until any benefit is submerged or even outweighed, so that praying there actually drives away that mercy and installs the very causes of punishment. If someone lacks the discernment to perceive the corruption produced by praying in such a place, it suffices him to follow the Messenger—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—for had the harm of praying there not surpassed its benefit, he would never have forbidden it. He did so just as he forbade prayer at the three times of day, fasting on the two festival days, and—indeed—just as he prohibited wine: were its harm not greater than its advantage, it would not have been declared unlawful, nor would even a single drop of it have been barred.

The believer is neither required nor entitled to demand from the messengers a detailed exposition of every benefit and harm; his task is simply to obey them. Allah the Exalted says:

“We sent no messenger but that he should be obeyed, by Allah’s leave.” (Qur’an 4:64)

and He says:

“Whoever obeys the Messenger has indeed obeyed Allah.” (Qur’an 4:80)

The prophets’ rights, therefore, lie in supporting and honoring them, loving them more than oneself, one’s family, and one’s wealth, preferring obedience to them and adherence to their Sunnah, and the like. Whoever fulfills these rights does not worship them or associate partners with Allah through them, whereas most people who fall into major or minor shirk concerning them abandon the obedience they owe them to the extent of the shirk they have invented.

The same holds for the rights of the truthful saints: love, reverence, and similar duties established by the Qur’an and Sunnah and practiced by the early generations of the Ummah.

The jurists have differed concerning prayer in a cemetery: is it prohibited, or merely disliked?