Understanding the Implications of Accepting Food from Qur’an Recitation for the Deceased
Question: My late aunt’s family plans to hold a Qur’an recitation for her, inviting everyone to attend. We did not go, but they sent food to our home. Is it permissible to eat this food, and would discarding it be a sin?
Answer: Holding Qur’an recitations for the deceased is a bid‘ah (innovated practice), and one should not participate in such gatherings, nor should one eat the food associated with it. If a relative sends you food from a Qur’an recitation, you should politely refuse it, explaining that it is not permissible. You may tell them that they are welcome to invite you on another occasion, and you will gladly accept their invitation. As for your question about whether discarding the food would be a sin, the answer is that you should not accept the food in the first place. If you do not accept it, it will not come to your house, so you will not be responsible for what happens to it. The correct course of action is to refuse the food associated with this bid‘ah.
Respondent: Sheikh Maqbool Ahmed Salafi Hafizahullah
Jeddah Dawah Center, Saudi Arabia
Interpreter: Hasan Fuzail