Death & Burial

Death may be a taboo topic for many but for the people at Pengurusan Jenazah Sinaran Baharu, death is a part of their profession as they facilitate Islamic funerals every day.

Returning to Allah

Every day, Muslims remember that there is a life to come after death and what they do in this life will determine what happens to them when they die. For Muslims, death ushers in the next stage of existence known as barzakh, life in the grave. In Islam, the soul and the body are independent of each other. This is significant in barzakh, because only a person's soul goes to barzakh and not their physical body. Since one's soul is divorced from their body in barzakh, the belief is that no progress or improvements to one's past life can be made. According to the Quran (23:100), almost every human spirit goes into barzakh, and the barzakh state will last for the spirit until the day of resurrection.

Preparing for Death

The immortal soul separates from the body and is interrogated by two angels, Nakir and Munkar. To assist in preparation for dying and their encounter with the angels a person has the Shahadah whispered into their ear, or if he or she is able to, they should say the Shahadah themselves. Family members remain with the dying adherent, reading verses from the Qur'an. When death does arrive they recite the following verse from the Qur'an:

"We belong to Allah and to Him we shall return"

(Qur'an 2:156)

After Death

As soon as possible after death, the body is washed three times by relatives of the same gender as the deceased, and it is then wrapped in a white cloth. The body is then taken to an outdoor location, sometimes near the mosque, where Muslims will stand and offer prayers for the forgiveness of the deceased and that they may find peace and happiness in the world to come.

The body is buried as soon as possible after death. It is laid on its side with three mounds of soil under the head, the chin and the shoulder. The head faces towards Mecca. The imam leads the service and stands beside the corpse with everyone facing Mecca. The official prayer for the dead - salat al-Jenazah - is said for all Muslims who have dies, including infants who die in childbirth.

In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful. Praise be to Allah, Lord of the Worlds. The Beneficent, the Merciful. Owner of the Day of Judgement, You alone we worship; You alone we ask for help. Show us the straight path, the path of those whom You favoured, not of those who earn Your anger nor of those who go astray.

(Quran 1:1-7)

Mufti Menk explains the process of Islamic funeral rights.

Funeral Customs

Funeral processions should be simple, avoiding idolatry. Placing flowers, candles or any objects on the grave is forbidden as the dead person needs nothing.

Mourning Customs

There is usually a three-day mourning period, except for a widow who should mourn for 10 days (iddah). The widow should not wear jewelery, move house or marry during this 10-day period.

For a Muslim, death is the end of life on Earth but not the end of a person's existence. When a person dies, Muslims believe they enter an intermediate phase in the grave, waiting for Yawm al-Din or the Day of Judgement, when Allah will raise the body. This is why Muslims generally do not practise cremation.

On the Day of Judgement, Muslims believe that:

all people will be judged by Allah
everyone will be raised from the grave and will have their faith in Allah and their earthly good and bad deeds weighed up
those who can cross the bridge over Hell (known as Sirat), carrying their book of life, will enter Paradise and gain eternal happiness
those who cannot cross the bridge will fall into Hell forever

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