Sharh al-Sudur bi-Tahrim Raf al-Qubur
- Author died
- 1250 AH
- Editions
- al-Jāmi‘ah al-Islāmiyyah
Sharh al-Sudur bi-Tahrim Raf al-Qubur (Explaining the Hearts Regarding the Prohibition of Elevating Graves) is a legal and theological treatise by the Yemeni scholar Muhammad ibn Ali al-Shawkani (1173–1250 AH / 1760–1834 CE) dedicated to establishing the religious prohibition of raising graves and erecting structures over them .
Subject and Arguments
The treatise addresses the legal status of building domes (qibab), shrines (mashahid), and mosques over graves and elevating burial mounds beyond the legally permitted level . Al-Shawkani opens by establishing the methodological principle that when scholars disagree on whether an act is an innovation (bidʿa) or prohibited (muharram), the matter must be referred strictly to the Quran and the Sunnah, quoting the verse: فَإِنْ تَنَازَعْتُمْ فِي شَيْءٍ فَرُدُّوهُ إِلَى اللَّهِ وَالرَّسُولِ ("And if you disagree over anything, refer it to Allah and the Messenger") .
Al-Shawkani asserts that the Muslim community, from the generation of the Companions onward, maintained a consensus that elevating graves and building over them constitutes a prohibited innovation subject to stern prophetic warnings . He identifies the Zaydi scholar Imam Yahya ibn Hamza as the singular figure who permitted erecting domes and shrines over the graves of eminent persons and rulers, an opinion cited in al-Ghayth and recorded in the Zaydi legal compendium al-Bahr al-Zakhkhar on the grounds of prevailing custom without widespread objection . Al-Shawkani refutes this position, arguing that communal silence cannot override explicit prophetic prohibitions, and notes that no earlier authority among the Ahl al-Bayt or the four Sunni schools of jurisprudence held such a view .
He further details the religious harms stemming from venerating structures over graves, arguing that embellishing tombs leads uneducated individuals into idolatrous beliefs similar to pre-Islamic practices—such as seeking needs from the deceased, taking vows, touching the structures for blessings, and placing greater fear in oaths sworn by revered figures than those sworn by God .
Manuscripts and Publication
In manuscript form, the work is titled both Sharh al-Sudur bi-Tahrim Raf al-Qubur and Sharh al-Sudur fi Tahrim Raf al-Qubur, and is preserved as part of the fourth volume of al-Shawkani's collected fatwas, al-Fath al-Rabbani min Fatawa al-Imam al-Shawkani .
The treatise has appeared in multiple printed editions:
- Published by the Islamic University of Madinah in 1395 AH, with a fourth edition appearing in 1408 AH .
- Printed by Matbaʿat al-Madani in Jeddah in 1395 AH .
- Issued jointly with Muhammad ibn Isma'il al-San'ani's Tathir al-Iʿtiqad ʿan Adran al-Ilhad, prepared and annotated by Abdul-Muhsin ibn Hamad al-Abbad .
- Included within the complete published edition of al-Fath al-Rabbani, edited by Muhammad Subhi Hasan Hallaq .
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