‘aa’ by himself for thedeceased. And Allah is the source of strength.

End quote from Fataawaash-Shaykh Ibn Baaz, 13/204

Shaykh Ibn Baaz (may Allah have mercy onhim) was also asked:

What is the ruling on offeringcongregational du‘aa’ at graves?

He replied:

There is nothing wrong with it. If oneperson says du‘aa’ and the others say Ameen, there is nothing wrong with that, so long as it isnot done deliberately and it just so happens that they hear one of them saying du‘aa’ and the others say Ameen.In such cases it is not called “congregational” because it is not donedeliberately.

End quote from Fataawaash-Shaykh Ibn Baaz, 13/340

Fourthly:

It is not prescribed to pay the imam foroffering du‘aa’ for the deceased, and it is not Sunnah to stand for a long time at the grave. What good canresult from the du‘aa’ of a man hired for thatpurpose?!

See also the answer to question no. 83829

Fifthly:

Poor imams should be helped from zakaah and charity funds, and it is not permissible toencourage them in innovations.

And Allah knows best.

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