The Book of Prayer - Funerals
كتاب الجنائز
Chapter 20: The deceased who is spoken well of and the one who is spoken badly of
There passed a bier (being carried by people) and it was lauded in good terms. Upon this the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: It has become certain, it has become certain, it has become certain. And there passed a bier and it was condemned in bad words. Upon this the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: It has become certain, it has become certain, it has become certain. 'Umar said: May my father and mother be ransom for you! There passed a bier and it was praised in good terms, and you said: It has become certain, it has become certain, it has become certain. And there passed a bier and it was condemned in bad words, and you said: It has become certain, it has become certain, it has become certain. Upon this the Messenger of Allah (way peace be upon him) said: He whom you praised in good terms, Paradise has become certain for him, and he whom you condemned in bad words, Hell has become certain for him. You are Allah's witnesses in the earth, you are Allah's witnesses in the earth, you are Allah's witnesses in the earth.
This hadith has been narrated through another chain of transmitters.
Chapter 22: Saying the takbir over the deceased
A brother of yours has died; so stand up and offer prayer for him, i. e. Negus. And in the hadith transmitted by Zubair (the words are):" Your brother."
Chapter 23: Praying over the grave
Anas reported that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) observed prayer on the grave.
The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) recited thus.
Chapter 24: Standing for funerals
Should any one of you come across a funeral procession, and if he does not intend to accompany it, he must stand up until it passes by him or is placed upon the ground before it passes him.
Chapter 25: Abrogation of standing for funerals
Verily, the Prophet (ﷺ) used to stand first but later on kept sitting; but it is also narrated that Nafi' ibn Jubair saw Waqid b. 'Amr standing for a bier till it was placed down.
I heard from Mas'ud b. al-Hakam who narrated it on the authority of Hadrat 'Ali that he said: We saw the Prophet (ﷺ) stood up for a (bier) and we also stood up; he sat down and we too sat down.
Chapter 27: Where the Imam should stand in relation to the deceased when performing the funeral prayer
This hadith has been narrated by Husain with the same chain of transmitters, but no mention is made of Umm Ka'b.
Chapter 28: Riding back after the funeral
then an unsaddled horse was brought to him and a person hobbled it, and he (the Messenger of Allah) rode upon it and it bounded and we followed it and ran after it. One of the people said that the Prophet (ﷺ) remarked: How many among hanging bunches in the Paradise are meant for Ibn Dahdah?
Chapter 30: Putting a piece of velvet in the grave
Ibn 'Abbas said that a piece of red stuff was put in the grave of Allah's Messenger (ﷺ).
Chapter 31: The command to level the grave
Should I not send you on the same mission as Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) sent me? Do not leave an image without obliterating it, or a high grave without levelling It. This hadith has been reported by Habib with the same chain of transmitters and he said: (Do not leave) a picture without obliterating it.
Chapter 32: The prohibition of plastering graves or erecting structures over them
Jabir said that he was forbidden to plaster graves.
Chapter 33: Prohibition against sitting and praying on graves
A hadith like this has been narrated by Suhail with the same chain of transmitters.
Chapter 34: Offering the funeral prayer in the masjid
How soon the people have forgotten that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) offered not the funeral prayer of Suhail b al-Baida' but in a mosque.
Chapter 36: The prophet (saws) asked his Lord for permission to visit the grave of his mother
I sought permission to beg forgiveness for my mother, but He did not grant it to me. I sought permission from Him to visit her grave, and He granted it (permission) to me.
Chapter 26: Supplicating for the deceased during the (funeral) prayer
I heard it from 'Auf b. Malik that the Prophet (ﷺ) said prayer on the dead body, and I remembered his prayer:" O Allah! forgive him, have mercy upon him, give him peace and absolve him. Receive him with honour and make his grave spacious; wash him with water, snow and hail. Cleanse him from faults as Thou wouldst cleanse a white garment from impurity. Requite him with an abode more excellent than his abode, with a family better than his family, and with a mate better than his mate. Admit him to the Garden, and protect him from the torment of the grave and the torment of the Fire." ('Auf bin Malik) said: I earnestly desired that I were this dead body.
Chapter 27: Where the Imam should stand in relation to the deceased when performing the funeral prayer
I prayed behind the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) and he prayed for a woman who had died in the state of delivery. He stood in front of her waist.
Chapter 31: The command to level the grave
When we were with Fadala b. 'Ubaid in the country of the Romans at a place (known as) Rudis, a friend of ours died. Fadala b. 'Ubaid ordered to prepare a grave for him and then it was levelled; and then he said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) commanding (us) to level the grave.
Chapter 35: What is to be said when entering the graveyard and supplicating for its occupants
Should I not narrate to you (a hadith of the Holy Prophet) on my authority and on the authority of my mother? We thought that he meant the mother who had given him birth. He (Muhammad b. Qais) then reported that it was 'A'isha who had narrated this: Should I not narrate to you about myself and about the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ)? We said: Yes. She said: When it was my turn for Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) to spend the night with me, he turned his side, put on his mantle and took off his shoes and placed them near his feet, and spread the corner of his shawl on his bed and then lay down till he thought that I had gone to sleep. He took hold of his mantle slowly and put on the shoes slowly, and opened the door and went out and then closed it lightly. I covered my head, put on my veil and tightened my waist wrapper, and then went out following his steps till he reached Baqi'. He stood there and he stood for a long time. He then lifted his hands three times, and then returned and I also returned. He hastened his steps and I also hastened my steps. He ran and I too ran. He came (to the house) and I also came (to the house). I, however, preceded him and I entered (the house), and as I lay down in the bed, he (the Holy Prophet) entered the (house), and said: Why is it, O 'A'isha, that you are out of breath? I said: There is nothing. He said: Tell me or the Subtle and the Aware would inform me. I said: Messenger of Allah, may my father and mother be ransom for you, and then I told him (the whole story). He said: Was it the darkness (of your shadow) that I saw in front of me? I said: Yes. He gave me a nudge on the chest which I felt, and then said: Did you think that Allah and His Apostle would deal unjustly with you? She said: Whatsoever the people conceal, Allah will know it. He said: Gabriel came to me when you saw me. He called me and he concealed it from you. I responded to his call, but I too concealed it from you (for he did not come to you), as you were not fully dressed. I thought that you had gone to sleep, and I did not like to awaken you, fearing that you may be frightened. He (Gabriel) said: Your Lord has commanded you to go to the inhabitants of Baqi' (to those lying in the graves) and beg pardon for them. I said: Messenger of Allah, how should I pray for them (How should I beg forgiveness for them)? He said: Say, Peace be upon the inhabitants of this city (graveyard) from among the Believers and the Muslims, and may Allah have mercy on those who have gone ahead of us, and those who come later on, and we shall, God willing, join you.