Muslims are strictly regulated by religion, and the funeral rite is one of the key points on which the future path of a Muslim depends: there is life after death and what it will be like depends on the funeral. But there are more than one and a half billion followers of Islam in the world and they live in different parts of the world, so the traditions of Tatar funerals will be slightly different from the funeral traditions of Dagestanis or Pakistanis - the culture of the country still leaves its mark.
If a Muslim is dying
For everyone who professes Islam, preparation for the afterlife begins in this world. So, according to Tatar traditions, older people prepare in advance for this moment: they purchase a shroud, towels and many things for sadaka - distribution at a funeral: these can be shirts, scarves, towels, etc.
When a person is dying, you need to put him facing the qibla, that is, towards the Kaaba, and on his right side. At the same time, it is important that last words man were the words of the prayer “Kalimat-Shahdaat”. If the dying person is unable to speak, he needs to read the kalimah and remain silent: the main thing is that these are the last words heard. You can ease the pain of death with the help of Surah Thunder (or Ya Sin). You should not bring family members near a person.
After the Muslim has left, his limbs are straightened and his jaw is tied up. Something heavy is placed on the stomach. According to the tradition of Tatar funerals, the head is often covered with an old towel. The deceased is turned towards the qibla, all clothes are removed, a prayer (dua) is read, placed on a bed or any elevation and covered with a light blanket. Muslim funeral rules suggest that the deceased will be taken on his final journey on the very day of death. If the departure occurred at night, the burial must be done immediately the next day.
An infidel cannot be buried in a Muslim cemetery, even if all his relatives are adherents of Islam.
Responsibilities of Muslims towards the deceased
All that needs to be done for the deceased is to wash him, dress him, read the funeral prayer and bury him. All this must be done quickly. All this is the collective responsibility of all who practice Islam in this locality. This whole ritual is called janaza.
Washing the body of a deceased Muslim is called ghusl. The rules regarding this ritual Muslim funeral strict: men cannot perform ghusl on a woman, and women must not wash a man. Often an outsider is invited to bathe - not a friend or relative; a husband can perform ghusl on his wife and vice versa. They do not bathe martyrs or if there was not a single person of the same gender as the deceased. All stages of bathing are accompanied by prayer. In this case, you can perform tayammum: washing with dust, sand or earth.
Also, an important duty of Muslims to the deceased is the choice of a monument and fence; read more about decorating graves.
Takfin is the act of wrapping a deceased Muslim in a shroud or kafan. A woman is wrapped in five white blankets, a man in three, a small child in one. The head is left open.
Another important point, without which seeing off a Muslim on his final journey is impossible, is janaza prayer.
Funeral prayer is a collective prayer and those who say it must have the same faith, their prayer must be sincere. If a lot of people are reading the Janaza prayer, it is better if they line up in three rows. For a man this prayer is performed opposite his head, while for women it is performed opposite his torso. Women are allowed to perform Janaza prayer. If a friend or relative was unable to read the funeral prayer over a deceased relative during the janaza itself, this can be done at the grave, only within a month (no later). It is best to read it in a cemetery, and the main one should be an imam or amir. The naib or most educated Muslim in that locality is also suitable. Janazah is read over all the dead who professed Islam, even over small children, with the only exception being martyrs.
Funeral
The burial itself is called daphne. The grave is dug to such a depth that animals cannot dig it up, 70-80 cm wide and as long as the height of the deceased with his hand raised. The stretcher with the deceased is accompanied by men. They always bury without a coffin, turning the deceased towards the qibla, and then it is advisable to read prayers, for example tasbit or taskin.
According to Muslim traditions, funerals should not be accompanied by loud lamentations and loud crying; in addition, one should not cry for the deceased already on the fourth day after his death.
As for condolences, there is an opinion that they cannot be expressed if more than half a week has passed since death. This is not entirely true; you can express them to a Muslim’s relatives when it is appropriate.
Funeral services are organized three days, a week, forty days and a year after death. A monument to a Muslim should not be too large or expensive, and according to the Tatar funeral tradition, one or two trees grow on the graves.
So, the fourth obligatory action that must be performed in relation to a deceased believer is his burial. This is a collective responsibility for Muslims.
In a hadith narrated by al-Hakim and al-Bayhaqi, it is said that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “ Whoever dugs the grave of a Muslim and, having laid him in it, falls asleep, the Almighty will give him the same reward for this as for building a house for a needy person, in which he would live until the Day of Judgment ».
Burial rules according to Sharia are as follows. It is recommended to bury the deceased as soon as possible. A Muslim should only be buried in a Muslim cemetery. You can bury the deceased after sunset. In the event of an epidemic or war, it is permissible to bury several dead in one grave, installing barriers between their bodies.
The smallest and most necessary grave is a hole that, after burying the deceased in it, prevents the spread of odor from his body and protects his body from wild animals, that is, protects him from predators digging up his grave and eating his body.
If, without digging a hole and laying the body of the deceased directly on the surface of the soil, you build some kind of structure over it or cover it with a lot of stones and earth, this will not be enough, even if this prevents the spread of smell and protects against wild animals. Because it is not called burial, and for the action to be called burial, it is necessary to dig a hole (grave).
You cannot bury in the same way in houses built underground, because even if this protects from animals, it does not prevent the spread of smell. This is what it says in the book “Tuhfat”.
Ibn Salah and Subuki say that burying the deceased in such (underground) houses is sinful (haram).
Ibn Qasim writes that if this house is built in a hole (underground) and protects the deceased from wild animals and smell, then it is enough to bury it there, and if it does not meet these requirements, then the deceased is not buried in it. This is what it says in the book “I’anat”.
The book “Bushra al-Karim” gives three reasons in favor of the prohibition of burying the deceased in such houses:
1) mixing dead men and women in them;
2) there is a need to bury the next deceased there, until the body of the person buried there has completely decomposed;
3) and this does not prevent the spread of the smell emanating from the dead.
Construction of the grave
A grave (kabr) can be built in different ways - it depends on the composition, moisture and density of the soil, as well as on the topography of the area where the cemetery is located.
The grave of a Muslim is a pit, in one of the walls of which there is a niche (lyakhd). The hole is dug in such a way that its dimensions correspond to the size of the deceased, i.e. the length of the grave will be slightly greater than the height of the deceased, the width will be half the length of the grave (about 60–80 cm), the depth will be at least 150 cm, but it is better (sunna) to dig the grave is deeper (usually up to 190–230 cm).
In the book “Bushra al-Karim” it is written that it is sunnah for the niche in the grave to be wide and free, in particular those sides where the head and legs of the deceased rest, so that this allows the deceased to be laid a little in the position in which the person is at bow from the waist in prayer (ruku‘). This is also stated in an authentic hadith of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). It was reported from Hashim ibn Amir that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “ Dig a grave, make it big and do it well "(Ibn Majah).
The optimal size of the grave is such that its width allows both the person burying the deceased and the deceased himself to descend freely. And it is better for the depth to be such that if a person of average height, going down into the grave, raises his hands up, then they would not come out of the grave, that is, higher (approximately 225 cm).
It is also advisable that the ceiling on both sides be high, in case the body of the deceased swells, so that it does not touch the ceiling. It is even necessary to make the ceiling so high.
If the soil is dense, then it is better to make a niche at the bottom of the grave for the body of the deceased, in which the deceased could freely fit. The niche is placed in the wall of the grave that is located on the side of the Qibla, and is of such a height that it is possible to sit in it (i.e., approximately 80–100 cm), and slightly wider than the width of the shoulders of the deceased (minimum 50 cm).
Sometimes, if the soil is moist and soft, a thin slab is placed in this niche to the right of the body, and a thicker slab to the left and the ceiling is strengthened. And in some cases, at the bottom of the grave, leaving a space in the middle sufficient to place the body of the deceased in it, a wall is erected on both sides.
Then the body of the deceased is placed there, with the face directed towards the Qibla, the ceiling is covered with stone or wooden slabs and the grave is completely filled up.
It is not customary for Muslims to be buried in a coffin (tabut) - this is undesirable (makrooh), although it is not prohibited. In exceptional cases, the dead are buried in a coffin, and this will not be makruh, for example, if a Muslim died and his body was dismembered or when the corpse had already decomposed, etc.
It is forbidden to bury a Muslim in a wall, as well as cremate his body, even if he bequeathed this during his lifetime or gave his consent to this.
Mosque walls, circumcision and funeral rites are all that many Muslims associate with the religion of Allah. In publications on our website we have repeated many times: Islam is much broader than these concepts! Today we want to talk about the fact that even within the framework of a funeral, our actions often diverge from what Sharia requires of us. About how to conduct a funeral according to the Sunnah. And let everyone who discovers something new for themselves in this article once again ask themselves: why did I act this way and not differently? Why weren’t you interested in what the Sunnah and the works of Islamic scholars say about this? What guides me when I do something in the name of Islam?
The reader is offered a description of the funeral process according to Sharia (according to the Shafi'i madhhab), from the moment when death approaches a person until his grave is completely covered with earth. And also some conclusions and parallels with how the funeral process takes place among the Muslims of Dagestan.
When a Muslim is dying
...it is advisable to place it on the right side so that its face is turned towards the qibla. If this is impossible or difficult to do, then the dying person must be placed on his back, his head raised slightly and his face and feet turned towards the qibla. It is advisable (sunnah) to remind the dying person of the need to repeat the words of the shahada: “la ilyagya illallah.” However, this must be done in a gentle form, without showing persistence, without telling him: “tell me...”. In the hadith Imam Muslim(No. 916, 917) it is transmitted: “Suggest to your dying [words]: “la ilyagya illa Llag.” It is advisable to read Surah “Ya Sin” before the dying, as it is conveyed in the hadith: “Read “Ya Sin” to your dying ones” ( Abu Daoud, № 3121; IbnHibban, No. 720). The hadith is weak, but this action is also transmitted from the companions.
It is also advisable to remind a dying Muslim of the mercy and forgiveness of the Almighty and instill hope that Allah will forgive him all his sins for his faith and monotheism. An authentic hadith says: “I [will be] as My servant imagined Me” ( Al-Bukhari, No. 6970; Muslim, No. 2675).
Immediately after death
...it is advisable to close the eyes of the deceased (Imam Muslim, No. 960), tie his jaw with a bandage so that the mouth does not remain open; soften all his joints, put something heavy on his stomach so that it does not swell; then remove all his clothes, place him on a bed or something raised from the ground, turn him towards the qibla and cover his entire body with a light blanket.
Responsibilities of Muslims towards the deceased
After the death of a Muslim, it is advisable to hasten to do four things: wash his body (ghusl), wrap him in a shroud (takfin), perform a funeral prayer for him and bury him. The above is a collective duty (fard ul-kifaya) of the Muslims of the locality in which the Muslim died. If these actions (or one of them) are not performed, then the sin will fall on all Muslims in the locality.
The first of the four actions listed above is complete ablution of the body (ghusl), the minimum level of which is cleansing the body of impurities (najas) and subsequent complete bathing. A man must be washed by a man, and a woman by a woman. The exception is for husband and wife to each other. If there is no one to bathe a man except strangers, or there is no one to bathe a woman except strangers, then bathing is not performed. Instead, tayammum (washing with dusty earth) is performed. In general, bathing is obligatory for every deceased Muslim man and woman, with the exception of a martyr - a Muslim who died directly in the battle for the exaltation of the Word of Allah.
The minimum level of takfeen according to the Sunnah is to wrap the entire body of the deceased in a shroud. Covering the awrat is obligatory. It is advisable to wrap the deceased man with three blankets white(any other color is undesirable), each of which covers the entire body, as reported in the hadith from Aishi(Imam al-Bukhari, no. 1214; Imam Muslim, no. 941). It is advisable to wrap a woman in five blankets: one to cover the body below the navel, the second to cover the head, the third to cover the part of the body above the navel, and the remaining two to cover the woman’s entire body. This is reported in the hadith in which the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) ordered to wrap his daughter Ummukulsum.
If the deceased Muslim was in a state of ihram (was a pilgrim), his head (if it was a woman, then his face) must be left open (Imam al-Bukhari, No. 1208).
Miscarriage
If no scream was heard from the miscarriage and no other signs of life emanated, but the pregnancy was four months or more, then he is bathed, wrapped in a shroud and buried, but no funeral prayer is performed for him. If the pregnancy was less than four months and the miscarriage had no facial features, then it is only wrapped in cloth and buried.
If a cry was heard from the miscarriage, he trembled or showed other signs of life, then a funeral prayer is performed for him and everything that was listed above. In this regard, no distinction is made between a miscarriage and an adult. It is reported that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “If a miscarriage shows signs of life, pray for it...”
(Ibn Majah, No. 1508). (See also at-Tirmidhi, № 1032.)
Condolences
...it is advisable to express it to the family of the deceased (Ibn Majah, No. 1601) within three days after his death and it is undesirable to do this after three days, so as not to remind the family of their grief. If a person was absent for these three days, then this is not undesirable for him. It is also undesirable to repeat condolences, and it is better to express it after burying the body, except if the relatives of the deceased are greatly depressed by grief. In this case, it is better to do it earlier to console them. (Cm. al-Nawaw and, “Ravdatu t-Talibin”, No. 1/664.)
Condolence (ta'ziya) is a call for patience, for which the reward of Allah is due, and dua for the dead for the forgiveness of his sins (Ravdatu t-Talibin, No. 1/664).
Accompanying the stretcher to the grave
...is desirable for men (Imam al-Bukhari, no. 1182), as is attendance at the funeral until the grave is completely filled up. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “Whoever attended the funeral and performed the funeral prayer is one qirat; to the one who was present before the burial of the body - two qirats.” He was asked: “What does two qirats mean?” The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) replied: “Two huge mountains [rewards from Allah].”
As for women, their presence at the funeral process is undesirable, as follows from the hadith transmitted by Imam al-Bukhari (No. 1219), Imam Muslim (No. 938) and Ibn Majah (from Al And).
It is advisable to carry the stretcher quickly but carefully so that the deceased cannot fall out. It is also advisable that the stretcher be closed and covered with a blanket. This is especially true for a deceased woman.
It is undesirable to talk, much less raise your voice, while accompanying a stretcher with the deceased (Abu Dawud, No. 3171). It is advisable to walk in front of the stretcher not far from them, but you can walk behind and on the sides. (See Abu Dawud, no. 3179, 3180.) It is not undesirable for a Muslim to accompany a deceased non-Muslim relative (neighbor).
Funeral prayer (janaza prayer)
...will not be valid without washing the body of the deceased (ghusl) and wrapping it in a shroud. It consists of the following:
– All prayer is performed standing: the worshiper raises his hands four times (as he does in ordinary prayer), standing, pronouncing takbir (Allahu Akbar), the first of which is accompanied by the intention to perform a funeral prayer for a specific deceased Muslim.
– After the first takbir, the worshiper folds his hands on his chest, as in a regular prayer, and reads Surah Al-Fatihah (Imam al-Bukhari, No. 1270).
– After finishing reading Surah Al-Fatiha, the worshiper performs the second takbir, raising his hands to the level of his earlobes, after which he again folds his hands on his chest and reads a blessing to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) in any form known from the Sunnah. The simplest option: “Allagumma salli gIala MukhIammad.” (Cm. an-Nasai, № 4/75.)
– Then the worshiper makes the third takbir, after which, folding his hands on his chest, he reads dua for the deceased. This is the main purpose of performing the funeral prayer. The simplest version of this dua:
“Allagyumma-rkhIamgyu” (“O Allah, have mercy on him”) or: “Allagyumma-gfir layyu” (“O Allah, forgive him”). (See Imam Muslim, no. 963; an-Nasai, no. 4/75.)
- Then the worshiper makes the fourth takbir, after which, folding his hands on his chest, he reads dua for all Muslims, for example, like this: “Allahumma la tahrimna ajrahu wa la taftinna bagdahu wa-gfir lyana wa lahu” (narrated by Abu Dawood (No. 3201) from Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him)).
- After this, the person praying makes taslim: he gives salam to the right and left, as in a regular prayer: “As-salamu alaikum wa rahmatullah” (“Peace be upon you and the mercy of Allah”). (See al-Bayhaqi, no. 4/43.)
As has already been said, all prayer is performed standing, without bowing or bowing to the ground.
Praying for a kaafir (non-believer), an atheist, etc., even if he is a Caucasian, Tatar, Arab, etc., is prohibited.
Burial
The minimum depth of a grave is the depth at which animals cannot dig up the body. It is desirable that the depth of the grave be human height with outstretched arms, and the width - 70–80 cm. (See Abu Dawud, No. 3215, and at-Tirmidhi, No. 1713.) When laying the body of the deceased in the grave, be sure to point it facing the side of the qibla, it is more desirable to lay it on the right side, but to lay it on the left side is condemned (karaha). It is also advisable to press the cheek of the dead person to the ground (Imam Muslim, No. 966). In Muslim cemeteries, this requirement is sometimes not observed, while according to Sharia, if the deceased was not turned towards the qibla, it is necessary to open the grave and rebury the deceased, provided that the body has not yet decomposed.
It is advisable (if the ground is hard) that a niche (recess) be dug in the wall of the grave located on the side of the qibla, in which the body is placed, after which the recess is covered with thin stones or boards, so that the earth does not fall on it. If the earth is loose, then the body is placed at the bottom of the grave, in a recess, which is raised along the edges with bricks, and from above, after the body has been placed, it is closed in the same way as a niche.
It is advisable to carefully bring the body into the grave head first on the side where the deceased’s legs will be (Abu Dawud, No. 3211). It is advisable for the person performing this action to say: “Bismi-Llyagyi wa gIala sunnati rasuli-Llyagyi” (Abu Dawud, no. 3213; at-Tirmidhi, no. 1046).
It is advisable for the relatives of the deceased to go down to the grave, especially when a woman is being buried. After burying the body, it is advisable (mustahab) to read the dua talqeen and tasbit prayers near the grave, and also pour water on the grave.
Bugs and innovations related to funerals
Anything that is contrary to the rules of funerals that have come down to us in the Sunnah, such as raising one’s voice when accompanying a bier with the deceased, is an innovation (bid’ah) that should be avoided.
It is not advisable to strengthen the grave with materials that were made using fire, such as gypsum, cement (mortar using it) and others (Imam Muslim, No. 970).
It is prohibited to erect any buildings on a grave in a public cemetery, which is very typical of our time. According to the Shafi'i madhhab, such buildings must be demolished, as indicated by the imam an-Nawawi in the books “Ravdatu t-Talibin” and “Majmu’”.
According to the Sunnah, the grave should not rise more than a span. It is reported that Ali ibn AbuTalib said Abu Hayyaju al-Asadi: “Should I guide you to what the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) urged me to do? You must not leave... any grave elevated (above the ground) without lowering it (to ground level)” (Imam Muslim, No. 969).
Moreover, photographs and images on tombstones are prohibited. Any manifestations of dissatisfaction with the will of Allah and excessive mourning for the dead are prohibited. As, for example, when people beat themselves on the chest, cheeks, tear their clothes, scream, lament, etc. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Whoever is lamented loudly for is subjected to torment" (Imam al-Bukhari); “The one who slaps his cheeks with his palms, tears his clothes and says what they said in the days of Jahiliyya is not among us” (Imam al-Bukhari, no. 1232). However, there is nothing wrong with natural crying when losing loved ones, which is a manifestation of the softness of a person’s heart. Anas ibnMalik said: “When we attended the funeral of the daughter of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), he was sitting at the edge of her grave, and I saw tears pouring from his eyes” (Imam al-Bukhari).
An innovation that has spread among people is the family of the deceased preparing food and gathering people to eat it. This innovation clearly contradicts the Sunnah of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), according to which relatives or neighbors themselves should prepare food for the family of the deceased. Moreover, in such quantity that it would be enough for at least a day (see “Ravdatu t-Talibin”, No. 1/665).
After the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) learned of his death JafarIbn Abu Talib, he said: “Prepare food for the family of Jafar: something has come to them that has troubled them” (at-Tirmidhi, no. 998; Abu Dawud, no. 3132, and others). Moreover, it is prohibited to prepare food for various kinds of mourners and the like, and it does not matter whether they are relatives of the deceased or not. Because this will be support for sin and the prolongation of actions prohibited according to Sharia (see “Ravdatu t-Talibin”, No. 1/665). Even more prohibited is the use of the deceased’s inheritance due to minors (orphans) for cooking, distributing alms and other actions that are not obligatory according to Sharia.
Reading the Koran in places where people gather to express condolences is also a forbidden innovation (Fiqhu-l-Manhaji, No. 1/263). Separately, Imam an-Nawawi condemns gatherings of people where the Koran is read haphazardly, without observing the rules established by the Sunnah, as is often the case during modern funeral rites.
Imam an-Nawawi says that this is a forbidden innovation and that in such gatherings everyone who hears such a reading commits a sin, is able to stop this action and does not do so. An-Nawawi writes that he personally made efforts to prohibit and stop such actions, for which he hopes to receive a reward from Allah Almighty. (See “Tibyan”, faslyun fi istikhIbabi tahIsini ssavti bi-l-Kur’an.)
It is also undesirable to organize “gatherings” to receive and express condolences, as pointed out by Imam an-Nawawi (“Ravdatu t-Talibin”, No. 1/663).
In addition, according to the Shafi'i madhhab, it is forbidden to transport a body for burial from one locality to another (see. Muhammad Zuheili, “MugItamad”, No. 1/644), which is common in our time.
Seven, forty, fifty two
Everything you read above was written based on the works of scientists of the Shafi'i madhhab.
The main sources for this article are two books:
1) “Rawdatu t-Talibin” (Imam al-Nawawi),
2) “Fikhu-l-manhaji gIala mazhabi-l-imami al-Shafi'i» ( Mustafa al-Khan, Mustafa al-Bugha, Ali al-Sharbaji).
These scientists reviewed in their books those innovations that they personally encountered, heard about, or knew about from the books of previous scientists. However, each nation, as a rule, introduces its own innovations into religion, and it is not surprising that scientists do not condemn in their books those innovations that they have not heard about and that appeared many years after their death. However, there is no doubt that for any sane person, reading the above and a general understanding of the definition of innovation in Shariah is enough to reject the forbidden innovations that are practiced in the funeral process.
One of these innovations is the celebration of three, seven, forty, fifty-two days from the date of death of a person. It’s amazing how firmly this innovation, which has nothing to do with Islam, has become ingrained in the lives of Muslims, and there is no indication of it either in the Koran, or in the Sunnah, or in the books of scientists. It has no basis in Sharia and is as forbidden as those innovations, the forbiddenness of which was pointed out by Imam an-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him). And given the fact that for many people Islam has become associated with funeral rites that have nothing in common with the religion of Allah, the harm from such innovations becomes even greater.
It should be emphasized that Sharia does not prescribe visiting graves for a certain period of time (3, 7, 40 days) at a strictly defined time for this (morning and afternoon) for the purpose of reading certain surahs of the Koran and dhikrs, which is a prohibited innovation.
In some Muslim regions, it is common to read certain verses of the Koran at the four corners of the grave. Nothing is said about this in the Koran and Sunnah, and this is not in the main books of the Shafi'i madhhab, in which the funeral rite is explained in detail. He writes about the prohibition of this action, as an innovation that has no basis in Shariah. Tayyib al-Haraki (ad-Daghistani).
I would also like to note that there is no basis in Sharia for the cutting of an animal that we practice at funerals at the time of carrying out the deceased and other similar innovations that are not in the Sharia books.
Conclusion
What is given in this article is sufficient to conduct a funeral in accordance with Sharia, in which there will be no infringement of the rights of the deceased, although it is not written here about everything that is desirable to do at a funeral. Failure to do something desirable is not a sin or a sign of disrespect for the deceased. And it is surprising that people who in everyday life do not even think about observing Shariah norms when it comes to funerals show scrupulousness in the most extreme forms when defending desirable, and often clearly prohibited, actions by Shariah. At the same time, they do not know that in order to determine the desirability of a particular action, it is necessary to turn to the sources of Sharia, which are reflected in the works of scientists, in particular the Shafi'i madhhab.
It is amazing how people who have indifferently observed the drunkenness of the deceased all his life or his failure to pray, the forbiddenness of which is known to every child, extremely fanatically defend tying some rag to some stick. Whereas this will not only do nothing to help the deceased, but will also harm the living.
And rather than handing out socks, scarves and refined sugar to rich people, it is better to find the poor and give them what they need. Better for everyone. As we see, according to the Shafi'i madhhab, much of what is common among our people is condemnable and even sinful (buildings on graves, refreshments at funerals, etc.)
However, when people adhere to the traditional Shafi’i madhhab in these matters, for some reason they are accused of non-traditionalism, Wahhabism and various other “isms”.
It is interesting that if you collect all the funds that are spent on something that Sharia at least does not call for (a large tombstone, feeding hundreds of condolences, etc.), then in one year in Makhachkala alone you can collect more than five million dollars . And how nice it would be to spend this money on something truly useful for both the dead and the living.
Instructions
Muslim burials (graves) must necessarily face Mecca. It is forbidden to bury people of other faiths in Muslim cemeteries and vice versa. It is curious that deceased women who did not convert to Islam, but are carrying a child from, are buried with their backs to Mecca. This will allow the child to face Mecca. They do not welcome any kind of tombstones such as mausoleums or crypts. The fact is that being overly rich and magnificent can make people jealous and lead to temptation. In addition, Sharia law strictly prohibits Muslims from loudly mourning a deceased person. It is believed that this leads to even greater suffering. Crying Muslim men are reproached by society, while crying women and children are carefully calmed down. Islam does not welcome both and autopsies. It is not customary to delay a funeral. Burials are carried out in the nearest Muslim.
Immediately before burial, the body is washed. Shariah prescribes ablution of the deceased three times and with the participation of at least four people of the same sex as the deceased. The primary ablution takes place with water in which cedar powder is dissolved; during the secondary ablution, camphor is dissolved in water, and for the third time ordinary water is used. According to Islamic law, Muslims cannot be buried in their clothes. Only a shroud is put on the deceased. It is curious that the material of the shroud depends on the financial condition of the deceased. You cannot cut the nails and hair of the deceased. The body should be scented with various oils. Certain prayers are read over the deceased Muslim. All this is crowned by wrapping the body in a shroud. Knots are made at the head, at the waist and at the feet.
The knots on the shroud are untied only immediately before burying the body. The deceased is taken to the cemetery not on a stretcher, as is the case with Orthodox and Catholics. The body lowers its feet down. Then they throw earth into the dug hole and pour water. By the way, as an exception, Muslims can still be buried in coffins. The exceptions are dismembered bodies, fragments of bodies, or an already decomposed corpse. The burial is accompanied by certain prayers. Some Muslims are generally buried sitting. This is connected with their ideas about the mechanism of the afterlife: it is believed that after his death, the soul of a Muslim remains in the body until it is transferred to the death angel of paradise. He will prepare her for eternal life. But before this happens, the soul will have to answer various questions. That is why, in order for the “conversation” to take place in conditions of decency, some Muslims are buried sitting.
