Praise be to Allaah.

Praise be to Allaah, and blessings and peace be upon the Messenger of Allaah.

Visiting the Mosque of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) is not obligatory, but if you want to travel to Madeenah in order to pray in the Mosque of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), that is Sunnah. When you enter the Mosque, pray first, then go to the grave of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and say: “As-salaamu ‘alayka ayyuhan-Nabiyyu wa rahmat-Allaahi wa barakaatuhu, wa sall-Allaahu ‘alayka wa ‘ala aalika wa ashaabika (Peace be upon you, O Prophet, and the mercy of Allaah and His blessings. May Allaah bless you and your family and companions).” Send lots of blessings and salaams upon him, because it was reported that he (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Send blessings upon me, for your blessings will reach me no matter where you are.” (Narrated by Abu Dawood, 2042). Then send salaams upon Abu Bakr and ‘Umar, and pray that Allaah may be pleased with them. But do not touch the grave or make du’aa’ there; rather move away and make du’aa’ to Allaah from wherever you want in the mosque or elsewhere. It was narrated that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Do not set out to travel to any mosque except three: al-Masjid al-Haraam [in Makkah], Masjid al-Rasool (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) [the Prophet’s Mosque in Madeenah], and al-Masjid al-Aqsa [in Jerusalem].” (Narrated by Imaam Ahmad, 1751; al-Bukhaari, 1189; Muslim, 1379)

And Allaah is the Source of strength. May Allaah send blessings and peace upon our Prophet Muhammad and his family and companions.