Regarding the Belief That the Dead Visit Their Relatives on Thursdays

Nurul Islam From Email

Question: A few days ago, I heard someone say that deceased people come to visit their relatives on Thursdays. How true is this? If they do come, what should we do as good Muslims?

Answer: Deceased people never come to visit their relatives. Only martyrs do. A martyr means someone who is considered a martyr according to the Holy Qur’an and Sunnah and Islamic law. The soul of a martyr may come to his or her relatives in this world. They receive sustenance from Allah like the living.
Ordinary deceased people remain in the world of souls. The souls of believers remain in Illiyyin, while the souls of disbelievers remain in Sijjin. Allah knows best about the locations of these two realms.

However, whenever forgiveness is prayed for a deceased person, the prayer is immediately conveyed to the deceased’s soul. The reward of voluntary good deeds is also conveyed to them, particularly that of charity and almsgiving. Their ongoing charity, arrangements made to spread religious knowledge, and the righteous prayers of their children continue to reach their souls after death.
Whenever someone visits a deceased person’s grave, greets them and prays for them, Allah immediately returns the deceased’s soul to the grave, and the deceased responds to the greeting. If the visitor was known to them, they recognize the visitor.

The significance of the statement about Thursday mentioned in the question is that every Thursday, that is, the night before Friday, the inhabitants of the graves wait for visitors. If someone visits a grave or sends rewards from home, all the inhabitants of the graves become happy.

It is also said that when a person frequently visits the grave of their parents or relatives, the neighboring inhabitants of the grave ask their parents or relatives’ souls, “Will your son, grandson, brother, nephew or relative not come today? Why has he not come yet? Why did he not come this Thursday?” They say that if the person came, they too would receive great peace in the grave through the blessings of his prayers.
Thus, whenever someone visits graves, recites prayers and salutations, and prays for all believing men and women during the 24 hours of Friday or throughout the week, joy spreads among all of them.
A hadith states that the deceased are like people drowning in the sea, desperately seeking something to hold on to. If they find a small boat or a piece of wood, or if a rescuer takes them aboard a ship, they feel great joy. Similarly, a person who prays for the deceased, visits their graves, or conveys the reward of good deeds to them is considered by the deceased to be equally beloved and desired.

It is not possible to mention the Holy Qur’anic verses and hadiths related to these descriptions in this answer. Those who particularly wish to learn more about this may study Kitab al-Ruh, written by the scholar Imam Ibn al-Qayyim al-Jawziyya, one of the greatest scholars of the Muslim Ummah who lived seven centuries ago.

Answered by: Allama Mufti Ubaidur Rahman Khan Nadvi
Source: Jameul Fatawa, Encyclopedia of Islamic Jurisprudence and Fatwas.

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