I wonder why is it important to mention certain names of God a specific number of times in order for an effect to be produced and why the number is so important. Some numbers go as high as one hundred thousand times. I have been told to mention God’s name ‘Wal’ 111 times after Ish’a, as it helps keep off sin. Who fixes these numbers? Please advise.
If we consider what the Prophet, peace be upon him, used to do, we find nothing of the exaggerations some people insist upon. He taught us, for example, to glorify God and praise him in three forms, two words each, 33 times and finish with asserting God’s Oneness 34 times. That makes up 100 glorifications. He recommends that certain supplications be repeated 3 times, and some 10 times. But he never mentioned any great numbers that are difficult to keep, such as reading Al-Fatihah 4,444 times.
These are innovations, as is the report my reader has mentioned. If it were true that mentioning this name of God 111 times preserves us from committing sin, then that could foil the purpose of our creation, which is to test us on the basis of our actions. We need simply to read this word and we will be free of sin. That is far fetched.
Some people visit the graves of Aulia and on the day of Eid, they visit their parents‚ graves, where they recite Surah Ya’Sin. Please comment.
Visiting graves and graveyards is recommended because it reminds us of the Day of Judgment and encourages us to do well in this life so that we may achieve the great prize of admission to heaven in the life to come. Praying God to have mercy on the deceased and to forgive them their sins is highly encouraged, particularly if they are close relatives. Therefore, visiting the graves of one’s parents and other relatives on the day of Eid or other days and praying for them is an act worthy of praise. On the other hand, reading the Qur’an and praying God to credit the reward of one’s recitation to a dead relative or friend is acceptable, according to the weightier view. But such reading is better done at home or in a mosque or any other place. It should not be done by the side of the grave.
Where we have a problem, and a serious one at that, is with visiting the graves of those who are described as Auli’ya. What people do on such visits is highly questionable. They appeal to the dead to intercede with God on their behalf, or they ask them to bring them some good favor, as if they were living and having a special position with God. All this is forbidden and incurs God’s displeasure, as it elevates those dead people to the rank of partnership with God, when God has no partners. This is certainly forbidden.