Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: When a servant is placed in his grave and his companions turn away and leave, he hears the sound of their footsteps. Then two angels come to him and say to him: What did you use to say about this man? (i.e., about Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him; his name is not mentioned with reverence here so that he does not understand.) The believer says: I bear witness that he is the servant of Allah and His Messenger. (May Allah’s mercy and peace be upon him.) Then it is said to him: Look at your place in the Hellfire; Allah has given you a place in Paradise instead of it. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: He sees both his places. Qatadah said that Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) mentioned to us that his grave is made seventy cubits wide and is filled with greenery (i.e., it becomes a garden) and will remain so until the Day of Resurrection.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Bara’ bin Azib, may Allah be pleased with him, that the Noble Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said: This verse,“Allah keeps firm those who believe with the firm word,”was revealed regarding the punishment of the grave. The deceased is asked,“Who is your Lord?”He says,“My Lord is Allah, and my Prophet is Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him.”This is what is meant by Allah’s statement,“Allah keeps firm those who believe with the firm word in this world and in the Hereafter.”

Narrated from Sayyiduna Bara’ bin Azib (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) was going through the garden of Banu Najjar on his mule and we were with him. Suddenly, the mule shied and was about to throw the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) off. There were six, or five, or four graves there. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) asked,“Does anyone know whose graves these are?”A man replied,“I know.”The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) asked,“When did these people die?”The man replied,“In the time of shirk (polytheism).”The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said,“The trial of this Ummah is in the graves. If you were not to stop burying your dead, I would have prayed to Allah to let you hear the punishment of the grave, which I am hearing.”Then the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) turned towards us and said,“Seek refuge with Allah from the punishment of Hell.”The people said,“We seek refuge with Allah from the punishment of Hell.”Then the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said,“Seek refuge with Allah from the punishment of the grave.”The people said,“We seek refuge with Allah from the punishment of the grave.”The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said,“Seek refuge with Allah from the trials, both hidden and open.”The people said,“We seek refuge with Allah from the trials, both hidden and open.”The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said,“Seek refuge with Allah from the trial of Dajjal.”The people said,“We seek refuge with Allah from the trial of Dajjal.”

`Sayyiduna Abu Ayyub (may Allah be pleased with him) reports that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) heard a sound after the sun had set, so he said that the Jews are being punished in their graves.

Sayyiduna Abu Huraira (may Allah be pleased with him) reports that the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) visited his mother’s grave, and he (peace be upon him) wept, causing those around him to weep as well. Then he (peace be upon him) said: I sought permission from my Lord to seek forgiveness for my mother, but I was not granted permission. And I sought permission to visit her grave, and I was granted permission. Therefore, visit graves, for they remind you of death.

Sayyiduna Buraidah (may Allah be pleased with him) reports that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: I used to forbid you from visiting graves, but now you should visit them. And I used to forbid you from keeping the meat of sacrifice for more than three days, but now keep it as long as you wish. And I used to forbid you from drinking nabidh (fermented drink) in containers other than water skins, but now drink from any drinking vessel you wish, but do not drink anything intoxicating.

Muhammad bin Qais said one day, "Shall I not tell you something about myself and my mother?" We thought that perhaps by 'mother' he meant the one who gave birth to him. Then he said, "Umm al-Mu'mineen Aisha Siddiqa (may Allah be pleased with her) said: Shall I not tell you something about myself and the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)?" We said, "Certainly." She said: "One night the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was with me. He turned over, put aside his cloak, took off his shoes and placed them in front of his feet, spread the edge of his cloak on his bedding, and lay down. He stayed for a short while, thinking that I had fallen asleep. Then, quietly, he took his cloak, quietly put on his shoes, quietly opened the door, went out, and quietly closed it. I also took my cloak, covered my head, veiled myself, and followed the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) until he reached Baqi' and stood there for a long time. Then he raised both hands three times, and then returned, so I also returned. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) walked quickly, so I walked quickly. He ran, so I ran. He came home, so I also came home, but I arrived before him and lay down as soon as I entered. When the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) entered the house, he said, 'O Aisha! What has happened to you that you are out of breath and your belly is heaving?' I said, 'Nothing.' He said, 'Tell me, otherwise the All-Aware, the All-Knowing (meaning Allah Almighty) will inform me.' I said, 'May my parents be sacrificed for you.' Then I informed him (i.e., told him the whole story). The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, 'The shadow I saw ahead of me was you?' I said, 'Yes.' So the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) struck me on the chest (this was out of affection) so that I felt pain, and said, 'Did you think that Allah and His Messenger would wrong you? (Meaning, that I would go to another wife during your turn?)' I said, 'When people hide something, Allah knows it.' (Meaning, even if you had gone to another wife, Allah would have seen it.) The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, 'Jibreel (peace be upon him) came to me when you saw me get up. He called me and concealed himself from you, so I also wanted to conceal it from you. He did not come to you because you had taken off your extra garment (for sleep), and I thought you had fallen asleep, so I disliked waking you and also feared that you would be alarmed as to where I had gone.' Then Jibreel (peace be upon him) said, 'Your Lord commands you to go to Baqi' and seek forgiveness for the people of Baqi'.' I said, 'O Messenger of Allah! How should I say it?' The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, 'Say: Peace be upon the people of Islam and the believing inhabitants (of these graves), and may Allah have mercy on those who have gone ahead of us and those who come later, and if Allah wills, we too shall join you (after death).'"

Abu Huraira (may Allah be pleased with him) reports that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: If someone were to sit on a burning ember that burns his clothes and reaches his skin, it would still be better than sitting on a grave (i.e., keeping vigil there).

Sayyiduna Abu Marthad Ghanawi (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Do not sit on the grave and do not pray towards it.

Sayyiduna Abu Dharr (may Allah be pleased with him) reports that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) was asked: "What do you say about a person who does good deeds and people praise him for it?" The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) replied: "This is an immediate glad tiding for the believer (i.e., the reward and recompense in the Hereafter is separate; this is a source of happiness for him in this world that people praise him)."