Question:
May Allah bless you. In his final question, the listener Hamid also says: We have a widespread phenomenon, which is that many people head to the graveyards right after completing the Eid prayer. What is the Sharia ruling, in your view, regarding this practice?
Answer:
This practice is a bid’ah (religious innovation). It was not the practice during the era of the Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, to habitually visit graveyards on the day of Eid. Rather, the Prophet ﷺ commanded the visitation of graves in an absolute and general manner, saying: “I had forbidden you from visiting graves, but now visit them, for they remind you of the Hereafter.”
Therefore, a person should visit graves at any time, whether by day or by night. It is not something disliked that should be restricted to a specific time—neither on Fridays nor on the day of Eid.
In fact, we might say: whenever a person’s heart hardens and they forget the Hereafter, they should go out to the graveyards and visit them so that it may remind them of the Hereafter, just as the Messenger of Allah ﷺ stated in his saying: “for they remind you of the Hereafter.”