Source: Fatāwā Amanpuri by Shaykh Ghulam Mustafa Zaheer Amanpuri
What is the ruling on turning the face of the deceased toward the Qiblah?
It is permissible.
① The wife of Ḥudhayfah رضي الله عنه reported:
On the night of Ḥudhayfah’s death, he kept asking, “Which part of the night is it?” We informed him. When the time of suḥūr arrived, he said:
((أجلسوني، فأجلسناه، فقال: وجهوني إلى القبلة، فوجهناه إلى القبلة، فقال: اللهم إني أعوذ بك من صباح يمسي إلى النار، وأعوذ بك من مساء يصبح إلى النار))
“Sit me up.” We sat him up. Then he said, “Turn my face toward the Qiblah.” We turned his face toward the Qiblah. He then supplicated: “O Allah! I seek refuge with You from a morning that begins in the Fire, and from an evening that ends in the Fire.”
(al-Muḥtadarin by Ibn Abī al-Dunyā 309, Tārīkh Ibn ʿAsākir 12/396 – Ḥadīth Ṣaḥīḥ)
② Ḥasan al-Baṣrī رحمه الله (d. 110H) said:
((كان يستحب أن يستقبل بالميت القبلة إذا كان فى الموت))
“It was considered recommended to turn the face of the dying/deceased person toward the Qiblah.”
(Muṣannaf Ibn Abī Shaybah 10872 – Ḥadīth Ṣaḥīḥ)
All marfūʿ (directly attributed to the Prophet ﷺ) narrations on this subject are not authentic.
❖ Question
What is the ruling on turning the face of the deceased toward the Qiblah?
❖ Answer
It is permissible.
◈ Evidences
① The wife of Ḥudhayfah رضي الله عنه reported:
On the night of Ḥudhayfah’s death, he kept asking, “Which part of the night is it?” We informed him. When the time of suḥūr arrived, he said:
((أجلسوني، فأجلسناه، فقال: وجهوني إلى القبلة، فوجهناه إلى القبلة، فقال: اللهم إني أعوذ بك من صباح يمسي إلى النار، وأعوذ بك من مساء يصبح إلى النار))
“Sit me up.” We sat him up. Then he said, “Turn my face toward the Qiblah.” We turned his face toward the Qiblah. He then supplicated: “O Allah! I seek refuge with You from a morning that begins in the Fire, and from an evening that ends in the Fire.”
(al-Muḥtadarin by Ibn Abī al-Dunyā 309, Tārīkh Ibn ʿAsākir 12/396 – Ḥadīth Ṣaḥīḥ)
② Ḥasan al-Baṣrī رحمه الله (d. 110H) said:
((كان يستحب أن يستقبل بالميت القبلة إذا كان فى الموت))
“It was considered recommended to turn the face of the dying/deceased person toward the Qiblah.”
(Muṣannaf Ibn Abī Shaybah 10872 – Ḥadīth Ṣaḥīḥ)
⚠ Note
All marfūʿ (directly attributed to the Prophet ﷺ) narrations on this subject are not authentic.
Conclusion
- Turning the deceased’s face toward the Qiblah is permissible and considered mustaḥabb (recommended) according to the practice of the Companions and early scholars.
- However, no authentic marfūʿ narration exists on this matter.
