Mu' meneen Brothers and Sisters,

As Salaam Aleikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.  (May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be upon all of you)

One of our brothers/sisters has asked this question:

asalam o alaikom to all mom meneen!i have two questions:

1-    can we recite Holy Quran when we have put on the shoes?

2-    can we offer namaz in a mosque which is situated in the middle of the grave yard? 

(There may be some grammatical and spelling errors in the above statement. The forum does not change anything from questions, comments and statements received from our readers for circulation in confidentiality.)

Answer:

Pray in graveyard

In the name of Allah, We praise Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can misguide, and whoever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright. We bear witness that there is no one (no idol, no person, no grave, no prophet, no imam, no dai, nobody!) worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that Muhammad (saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.

Q-1-can we recite Holy Quran when we have put on the shoes?

There is absolutely no harm if one recites the Glorious Quran while wearing his shoes, whether from memory or reading from a book. If the shoes are pure from being in contact with impurities, it is permissible to even offer one’s prayer while wearing them.

Q-2: can we offer namaz in a mosque which is situated in the middle of the grave yard? 

Aishah reported: "Umm Habibah and Umm Salamah mentioned to Allah's Messenger (saws) a church in which they saw drawings while in Abyssinia, whereupon he (saws) said: 'Those people used to build a place of worship over the grave of a righteous man among them when he died and make such drawings in it. These will be the worst of people in the sight of Allah on the Day of Resurrection.''

Related by Bukhari and Muslim.

The author of Al-Mughni said: "It is not permissible to build mosques around graves because of the statement of the Prophet (saws) 'May Allah curse the women who visit graves frequently, and those who build mosques (in the graveyards) and those who place lights over the graves.'''

Related by Abu Daw'ud and Nasa'i.

It is not permissible in Islam to build a mosque in a graveyard, and if some people have built a mosque in the middle of the graveyard in ignorance, it is not permissible for the believers to offer prayers in them.

Al-Tirmidhi Hadith 738 Narrated by Abdullah ibn Umar

Allah's Messenger (saws) prohibited the observance of prayers in seven places: on a dung hill, in a slaughterhouse, in a graveyard, in the middle of the road, in a bathroom, in the watering place where camels drink and sit, and upon the roof of the House of Allah.

Sunan of Abu-Dawood Hadith 490 Narrated by Ali ibn AbuTalib

Abu Salih al-Ghifari reported: Ali (once) passed by Babylon during his travels. The mu'adhdhin (the person who calls for prayer) came to him to call for the afternoon prayer. When he passed by that place, he commanded to announce for the prayer. After finishing the prayer he said: ‘My affectionate friend (i.e. the Prophet(saws)) prohibited me to say prayer in the graveyard.’

But if the mosque is built outside the boundaries of the graveyard, there is absolutely no harm in offering one’s prayers in them.

Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is of me. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.

Your Brother in Islam,

Burhan