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Sylvia Villeda
Professor Bobo
HUM-18
26 May 2020
Islamic Death Rituals

Islam, a religion that shares characteristics with Judaism and Christianity is unique in its concept

of death, the process of dying and mourning. Just as other religions, there is not a single form of

Islam. Muslims have different beliefs that vary within their communities, this is manifested in

the subdivisions of Islam. These beliefs may reveal themselves as ideologies, the way Muslims

interact with others or even the rituals they follow when someone in their community dies. In

western culture, when someone dies it will usually be the closest people to that person that will

mourn them. The opposite is true for Islam, it is not uncommon for people who were not very

close to the deceased to show up for a funeral.

Muslims collectively believe in the afterlife; to them their present lives are only a trial where

they prepare for the next realm of existence (WAMY). After someone dies, it is believed that

person will be held accountable for their actions in life. Those who have suffered for God will be

shown mercy and those who have done wrong in his judgement will be punished. Determining if

there is effectively a life post-mortem is not up to science because in the views of Islam this is a

divine revelation, and science only deals with data. The sacred text Qu‘ran states that those who

question the afterlife have no reason for doing so, it is pure assumption (WAMY).

According to many Muslims the explanation given by the Qu’ran on the need for life and death

is sufficient to what the moral consciousness of a man requires. Islam says that if there were no

life after death then the very belief in God would have no meaning. Even if a person were to
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believe in God, it would be an unjust and indifferent God because he would be creating a man

with no concern for his fate (WAMY).

In Islam, the best way to be prepared for death is to practice dying while alive; this is called fana.

The purpose of fana is to concentrate the individual’s purpose on loving god everywhere, in

everyone and maintaining recollection upon God’s truth (Kramer 163). When a Muslim is

approaching death the community will stay close to them. The intent of this is to offer the dying

comfort and a reminder of God’s mercy and forgiveness (Huda). This done by providing

physical comfort, reciting verses from the Qu’ran and by encouraging the person to repent from

all earthly sins. The dying person will also recite prayers, most notably: “There is no God but

Allah and Muhammad is his Prophet” (Kramer 164). As the person dies, the people around him

or her are to remain calm and pray for the departed. In Islam it is permitted to cry and grieve at

funerals, but any loud weeping is looked down upon because even though loved one’s suffer

when someone dies, it was God’s desire to take the person.

Muslims are always buried, never cremated unless there is evidence of a significantly contagious

disease. In these cases, a judge must give approval for the cremation (Gatrad). When a person in

the Muslim community dies, it is of essence for funerary arrangements to be swift. For Muslims

living in western countries this can become a problem; western traditions and funerary services

are set up for mourning and in most cases the body is examined and prepared by professionals

before it can be buried. In the eastern world it is common for the body to be buried immediately,

in many cases without an autopsy or medical evaluation of any kind. Recently, there are new

Muslim funeral homes that focus on quick same day burials.

To begin these preparations, the deceased will be washed respectfully with clean and scented

water. Then the body will be wrapped in white cotton sheets called Kafan (Huda). This is
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typically done by lining up three sheets and wrapping them around the body; they are tied with

rope across the waist. After this cleanse, the body is transported to the place where the funeral

will take place, called salat-l-janazah, which is usually a courtyard where the community can

gather to say prayers. It is important to mention the ceremony will not take place inside a

mosque. Ceremonies are directed by the Imam which is the community’s spiritual leader. The

Imam will stand in front of the deceased, facing away from the worshipers while quietly reciting

the prayers. The first lines of worshipers will be the men. Typically, the women will stand in the

back. No one will bow during the funeral because in Islam one must only bow to God.

The importance of the afterlife is manifested in Islamic death rituals. The entire purpose of

having a funeral and saying prayers is to prepare the deceased for judgement and the afterlife.

Haji Roslan, an Imam from Singapore, makes sure that people in his community are provided

with appropriate rituals to ensure a passage to the afterlife. This is done through a dignified

funeral seen as an act of love. Once the funeral is over, the body is taken to the burial grounds.

When a Muslim is buried, it is important to place the body on its right side and the head pointing

towards Mecca. Roslan mentions that it is important to continue the prayers and beg God to

forgive the sins of the deceased. It is also important to not judge others for the life they lived

because Islam encourages seeking forgiveness for one’s sins. Also, as an Imam he believes that

God knows everyone’s actions and thoughts, so being judgmental could negatively impact

anyone’s chances of being shown mercy after death. These prayers are continued after the burial

is over as Muslims must pray every day. It is possible that in the absence of an Imam the oldest

male may perform the funeral ceremony. In eastern countries the dead will be buried by placing

the covered body into the ground. Finally, once the body is in the ground and prayers have been

recited, each person will proceed to drop three scoops of dirt with their hands into the tomb.
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Islamic rituals for the dead are unique because they involve an entire community, even people

who may not be close to the deceased. Muslims seek to die with honor and firmly believe they

will live beyond death. Dying with honor is a shared trait with other monotheistic religions such

as Christianity as well as the search for forgiveness. The greatest trait monotheistic religions

have in common is the idea of an afterlife and perhaps the biggest differences lie in the rituals for

death. Christians will mourn the body and will take several days for a burial or cremation

compared to a quick Islamic burial.

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Works cited

Gatrad, A R. “Muslim customs surrounding death, bereavement, postmortem examinations, and

organ transplants.” https://www.bmj.com/content/309/6953/521.full.

Huda. “Islamic Funeral Rites.” https://www.learnreligions.com/islamic-funeral-rites-2003758.

Kramer, Kenneth. “The sacred art of dying.” Ed. Paulist Press, 1988

Our Grandfather Story. “Understanding Islamic Funeral Rituals.” Youtube.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zKlzw45x9Hg.

World Assembly of Muslim Youth (WAMY). “How Do Muslims View Death?”

https://www.islam-guide.com/life-after-death-by-wamy.htm.