❖ Correct Method of Placing the Janāzah (Bier) into the Grave: Practice of the Companions and Tābiʿīn ❖
Source: Fatāwā ʿIlmiyyah, Vol. 1, Kitāb al-Janāʾiz, p. 539
❖ Question:
When placing the bier (چارپائی) of the deceased at the grave, which side should it be placed on?
(Questioner: Dr. Nasīm Akhtar, Islamabad)
❖ Response:
Al-ḥamdu lillāh, waṣ-ṣalātu was-salāmu ʿalā Rasūlillāh, ʾAmma baʿd!
➊ Sunnah Preference: Right Side First
✔ It is preferable to place the bier on the right side of the grave, in line with the general principle of the Prophet ﷺ favoring the right side (tayammun) in matters of virtue.
✔ This is not an obligation, but a recommended practice reflecting the Prophet’s love for the right side in various affairs.
“والله أعلم“
➋ Practice of the Companions and Tābiʿīn
The practice of the Ṣaḥābah and Tābiʿīn clarifies how the deceased was typically lowered into the grave:
✅ 1. Lowering from the Foot Side — A Recognized Sunnah
Narrated regarding Ḥārith ibn ʿUbaydillāh al-Aʿwar:
◈ ʿAbdullāh ibn Yazīd al-Khaṭmī (رضي الله عنه) led the funeral prayer.
◈ He lowered the body from the foot end of the grave and said:
“This is from the Sunnah.”
(Sunan Abī Dāwūd: 3211; authenticated in as-Sunan al-Kubrā by al-Bayhaqī 4/54)
Bayhaqī added:
“Its isnād is ṣaḥīḥ, and because he said, ‘This is from the Sunnah’, it is like a marfūʿ report.”
✅ 2. Sayyidunā Anas (رضي الله عنه)
◈ Anas (رضي الله عنه) instructed that the deceased be lowered from the foot side of the grave.
(Muṣannaf Ibn Abī Shaybah 3/327, Ḥadīth: 1167 – isnād ṣaḥīḥ)
✅ 3. Tābiʿī Imām al-Shaʿbī (رحمه الله)
◈ The trustworthy Tābiʿī al-Shaʿbī lowered a body from the foot end and said:
“By Allah! This is Sunnah.”
(Muṣannaf Ibn Abī Shaybah 3/328, Ḥadīth: 11680 – isnād ṣaḥīḥ)
Another similar act is recorded in Ḥadīth: 11684 (ḥasan isnād)
✅ 4. Ibrāhīm al-Nakhaʿī (رحمه الله)
◈ He once lowered a deceased body into the grave from the Qiblah side.
(Muṣannaf Ibn Abī Shaybah 3/328, Ḥadīth: 11691 – isnād ṣaḥīḥ)
✅ Conclusion
✔ The bier of the deceased should be placed on the right side of the grave out of preference for the right.
✔ As for lowering the body, the practice of the Companions and Tābiʿīn shows that it is Sunnah to lower the deceased from the foot side of the grave.
✔ Lowering from the Qiblah side is also reported and acceptable.
وما علینا إلا البلاغ
(Shahādat Magazine, September 2001)
ھذا ما عندي واللہ أعلم بالصواب
