Death: Various traditions that follow Q143 :In our part of the world, when a person dies, particularly in old age, his family follows a number of traditions such as bring a number of people from a local Qur’anic school to read the Qur’an near his grave. They take turns in order to maintain a 24…

Death: Time of death Q142 :In some Muslim communities, when someone is very sick or dying, people sit beside him and read some verses from the Qur’an. Does this benefit the sick or dying person? May I also ask whether crying loudly near a deceased person is bad for him [the deceased]? A scholar in…

Death: Recitation for a deceased Q141 :If one recites a surah or passage of the Qur’an and finishes with supplication to Allah to forgive a deceased relative, is his action correct or not? Two Islamic magazines published in India have given opposite views on this issue. What is the best way of doing something to…

Death: Questions on death and burial Q140 :What should a dying person, if in his senses, do? What should anybody attending him do? What should be done by the family of the deceased? When the death occurs, what prayer is offered? Must the deceased be buried in a specified graveyard, or could he be buried…

Death: Questioning the cremated after death Q139 :It is authentically reported that when a person is buried after death, angels come to question him about his faith. How does this occur if the deceased has been cremated, drowned or fed to the vultures? A139 : You seem to accept that a person who is dead…

Death: Predetermined by Allah – the proper sense Q138 :Can we say that those who died in communal riots met their death as predetermined by Allah? If not, why? A138 : Of course these deaths have been predetermined by Allah. Indeed, every death is so predetermined. How else can you describe a man’s death in…

Death: Mourning Q137 :When a member of the family dies, what sort of mourning is allowed? A137 : Different societies have different customs and traditions associated with death in the family. In non-Islamic societies, there are visible signs of mourning which are supposed to convey grief. People, especially women, should wear black for a certain…

Death: Life after death Q136 :Could you please explain what happens to believers and non-believers when they die? A136 : Death is a stage which occurs when the spirit departs from the body to make it lifeless. As Muslims, we believe in the resurrection when the body and the spirit will be reunited in the…

Death: In infancy Q135 :You have in the past quoted a Hadith which states that children who die in their infancy try to get their parents admitted into heaven. May I ask how about parents who deliberately kill their children, either through abortion or some other way. Also what about the children of non-Muslim parents?…

Death: From hunger Q134 :I have been asked to put this question to you: While Allah has promised to feed each and everyone born in this world, why do hundreds and thousands of people die of starvation in Africa and other parts of the world? What about their promised provision? A134 : Yes, Allah has…