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 in a residential area? What are the duties of the family of the
deceased before and after burial?
A140 : If death approaches and the person is able
to speak, he should say the declaration that he believes in the Oneness
of Allah. This is the one known as “the kalimah” in many Muslim
countries. If he says it by himself, well and good. If not, then anyone
who is attending him should try to get him to say it. If the dying
person is unable to speak, he may make the declaration mentally. If you
are attending a dying person, you must not insist on him saying the
declaration, because he may be in pain or may not be in full control of
his powers. Insistence may cause him to say something unbeneting. If he
did it once, that is well and good. You do not try to make him say it
again unless he speaks of other things. In this case, you say the
declaration again to him, implying that he should say it, so that his
last word be the declaration. Although some scholars are of the view
that the full declaration is to be prompted to the dying person, most
of them say that it is sufficient to prompt him to say: “There is no
deity save Allah.” It is renetmended to make him lie down facing the
qiblah [which should be as he is turned to his right). It is also
renetmended to read the surah entitled “Ya’Seen” in front of a dying
person, not after his death. When the death is confirmed, his eyes
should be closed and he should be covered. His family should
immediately start preparing for his burial. He should be washed and
wrapped before offering the special prayer for the deceased (i.e.
Janazah prayer) and burying him. His debts should be paid off as soon
as possible from his own property. If he dies insolvent, his debts may
be paid from the zakah funds of the Muslim netmunity. His family
should show patience and pray Allah to reward him for their acceptance
of His will with patience and perseverance. The Prophet renetmends us
to say this supplication when we suffer the death of a close relative:
“To Allah we belong and to Him we return. My Lord, reward me for my
tragedy and netpensate me with better than I have lost.” (Related by
Ahmad and Muslim). It is renetmended to inform the deceased’s
relatives and friends of his death. It is permissible to weep for his
loss, without shouting or wailing. No woman may wear mourning clothes
for any relative for more than three days. The only exception is her
husband for whom she may be in mourning dress throughout her mourning
period, which lasts four months and ten days, unless she is pregnant
when it lasts until her delivery. Preparing for burial starts with
washing the deceased which is a duty incumbent upon the Muslim
netmunity. If some of them fulfill it, the others are released of their
duty. If none of them washes the body of a deceased Muslim, all of them
incur a sin. Washing is with water. It is sufficient to wash the
deceased once, but is more preferable to wash his or her body three
times with soap and water. If any impurity has fallen on the body of
the deceased, it should be removed first. Only those who are needed for
the washing should attend and they do not publicize any secret they may
find out. The deceased should be undressed but his private parts should
remain covered during washing. When the washing is finished, the body
is dried with a clean dress or cloth other than his wrappers. Some
perfumes are used before the body is wrapped in full. It should be
noted here that a fighter who is killed in battle by non-believers need
not be washed. He is to be wrapped in his own clothes and buried. It
is a netmunity duty to have the deceased person wrapped in clean
dresses or clothes, preferably white in color. It is renetmended to
have three layers for a deceased man and five for a deceased woman.
Silk may not be used to wrap a deceased man with, but it is permissible
as wrapper for a deceased woman. Although most scholars discourage
that. Prayer for the deceased (i.e. Janazah prayer) is preferably led
by his nearest relative. Prayer for the deceased consist of four
glorifications of Allah, i.e. takbeer, with the imam only saying
“Allahu Akbar” loudly. After the first one, the imam and everybody
else, reads AL-Fatiha. After the second one, we read the greeting to
the Prophet which we normally say in the second part of Tashahhud in
ordinary prayers. After the third one, we offer a supplication on
behalf of the deceased praying Allah to forgive him all his sins and to
admit him into heaven. After the fourth, we have a general supplication
for all Muslims. The deceased is then taken for burial. People should
walk quietly without reading anything loudly, even though it may be
from the Qur’an or glorification of Allah. The grave should be deep
enough to prevent any bad smell neting out and to stop animals digging
the body up. It is renetmended that when the grave is filled up, it
should be elevated from the ground by not more than 25 to 30 cm, so
that it is known to be a grave. Elevating it higher is not permissible.
It is by far preferable to bury Muslims in graveyards, although it is
permissible to bury a dead person at home. Following the Prophet’s
Sunnah is more preferable. He ordered the burial of his netpanions in
the graveyard known as “Al Baqee”. Offering condolences to the family
of the deceased is renetmended. It is discouraged for the relatives of
the deceased to stay at a particular place to accept condolences. These
should be offered when the relatives are met. It is also renetmended
to visit graves and graveyards. When you arrive at the grave of a
deceased relative, you stand at the head of the grave and pray for the
dead person. Most scholars agree that it is also permissible for women
to visit graves, but they are forbidden from wailing and crying loudly.
Our Dialogue ( Source : Arab News – Jeddah )