I would like to ask you a question related to our Beloved Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W). I would like to know who brought the dead body of Muhammad (S.A.W) to the graveyard.

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger.

Ibn Al-Mulaqqin reported different narrations about the people who buried the Prophet and then he pointed out to how to reconcile these different narrations.

The narrations are as follows:

·        “The Prophet was buried by ‘Ali, Al-‘Abbaas, and Usaamah . Ibn Al-Mulaqqin said, “This Hadeeth is reported by Abu Daawood on the authority of Ismaa’eel ibn Abi Khaalid from ‘Aamir – Ash-Sha’bi – who said, 'It was ‘Ali, Al-Fadhl and Usaamah ibn Zayd who washed the Prophet and it is they who put him in the grave.' Ash-Sha’bi said, "Marhab – or Ibn Abi Marhab – narrated to me, 'They allowed ‘Abdur-Rahmaan ibn ‘Awf to descend with them (i.e. to the grave). When ‘Ali finished the burial he said, 'It is the family of the dead who (have more right to) bury him.'” Moreover, Ash-Sha’bi narrated from Abu Marhab, “‘Abdur-Rahmaan ibn ‘Awf descended to the grave of the Prophet and he said, 'It is as if I am looking at them, they were four men.'”

·        The Hadeeth of Al-Bayhaqi on the authority of ‘Ali who said, “Four people buried the Prophet : ''‘Ali, Al-‘Abbaas, Al-Fadhl and Saalih, the slave of the Prophet .” He said, “Ibn Maajah also reported this Hadeeth as well as Al-Haakim.”

Al-Bayhaqi narrated from Ibn ‘Abbaas “Those who descended to the grave of the Prophet were ‘Ali, Al-Fadhl, Qutham and Shuqraan, the slave of the Prophet .” Aws ibn Khawliyy told ‘Ali, “By Allaah and our right in the Prophet (let me come down)”, then ‘Ali said to him, “Come down.” So he came down with the people and they were five of them. [Ibn Maajah] Al-Bayhaqi said, “Shuqraan is Saalih, the slave of the Prophet (and his nickname was Shuqraan).”

·        Ibn Hibbaan narrated on the authority of Ibn ‘Abbaas “The people who entered the grave of the Prophet were: “Al-‘Abbaas, ‘Ali, and Al-Fadhl, and a man from the Ansaar digged the Lahd (a crevice made on the side of the grave facing the Qiblah), and he was the man who dug the Lahd for (the martyrs of) the Ansaar on the Battle of Badr.”

Then Ibn Al-Mulaqqin said, “Note: The way to reconcile these different narrations is that everyone reported what he had seen, or that some of them reported what they had seen at the beginning of the burial and some of them gave more names because they reported what they had seen towards the end of the burial.”

Allaah Knows best.