There is no disagreement on the permissibility of visiting the graves of the righteous to greet them and pray good for them. How can there be disagreement after what has been widely transmitted from the Prophet about his words and actions that indicate the permissibility of visiting the graves of Muslims?! The only disagreement is on traveling to visit their graves. The Salafis prohibit it based on what a group of the Sahabah have narrated from the Prophet that he said: «لَا تُشَدُّ الرِّحَالُ إِلَّا إِلَى ثَلَاثَةِ مَسَاجِدَ: مَسْجِدِ الْحَرَامِ، وَمَسْجِدِي هَذَا، وَالْمَسْجِدِ الْأَقْصَى»[1]; “One should not travel except for (visiting) Three: Masjid al-Haram, this Mosque of mine, and Masjid al-Aqsa.” However, the truth is that it does not indicate the prohibition of traveling to visit graves, nor does it indicate the prohibition of traveling for other legitimate activities; because the exception in it is Three Mosques, and it appears that the thing exempted from it is of the same kind as them; considering that the exception is of the same kind as the thing exempted from. If it were not for that, it would be a metaphor, and it is not permissible to interpret speech metaphorically unless it is impossible to take it literally. If we assume that the literal meaning encompasses all places, it becomes impossible to take it literally; because it is acknowledged in general that traveling to places other than the Three Mosques is permissible. If we know that the Messenger of Allah , did not mention its generality conclusively, we must interpret it to be specific to the mosques; because that is the confirmed measure and anything beyond that is conjectural. Based on this, the Hadith means that one should travel to visit any mosque except for Masjid al-Haram, the Mosque of the Prophet, and Masjid al-Aqsa; because all mosques have equal virtue except for these Three Mosques. Therefore, it is permissible to travel to other places for trade, tourism, visitation, and other legitimate activities, and this is very clear, were it not for the bias of some people toward ibn Taymiyyah! As for their reliance on what Qaz‘ah or Arfajah has narrated and said: «أَرَدْتُ الْخُرُوجَ إِلَى الطُّورِ، فَسَأَلْتُ ابْنَ عُمَرَ، فَقَالَ ابْنُ عُمَرَ: أَمَا عَلِمْتَ أَنَّ النَّبِيَّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَآلِهِ وَسَلَّمَ قَالَ: لَا تُشَدُّ الرِّحَالُ إِلَّا إِلَى ثَلَاثَةِ مَسَاجِدَ: الْمَسْجِدِ الْحَرَامِ، وَمَسْجِدِ النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَآلِهِ وَسَلَّمَ، وَالْمَسْجِدِ الْأَقْصَى، وَدَعْ عَنْكَ الطُّورَ، فَلَا تَأْتِهِ»[2]; “I wanted to set out for Mount Sinai. I asked ibn Umar (about it), and he said: ‘Do you not know that the Prophet said: “One should not travel except for (visiting) Three: Masjid al-Haram, the Mosque of the Prophet and Masjid al-Aqsa”? Do not go to Mount Sinai.’ So I did not go there,” and what Umar ibn Abd al-Rahman ibn al-Harith and others have narrated and said: «أَنَّ أَبَا بَصْرَةَ لَقِيَ أَبَا هُرَيْرَةَ وَهُوَ جَاءٍ فَقَالَ: مِنْ أَيْنَ أَقْبَلْتَ؟ قَالَ: أَقْبَلْتُ مِنَ الطُّورِ، صَلَّيْتُ فِيهِ، قَالَ: أَمَا إِنِّي لَوْ أَدْرَكْتُكَ لَمْ تَذْهَبْ، إِنِّي سَمِعْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَآلِهِ وَسَلَّمَ يَقُولُ: لَا تُشَدُّ الرِّحَالُ إِلَّا إِلَى ثَلَاثَةِ مَسَاجِدَ: مَسْجِدِي هَذَا، وَالْمَسْجِدِ الْحَرَامِ، وَالْمَسْجِدِ الْأَقْصَى»[3]; “Abu Basra met Abu Hurairah while he was coming (back from a journey). He said: ‘Where did you come from?’ He said: ‘I came from Mount Sinai. I performed prayer on it.’ He said: ‘If I had met you before that, you would not have gone there. I heard the Messenger of Allah say: One should not travel except for (visiting) Three: this Mosque of mine, Masjid al-Haram, and Masjid al-Aqsa,’” they are nothing; because there was a mosque in Mount Sinai, and they traveled to the mosque. The evidence for that is the saying of Abu Basra in the narration of Ahmad, where he said: «لَقِيتُ أَبَا هُرَيْرَةَ وَهُوَ يَسِيرُ إِلَى مَسْجِدِ الطُّورِ لِيُصَلِّيَ فِيهِ، فَقُلْتُ لَهُ: لَوْ أَدْرَكْتُكَ قَبْلَ أَنْ تَرْتَحِلَ مَا ارْتَحَلْتَ، قَالَ: وَلِمَ؟ قُلْتُ: إِنِّي سَمِعْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَآلِهِ وَسَلَّمَ يَقُولُ: لَا تُشَدُّ الرِّحَالُ إِلَّا إِلَى ثَلَاثَةِ مَسَاجِدَ: الْمَسْجِدِ الْحَرَامِ، وَالْمَسْجِدِ الْأَقْصَى، وَمَسْجِدِي»[4]; “I met Abu Hurairah while he was on his way to the mosque on Mount Sinai to perform prayer in it. I said to him: ‘If I had met you before you traveled, you would not have traveled.’ He said: ‘Why?’ I said: ‘I heard the Messenger of Allah say: One should not travel except for (visiting) Three: Masjid al-Haram, Masjid al-Aqsa, and my mosque,’” and it has been narrated that the Messenger of Allah said: «إِنَّ الدَّجَّالَ لَا يَقْرَبُ أَرْبَعَةَ مَسَاجِدَ: مَسْجِدَ الْحَرَامِ، وَمَسْجِدَ الْمَدِينَةِ، وَمَسْجِدَ الطُّورِ، وَالْمَسْجِدَ الْأَقْصَى»[5]; “Dajjal does not approach Four Mosques: Masjid al-Haram, Masjid al-Madinah, Masjid al-Tur, and Masjid al-Aqsa.” This is also evidence that there is a mosque on Mount Sinai, which is the one to which journeys are not made.

Therefore, there is nothing wrong with traveling to visit the graves of believers, especially the Prophets and the righteous. If there is a mosque near their graves and then someone travels to visit their graves, it is permissible for him to enter the mosque and perform prayer in it; because he did not intend to visit the mosque. Also, there is nothing wrong with building a mosque near their graves to worship Allah Almighty if there is a barrier between them. This can be indicated by the words of Allah Almighty in the story of the Companions of the Cave, where He has said: ﴿إِذْ يَتَنَازَعُونَ بَيْنَهُمْ أَمْرَهُمْ ۖ فَقَالُوا ابْنُوا عَلَيْهِمْ بُنْيَانًا ۖ رَبُّهُمْ أَعْلَمُ بِهِمْ ۚ قَالَ الَّذِينَ غَلَبُوا عَلَى أَمْرِهِمْ لَنَتَّخِذَنَّ عَلَيْهِمْ مَسْجِدًا﴾[6]; “When they disputed among themselves about their matter and then said: ‘Build a building over them. Their Lord knows best about them.’ Those who prevailed over their matter said: ‘We will certainly build a mosque over them.’” However, it is not permissible to perform prayer around their graves if there is no barrier between them; because it is an act of copying polytheists. This is also the case with circumambulating around their graves; as one of our companions informed us, he said:

«سَأَلْتُ الْمَنْصُورَ عَنْ زِيَارَةِ قَبْرِ الْحُسَيْنِ فَقَالَ: زُرْهُ، وَسَلِّمْ عَلَيْهِ، وَسَلِ اللَّهَ حَاجَتَكَ، قُلْتُ: كَيْفَ أُسَلِّمُ عَلَيْهِ عِنْدَ قَبْرِهِ؟ قَالَ: قُلْ: السَّلَامُ عَلَيْكَ يَا أَبَا عَبْدِ اللَّهِ، السَّلَامُ عَلَيْكَ يَابْنَ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ، أَشْهَدُ أَنَّكَ أَقَمْتَ الصَّلَاةَ وَآتَيْتَ الزَّكَاةَ وَأَمَرْتَ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ وَنَهَيْتَ عَنِ الْمُنْكَرِ وَجَاهَدْتَ فِي اللَّهِ حَقَّ جِهَادِهِ حَتَّى أَتَاكَ الْيَقِينُ، فَلَعَنَ اللَّهُ مَنْ قَتَلَكَ، وَلَعَنَ اللَّهُ مَنْ أَمَرَ بِهِ، وَلَعَنَ اللَّهُ مَنْ بَلَغَهُ ذَلِكَ فَرَضِيَ بِهِ، أَنَا إِلَى اللَّهِ مِنْهُمْ بَرِيءٌ! قُلْتُ: فَأَطُوفُ بِقَبْرِهِ؟ قَالَ: لَا، وَلَا تُصَلِّ بَيْنَ يَدَيْهِ، وَلَكِنْ تَنَحَّ نَاحِيَةً، وَصَلِّ فِي بَعْضِ الرُّوَاقَاتِ»[7]; “I asked Mansoor about visiting the shrine of Husain, so he said: Visit it and greet his Excellency and ask Allah for your needs. I said: How can I greet his Excellency at his shrine? He said: Say: Peace be upon you, O Aba Abdullah, peace be upon you, son of the Messenger of Allah, I bear witness you held the prayer and paid Zakat and promote good and demote evil and fought in the way of Allah appropriately until death came to you, so may Allah curse the one who killed you and may Allah curse the one who commanded it and may Allah curse the one who became aware of it and was satisfied with it, I hate them toward Allah! I said: Shall I do Tawaf around his shrine? He said: No, and do not pray in front of it, but go aside and pray in some porches.”

Similarly, it is not allowed to crowd around graves to touch and kiss them by way of seeking blessing; as one of our companions informed us, he said:

«رَأَيْتُ عِنْدَ قَبْرِ عَلِيِّ بْنِ مُوسَى شَابًّا هَاشِمِيًّا وَجْهُهُ كَدَائِرَةِ الْقَمَرِ، وَهُوَ يَقُولُ لِلْمُزْدَحِمِينَ: مَا بِهَذَا أُمِرْتُمْ -يَعْنِي بِالْإِزْدِحَامِ عَلَى الْقَبْرِ لِاسْتِلَامِهِ وَطَوَافِهِ»[8]; “At the grave of Ali ibn Musa (al-Rida), I saw a Hashemite young man whose face was like the full moon, and he was saying to the crowd: ‘This is not what you have been commanded’ -i.e., crowding around the grave in order to touch and kiss it (to draw near to Allah) and circumambulate it.”