The Virtue of the Funeral Prayer:
عن ابي هريرة، ان رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم، قال: ” من اتبع جنازة مسلم إيمانا واحتسابا وكان معه حتى يصلى عليها ويفرغ من دفنها، فإنه يرجع من الاجر بقيراطين كل قيراط مثل احد، ومن صلى عليها ثم رجع قبل ان تدفن، فإنه يرجع بقيراط .
[Sahih al-Bukhari: Kitab al-Iman: Bab Ittiba’ al-Jana’iz min al-Iman: Hadith no. 47]
It is narrated from Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: “Whoever follows the funeral procession of a Muslim out of faith in Allah and hoping for reward from Him, and stays until the funeral prayer is offered and the burial is finished, returns with a reward of two qirats, and one qirat is as large as the mountain of Uhud. And whoever offers the funeral prayer and then returns before the burial returns with one qirat.”
A Companion’s Regret, Worth Reflecting On:
When Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) heard about this reward, he had a handful of pebbles in his hand and was turning them over, that is, he was lost in thought. He immediately threw the pebbles from his hand and said: “What a pity! We have lost many qirats.”
[Reference: Sahih Muslim: vol. 2, hadith no. 2195, p. 399]
Accepted Intercession:
The Prophet ﷺ said: “If forty men who do not associate anything with Allah attend the funeral of a Muslim, Allah accepts their intercession for him (the deceased).”
[Sahih Muslim: Kitab al-Jana’iz: Hadith: 948]
Etiquette of the Funeral Prayer
Like other obligatory and voluntary prayers, purification and wudu are necessary for the funeral prayer. In light of the saying of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ recorded in the two Sahihs, a prayer is not accepted without purification and wudu. However, if one is unable to use water or has a legitimate excuse, then, like the ordinary prayers, the funeral prayer may also be offered with tayammum, under Surah al-Ma’idah, verse 6.
❀ The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: The funeral should be carried on the shoulders, and it should be the men who carry it.
[Sahih al-Bukhari: 1314]
❀ While walking with the funeral, it is permissible to walk in front of it, behind it, and to its right and left. However, walking behind it is better.
[Sunan Abi Dawud: 3180]
❀ Going with the funeral on a mount is not better; however, if one is riding, he should stay behind the funeral.
[Sunan Abi Dawud: 3189, 3180]
❀ If the deceased is a man, the imam should stand near his head to lead the prayer, and if the deceased is a woman, the imam should stand near her waist to carry out the duties of leading the prayer.
[Jami’ al-Tirmidhi: Abwab al-Jana’iz: Bab: 45, Hadith no. 1043, its chain is hasan (good)]
❀ According to the Sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ, it is the imam’s duty to have the rows of the followers straightened. As for the worshippers, they should straighten the rows by acting on it with good manners. It is the responsibility of the imam and the worshippers to perform the funeral prayer with humility and sincerity.
Funeral Prayer While Wearing Shoes:
If the funeral prayer is arranged in a place where there is soil, pebbles and the like, one may pray there wearing clean shoes. If there is a possibility of filth and the like under the shoes, then, under the ruling of tayammum, it is sufficient to rub them on the ground and clean them. Some brothers, out of lack of knowledge and simplicity, take their feet out of their shoes on such occasions and stand on top of them, although whether the feet are inside the shoes or on top of them is the same matter. Therefore, instead of this unnecessary formality, one should pray wearing shoes, acting on the following hadith of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
حدثنا ابو مسلمة سعيد بن يزيد الازدي قال سالت انس ابن مالك رضي الله عنه اكان النبى صلى الله عليه وسلم يصلي فى نعليه قال نعم
[Sahih al-Bukhari: Kitab al-Salah, Bab al-Salah fi al-Ni’al; Sahih Muslim: likewise]
“Abu Maslamah Sa’id ibn Yazid al-Azdi narrates: I asked Anas ibn Malik (may Allah be pleased with him): Did the Prophet ﷺ pray while wearing his shoes? He said: ‘Yes.'”
The Sunnah Funeral Prayer:
➊ According to the narration of Abu Umamah ibn Sahl (may Allah be pleased with him), the sunnah way of performing the funeral prayer is that Surah al-Fatihah is recited after the first takbir.
After the second takbir, the Ibrahimic salawat (Durud Ibrahimi) is recited.
After the third takbir, supplications are made for the deceased,
and after the fourth takbir, the salam is given.
[Musannaf Abd al-Razzaq: Bab al-Qira’ah wa al-Du’a’ fi al-Salah ‘ala al-Mayyit: no. 6428]
➋ It is narrated from Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet ﷺ offered the funeral prayer in absentia for Najashi (the Negus), the king of Abyssinia, with four takbirs.
[Sahih al-Bukhari: Kitab al-Jana’iz: Hadith no. 1334]
➌ In the narration of Talhah ibn Ubaydillah (may Allah be pleased with him), it is mentioned that after the first takbir of the funeral prayer, Surah al-Fatihah is recited together with another surah.
[Sahih al-Bukhari: Kitab al-Jana’iz: Hadith no. 1335]
An Important Benefit:
The summary of the above narrations is that after the first takbir of the funeral prayer, Surah al-Fatihah and another surah are recited; after the second takbir, the Ibrahimic salawat; after the third takbir, supplications are made for the deceased; and after the fourth takbir, the salam is given. This is the sunnah.
Supplications of the Funeral Prayer:
It is narrated from Sayyiduna Awf bin Malik al-Ashja’i (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ made this supplication while leading the funeral prayer for a deceased person. I memorized it, and at that moment I wished in my heart: if only this funeral prayer were mine.
اللهم اغفر له وارحمه، وعافه واعف عنه، واكرم نزله ووسع مدخله، واغسله بالماء والثلج والبرد، ونقه من الخطايا كما نقيت الثوب الابيض من الدنس، وابدله دارا خيرا من داره، واهلا خيرا من اهله، وزوجا خيرا من زوجه، وادخله الجنة واعذه من عذاب القبر، او من عذاب النار .
[Sahih Muslim: Kitab al-Jana’iz: Bab al-Du’a lil-Mayyit fi al-Salah: Hadith no. 2232 / 58 / 963]
“O Allah, forgive this deceased person and have mercy on him, grant him well-being and pardon him, honor his hospitality and make his grave spacious. Cleanse his sins with water, snow and hail, and purify him from sins as You have cleansed a white garment from dirt. Give him in exchange a home better than his home, a family better than his family, and a spouse better than his spouse. Admit him to Paradise and protect him from the punishment of the grave and the punishment of the Fire.”
It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ used to recite this supplication over the funeral of a deceased person:
اللهم اغفر لحينا وميتنا، وشاهدنا وغائبنا، وصغيرنا وكبيرنا، وذكرنا وانثانا، اللهم من احييته منا فاحيه على الإسلام، ومن توفيته منا فتوفه على الإيمان، اللهم لا تحرمنا اجره ولا تضلنا بعده .
[Sunan Ibn Majah: Kitab al-Jana’iz: Bab Ma Ja’a fi al-Du’a fi al-Salah ‘ala al-Jana’iz: Hadith no. 1498. Its chain of narration is hasan (good)]
“O Allah, forgive our living and our dead, those of us who are present and those who are absent, our young and our old, our males and our females.
O Allah, whomever of us You keep alive, keep him alive upon Islam, and whomever of us You cause to die, cause him to die upon faith.
O Allah, do not deprive us of his (the deceased’s) reward and do not let us go astray after him.”
It is narrated from Sayyiduna Wathilah bin al-Asqa’ (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, while leading the funeral prayer for a Muslim deceased, was making the following supplication:
اللهم إن فلان بن فلان فى ذمتك وحبل جوارك، فقه من فتنة القبر، وعذاب النار، وانت اهل الوفاء والحق، فاغفر له وارحمه إنك انت الغفور الرحيم .
[Sunan Ibn Majah: Kitab al-Jana’iz: Hadith no. 1499, Sunan Abi Dawud: Kitab al-Jana’iz: Bab al-Du’a lil-Mayyit: Hadith no. 3202. Its chain of narration is hasan (good)]
“O Allah, indeed so-and-so son of so-and-so is in Your protection and in Your safekeeping, so protect him from the trial of the grave and the punishment of the Fire, for You are the One of fidelity and truth. So forgive him and have mercy on him; indeed You are the Most Forgiving, the Most Merciful.”
Sayyiduna Yazid bin Abdullah says that when the Messenger of Allah ﷺ stood to pray the funeral prayer, he would make this supplication:
اللهم عبدك وابن امتك احتاج الي رحمتك وانت غني عن عذابه ان كان محسنا فزد فى احسانه وان كان مسينا فتجاوز عنه
[Mustadrak al-Hakim: Kitab al-Jana’iz: Hadith no. 1328. Its chain of narration is hasan (good), Ahkam al-Jana’iz by al-Albani: p. 125]
“O Allah, this is Your servant and the son of Your maidservant. He is in need of Your mercy, and You do not need to punish him. If he was a doer of good, increase him in his good; if he was a wrongdoer, then overlook his sins.”
Funeral prayer for a child:
It is narrated from Sayyiduna Sa’id bin al-Musayyib (may Allah have mercy on him) that I prayed the funeral prayer for an innocent child behind Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him), and he (may Allah be pleased with him) was making the following supplication:
اللهم اعده من عذاب القبر
[Muwatta Imam Malik: Kitab al-Jana’iz: Ma Yaqulu al-Musalli ‘ala al-Janazah: no. 776]
“O Allah, protect this deceased from the punishment of the grave.”
اللهم اجعله لنا فرطا وسلفا واجرا
[Sahih al-Bukhari: Kitab al-Jana’iz: Bab Qira’at Fatihat al-Kitab ‘ala al-Janazah: mu’allaq: before Hadith 1335]
“O Allah, make him for us a forerunner, a predecessor and a source of reward.”
Supplication immediately after the funeral prayer:
Immediately after the funeral prayer, people gather around the deceased and make a collective supplication three times. This self-invented practice has no proof from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. In this regard the Prophet of mercy ﷺ said: Whoever invents something new in this religion of ours that is not part of it, it is rejected.
[Sahih al-Bukhari: Hadith: 2697]
