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Fatwa CenterDisputing about the permissibility of having tombs above graves
Question
I would you to give an answer to a fact. When I go to my native place (India), I see places where huge tombs have been created on top of graves of pious persons and a lot of Kufr is practices in these places. I know that to build cemented graves and to strengthen the graves is Haraam and against the Sunnah, but when I quote the Hadeeth regarding the issue, they say: "why is the grave of Prophet, sallallaahu alayhi wa sallam, raised? If building tombs is Haraam then even the Prophet, sallallaahu alayhi wa sallam, grave should be leveled?" Well how do we reply to them and what reason do we specify for the raised grave of the Prophet, sallallaahu alayhi wa sallam. And since these people take the example of the Prophet's grave, then why don't the Saudi authorities level the Prophets' grave? (They are not doing anything against Sunnah).
Answer
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. We ask Allaah to exalt his mention as well as that of his family and all his companions.
There are many narrations of the Prophet 
which forbid building on tombs. For instance, Jaabir 
narrated that the Prophet forbade covering the tomb with cement, sitting on it, or erecting on it. [Muslim] Imaam Ash-Shawkaani
said: 'This is evidence that it is an obligation to level any tomb that is erected more than its permitted proportion [two spans of a hand above the level of the earth].'
Building tombs is erecting them above the level of the earth, like domes or mosques, and this is forbidden.
As regards the innovators who ask why the tomb of the Prophet was built, then the answer is that the Prophet's tomb was not built. When he died, he was buried in 'Aa'ishah's room 
and his tomb is still in her room until now. He was not buried in the open or in the graveyard to say that his grave was erected. The building already existed before his death and before his burial . When the mosque was extended until it reached the side of the room, so its door was blocked and another wall was built so that he would not be worshipped as an idol.
As regards the dome which was built on this room, it was neither built at the time of the Prophet nor at the time of his companions 
or at the time of the first best three generation of our righteous predecessors
. So it is not correct to deduce from this that it is permissible to build domes on tombs and neglect the clear narrations of the Prophet which forbid it. That dome was built in 678 A.H by the ruler Al-Mansoor Qalawoon, then other rulers who came after him succeeded in building it and preserving it, however, all of this did not take place at the time of the Prophet . It took place six centuries after the Prophet's reign. So, it is not correct then to conclude that it is permissible to build domes on tombs and neglect the authentic narrations of the Prophet which prohibit doing so. Anyway, the tomb was not built as they claim, as regards the dome, it was built at a later time after the Prophetic reign. The evidence has to be taken from the Book of Allaah and the Sunnah of the Prophet and not from any other source.
Allaah knows best.
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