Excerpt Source: Ā’īnah Tawḥīd wa Sunnat ba-Jawāb “Shirk Kyā Hai?” ma‘a Ḥaqīqat-e-Bid‘at
By: Shaykh Abū Ḥudhayfah Muḥammad Jāwīd Salafī
❖ Reciting Sūrah al-Fātiḥah in Salāt al-Janāzah
Some people claim to be from Ahl al-Sunnah, yet completely abandon the Sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ. One such instance is not reciting Sūrah al-Fātiḥah in the funeral prayer, whereas this is established from the Sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ.
📖 Narration of ‘Abdullāh ibn ‘Abbās رضي الله عنه
“صَلَّيْتُ خَلْفَ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ عَلَى جَنَازَةٍ فَقَرَأَ بِفَاتِحَةِ الْكِتَابِ، فَقَالَ: لِتَعْلَمُوا أَنَّهَا سُنَّةٌ“
“I prayed a funeral prayer behind Ibn ‘Abbās رضي الله عنه, and he recited Sūrah al-Fātiḥah. Then he said: I did this so that you may know that it is Sunnah.”
This narration is a clear and explicit proof that reciting Sūrah al-Fātiḥah in Ṣalāt al-Janāzah is Sunnah.
❖ Whether Silent or Loud — Fātiḥah Should Be Recited
Both audible and silent performance of the funeral prayer are permissible. However, Sūrah al-Fātiḥah must be recited, even if the recitation is silent.
📖 Narration of Abū Umāmah رضي الله عنه
“The Sunnah is to recite Sūrah al-Fātiḥah silently in the funeral prayer.”
This makes it clear that the recitation of Fātiḥah is a legislated act in the Janāzah prayer, whether one does it audibly or silently.
❖ Where Sunnah Is Proven, It Is Abandoned — Where It Is Not, It Is Insisted Upon
It is truly astonishing that people:
✖ Do not recite Sūrah al-Fātiḥah where it is proven Sunnah
✔ Yet insist on reciting it in places where it is not established
This is a strange mindset:
✘ Love for Bid‘ah
✘ Hatred for the Sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ
✘ And animosity towards those who follow the Sunnah
People even mock those who follow this Sunnah, saying things like:
❝”The person died accursed — no Fātiḥah, no Durūd!”❞
Yet the reality is:
✅ The funerals of Ahl al-Ḥaqq (People of Truth) contain both Fātiḥah and Durūd.
✖ While those who mock them — their funerals contain neither.
❝Believe it or not, that is your choice —
We continue to explain right and wrong to your noble selves.❞
