Home SPECIAL 40 Days Ago, Buhari Died, By Yusuf Ozi-Usman

40 Days Ago, Buhari Died, By Yusuf Ozi-Usman

In some Islamic societies and in the years past, a lot of gathering of yet high level personalities from different parts of the country and the world, would have gathered in Daura, the country home of the immediate past President of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari to pray, in observance of the 40-day Fidau for him.
Muhammadu Buhari, it would be recalled, died on Sunday, July 13, 2025 in a London medical facility after an illness. Apart from the state burial rightly accorded him by the government of his friend and successor, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the nation also observed three day Fidau (special prayer) for him.
In some societies, especially in Africa, another special prayer would have been organized for today, August 23, after 40 days of his being committed to the mother earth.
However, it is not to happen because it has been confirmed that there is no text making the 40-day prayer a requirement.
In Islam; there is no prescribed 40-day prayer for the dead in the Qur’an or the authentic Hadith of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). The essence of prayer for the dead (duʿāʾ and janāzah prayer) is to seek Allah’s forgiveness and mercy for the deceased, and this can be done at any time, not fixed to a specific number of days.
As a matter of fact, 40-day prayers and anniversaries are regarded as cultural practices in some Muslim communities (especially in parts of Africa, South Asia, and the Middle East). The idea is to gather, pray, and remember the deceased. However, scholars explain that while praying itself is good, fixing it to 40 days is not from the Sunnah — it’s more of a tradition than a religious obligation.
However, the essence of prayers generally is to comfort the grieving family and encourage continued duʿāʾ and remembrance of Allah.
It is also meant to remind the living of death and the Hereafter and to ask Allah to forgive and have mercy on the deceased.
Which is what we, at Greenbarge Reporters online newspaper and hardcopy magazine, are doing today, and encourage lovers of late President Muhammadu Buhari to continue to do so without season and without seizing.

…Yusuf Ozi-Usman and Buhari