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:

Is it permissable to have a stone with name and date on it and anything else written on it (quote from the quran), on the grave of a muslim male or female?  

(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:

Engrave name date on Grave

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.

Jabir reported: "The Prophet (saws) forbade the whitewashing of a grave, sitting on it, or erecting any structure on it."

Related by Ahmad, Muslim, Nasa'i, Abu Daw'ud, and Tirmidhi

Although the scholars of the four major schools of thought in Islam unanimously discourage and consider it disliked to engrave anything on the grave, especially verses of the Glorious Quran; but they have differed slightly in their opinion whether it is something absolutely unlawful and prohibited. But all the major schools of thought hold it permissible to place a stone or rock near the grave so that the family members may recognize and locate the grave of their deceased loved one.

The Hanbali school of thought holds that inscription on graves is prohibited, whether it is a portion of the Qur'an or the name of the deceased.

The Shafi'i school of thought also holds that any inscription on the graves in prohibited.

The Maliki school of thought holds that writing any portion of the Qur'an is not permissible, but writing the name and date of death of the deceased is disliked (makruh) .

The Hanafi school of thought disapproves of writing anything on the grave and considers it unlawful, except when it is feared that any trace of the grave might disappear.

In light of the guidance of the Messenger of Allah (saws) and the example of the early companions, the believers should fear Allah and abstain from inscribing or writing anything on the graves of their deceased. The absolute maximum they may do is place a stone or a rock near the grave so that they may recognize the grave of their deceased loved one when they visit the graveyard. And Allah Alone Knows Best.

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

Your brother and well wisher in Islam,

Burhan