Should he attend the university graduation ceremony that is sponsored by Buddhists?
Question

                I am of a Muslim minority. There is a party for us to receive our university degrees. I have two questions regarding this matter: 

1- What is the ruling on attending such a party, knowing that the Buddhist priests pray, according to their religious rituals, to bless the party?  

2- If the party starts before Dhuhr and ends after ‘asr, is it permissible for us to pray them together at the time of ‘asr? Or it is not permissible to attend that party in the first place?.
Praise be to Allah.
    We ask Allaah to bless your graduation and to benefit the 
    Muslims through you. 

    The occasion of the students’ graduation is a moment of joy 
    for the student on his graduation and for his family on their son’s success. 
    That is one of the blessings of Allaah to His slaves, and is part of His 
    great bounty and kindness. 

    What is required is to give thanks for this blessing and to 
    pay attention to Allaah’s rights in this matter, by adhering to His sacred 
    limits and laws. But unfortunately we see many wrongs and sins that occur in 
    students’ graduation ceremonies, and they have even become something regular 
    and unavoidable in graduation ceremonies. That includes the following: 

    1 – Celebrating with music, and usually they bring a large 
    band, and it is major part of most ceremonies. 

    The ruling on listening to music in Islamic sharee’ah is that 
    it is haraam, and some scholars narrated that there is consensus on this 
    point. This has been discussed in the answer to question no. 
    5000. 

    2 – Mixing of male and female students, and their sitting 
    together in one place and entering and leaving in one line, and men mixing 
    with women who are present, among whom are those who are wearing makeup and 
    perfume, and those whom shyness does not prevent from expressing their joy 
    in ways that are not appropriate, such as shouting, making gestures and 
    movements, clapping, whistling, shaking hands with men, and other wrong 
    actions that accompany haraam mixing.  

    3 –With regard to wearing the “graduation suit” that is well 
    known nowadays, with the black cloak and mortarboard, this is clothing that 
    belongs specifically to the kuffaar, then it came to us. Some scholars have 
    said that it is taken from the clothing of monks and bishops at some era of 
    history, hence they ruled that it is haraam to wear it. 

    Shaykh Bakr Abu Zayd (may Allaah have mercy on him) said: 

    The graduate comes wearing a black cloak or gown and this is 
    a church tradition. The people of knowledge and faith should differ from 
    them in this regard. End quote. 

    Al-Majmoo’ah al-‘Ilmiyyah (Risaalah 
    al-Ta’aalum, p. 85)   

    The scholars of the Standing Committee for Issuing Fatwas 
    said: 

    It is haraam for the Muslims to imitate the kuffaar in the 
    clothing that is uniquely theirs, whether the kaafirs in question are Jews, 
    Christians or anything else, because of the general meaning of the evidence 
    in the Qur’aan and Sunnah that forbids imitating them. For example, it is 
    proven that the Prophet  (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) 
    said: “Whoever imitates a people is one of them.” Narrated by Imam Ahmad, 
    Abu Dawood and others. And the Prophet  (peace and blessings of Allaah 
    be upon him) said, when he saw ‘Abd-Allaah ibn ‘Amr wearing two garments 
    dyed with safflower: “These are among the garments of the kuffaar; do not 
    wear them.” Narrated by Muslim in his Saheeh. And it is proven in 
    Saheeh Muslim that ‘Umar (may Allaah be pleased with him) wrote a 
    letter to his governor in Azerbaijan, ‘Utbah ibn Farqad (may Allaah be 
    pleased with him) in which he said: “Beware of luxury and the clothing of 
    the people of shirk and wearing silk.” 

    Based on that, it is not permissible to wear what is known as 
    the “gown” when graduating from a school, institute or college, because it 
    is the clothing of the Christians, and the Muslim should be proud of his 
    religion and his following his Prophet  (peace and blessings of Allaah 
    be upon him), and he should not pay any attention to the customs of those 
    with whom Allaah is angry and who have gone astray such as the Jews, 
    Christians and others. End quote. 

    Fataawa al-Lajnah al-Daa’imah 
    (24/26, 27) 

    The scholars of the Standing Committee for Issuing Fatwas 
    were also asked:

    In the American universities there is a tradition: when the 
    students graduate they wear so-called graduation clothes, which is a gown 
    that resembles the Arabic abayah, and a head cover of a certain shape. It is 
    said that this is the clothes that their monks used to wear in the past. Is 
    it permissible, when a Muslim student takes part in this celebration, to 
    wear these clothes? 

    They replied: 

    It is not permissible for the student to wear these clothes 
    if they are garments that belong only to them, because the Prophet  
    (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Whoever imitates a people 
    is one of them” and the prohibition is more emphatic if it is proven to be 
    one of the symbols of their monks. End quote. 

    Fataawa al-Lajnah al-Daa’imah 
    (24/98). 

    4 – One of the greatest evils that may be noticed in these 
    celebrations is missing the prayers, because the ceremony goes on for 
    several hours, during which some of the times for prayer come, but you do 
    not see any of the people or the students or people in charge of the 
    ceremony respecting Allaah’s rights or doing their duties, and they do not 
    pay any attention to the adhaan or calls or reminders; they forget the 
    rights of Allaah and are preoccupied with this passing world and a little of 
    its pleasures. They are blind to the words of Allaah (interpretation of the 
    meaning): “Then, there has succeeded them a posterity who have given up 
    As‑Salaah (the prayers) [i.e. made their Salaah (prayers) to be lost, either 
    by not offering them or by not offering them perfectly or by not offering 
    them in their proper fixed times] and have followed lusts. So they will be 
    thrown in Hell” [Maryam 19:59]. 

    Ibn Mas’ood said: “Giving up” does not mean that they forsook 
    it altogether, rather they delayed it beyond its proper time. 

    Ibn Hajar al-Haytami (may Allaah have mercy on him) said:  

    The seventy-seventh major sin is deliberately delaying prayer 
    beyond its time, or doing it too early with no excuse. End quote. 

    Al-Zawaajir ‘an Iqtiraab al-Kabaa’ir 
    (1/220,221) 

    The presence of Buddhists at these ceremonies and their 
    performing some of their religious rituals to bless – or so they claim! – 
    the ceremony is another evil. What blessing can come from associating others 
    with Allaah and disbelieving in Him? It is not permissible for you to attend 
    in a place where others are associated with Allaah unless you are forced to 
    do so. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):  

    “And it has already been revealed to you in the Book (this 
    Qur’aan) that when you hear the Verses of Allaah being denied and mocked at, 
    then sit not with them, until they engage in a talk other than that; (but if 
    you stayed with them) certainly in that case you would be like them. Surely, 
    Allaah will collect the hypocrites and disbelievers all together in Hell”

    [al-Nisa’ 4:140]. 

    Based on that, attending this celebration is haraam, and if 
    it is haraam it cannot serve as an excuse to join Zuhr and ‘Asr prayers. 

    And Allaah knows best.