Part 31

comes next the closest female relative to the deceased, then the closer, and so on and so forth.

In general, a body of a deceased woman is to be washed by a woman, and that of a man by a man, in the aforesaid sequence. Still, it is permissible for a husband to wash the body of his dead wife and vice versa, for Aba Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him), as mentioned above, stated in his will to be washed by his wife. In addition, * Ali Ibn Aba Talib (may Allah be pleased with him) washed the body of Fatimah (his wife). The same is also reported to have been done by many other Companions”.

Besides, it is permissible for men and women to wash the body of a young child under seven years, whether male or female. Ibnul-Mundhir said, “Al! scholars, at whose hands we have learnt, unanimously agree that it is permissible for the woman to wash the body of a young boy.” This is because nothing of the young boy’s body - who is under seven - is regarded as ‘awrah”' in his life, so this should be the case after his death also. To illustrate, the body of Ibrahim, the baby son of the Prophet (PBUH), was washed by women when he died. However, it is impermissible for a woman to wash the body of a deceased seven-year-old boy or upwards, and for a man to wash the body of a deceased seven-year-old girl or upwards.

It is also impermissible for a Muslim to wash the dead body of a disbeliever, carry his coffin to the grave, enshroud his body, perform the Funeral Prayer over him, or attend his funeral procession. This is because Allah, Exalted be He, says:

“O you who have believed, do not make allies of a people with whom Allah has become angry...” (Qur'an: Al-Mumtahinah: 13)

The general meaning of the verse indicates that it is prohibited to wash the body ofa deceased disbeliever, carry his coffin, or follow his funeral procession. In addition, Allah, Exalted be He, says:

“And do not pray [the Funeral Prayer, O Muhammad, ] over any of them who has died - ever - or stand at his grave. Indeed, they disbelieved in Allah...” (Qur'an: At-Tawbah: 84)

“It is not for the Prophet and those who have believed to ask forgiveness for the polytheists...”. | (Qur'an: At-Tawbah: 113)

Thus, it is impermissible for Muslims to bury the body of a disbeliever, yet if there is no fellow disbeliever to bury him, a Muslim should throw his body into a hole so that it causes no harm to others. That was done by the Muslims to the bodies of the polytheists killed in the Battle of Badr, when they threw them into the well of Al-Qalib. The same applies to apostates, like one who abandoned prayer intentionally and one who innovated a bid‘ah (a matter innovated in religion) that leads to disbelief.

That should always be the Muslim's attitude toward a disbeliever, which indicates denial and hatred. Reporting the story of Prophet Ibrahim (Abraham) and those who believed with him, Allah reveals:

“When they said to their people, Indeed, we are disassociated from you and from whatever you worship other than Allah. We have denied you, and there has appeared between us and you animosity and hatred forever until you believe in Allah Alone...”

“You will not find a people who believe in Allah and the Last Day having affection for those who oppose Allah and His Messenger, even if they were their fathers or their sons or their brothers or their kindred...” (Qur'an: Al-Mujadilah: 22)

This is because of the enmity existing between faith and disbelief, and because of that hatred born by the disbelievers toward Allah, His Messengers (peace be upon them all), and His Religion. Thereupon, it is impermissible for Muslims to support the disbelievers, whether alive or dead. We invoke Allah to make our hearts firm in sticking to the truth, and to guide us to His straight path.

On the other hand, when washing the body of a deceased Muslim the water used must be pure and legally permissible, and it is better to be cool. Yet, there is no harm in using hot water to remove any dirt from the body of the deceased, or in case of extremely cold weather, Besides, washing the deceased must be carried out in a sheltered, roofed place so that the deceased cannot be seen by others (except the washer), such as a house, a tent or the like, if possible.

It is obligatory to cover the parts between the navel and the knees of the deceased body before washing, then the whole body is to be uncovered (except the aforementioned parts). After that, the deceased is to be laid down in a sloping position on the washing (wooden) bed so that water and whatever comes out of the deceased's body flows down.

Washing the body of the deceased must be attended only by the washer and those assisting him; it is detestable for anyone else to attend the washing. The washer should raise the head of the deceased that the latter becomes in a semi-sitting position. Then, he passes his hand over the deceased’s abdomen pressing it gently to allow anything withheld therein (such as excrements) to come out. While so doing, he should pour much water over the body to overflow and remove such excrements coming out (if any). After that, the washer wraps his hand with a coarse piece of cloth and cleans the stool and urine exits and the anus of the deceased with water.

After that, the washer declares his intention of washing the deceased, says tasmiyah (saying, “Bismillah” i.e. “In the Name of Allah”), and purifies the dead person with the ablution performed for prayer, As for rinsing the mouth and the nose with water, it is sufficient to wipe over the teeth and nostrils with two wet fingers or pass a wet piece of cloth over them without letting any water enter the dead person's mouth or nostrils, Then, the washer washes the head and beard of the deceased with sidr” or soap. The washer then starts washing the deceased’s body beginning with the right parts; he should first wash the right part of his neck, his right hand and shoulder, the right half of his chest, the right thigh, the right leg, and the right foot. After that, the washer rolls the deceased body to its left side and washes the right side of his back. Then the washer rolls him on his right side and washes the left side of his back in the same way.

During washing the deceased, the washer is to use sidr or soap, and it is desirable to wrap his hand at this time with a piece of cloth. It is obligatory to wash the deceased at least once, provided his body is thereby well purified, but it is desirable to wash him thrice. If the body of the deceased is still impure, it is permissible to wash him up till seven times. It is also desirable to use camphor in the last wash, as it makes the body stiff, fragrant, and cool. Besides, camphor is to be used at the last wash so that its effect remains.

Afterwards, the washer dries the body with a garment or the like, then cuts the moustache and clips the nails, if long, and removes the hair of the armpits, bearing in mind to keep all the cut hair and clipped nails to be put with the deceased in his shroud. As for a deceased woman, her hair is to be braided into three braids falling down backwards.

Sometimes it is difficult to wash the deceased because water is unavailable or for fear that his body would be torn apart because of washing, such as the cases when the deceased is a leper, or one killed by fire, or a woman whose husband is not present to wash her, or a man whose wife is not present to

wash him. In such cases, tayammum (performing dry ablution with clean earth) is to be performed for the deceased, wiping over the deceased's face and two palms with clean earth, using a piece of cloth or the like to hinder the washer’s direct contact with the deceased's body. However, if it is difficult to wash only certain parts of the deceased's body, the washer then is to wash what is available and perform tayammum for those unwashed parts. It is desirable for the washer to have a ritual bathing following washing the deceased, yet it is not obligatory to do so.

After washing and drying the body of the deceased, it is to be put in a shroud that must cover all his body. It is desirable to use a white clean shroud, whether new - which is better - or not. The obligatory size of the shroud is that which covers the whole body of the deceased.

It is desirable to shroud the deceased man in three shrouds of cloth and the woman in five pieces of cloth; a loincloth, a veil, a shirt, and two shrouds. As for deceased children, a boy is to be shrouded in one shroud, yet three are permissible, and a girl in one shirt and two shrouds. It is also desirable to subject the shroud to a censer, after being sprinkled with rose water or the like, so that the scent of incense would remain in the shroud.

The man is to be shrouded by spreading the three shrouds over each other, and then he is to be brought covered with a garment or the like as it is obligatory to be covered, and to be put lying with his face upwards on the three shrouds. Then a perfumed piece of cotton is to be put between the buttocks covering the anus of the deceased and fastened by tying a piece of cloth. Other similar perfumed cotton pieces are to be put on the eyes, nostrils, mouth, ears, the parts of prostration (i.e. the forehead and the nose, both hands, both knees, and the bottom of the toes), under the armpits, the inner parts of the knees, and on the navel. The washer should also apply some perfume between the shrouds and to the head.

After that, the washer wraps the left side of the upper shroud (on which the deceased is lying face up) over the right side and its right side over his left side. Then the same is to be done with the second and the third shrouds; the superfluous parts of the shrouds should be longer toward the head than the feet. Then such remaining parts toward the head are to be gathered and put over his face and those toward his feet over his feet. Afterwards, belts of cloth are tied around the shrouds so as not to unwrap or loosen in the grave.

As for a deceased woman, as mentioned above, she is to be shrouded in five pieces of cloth: a loincloth, a shirt, a veil, and two shrouds.

After washing and shrouding the deceased, the Funeral Prayer is to be performed over him, Aba Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated:

‘Allah’s Messenger (PBUH) said, ‘Whoever attends the funeral procession until he performs the Funeral Prayer for it will get a reward equal to one qirat, and whoever accompanies it until burial will get a reward equal to two girdts. It was asked, ‘What are two girdts?’ He (the Prophet) replied, ‘(They are) like two huge mountains (of reward). ”

Performing the Funeral Prayer over the deceased is a collective duty; if performed by some of those in the neighborhood of the deceased, the rest of them will not be accountable for it; it is still an act of the Sunnah (Prophetic Tradition) to be observed by the rest of them. Yet, if all abandoned it, it will be asin upon them all.

The conditions of the Funeral Prayer: 1-Intention; one must have the intention of performing it. 2-Facing the qiblah 3-Concealing one’s ‘awrah when performing it 4-The ritual purity of both the one performing it and the deceased 5Avoidance of any physical impurity 6-Both the one performing it and the deceased must be Muslims.

7-Attending the funeral procession after offering the Funeral Prayer if they are in the neighborhood

8-Being legally accountable The integral parts of the Funeral Prayer: 1-Standing upright 2-Saying four takbirs™ 3-Reciting the surah of Al-Fatiah (the Opening Chapter of the Quran)

4-Asking Allah to confer His blessing upon the Prophet (PBUH) 5-Praying for the deceased 6-Performing these integral parts in sequence 7-Ending the prayer with taslim”

The acts of the Sunnah observed in the Funeral Prayer: 1-Raising the hands upon saying each takbir

2-Seeking refuge with Allah (from the accursed Satan) before reciting Al-Fatihah

3-Invoking Allah for oneself and for all Muslims 4-Being quiet while reciting 5-Having a short pause after the fourth takbir and before taslim

6-Putting one’s right hand over the left with both on the chest following each takbir

7-Turning to the right when saying taslim The Way the Funeral Prayer is Performed

The Funeral Prayer is to be performed in the following way: The imam (the one who leads the congregational prayer), or one performing it alone over a deceased person, should stand toward the chest of the deceased if a man and toward her middle if a woman. As for those led in prayer, they should stand behind the idm, and it is an act of the Sunnah to stand in three rows. One begins with saying the opening takbir and then seeks refuge with Allah (from Satan) directly following saying takbir - without saying the opening invocation - then one recites Basmalah™ and the surah of Al-Fatihah. After that, one is to say the second takbir and ask Allah to confer His blessings upon the Prophet (PBUH) just as it is recited in Tashahhud. Then, one is to say the third takbir and pray Allah for the deceased with the invocations reported to have been observed by the Prophet (PBUH) in this regard; the following is derived from such Prophetic invocations:

“O Allah! Forgive those of us who are living and those of us who are dead, those of us who are present and those of us who are absent, our young and our old, and our male and our female. Verily, You know our return and our residence and You are over all things

Omnipotent. O Allah! To whomsoever of us You give life, grant him life as a follower of Islam, and whomsoever of us You cause death, cause him death as a believer. O Allah! Do not withhold from us the reward (for showing patience upon his death) and do not leave us to go astray after him (i.e. after his death)”. O Allah! Forgive him, have mercy upon him, give him peace, pardon him, receive him with honor, make his grave spacious and wash him with water, ice and snow. Cleanse him from sins and faults as a white garment is cleansed from impurity. Requite him with an abode that is more excellent than his abode and with a mate better than his mate. Admit him to Paradise, and protect him from the torture of the grave (or ‘the torment of the Fire’ according to another narration),”

If the deceased is a female, the invocation will be thus, “O Allah! Forgive her...”, referring to her in the whole invocation.

On the other hand, if the deceased is a child, the invocation will be as follows:

“O Allah! Make him precede his parents (to Paradise) and (let him be) saved, grant him (divine reward) and make him an accepted intercessor for them. O Allah! Make their scales heavy (with good deeds) by him, and make their reward greater for (showing patience for) him, and join him with the righteous believers, and let him be in the care of Ibrahim (Prophet Abraham), and protect him with Your Mercy from the punishment of the Fire...”"

Afterwards, those performing the Prayer over the deceased must say takbir and wait a little then say one tasfim, turning their faces to the right.

As for the one who misses a part of the Funeral Prayer, he should join the prayer performing what is left thereof with the congregation led by the imam. Then, when the imam ends prayer with taslim, one can perform the part one has missed in the same manner performed in this prayer. However, if one fears that people may carry the coffin and leave immediately after the (Funeral) Prayer and thus one misses the funeral procession, one can just say the missing takbirs successively, saying nothing in between, then end the prayer with taslim. On the other hand, if one misses performing the Funeral Prayer over the deceased before the burial, one can perform it at his grave. As for those who are not present in the town of the deceased and are informed of his death, they are to perform the Absent Prayer with the intention of performing the Funeral Prayer over the deceased.