Original review by Syihabudin Ahmad
This page was translated automatically from the approved Malay review. Consult the original if wording differs.
Short answer
This account is authentic. The Prophet SAW performed the funeral prayer over Abdullah bin Ubay before the specific prohibition in Surah al-Tawbah, verse 84, was revealed. The sequence of events must be clarified.
Arabic wording
قَالَ: إِنَّهُ مُنَافِقٌ. فَصَلَّى عَلَيْهِ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ، فَأَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ: ﴿وَلَا تُصَلِّ عَلَى أَحَدٍ مِنْهُمْ مَاتَ أَبَدًا وَلَا تَقُمْ عَلَى قَبْرِهِ﴾.
Translation
He said: “Indeed, he is a hypocrite.” The Messenger of Allah SAW then performed his funeral prayer. Then Allah, the Almighty and Majestic, revealed: “And never perform the prayer over any of them who dies, ever, nor stand at his grave.”
Narrator
Abdullah bin Umar RA
Sources and scholars
Imam al-Bukhari; Imam Muslim
Scholarly commentary
1. Imam al-Bukhari narrated this event in Sahih al-Bukhari, Kitab al-Tafsir, no. 4670. Its Arabic chain of transmission is from Nafi‘, from Ibn Umar RA.
2. Imam Muslim narrated it in Sahih Muslim, Kitab Sifat al-Munafiqin wa Ahkamihim, no. 2774a, also from Ibn Umar RA. Both narrations state that the prohibition in verse 84 was revealed after that funeral prayer.
Explanation
1. Did the Prophet SAW truly perform his funeral prayer?
Yes. This event is authentically narrated by al-Bukhari and Muslim. The wording above is an excerpt from the closing part of Muslim’s narration, not the entire hadith.
2. Why did the Prophet SAW perform it?
The son of Abdullah bin Ubay requested the Prophet’s SAW shirt to shroud his father and asked him to perform the funeral prayer. When Umar RA objected, he explained his understanding of the option mentioned in verse 80 of Surah al-Tawbah.
3. When was the specific prohibition revealed?
The narration states that verse 84 was revealed after he performed that prayer. Therefore, this account does not mean that he continued performing funeral prayers over such people after the specific prohibition had been revealed.
4. Were the father and son the same person?
No. Abdullah bin Ubay bin Salul was the father. The son who came to make the request was Abdullah bin Abdullah. The two names must be distinguished so that the account is not misunderstood.
Conclusion
Status: Authentic. The funeral prayer over Abdullah bin Ubay occurred before the specific prohibition in Surah al-Tawbah, verse 84, was revealed.
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