Question:
As Salaam u alaikum
Please advise whether 3 or 40 days khatam for the deceased is allowed where family and friends gather to recite Quran.
Answer:
In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
Isaal-al- Thawaab (to perform a virtuous act and grant the reward to any person, alive or deceased) is permissible. On numerous occasions, Nabi, Sall-Allahu alayhi wa sallam, advised the Sahabah, Radi-Allahu anhum, to give charity on behalf of the deceased.
The reciter himself also will receive the full reward of The Qur’an which was recited, and the deceased too will receive the full reward. The same applies to the reward of charity or of any other good deed rendered with the intention of Isaal-al-Thawaab.
While we do believe in Isaal-al-Thawaab, it is essential that concerned ones and family members etc. recite The Qur’an with sincerity, while observing the laws of Shari’ah (no intermingling of genders etc.) and gift it to the deceased. Nowadays, inviting people for Qur’an Khatam and Dhikr, etc. for the deceased has taken much prominence and people wrongly regard it as compulsory, or must be done on a certain day (3rd, 40th), at the house of the deceased etc. Such misconceptions and innovations will be of no benefit to the deceased must be shunned.
If a khatam is not carried out due to customary practices, nor is any member forced to participate, nor does anyone believe it to be an actual Sunnah, rather, it is carried out for the sole purpose of benefiting the deceased, then it will be permissible. However it is still preferable to perform Isaal-al-Thawaab on an individual basis.
Actions of the Living that Benefit the Dead
There are many acts that are established and proven from the Shari’ah whereby the living can benefit the deceased. Some of these acts are as follows;
- Dua and Supplication to Allah Ta’ala for the deceased.
- Charity on behalf of the deceased
- The good actions of individuals resulting from the knowledge disseminated by the deceased in his life time.
- The continuous benefit people derive due to the endowments of the deceased in his life time.
- Repaying the debts of the deceased
- Fulfilling his outstanding religious monetary obligations (fidya, unpaid Zakah etc.)
- Fulfilling outstanding vows of the deceased.
- Offering Qurbani (Udhiya) on behalf of the deceased
- Performing Hajj of behalf of the deceased
- Building (or assisting in building or contributing to) a Masjid, Madrasa, Hospital, orphanage, digging a well, planting a tree or any act or establishment that aids and benefits people.
- Isaal al- Thawaab; Performing any voluntary good deed, thereafter gifting its rewards to the deceased e.g. Recitation of Quran etc.
And Allah Ta’āla Knows Best.
Mufti Arshad Ali
Darul Iftaa, Jaamia Madinatul Uloom (Trinidad)