Steps
When death approaches
Turn the person to face the qiblah and prompt them gently to say the shahādah — do not force or press. «Prompt your dying to say: lā ilāha illallāh.»
Bukhārī & Muslim
Closing the eyes
Close the eyes and say: «Allahumma innī aʿūdhu bika min al-ʿajz wal-kasal.» Pray for forgiveness for the deceased.
Bukhārī & Muslim
Washing (ghusl)
Wash the body three times with water and lotus leaves (sidr), comb the hair, and apply perfume. A man washes a man, a woman washes a woman; a spouse may wash the other.
Bukhārī & Muslim
Shrouding (kafan)
Wrap in three white cotton sheets for men, and five for women. Avoid extravagance — «the shroud should be simple and clean.»
Bukhārī & Muslim
The Janāzah prayer
Pray over the deceased standing (no rukūʿ or sujūd) — four takbīrs: after the first, recite al-Fātiḥah; after the second, send ṣalawāt; after the third, duʿā for the deceased; after the fourth, duʿā and salām.
Bukhārī & Muslim
The burial
Place the body in the grave on the right side facing the qiblah; say: «Bismillāh wa ʿalā millati rasūlillāh.» Fill with earth and pray for its firmness: «Allahumma ithbithu.»
Bukhārī & Muslim
Condolences (taʿziyah)
Offer patience to the family; feed the family rather than expecting them to host. «Prepare food for the family of Jaʿfar, for there has come to them what preoccupies them.»
Abū Dāwūd, Ibn Mājah
After the burial
Stay at the grave and make duʿā for the deceased — the deceased hears the footsteps of his companions as they leave, and the angels ask him questions while he is questioned.
Sunan, Abū Dāwūd
Duʿās
اللَّهُمَّ اغْفِرْ لَهُ، اللَّهُمَّ ثَبِّتْهُ
At the grave (for the deceased)
O Allah, forgive him; O Allah, make him firm — said after placing the deceased in the grave.
Abū Dāwūd, Muslim
اللَّهُمَّ اغْفِرْ لَهُ وَارْحَمْهُ وَعَافِهِ وَاعْفُ عَنْهُ وَأَكْرِمْ نُزُلَهُ وَوَسِّعْ مُدْخَلَهُ
In Janāzah prayer (after first takbīr)
O Allah, forgive him, have mercy on him, grant him wellbeing, pardon him, honor his reception, and widen his entrance.
Muslim
اللَّهُمَّ اجْعَلْهُ فَرَطًا لَنَا وَأَجْرًا وَذُخْرًا وَاجْعَلْهُ لَنَا شَفِيعًا مُشَفَّعًا
For a child (Janāzah)
O Allah, make him a forerunner, a reward, a treasure, and an accepted intercessor for us.
Bukhārī
إِنَّا لِلَّهِ وَإِنَّا إِلَيْهِ رَاجِعُونَ، اللَّهُمَّ أْجُرْنِي فِي مُصِيبَتِي وَأَخْلِفْ لِي خَيْرًا مِنْهَا
When struck by affliction
To Allah we belong and to Him we return. O Allah, reward me in my affliction and replace it with better.
Muslim
Rules & Etiquette
Haste
Do not delay the burial — the Prophet ﷺ said to hasten the funeral. If the deceased was righteous, you are bringing them closer to good.
Bukhārī & Muslim
Simplicity
Avoid lavish displays; a simple white shroud is Sunnah. «Do not exaggerate in the shroud, for it will be quickly consumed.»
Abū Dāwūd
Following the bier
Whoever follows the bier earns a qirāṭ; praying the Janāzah earns two qirāṭs — «the lesser is like Mount Uḥud.»
Bukhārī & Muslim
Women at funerals
Women may attend the Janāzah prayer but should not follow the bier to the grave, per the Prophet's ﷺ practice.
Bukhārī & Muslim
Wailing is forbidden
«The deceased is punished in his grave for the wailing over him» — wailing, tearing clothes, and slapping cheeks are forbidden.
Bukhārī & Muslim