What to Say When You Pass by a Disbeliever’s Grave

At-Tabaraanee recorded that Sa’d bin Abe Waqqaas narrated that a Bedouin came to the Prophet (sallallaahu alayhi wasallam) and said, “My father used to uphold the ties of kinship, and so on and so forth. Where is he now?’ He said, ‘In Hell.’ The Bedouin got upset and said, ‘O Messenger of Allaah, where is your father?’ He said, ‘Whenever you pass by the grave of a disbeliever, give him the tidings of Hell.’ The Bedouin later became a Muslim, and he said, ‘The Messenger of Allaah (sallallaahu alayhi wasallam) gave me a difficult task. Whenever I pass by the grave of a disbeliever, I give him the tidings of Hell.”

Shaykh al-Albaanee commented: This hadeeth contains an important benefit which most books of fiqh pay no attention to; and it is the legality of giving a disbeliever the tidings of Hell whenever one passes by his grave. What this legislation contains of benefit is obvious, such as cautioning a believer and reminding him of the gravity of the crime of this disbeliever in view of the fact that he committed a great crime, which outweighs all of the sins of this world if they are assembled together and it is disbelief in Allaah the Mighty and Majestic and associating partner with Him…

Source: Silsilatul-Ahaadeeth as-Saheehah, vol. 1, p.55, no. 18

Will a Muslim Be Asked About His Madhhab in The Hereafter ?

Shaykh Muhammad Sultaan al-Ma’soomee wrote:

I ask you, by Allaah, the Great, O intelligent and just Muslim that when a Muslim dies, will he be asked in his grave or on the Day of Reckoning, why did you not follow the madhhab of so and so? Or why did you not enter the tareeqah of so and so? By Allaah, you will not be asked about that at all; rather you will be asked, 'why did you stick to the madhhab of so and so or follow the tareeqah of so and so?' This is because, undoubtedly, doing such is a form of taking scholars and monks as lords besides Allaah. In addition, [blind-following of] these madhhabs and [following a] tareeqah are innovations in the religions and every innovation is misguidance.

Rather, you will only be asked about that which Allaah has made the obligatory upon you as regards belief in Him and His Messenger and acting on that which it necessitates. Belief in Allaah and His Messenger does not necessitate following a particular madhhab or the tareeqah of so and so. Yes, it necessitates that you ask the people of knowledge among the scholars of the Book and Sunnah about what you do not know and to refer whatever is not clear to you to the Book and Sunnah. This is the religion of Islaam which our leader Muhammad  - the  Messenger of Allaah (sallallaahu alayhi wasallam) - came with.

So, O Muslim, return to your religion, which is acting upon what is manifest of the Qur’aan and the Sunnah and that upon which the pious predecessors and righteous Imaams agreed, because in it lies your salvation and your happiness. Be a Muslim and monotheist. Do not worship anyone other than Allaah; do not have hope in anyone except Allah and do not fear anyone except Allaah. Consider yourself a brother to every Muslim. Love for them what you love for yourself.

Sufficient for you is what al–Imaam at–Tirmidhee reported in his Sunan from al-‘Irbaad bin Saariyah (may Allaah be pleased with him) who said: “The Messenger of Allaah (sallallaahu ‘alayhi wasallam) gave us an admonition one day after the Fajr prayer, by which our eyes shed tears and our hearts were afraid. So a man said, “This is as if it is a farewell sermon, so counsel us, O Messenger of Allaah. He said: ‘I counsel you to fear Allaah and to hear and obey even if an Ethiopian slave becomes your leader, because he who lives will see great differences. Beware of newly invented matters for they are misguidance. Whoever reaches that time amongst you should cling to my Sunnah and the Sunnah of the Rightly-Guided Caliphs; cling to that with your teeth.” At-Tirmidhee graded it hasan saheeh and it can also be found in Sunan Abee Daawood

If the matter is like this, then we must beware of blind following, because there is no doubt that one who blindly follows a particular madhhab in every matter will be leaving off acting on many authentic ahaadeeth and going against them. There is no doubt that this is nothing but misguidance…

Source: Hidaayatus-Sultaan ilaa Muslimee Bilaad al-Yabaan, p. 10-11 by Shaykh Muhammad Sultaan al-Ma’soomee (may Allaah have mercy on him)

Why We Must Return to The Sunnah

Imaam al-Albaanee (may Allaah have mercy on him) stated:

Firstly: The Sunnah is the sole reference point after the Noble Qur’aan. There are many well-known aayaat concerning this, and the Ummah has a consensus upon it.

Secondly: The Sunnah has been protected from error and safeguarded from misguidance, as the Prophet (sallallaahu ‘alayhi wasallam) said in the farewell sermon, “O people! Indeed, I have left amongst you two things. If you hold firmly to them, you will never go astray: The Book of Allaah and the Sunnah of His Prophet (sallallaahu ‘alayhi wasallam).” The same does not hold true for the opinions and ijtihaadaat of men. Due to this, Imaam Maalik (d.159H) –rahimahullaah – said, “I am only a human being. I err and I am correct. So look into my opinions; everything that you find in agreement with the Book and Sunnah, then take it. And everything you find that is not in agreement with the Book and the Sunnah, then leave it off.” Shurayh al-Qaadee said, “Verily the Sunnah takes precedence over your qiyaas (analogical deduction). So follow and do not innovate, since you will not be misguided by what you take of the aathaar”

Thirdly: The Sunnah is binding evidence by agreement of the Muslims, contrary to the opinions of men; since the salaf and other than them from the researching scholars did not consider them to be binding proofs. Imaam Ahmad (d.241H) –rahimahullaah- said: “As for the opinions of al-Awzaa’ee, Maalik and Aboo Haneefah, then all of that is merely opinion. Then evidence is only found in the aathaar.”

Fourthly: It is not possible for the student of knowledge to know true fiqh, except by studying the Sunnah. It is the sole source after the Qur’aan that qualifies along with it, because it helps to deduct a correct qiyaas if the text is unclear. So the errors that occur here are more likely to occur with those who are ignorant of the Sunnah, such as the qiyaas of a subsidiary affair over a subsidiary affair or performing qiyaas despite the existence of a text. Due to this, Ibn Qayyim (d.759H) –rahimahullaah- said, “The most correct of the people in qiyaas are the Ahlul-Hadeeth. The closer a man is to the hadeeth, the more correct his qiyaas will be. And the farther he is from the hadeeth, the more corrupt his qiyaas will be.

Fifthly: It is not possible to pass judgement against what has entered into the Muslims from innovations and desires, except by way of the Sunnah, just as the Sunnah is an obstruction in the path of the destructive madhaahib and strange opinions which their proponents beautify for the Muslims.  

Source: A Return to the Sunnah, p.37-38 by Imaam Muhammad Naasirud-Deen al-Albaanee, adapted by Maaz Qureshi.