Visiting graves on the 15th night of Shabaan

Visiting graves in the 15^th night of Sha’baan

Visiting graves is Commendable (Mustahab). This command is not restricted to any time or place. In the Hadith, apart from the general command to visit graves, there is evidence of a special command to visit graves in the 15^th night of Sha’abaan. There is  a Hadith in Jame’ Tirmidhi, Sunan Ibn Majah, Musnad Ahmed, At Targheeb Wat Tarheeb, Al Ghunya Li Talibi Tariqil Haqqi:

Translation: The mother of the believers Hadhrat ‘Aisha Siddiqa (May Allah be well pleased with her) says:  One night, I did not find the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) in my house.  I saw that he was sitting in Baq’ee. The Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) said: Were you afraid that Allah Most High and His Prophet would commit excess against you? I said: O Prophet of Allah! I thought that You had gone to some other wife. The Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) said: Allah Most High graces the skies of this world with His presence in the 15^th night of Sha’abaan and forgives more people than the number of hairs on the backs of goats of the clan of Kalb. (Jame’ Tirmidhi , Vol. 1, Pg No: 156, Hadith No: 270, Sunan Ibn Majah, Vol. 1, Pg No: 99, Hadith No: 1379, Musnad Ahmad, Hadith No: 24825, Musnad Ul Ansaar, Hadith No: 2482, Musannaf Ibn Shaiba, Vol. 7, Pg No: 139, Shu’abul Iman, Hadith No: 3666, Kanz Ul Ummaal, Hadith No: 35184, Tafseer Durre Manthur, Surah Dukhan, At Targheeb Wat Tarheeb, Vol. 2, Pg No: 119, Al Ghunya Li Talibi tariqil haqqi Vol. 1, Pg No: 191)

The Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) would decide an order to stay with his virtuous wives, the mothers of the believers. When the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) was staying with ‘Aisha Siddiqa (May Allah be well pleased with her), after some time in the night, he left for Baq’ee. When the mother of the believers did not find the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam), at first she thought that he had gone to some other mother of the believers. When she reflected about this for a moment, the fragrance of the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) guided her to Baq’ee. The streets and the very air of Madina would remain fragrant with the fragrance of the blessed body of the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) and betray to his lovers that the mount of the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) had passed from here. The lovers of the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) would cover the whole journey in a trance and have the honor of seeing the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam). She saw that the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) was in prostration praying, as written by Hadhrat Mulla ‘Ali Qari in Mirqaat Sharh Mishkaat:

Translation: I saw that the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) was in prostration in Baq’ee.  He performed such a long prostration that I was worried as to whether he had returned to the presence of Allah Most High. When the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) ended his Salaat, he turned his attention to me.

That the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) visited Baq’ee in this blessed night shows that visiting graves in this night is Masnoon and Mustahab, i.e. established by the Sunnah and Commendable.

Some people say that the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) visited the graves once on the 15^th night of Sha’abaan, so visiting once in a lifetime is no problem. Visiting graves each year is a deviance (a bid’ah). This thought of theirs is without any evidence, which is not acceptable to the Shariah.  In the whole corpus of Hadith, there is no mention that the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) did not visit graves each year. On the other hand, it is clearly mentioned that the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) would visit graves on other days as well. This very thought that the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) visited graves only once is far, far away from truth because it is mentioned in the Hadith that the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) would visit graves whenever it was the turn of Hadhrat ‘Aisha Siddiqa (May Allah be well pleased with her), as given in a Hadith of Sahih Muslim:

Translation: It is narrated on the authority of Hadhrat ‘Aisha Siddiqa (May Allah be well pleased with her), she says that whenever it was her turn with the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam), then in the last portion of the night, he would visit Baq’ee and say: Peace be upon you O faithful! What was promised to you has reached you. The bounties of the afterlife are kept ready for you and verily You will meet us. O Allah! Forgive the Ahle Baq’ee. (Sahih Muslim, Vol. 1, Pg No: 313, Kitab Ul Janaaiz, Hadith No: 974, Sunan Nasai, Hadith No: 2012, Musnad Ahmed, Hadith No: 24297, Sahih Ibn Habban, Vol. 7, Pg No: 444,. Hadith No: 3172, Zujajatul Masabeeh, Vol. 1, Pg No: 487)

Even now if someone insists that the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) visited graves only once, even then visiting is established. If anyone from the Ummah of the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) follows this once or every year even then that person will be loved and liked by Allah Most High. It is not a secret for those who have Islamic knowledge that regularly performing those deeds which the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) performed only once or a just a few times does not make that deed/act a deviance. Instead, the one performing is worthy of reward as per his/her regularity.