Good deeds on behalf of others

Praise be to Allaah. 

It is not
prescribed in Islam to give the rewards for any action to a living person,
but with regard to the dead it is permissible within the guidelines set
out in the reports (of the Sunnah). We shall look at this matter in detail
below, in sha Allaah.

 1.    
Giving the reward of one’s actions to the living. The basic
principle concerning acts of worship is that this should not be done,
unless there is evidence (daleel) from the sharee’ah which allows doing
so. There is nothing in the books of Sunnah or biographies (of the Salaf)
to indicate that any one of the early generations (Salaf) of this ummah
did any good deed and then gave the reward for that to any of the Muslims,
or the Prophet or the Sahaabah.

 Shaykh
‘Abd al-‘Azeez ibn Baaz (may Allaah have mercy on him) was asked about
giving the reward for reading Qur’aan and naafil prayers to one’s
mother who could neither read nor write. He said:

 There is
no evidence (daleel) in sharee’ah to indicate that one can give (the
reward for) prayers and reading Qur’aan to another person, whether he is
alive or dead.

 Acts of
worship are an area in which there is no room for ijtihaad, and we should
not do anything except that for which there is shar’i evidence. 

But it is
prescribed for you to make du’aa’ for her and to give in charity on
her behalf, and to do Hajj and ‘Umrah on her behalf, if she is old and
cannot do Hajj and ‘Umrah.

 Fataawa
al-Shaykh Ibn Baaz,
9/321.

 2.    
With regard to giving the reward for good deeds to the dead: Islam
permits doing this in the case of some deeds, so we should limit ourselves
to that – it is not right to make an analogy between these and other
deeds, because the basic principle concerning acts of worship is not to do
anything unless there is evidence (daleel).

 Among
the deeds whose rewards we are allowed to give to the dead, or by means of
which the dead can benefit from the actions of the living, are the
following:

 (i)
Du’aa’

 Allaah
says (interpretation of the meaning):

 “And those who came after them say: “Our Lord! Forgive us
and our brethren who have preceded us in Faith…” [al-Hashr 59:10]

 It was
reported that Abu Hurayrah (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: “The
Messenger of Allaah
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) told
us of the death of the Negus, the king of Ethiopia, on the day that he
died, and said, ‘Pray for forgiveness for your brother.’”

(Narrated by
al-Bukhaari, 1236; Muslim, 951)

 It was
narrated that ‘Uthmaan ibn ‘Affaan said: “When the Prophet

(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) finished burying someone who
had died, he would stand over him and say, ‘Pray for forgiveness for
your brother, and ask that he may be made steadfast, for even now he is
being questioned.’”

(Narrated by
Abu Dawood, 3221. An-Nawawi classed the isnaad of this hadeeth as jayyid
in al-Majmoo’, 5/292).

 Ibn
al-Qayyim (may Allaah have mercy on him) said:

 “The
fact that the dead benefit from du’aa’s is indicated by the consensus
of the ummah on offering du’aa’ for him during the janaazah (funeral)
prayer, hence we know that du’aa’ benefits the deceased… This is
supported by many ahaadeeth and is in fact is the whole point of praying
for the deceased. The same applies to making du’aa’ for him after the
burial, and making du’aa’ for them when visiting their graves.”

 (al-Rooh,
118, 119)

 (ii)   
Making up fasts that were obligatory upon the deceased because of
vows, as expiation (kafaarah)
and so on

 It was
reported from ‘Aa’ishah (may Allaah be pleased with her) that the
Messenger of Allaah
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said:
“Whoever dies and had any fasts outstanding, his heir should observe
those fasts on his behalf.”

(Narrated by
al-Bukhaari, 1851; Muslim, 1147) 

It was
reported from Ibn ‘Abbaas (may Allaah be pleased with them both) that a
woman came to the Messenger of Allaah
(peace and blessings of Allaah
be upon him) and said, ‘My mother has died and she one month’s fasting
outstanding.’ He said, ‘Do you not think that if she was in debt, you
would pay it off for her?’ She said, ‘Yes.’ He said, ‘The debt
owed to Allaah is more deserving of being paid off.’”

(Narrated by
al-Bukhaari, 1817; Muslim, 1148)

 There is
some scholarly difference of opinion on this matter. Some scholars say
that no fasts should be observed on behalf of the dead apart from fasts
related to vows, but the correct view is that all kinds of fasts should be
observed on behalf of the dead.

 Al-Haafiz
ibn Hajar said:

 The
Salaf had differences of opinion concerning this matter:

Fasting on
behalf of the dead was permitted by the scholars of hadeeth. Al-Shaafa’i
former view was that it was allowed depending on whether or not the
hadeeth was saheeh, as was transmitted by al-Bayhaqi in al-Ma’rifah.
This is also the view of Abu Thawr and a group of the Shaafa’i
muhaddatheen. Al-Bayhaqi said in al-Khilaafiyaat:

“This is a
proven matter. I do not know of any difference of opinion among the
scholars of hadeeth concerning its soundness, so we must act in accordance
with this.” Then he quoted al-Shaafa’i, with an isnaad going back to
him: “Concerning everything that I have said, if something different is
reported from the Prophet
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)
and is saheeh, then follow the hadeeth and do not follow me.”

 Al-Shaafa’i’s
later view, and that of Maalik and Abu Haneefah was that fasts should not
be observed on behalf of the dead.

 Al-Layth,
Ahmad, Ishaaq and Abu ‘Ubayd said: no fasts should be observed on behalf
of him (the deceased), apart from fasts related to vows, because the
general meaning of the hadeeth of ‘Aa’ishah should be interpreted
within the specific framework of the hadeeth narrated from Ibn ‘Abbaas.

 However,
there is no contradiction between these two ahaadeeth that would
necessitate reconciliation. The hadeeth of Ibn ‘Abbaas is an independent
matter in which he asked about something which happened specifically to
him, whereas the hadeeth of ‘Aa’ishah is a statement of the general
principle. In the hadeeth of Ibn ‘Abbaas, this general principle is
referred to at the end of the hadeeth, where it says, ‘The debt owed to
Allaah is more deserving of being paid off.’

(Fath
al-Baari, 4/193, 194)

The Hanafis
quote weak (da’eef) ahaadeeth as evidence to say that it is not
permitted to fast on behalf of the  dead.
Al-Haafiz ibn Hajar refuted this in the source referred to above.

 Some of
them quote as evidence the hadeeth: “When the son of Adam dies, his
deeds come to an end apart from three: sadaqah
jaariyah (ongoing charity); beneficial knowledge; or a
righteous son who will make du’aa’ for him.” (Saheeh
Muslim, 1631). Imaam Ibn al-Qayyim 
refuted those who quote this hadeeth as evidence, and said:

“When you
use this hadeeth ‘When the son of Adam dies, his deeds come to an
end’, you are misquoting it. The Prophet
(peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) did not say, ‘He no longer benefits at all’; what
he said is that deeds of the individual come to an end. As far as the
deeds of others are concerned, the (reward) is for the one who does them,
and if he gives that to him, the reward of the one who did that reaches
him, not the reward of his own deeds. What comes to an end is one thing,
and what reaches him is something else. The same applies to another
hadeeth, which is: ‘What reaches the deceased is his own hasanaat and
deeds” – which does not rule out the fact that other things, the good
deeds and hasanaat of others, may also reach him.”

(al-Rooh,
p. 129)

 (iii) 
Paying off debts

 It was
reported that Salamah ibn al-Akwa’ (may Allaah be pleased with him)
said:

“We were
sitting with the Prophet
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)
when a funeral bier was brought to him and they said, ‘Pray over him.’
He said, ‘Does he have any debts?’ They said, ‘No.’ He said,
‘Has he left anything behind?’ They said, ‘No.’ So he prayed over
him. Then another funeral bier was brought to him, and they said, ‘O
Messenger of Allaah, pray for him.’ He said, ‘Does he have any
debts?’ They said, ‘Yes.’ He said, ‘Has he left anything
behind?’ They said, ‘Three dinars.’ So he prayed over him. Then a
third funeral bier was brought, and they said, ‘Pray for him.’ He
said, ‘Has he left anything behind?’ They said, ‘No.’ He said,
‘Does he have any debts?’ They said, ‘Three dinars.’ He said,
‘Pray for your companion.’ Abu Qutaadah said, ‘Pray for him, O
Messenger of Allaah, and I will take care of his debt.’ So he prayed
over him.”

(Narrated by
al-Bukhaari, 2169)

 (iv) 
Fulfilling vows to do acts of worship

 It was
reported from Ibn ‘Abbaas (may Allaah be pleased with them both) that a
woman from Juhaynah came to the Prophet
(peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) and said: “My mother vowed to go for Hajj, but she
did not go for Hajj before she died. Should I do Hajj on her behalf?” He
said, “Yes, do Hajj on her behalf. Do you not think that if your mother
was in debt you would pay it off for her? Pay off the debt that is owed to
Allaah, for Allaah is more deserving that what is owed to Him should be
paid off.”

(Narrated by
al-Bukhaari, 1754)

 (v)   
Performing Hajj on his behalf

 It was
narrated from Ibn ‘Abbaas that the Messenger of Allaah
(peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) heard a man saying “Labbayka
‘an Shubrumah (At your service, O Allaah, on behalf of
Shubrumah).” The Messenger of Allaah
(peace and blessings of Allaah
be upon him) said, “Who is Shubrumah?” He said, “A relative of
mine.” The Prophet
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)
said, “Have you ever done Hajj before?” He said, “No.” he said,
“Do this Hajj for yourself, then do Hajj on behalf of Shubrumah.”

(Narrated by
Abu Dawood, 1811; Ibn Maajah, 2903 – this version was narrated by him.
The hadeeth was classed as saheeh by Shaykh al-Albaani in Irwaa’
al-Ghaleel, 4/171).

 (vi)   Righteous deeds done by the children of the deceased

 Shaykh
al-Albaani (may Allaah have mercy on him) said:

“Whatever
righteous deeds the righteous son does, his parents will have a reward
like his, without it detracting from his reward in the slightest, because
their child is part of their striving and earning. Allaah says
(interpretation of the meaning): ‘And
that man can have
nothing but what he does (good or bad)’ [al-Najm 53:39].
The Messenger of Allaah
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)
said: ‘The best that a man can benefit from is that which he earns, and
his son is also part of his earnings.’ (Narrated
by Abu Dawood, 2/108; al-Nasaa’i, 2/211. Narrated and classed as hasan
by al-Tirmidhi, 2/287. There is a corroborating report in the hadeeth of
‘Abd-Allaah ibn ‘Amr, which was narrated by Abu Dawood, Ibn Maajah and
Ahmad (2/179, 204, 214) with a hasan isnaad).”

(Ahkaam
al-Janaa’iz, p. 216, 217)

 With
regard to giving charity and reading Qur’aan: the correct view is that
nothing from these actions reaches the deceased, because there is no
evidence (daleel) to that effect. The basic principle is that this should
not be done. Some scholars mentioned that there was consensus (ijmaa’)
to the effect that the reward for charity on behalf of the deceased
reaches him, but the correct view is that there is in fact a difference of
opinion among the scholars concerning this matter.

 (a)  
Imaam Ibn Katheer said:

 “‘And that man can have nothing but what he does (good or
bad)’ [al-Najm 53:39 – interpretation of the meaning].
This means, just as he cannot bear the burden (of sin) of another person,
so too the reward for the things he has done can only go to himself. From
this aayah al-Shaafa’i (may Allaah have mercy on him) and those who
followed him understood that the reward for reading Qur’aan cannot be
given to the dead, because it is not something that they have done and
earned. Hence the Messenger of Allaah
(peace and blessings of Allaah
be upon him) did not recommend or encourage his ummah to do this, and did
not command or hint to them to do this. Nothing to this effect has been
transmitted from any of the Sahaabah (may Allaah be pleased with them). If
it was a good thing, they would have done it before us. Acts of worship
are restricted to things that are indicated in the texts (Qur’aan and
Sunnah), and there is no room for analogy (qiyaas)
or personal opinions.”

(Tafseer
Ibn Katheer, 4/259)

 (b) 
Al-Shawkaani
said:

 “The
ahaadeeth on this topic indicate that charity given by a son reaches his
parents after they die without their making a will to that effect, and the
reward for that reaches them. These ahaadeeth should be taken as excluding
the child from the general meaning of the aayah (interpretation of the
meaning): ‘And
that man can have nothing but what he does (good or bad)’ [al-Najm
53:39]. But these
ahaadeeth speak only of the charity of the son reaching the parents. It
was reported that a man’s son is part of what he does (or his earnings),
so there is no need to suggest that the ahaadeeth are stating an exception
from the general meaning of the aayah. As far as anybody apart from a
man’s son is concerned, what is apparent from the general meanings of the
Qur’aan is that his reward does not reach the deceased, so we should
accept this and not pursue the matter any further, unless we find evidence
(daleel) to the contrary.”

(Nayl
al-Awtaar, 4/142)

(c) 
Shaykh al-Islam
[Ibn Taymiyah] (may Allaah have mercy on him) said:

It was not the custom of
the Salaf, when they observed voluntary prayers or fasts, or did a
voluntary Hajj, or read Qur’aan, to give the reward for that to the
deceased Muslims. So we should not deviate from the path of the Salaf, for
it is better and more perfect.

(al-Ikhtiyaaraat al-‘Ilmiyyah, p. 54).

Shaykh al-Islam
(may Allaah have mercy on him) had a different opinion to those quoted
above. Ibn al-Qayyim agreed with him, and Shaykh Muhammad Rasheed Ridaa
refuted their view in Tafseer al-Manaar
(8/254-270).

From the Fatwas
of the Standing Committee:

Fatwa #2232 –
Question #3:

Q#3:
Does the reward for reading Qur’aan and other acts of worship reach the
deceased, whether they are done by the son of the deceased or by others?

As far as we
know, there is no report from the Prophet
(peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) to indicate that he read Qur’aan and gave the reward
for that to the dead, whether they were his relatives or others. If the
reward could reach them, he would have been keen to do that and would have
taught it to his ummah so that they could help the dead thereby, for he

(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) was filled with
compassion and mercy towards his ummah. His successors, the Khulafaa’
al-Raashideen, and the rest of his companions, followed his guidance (may
Allaah be pleased with them all), and we do not know of any of them giving
the reward for reading Qur’aan to someone else. The best of all goodness
resides in following the guidance of the Prophet
(peace and blessings
of Allaah be upon him) and of the Khulafaa’ al-Raashideen and the rest
of the Sahaabah (may Allaah be pleased with them), and evil resides in
following bid’ah and innovated matters. The Prophet
(peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) warned us about that when he said,
“Beware of newly-invented matters, for every newly-invented matter is a
bid’ah (innovation), and every bid’ah is a going astray” and,
“Whoever innovates something in this matter of ours (i.e., Islam) that
is not a part of it, will have it rejected.” So on this basis, it is not
permissible to read Qur’aan for the dead or to give the reward for this
reading to them. Doing that is bid’ah.

With regard
to other kinds of acts of worship, wherever there is saheeh evidence to
indicate that the reward for them reaches the deceased, then we should
accept this, such as giving charity on their behalf, making du’aa’ for
them and doing Hajj on their behalf. Anything for which there is no
evidence (daleel) is not prescribed until evidence is established for it.

On this
basis, according to the more sound of the two scholarly opinions, it is
not permissible to read Qur’aan for the dead, and the reward for this
reading does not reach them. On the contrary, this is bid’ah.

 And
Allaah is the Source of strength. May Allaah bless our Prophet Muhammad
and his family and companions, and grant them peace.

 Standing
Committee for Academic Research and Issuing Fatwaas.

  I
say: we have spoken above about giving charity. The ahaadeeth quoted not
include all people, they refer only to the children of the deceased.

 With
regard to the Tawaaf referred to in the question, it is not prescribed to
do a voluntary Tawaaf and give the reward to the dead, because no evidence
(daleel) to that effect has been narrated. But if it is Tawaaf of ‘Umrah
or Hajj, then it is included in those ahaadeeth and is permitted.

 Shaykh
‘Abd al-‘Azeez ibn Baaz (may Allaah have mercy on him) was asked:

 Sometimes
I do Tawaaf for one of my relatives or parents or grandparents who have
died. What is the ruling on that? Also, what is the ruling on completing
the Qur’aan for them? May Allaah reward you with good.

 He
replied:

 It is
better not to do that, because there is no evidence (daleel) to that
effect… With regard to praying (salaah) on their behalf, doing Tawaaf on
their behalf and reading Qur’aan for them, it is better not to do that,
because there is no evidence (daleel) to that effect.

 Some
scholars have permitted that, by analogy with charity and du’aa’, but
to be on the safe side, it is better not to do that. And Allaah is the
source of strength.

 Fataawa
Ibn Baaz, 8/344, 345).

 And
Allaah knows best.