Q: Allah (Exalted be He) says: We sent no Messenger, but to be obeyed by Allâh's Leave. If they (hypocrites), when they had been unjust to themselves, had come to you (Muhammad ﺻﻠﻰ ﺍﷲ ﻋﻠﻴﻪ ﻭﺳﻠﻢ) and begged Allâh's Forgiveness, and the Messenger had begged forgiveness for them: indeed, they would have found Allâh AllForgiving (One Who forgives and accepts repentance), Most Merciful. But no, by your Lord, they can have no Faith, until they make you (O Muhammad ﺻﻠﻰ ﺍﷲ ﻋﻠﻴﻪ ﻭﺳﻠﻢ) judge in all disputes between them, and find in themselves no resistance against your decisions, and accept (them) with full submission.
The question is: Some Muslims interpret this Ayah that there is no harm for a Muslim to travel to the Messenger's grave (peace be upon him) to ask him to seek Allah's forgiveness for them from his grave. Is this act valid? Does it come in accordance with Allah's (Exalted be He) Saying? Does the word "come" mean going to him in his life or after his death? Does a Muslim apostatize from Islam if he or she does not judge by the Sunnah (whatever reported from the Prophet) of the Messenger of Allah? Are the disputes mentioned related to the worldly life or the Hereafter?
A: This noble Ayah encourages the Ummah (nation of creed), if they unjustly treat themselves by committing sins or serious acts of Shirk (associating others in worship than Allah), to come to the Prophet (peace be upon him) with Tawbah (repentance) and regret so that he (peace be upon him) seeks Allah's Forgiveness to them. The word "coming" here refers to going to him during his life time (peace be upon him) when he was calling the hypocrites and others to come to him to declare their Tawbah, return to Allah (Exalted be He), and ask him (peace be upon him) and supplicate to Allah to accept their Tawbah and adjust their conditions.
This is why Allah (may he be Exalted) says: We sent no Messenger, but to be obeyed by Allâh's Leave. Obedience to the Messenger (peace be upon him) is only attained by Allah's Will i.e. the Divine Decree. Thus, whoever is granted Allah's Will to become guided, will be guided, and whoever is not will not, since the matter is in Allah's Hands (Glorified be He). Whatever He wills shall be and whatever He does not will, shall not be.
Allah (Glorified be He) says: And you cannot will unless (it be) that Allâh wills the Lord of the 'Alamîn (mankind, jinn and all that exists).
As for the Shar`y (Islamically lawful) Will, He (Glorified be He) has permitted both human and Jinn to be guided, and this is what He wills and ordains them to do. He (Exalted be He) says: O mankind! Worship your Lord (Allâh) Allah (Glorified be He) also says: Allâh wishes to make clear (what is lawful and what is unlawful) to you, and to show you the ways of those before you, and accept your repentance, and Allâh is AllKnower, AllWise.
Then He says: If they (hypocrites), when they had been unjust to themselves, had come to you (Muhammad ﺻﻠﻰ ﺍﷲ ﻋﻠﻴﻪ ﻭﺳـﻠﻢ) and begged Allâh's Forgiveness i.e. they are truly observing Tawbah(repentance) and regret, not just by words and the Messenger had begged forgiveness for them In other words, if the Prophet (peace be upon him) supplicated to Allah (Exalted be He) to forgive them indeed, they would have found Allâh AllForgiving (One Who forgives and accepts repentance), Most Merciful.
This is an encouragement to them (the servants), to come to the Messenger (peace be upon him) to declare their Tawbah before him and to intercede to him to ask Allah's forgiveness for them, but it does not mean after his death like what some ignorant people think, for going to him after his death for this purpose is impermissible. However, people can pay him a visit to greet him, and this applies for whoever exists in Madinah or arrives there with the intention of offering Salah (prayer), reciting Qur'an and so forth.
Therefore, if a person comes to the Masjid (mosque), they can greet the Messenger (peace be upon him) and his two Companions (i.e. Abu Bakr and `Umar). However, it is impermissible to travel just to visit the grave; rather this should be done to the Masjid, and visiting his grave (peace be upon him) and the graves of AlSiddiq and `Umar (may Allah be pleased with both of them) should be subsequent to the visit of the Masjid.
This is because he (peace be upon him) said: No one should travel (to visit any Masjid) except for three Masjids: AlMasjid AlHaram, My Masjid and Al Masjid AlAqsa (Agreed upon by Imams AlBukhari and Muslim).
It is impermissible to travel to visit graves, but if someone arrives to AlMasjid AlNabawy, it is permissible for them to greet the Prophet (peace be upon him) and his two companions (Amy Allah be pleased with both of them). According to the previously mentioned Hadith, it is impermissible to travel for the purpose of visiting the grave only.
Regarding Istighfar (seeking forgiveness from Allah), this should happen in his lifetime, not after his death. The evidence is that the Sahabah, who were the most knowledgeable of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and the most understanding of his religion, did not do it.