66—Chapter on the recommendation for men to visit graves and what the visitor should say

1/581—Buraydah, may Allah be pleased with him, reported that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: “I had forbidden you to visit graves; now visit them.” Reported by Muslim.

2/582—ʿĀʾishah, may Allah be pleased with her, said: Whenever it was her night with the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, he would go out in the last part of the night to al-Baqīʿ and say, “Peace be upon you, abode of a believing people. What you were promised has come to you; tomorrow is deferred, and, if Allah wills, we shall join you. O Allah, forgive the people of Baqīʿ al-Gharqad.” Reported by Muslim.

[Explanation]

The author, may Allah have mercy on him, states in Riyāḍ al-Ṣāliḥīn: “Chapter on the recommendation for men to visit graves and the words the visitor should utter.”

Visiting graves means going out to them in obedience—indeed, in imitation—of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him. The graves are the dwellings of the dead, and a human being passes through four abodes:

The first: his mother’s womb.

The second: this worldly life.

The third: the graves.