Visiting the Holy Shrine of the Prophet (peace be upon him)

Dear Muslim Brothers and Sisters, As-Salaamu alaiykum. Hajj (pilgrimage to Mecca) is one of the five pillars of the Islamic religion and it is Fard i.e. obligatory for all able and solvent Muslim men and women to perform this ritual at least once in their lifetime. Its importance is immense in Islam. And visiting (Ziyaarah) the Prophet's (peace be upon him) Rawdaa (shrine) in Medina is an integral part of Hajj, because he has declared, Man hajja waa lam yazuurnee faqad jafaanee, meaning "The person who performs pilgrimage and (yet) does not visit my shrine, behaves rudely/harshly with me" (Mishkat). He also declared, Man zaaranee ba'da mawtee faka'annamaa zaaranee fee hayaatee, meaning "The person who visits me (i.e. my shrine in Medina) after my Wisaal (re-union with Allah in the hereafter) is, in reality, visiting me during my worldly lifetime" (Imam Zurkaniyy Malikiyy's Sharh-i Mawahib alLadunniyya and Mishkat as well). Dear Brothers and Sisters-in-Islam, Think about those people's fate on Judgement Day, who have been rude to our Prophet (peace be upon him). The instances of Abu Lahab and Abu Jaahel are sufficient here. May Allah protect us from such rude behavior, Ameen! In spite of the Islamic evidences quoted above, the Daawa (Islamic propagation) department of the Saudi Arabian government has issued a fatwa that Ziyaarah of the blessed shrine is not a part of Hajj; in their opinion, "Visiting the Rawdaa Shareef is not Wajib (obligatory) and it is not a condition (stipulated) for (fulfillment of) Hajj either" (Hajj, Umrah and Ziyaarah Guidelines, 1405 Hegira, page 66; al-Falaah Printing Press, Dhaka). Moreover, the Saudis are of the view that all the Hadiths narrated in favor of Ziyaarah are Da'if (weak) or Mawdu (forged). This attitude of the Saudi Wahhabi regime is nothing but an expression of hatred towards our Prophet (peace be upon him) and the first Hadith quoted above identifies them as rude and cruel! We seek refuge with Allah from this cruelty, Aameen! As regards visiting the Prophet's (peace be upon him) shrine, he declared, Man zaara qabree wajabat lahuu shafa'atee, meaning "For the person who visits my shrine, it becomes obligatory for me to intercede with Allah (for his salvation on Judgement Day)" (Mishkat). These sayings of the Apostle of Allah have been narrated in the authentic books of Hadith literature spanning the Golden Age of Islam and not the mere 80 years or so of the Saudi reign! Dear Brothers and Sisters-in-Islam, Despite all efforts put in by the Saudi Wahhabi regime and its cohorts to ward us off, Muslims all over the world visit the shrine of our Prophet (peace be upon him) in their millions. Thus, the Saudis have imposed tolls and road taxes to materialize their evil design. Whereas, no other regime in the past 1400 years had imposed such tolls and taxes on Hajj pilgrims. O Muslim Brothers and Sisters, You are all representatives of our country at the Apostle's Court. Remember, your pious deeds (a'mal) will be accepted by the Almighty only through (Waseela) his intercession. Therefore,

kindly make him an intermediary in your prayers, and while you pray for yourselves, do not forget to pray for your country and fellow countrymen. May Allah accept your prayers, Aameen! BiHurmat-i Sayyid-il-Mursaleen (sallallaahu alaiyhi wa sallam) (This Bengali leaflet was first published in 1986 and distributed among the pilgrims at the Hajj camp. We continued for the next few years until the cohorts of the Wahhabi regime put pressure on our government to stop this blessed task. We feel, the time has come to propagate our beliefs through the Internet, where no one can manipulate anymore.)