Question:
People talk a great deal and have different opinions about where the grave of Al-Husayn is located. Can Muslims benefit from knowing exactly where it is?
Answer:
The correct opinion is that his body is in Iraq, because he was killed in Iraq. With regard to his head, this is not known exactly. It is said that it is in the Levant (the region covering Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, and Palestine), and some claim that it is in Egypt. Others have claims that it is in other places. However, the correct opinion is that what exists in Egypt is neither the grave nor the head of Al-Husayn. A number of scholars have written essays on this and explained that there is no evidence to support that the head of Al-Husayn is in Egypt. Thus, the claim that it is in Egypt is groundless.
The most likely to be correct is the view that it is in the Levant, because it was taken to Yazid ibn Mu’awiyah who was in the Levant. There is no basis for the view that it was taken to Egypt. Either it was kept in the Levant in a place therein, or it was returned to his body in Iraq. Whatever the case, people do not need to know where it is buried or where it is. Rather, what is prescribed is to ask Allah for forgiveness and mercy for him. May Allah forgive him and be pleased with him, for he was killed unlawfully. So we should ask Allah to forgive him and have mercy on him, and hope for much good for him. He and his brother Al-Hasan are the masters of the youth of Jannah (Paradise), as the Prophet (peace be upon him) stated. May Allah accept him as a martyr for he was killed unlawfully. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said about Al-Hasan and Al-Husayn: “They are the masters of the youth of Jannah.”
If one is certain as to where the grave is located, there is nothing wrong with greeting him and making Dua’ (supplication) for him, just as the case with other graves for whose dwellers we shall make Dua’ and ask Allah to have mercy on them, if they are Muslims. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said : “Visit the graves as they remind you of the Hereafter!”
Visiting the grave of Al-Husayn or Al-Hasan, or any other Muslim, to make Dua’ for them and ask Allah to forgive them and have mercy on them - as one would do at the grave of any other Muslim - is Sunnah (action following the example of the Prophet). However, visiting graves to invoke their occupants or seek their help or blessing is Munkar (that which is unacceptable or disapproved of by Islamic law and Muslims of sound intellect). It is not permissible to build Masjids (mosques), domes, or the like over graves because the Messenger (peace be upon him) said: “May Allah curse the Jews and Christians, for they took the graves of their prophets as places of worship.”
Also, it was narrated on the authority of Jabir in Sahih Muslim (authentic Hadith Book) that the Prophet (peace be upon him): Forbade plastering graves, sitting on them, and building over them. Hence, it is not permissible to plaster graves, perfume them, place screens around them, erect structures over them, sit on them, or offer Salah (Prayer) at them; all these acts are forbidden. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “Beware, for those who preceded you took the graves of their prophets and righteous men as places of worship, but you must not take graves as places of Salah; I forbid you to do this.” (Related by Muslim in his Sahih on the authority of Jundub ibn Abdullah Al-Bajaly)
This Hadith indicates that it is not permissible to offer Salah at graves or to take them as places of worship, because one may fall into Shirk (associating others with Allah in His Divinity or worship) by invoking the dead, seeking their help, offering therm vows, and touching their graves to seek blessings. The Prophet (peace be upon him) warned against this. Graves should be visited for the sole purpose of greeting the dead, making Dua’ for them, and asking Allah to have mercy on them and forgive their sins.
It is Munkar to visit graves and invoke the dead by saying, for example: “O my master, I take refuge in you;” “I am under your protection;” “Intercede with Allah for me;” “Grant me victory;” “Cure the sick”, and such like statements. This is considered supplicating to other than Allah, which is major Shirk (associating others with Allah in His Divinity or worship that takes the Muslim out of Islam). May Allah protect us!
It is permissible to visit graves in the manner prescribed in Shari’ah (Islamic law). On the other hand, it is absolutely not permissible to visit graves to touch them for the sake of seeking the blessings of their dwellers, invoking them, or seeking their help. It is, thus, permissible for a person to visit graves, in the manner prescribed in Shari’ah, provided that they are located in their country.
It is not permissible to set out on a journey for the sole purpose of visiting graves. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “Do not set out (on a journey) but to three Masjids: Al-Masjid Al-Haram (the Sacred Mosque in Makkah), this Masjid of mine (the Prophets Mosque in Madinah), and Al-Masjid Al-Aqsa (the Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem).”