❖ The Narration and Chain of Transmission Regarding Raising Hands in Funeral Prayer ❖
❀ Question:
What is the narration from ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿUmar (رضي الله عنهما) that mentions raising the hands at each takbīr during the janāzah (funeral) prayer?
✿ Response by:
Researcher: Afzal Zaheer Jamali (حفظه الله)
① The Narration as Reported by Imām al-Dāraqutnī (رحمه الله):
Narration:
قال أحمد بن محمد بن الجراح وابن مخلد، قالا: ثنا عمر بن شبة قال: حدثنا يزيد بن هارون قال: أخبرنا يحي بن سعيد عن نافع عن ابن عمر:
“أن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم كان إذا صلى على جنازة رفع يديه في كل تكبيرة وإذا انصرف سلم.”
Translation:
It is narrated from ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿUmar (رضي الله عنهما) that:
“When the Prophet ﷺ performed the funeral prayer, he would raise his hands at each takbīr, and upon completion he would offer salām.”
📚 Reference: Kitāb al-ʿIlal by al-Dāraqutnī, Vol. 13, Pg. 22, Ḥadīth No. 2908
② Authentication of the Chain:
✔ This narration is classified as ḥasan li-dhātih (sound in itself) in terms of its isnād (chain).
✔ Imām al-Dāraqutnī and Yaḥyā ibn Saʿīd al-Anṣārī — both are free from accusations of tadlīs (concealment in narration), as clarified in al-Fatḥ al-Mubīn.
✔ ʿUmar ibn Shabbah is ṣadūq (truthful) and ḥasan al-ḥadīth (his narrations are fair).
✔ Aḥmad ibn Muḥammad ibn al-Jarrāḥ and Muḥammad ibn Mukhlad are both considered thiqah (trustworthy).
③ Additional References:
✔ Tārīkh Baghdād:
- Vol. 4, Pg. 409
- Vol. 3, Pgs. 2312, 310, 311
- T. 1406 (edition reference)
✔ Maqālāt Ḥāfiẓ Zubair ʿAlī Zai (رحمه الله), Vol. 2, Pgs. 545–546
⚠ Important Note:
The referenced manuscript of Kitāb al-ʿIlal is available in the personal library of Muḥtaram Mubashir Aḥmad Rabbānī (حفظه الله).
