Question:
I have seen my family practising the ritual of Khatm al Qurʾān over our dead family member and reading Sūrah Mulk and Sūrah Yasīn every Thursday 42 times then blowing in water and pouring the water on the grave. Is it allowed or a bidʿah in Islam? If allowed I would like you to give references from the Qurʿān or ḥadīth.
Answer:
In the Name of God, Most Merciful, Most Kind
Jazāk Allāh Khayr/ Thank you for your question.
Reciting the Qurʾān and making duʿāʾ for the deceased is a praiseworthy practice. However, this is a general act, one should not make specifications of numbers and specific days, as these stipulations are not in the source texts. The action of blowing in the water and sprinkling on the grave is also not referenced in the Qurʿān or ḥadīth.
“Recite Sūrah Yāsīn upon your deceased” (Bayhaqī)
Imam Qurṭubī (may God’s mercy be upon him) states,
“Just as the reward of charitable deeds benefit the deceased, similarly, the recitation of the Qurʾān, duʿāʾ and Isghtifār also do the same, because all of these are regarded as charity in islamic law.” (Al-Tadhkirah)
And Allāh Knows Best