“Do not turn my house into a festival, and do not make your homes graves. Invoke blessings upon me wherever you may be, for your blessings reach me.”

Saʿīd also said: ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz ibn Muḥammad narrated to us; Suhayl ibn Abī Suhayl informed me that al-Ḥasan ibn al-Ḥasan ibn ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib saw me standing at the grave and called out to me while he was having supper in Fāṭimah’s house. He said, “Come and have supper.” I replied, “I do not wish to.” He asked, “Why did I see you at the grave?” I answered, “I was sending greetings to the Prophet—peace and blessings be upon him.” He said, “When you enter the mosque, send your greetings.” Then he added: “The Messenger of Allah—peace and blessings be upon him—said:

‘Do not turn my house into a festival, and do not turn your houses into graves. Allah has cursed the Jews who took the graves of their prophets as places of worship. Send blessings upon me, for your blessings reach me wherever you may be.’”

[You and those in al-Andalus are alike.]

These two mursal reports, transmitted through two different lines, testify to the authenticity of the ḥadīth—especially since the one who transmitted it as mursal used it as proof, which indicates that he deemed it sound even if it had not been transmitted through other connected chains. How much more, then, now that a connected chain has preceded it?

The point of evidence is this: the grave of the Messenger of Allah—peace and blessings be upon him—is the most honored grave on earth, yet he forbade that it be taken as a festival. Therefore, the graves of others—whoever they may be—are even more deserving of that prohibition.

He coupled this with his saying:

“Do not turn your houses into graves,”

meaning: do not leave them devoid of prayer, supplication, and recitation, for then they would resemble graves. He thus instructed that worship be sought out in the homes and forbade seeking it at graves—the very opposite of what the polytheists among the Christians and those who imitate them do.