The Salat al-Janazah is the funeral prayer in Islam.

 

The funeral prayer in Islam

Ṣalāt al-Janāzah is the Muslim Prayer done for the deceased. It is performed in a congregation It is a way of us to bid farewell to our loved ones and to remind ourselves that we too, will fall the same path one day Allah says in the Quran: “Every soul shall have a taste of death. And only on the Day of Resurrection will you be requited in full [for whatever you have done] – whereupon he that shall be drawn away from the fire and brought into paradise will indeed have gained a triumph: for the life of this world is nothing but an enjoyment of self-delusion”. [Quran 3: 185].

_{كُلُّ نَفْسٍۢ ذَآئِقَةُ ٱلْمَوْتِ ۗ وَإِنَّمَا تُوَفَّوْنَ أُجُورَكُمْ يَوْمَ ٱلْقِيَٰمَةِ ۖ فَمَن زُحْزِحَ عَنِ ٱلنَّارِ وَأُدْخِلَ ٱلْجَنَّةَ فَقَدْ فَازَ ۗ وَمَا ٱلْحَيَوٰةُ ٱلدُّنْيَآ إِلَّا مَتَٰعُ ٱلْغُرُورِ}

When you came into this world, you came in with Adhan and no Salah. When you leave this world, you will leave with Salah [Ṣalāt al-Janāzah] and no Adhan. And it is as if to say that your entire life is like the life between Adhan and Salat. A wise person is the one that put their own Janāzah in front of them and live their life in accordance with Janāzah.

Ṣalāt al-Janāzah is a right of a Muslim upon another Muslim. It’s a communal obligation, farḍ kifāya, not an obligation upon every individual [farḍ kifāya]. It has to be done by someone, so that the obligation is removed from the community as a whole. Some Muslims must take care of every Ṣalāt al-Janāzah in their community, such that even if a stranger die in a Muslim land, in a Muslim Masjid area, as long as we know he is a Muslim, though he would be without relatives, the community is obligated in totality to perform Ṣalāt al-Janāzah , and take care of this person to do the Dafan [burial].

Unfortunately, this Ṣalāt al-Janāzah which is a community obligation, we often don’t think about it that way. We instead notice the discrepancy many times, between someone that was well-known and someone that was not, someone that has a large family and a community, and someone that doesn’t. Although it’s Fardh kifāya, you should think of it in light of the individual reward that you achieve when you attend Ṣalāt al-Janāzah, and follow the Janāzah to bury the person properly,

• [Narrated Abu Huraira] “Six are the rights of a Muslim over another Muslim. It was said to him: Allah's Messenger, what are these? There upon he said: When you meet him, offer him greetings; when he invites you to a feast accept it; when he seeks your council give him; and when he sneezes and says: "All praise is due to Allah", you say "Yarhamuk’Allah [may Allah show mercy to you]"; and when he falls ill, visit him; and when he dies, follow his bier.

عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ، أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ﷺ قَالَ ‏”‏ حَقُّ الْمُسْلِمِ عَلَى الْمُسْلِمِ سِتٌّ ‏”‏ ‏.‏ قِيلَ مَا هُنَّ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ، قَالَ ‏”‏ إِذَا لَقِيتَهُ فَسَلِّمْ عَلَيْهِ وَإِذَا دَعَاكَ فَأَجِبْهُ وَإِذَا اسْتَنْصَحَكَ فَانْصَحْ لَهُ وَإِذَا عَطَسَ فَحَمِدَ اللَّهَ فَسَمِّتْهُ وَإِذَا مَرِضَ فَعُدْهُ وَإِذَا مَاتَ فَاتَّبِعْهُ ‏”‏ ‏.‏

• Narrated Abu Huraira that Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said, "Whoever attends the funeral procession till he offers the funeral prayer for it [Ṣalāt al-Janāzah], will get a reward equal to one Qirat, and whoever accompanies it till burial [Dafan], will get a reward equal to two Qirats." It was asked, "What are two Qirats?" He replied, "Like two huge mountains."

مَنْ شَهِدَ الْجَنَازَةَ حَتَّى يُصَلِّيَ عَلَيْهَا فَلَهُ قِيرَاطٌ، وَمَنْ شَهِدَ حَتَّى تُدْفَنَ كَانَ لَهُ قِيرَاطَانِ ‏”‏‏.‏ قِيلَ وَمَا الْقِيرَاطَانِ قَالَ ‏”‏ مِثْلُ الْجَبَلَيْنِ الْعَظِيمَيْنِ

• Narrated Malik ibn Hubayrah: “The Prophet ﷺ said: If any Muslim dies and three rows of Muslims pray over him, it will assure him [of Paradise]”. When Malik considered those, who accompanied a bier to be a few, he divided them into three rows in accordance with this tradition.

نْ مَالِكِ بْنِ هُبَيْرَةَ، قَالَ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ: مَا مِنْ مُسْلِمٍ يَمُوتُ فَيُصَلِّي عَلَيْهِ ثَلاَثَةُ صُفُوفٍ مِنَ الْمُسْلِمِينَ إِلاَّ أَوْجَبَ

In the same regard, we have a lesson to learn from the narration of the Abyssinian woman that used to clean the masjid. As we always invoke her example [about the virtue of cleaning the Masjid], we may look at it from another angle as well.

The prophet ﷺ comes to the masjid and he notices the woman is missing. Right away, the prophet ﷺ says: "where is this woman that used to clean the Masjid?.The prophet missed her presence. And they said; “ya Rasul Lhah, “she passed away last night”, and the prophet ﷺ says; “well, why didn’t you tell me? Why didn’t you call me so that I could come and pray [the Ṣalāt al-Janāzah] upon her”?. They said; “ya Rasul lhah, we didn’t want to bother you. So, we just did it ourselves”. They had carried out her Ghusl, they had prayed Janāzah upon her. They took her to the graveyard in an inconvenient time.The prophet ﷺ could have let it go as he had missed out [Ṣalāt al-Janāzah]. Instead, he, the prophet ﷺ says: “[daruuni ala qabriha] take me to her grave, take me to where you buried her”. And they go out, they follow the prophet ﷺ and he prays Ṣalāt al-Janāzah on her again. And he says that these graves are chambers of darkness and they are lit up by my salat upon them.

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The story just narrated offers us an important lesson, which is that no one should ever be considered too insignificant to receive the Ṣalāt al-Janāzah. Even if the deceased person is little known or distant, it is important to seek one's individual reward. This is a reminder of the importance of active participation in funeral prayer and the need to respect every single member of the Muslim community, regardless of their status or social position

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Abdullah Ibn 'Abbas reported that his son died in Qudaid or 'Usfan. He said to Qurayb to see as to how many people had gathered there for his [funeral]. He, Qurayb, said: So, I went out and I informed him about the people who had gathered there. He [Ibn 'Abbas] said: Do you think they are forty? He, Quraib, said: Yes. Ibn 'Abbas then said to them: “I heard Allah's Messenger ﷺ as saying: “If any Muslim dies and forty men who associate nothing with Allah stand over his prayer [they offer prayer over him], Allah will accept them as intercessors for him”.

 

How do we fulfil Ṣalāt al-Janāzah?

All the schools of Islamic law agree that one must have Wuḍūʾ and face the qibla and be covered properly to pray Ṣalāt al-Janāzah. If you really cannot go to pray for the person, you have one or two options: Either you pray al-Janāzah in absentia, which would be permissible because obviously it is also derived from the hadith of the prophet ﷺ, or at least just pray for them because it is one of the best gifts you can ever give to a person who has passed away.

The procedures of Salat al-Janazah

The prophet ﷺ taught us to pray the Janāzah with a unique formula. Within Ṣalāt al-Janāzah there is no Sujuud, there is no Rukuu, rather we praise Allah [athana-a], we praise Allah generically. Within Ṣalāt al-Janāzah, we read four Takbīrat, based on the narration: “The Messenger of God, ﷺ, used to say Takbīr at our funerals four times [كان رسول الله ﷺ يكبر على جنائزنا أربعا]”, and in another hadith that was narrated by Abu Hurairah, he said: “The Prophet ﷺ prayed and in the funeral prayer, he for An-Najashi, said four Takbīrat".

عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ، أَنَّ النَّبِيَّ ﷺ صَلَّى عَلَى النَّجَاشِيِّ فَكَبَّرَ أَرْبَعًا ‏

Within the four Takbīrat of Ṣalāt al-Janāzah, it is permissible to raise the hands with all the Takbīrat, or to raise them with only the first Takbīr. And is reported from ibn Umar that he used to raise the hands with every strong>Takbīr

1. Dopo il primo Takbīr, si recita la Surat Al-Fātiḥah. Al-Fātiḥah è un pilastro o una parte essenziale di ogni preghiera: Il Profeta ﷺ disse: [Narrato da ‘Ubada bin As-Samit] “Chi non recita Al-Fatiha nella sua preghiera, la sua preghiera è invalida” [Sahih al-Bukhari].
   
   نْ عُبَادَةَ بْنِ الصَّامِتِ، أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم قَالَ ‏ “‏ لاَ صَلاَةَ لِمَنْ لَمْ يَقْرَأْ بِفَاتِحَةِ الْكِتَابِ ‏‏.
   ‏
2. After the Second Takbīr, we recite Salat upon the prophet ﷺ including the Salat Ibrāhimiyya: Allāhumma ṣalli ʿalā Muḥammadin wa ʿalā āli Muḥammad, kamā ṣallayta ʿalā Ibrāhīma wa ʿalā āli Ibrāhīm, innaka Ḥamīdun Majīd. Allāhumma bārik ʿalā Muḥammadin wa ʿalā āli Muḥammad, kamā bārakta ʿalā Ibrāhīma wa ʿalā āli Ibrāhīm, innaka Ḥamīdun Majīd.

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اللَّهُمَّ صَلِّ عَلَىٰ مُحَمَّدٍ وَعَلَىٰ آلِ مُحَمَّدٍ ❁ كَمَا صَلَّيْتَ عَلَىٰ إِبْرَاهِيمَ وَعَلَىٰ آلِ إِبْرَاهِيمَ ❁ إِنَّكَ حَمِيدٌ مَجِيدٌ ❁ اللَّهُمَّ بَارِكْ عَلَىٰ مُحَمَّدٍ وَعَلَىٰ آلِ
مُحَمَّدٍ ❁ كَمَا بَارَكْتَ عَلَىٰ إِبْرَاهِيمَ وَعَلَىٰ آلِ إِبْرَاهِيمَ ❁ إِنَّكَ حَمِيدٌ مَجِيدٌ

3. After the Third Takbīr, we recite Du’a for the deceased: There is a Du’a that is mentioned in the sunnah, which the schools of Islamic law have adopted; On the authority of Abu Hurairah, he said: The Messenger of God ﷺ when he prayed for a funeral, he would say:
Allahumma-ghfir hayyina wa mayyitina, wa shahidina, wa ghaeebina wa sagheerina wa kabeerina wa dhakarina wa unthana. Allahumma mann ahyaytahu minna fa’ahyihi alali slam, wa man tawaffaytahu minna fatawaffahu alal imaan”. Allahumma la tahrimna ‘ajrahu, wala tudillana baedah.

O Allah, perdona i nostri vivi, i nostri morti, i nostri presenti, i nostri assenti [coloro che sono presenti e quelli che sono assenti], i nostri giovani, i nostri anziani, i nostri maschi e le nostre femmine. O Allah, a chi hai decretato di vivere tra noi, lascialo vivere nella fede, e a chi hai decretato di lasciarci, lascialo morire nella fede. O Allah, non privarci della Tua ricompensa e non deviarci dopo di lui. [Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim].

  اللَّهُمَّ اغْفِرْ لِحَيِّنَا وَمَيِّتِنَا، وَشَاهِدِنَا وَغَائِبِنَا، وَصَغِيرِنَا وَكَبِيرِنَا، وَذَكَرِنَا وَأُنْثَانَا، اللَّهُمَّ مَنْ أَحْيَيْتَهُ مِنَّا فَأَحْيِهِ عَلَى الْإِسْلَامِ، وَمَنْ تَوَفَّيْتَهُ مِنَّا فَتَوَفَّهُ عَلَى الْإِيمَانِ، اللَّهُمَّ لَا تَحْرِمْنَا أَجْرَهُ، وَلَا تُضِلَّنَا بَعْدَهُ

It is ideal to use these Du’as that the prophet ﷺ taught us. However, scholars allow to make generic Du’as on the deceased in a heartfelt way, in a sincere way within this short Takbīr to Takbīr.

Allaahum-maghfir lahu warhamhu, wa ‘aafihi, wa’fu ‘anhu, wa ‘akrim nuzulahu, wa wassi’ mudkhalahu, waghsilhu bilmaa’i waththalji walbaradi, wa naqqihi minal-khataayaa kamaa naqqaytath-thawbal-‘abyadha minad-danasi, wa ‘abdilhu daaran khayran min daarihi, wa ‘ahlan khayran min ‘ahlihi, wa zawjan khayran min zawjihi, wa ‘adkhilhul-jannata, wa. ‘a’ithhu min ‘athaabil-qabri [wa ‘athaabin-naar].

O Allah, forgive our living ones, our dead ones, our present ones, our absent ones [those who are present and those who are absent], our young ones, our elderly ones, our males and our females. O Allah, whomever You have decreed to live among us, let them live upon faith, and whomever You have decreed to take from us, then let them die upon faith. O God, do not deprive us of his reward, and do not mislead us after him. [Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim]

هُمَّ اغْفِرْ لَهُ، وَارْحَمْهُ، وَعَافِهِ، وَاعْفُ عَنْهُ، وَأَكْرِمْ نُزُلَهُ، وَوَسِّعْ مُدْخَلَهُ، وَاغْسِلْهُ بِالْمَاءِ وَالثَّلْجِ وَالْبَرَدِ، وَنَقِّهِ مِنَ الْخَطَايَا كَمَا نَقَّيْتَ الثَّوْبَ الْأَبْيَضَ مِنَ الدَّنَسِ، وَأَبْدِلْهُ دَارًا خَيْرًا مِنْ دَارِهِ، وَأَهْلًا خَيْرًا مِنْ أَهْلِهِ، وَأَدْخِلْهُ الْجَنَّةَ، وَقِهِ فِتْنَةَ الْقَبْرِ وَعَذَابَ النَّارِ

It is ideal to use these Du’as that the prophet ﷺ taught us. However, scholars allow to make generic Du’as on the deceased in a heartfelt way, in a sincere way within this short Takbīr to Takbīr.

4. After the Fourth Takbīr, you may remain silent or make Du’a for yourself and for the Ummah. And if you like you can even continue [repeat] to make Du’a for the deceased. One of the ways that the scholars mentioned in this fourth Takbīr : “allahumma laa tahrimna ajrahu wa laa tadhillana ba’dahu”.
“O Allah, do not forbid us of the reward and do not let us go astray after him”.

اللهم لا تحرمنا اجره و لا تضلنا بعده

And then there follows at taslīm, either one Taslīm or two Taslīms.

Why, what we recite?

The scholars mentioned a few reasons for what we recite in Ṣalāt al-Janāzah:

• Ṣalāt al-Janāzah is basically “a Salat that shortens”. If you pay attention, the way you begin your regular Salat is with Surat Al-Fātiḥah “alhamdu lillahi Rabbil Alameen”; with the [thana-a]. And the way you end your Salat, is with ṣalawāt on the prophet ﷺ.
• Another reason that the scholars mentioned is; the ingredients of an accepted Du’a. An accepted Du’a has: Hamd, praise of Allah ﷻ and it ends with ṣalawāt upon the prophet ﷺ And so, Ṣalāt al-Janāzah has the perfect formula of Du’a, by assuring that we have praise [athana-a], and that we have ṣalawāt upon the prophet ﷺ before we pray upon our loved ones and the ummah as a whole. [taslīmatàn].

 

Position of Imam in relation to the deceased

There is a minor difference about where to stand for man and woman. The majority position from Sunnah is that:

• If it is for a man, is for the imam to stand in line with his head: Narrated by al-Bukhaari, that Naafi ‘Abu Ghaalib al-Khayyaat said: “I saw Anas ibn Maalik offer the funeral prayer for a man, and he stood in line with his head”
• If he, the Imam is offering the funeral prayer for a woman, he should stand in line with her waist [middle]. Narrated Samurah bin Jundab; “I prayed behind the Prophet ﷺ over a woman who died in childbirth, and he stood opposite her waist [in line with her middle] ". [Sunan Abi Dawud]

 

Burial [Dafn]

It is disliked to delay Janāzah. The Islamic funerals are expected to be simple and quick. It is an Islamic recommendation to bury as soon as possible. You don’t have to keep the body for too long, you don’t have to keep the family grieving and waiting in this state of suspense, with a dead body not buried. This is like a way to undermine the family, as they cannot move on because they are stuck.
That is why the prophet called upon to hasten with the Janāzah:

Narrated Al-Husayn Ibn Wahwah: Talhah ibn al-Bara' fell ill and the Prophet (ﷺ) came to pay him a sick-visit. He said: I think Talhah has died; so, tell me [about his death], and make haste, for it is not advisable that the corpse of a Muslim should remain withheld among his family.
[Sunan Abi Dawud]

إِنِّي لاَ أَرَى طَلْحَةَ إِلاَّ قَدْ حَدَثَ فِيهِ الْمَوْتُ فَآذِنُونِي بِهِ وَعَجِّلُوا فَإِنَّهُ لاَ يَنْبَغِي لِجِيفَةِ مُسْلِمٍ أَنْ تُحْبَسَ بَيْنَ ظَهْرَانَىْ أَهْلِهِ

Narrated Abu Hurairah; The Prophet (ﷺ) as saying: “Walk quickly with a funeral, for if the dead person was good, it is a good condition to which you are sending him on, but if he was otherwise, it is an evil of which you are riding yourselves".
[Sunan Abu Dawud]

عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ، يَبْلُغُ بِهِ النَّبِيَّ ﷺ قَالَ أَسْرِعُوا بِالْجَنَازَةِ فَإِنْ تَكُ صَالِحَةً فَخَيْرٌ تُقَدِّمُونَهَا إِلَيْهِ وَإِنْ تَكُ سِوَى ذَلِكَ فَشَرٌّ تَضَعُونَهُ عَنْ رِقَابِكُمْ

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