Islam is a religion that has laws for all things in the life of a Muslim. These laws and guidelines assist Muslims in living a life pleasing to Allah and in ensuring that every one of their actions is aligned with their akhirah. Such is the case with the Janazah prayer.
What Is The Janazah Prayer?
Salatul Janazah, also known as the Janazah Prayer or the Prayer of the Funeral, is a Muslim prayer for bidding farewell to the deceased. It is a prayer offered before the burial.
It is like a normal prayer, but consists only of four takbirs instead of rakats. The prayer is led by an imam, and the people pray behind him, and the body of the deceased is placed before the imam.
It serves as a reminder that each Muslim has to go through this at the end of their lives and helps in ensuring one remembers that there is a whole other life they should prepare for instead of being busy chasing this dunya.
Praying The Janazah
- Start the prayer by saying Takbir (Allahu akbar), then seek refuge with Allah from the devil. Follow it up with Bismillah ir-Rahman ir-Rahim and recite Surah Al-Fatiha.
- Again, say Takbir and send salawaat upon the Prophet PBUH by reciting durood, just as one does at the end of the prayer.
- Then say a third Takbir and make dua for the deceased.
- In the end, say the fourth and last takbir and take a little pause. After this, recite Taslim one time to the right, saying, “Assalamu ‘alaykum wa rahmatullah.”
What To Recite For Dua For The Deceased?
Dua 01
When the Prophet PBUH offered the funeral prayer, he would recite the following dua:
‘Allahummaghfir lihayyina wa mayyitina, wa shahidina wa gha’ibina, wa saghirina wa kabirina, wa dhakarina wa unthana. Allahumma man ahyaitahu minna fa’ahyihi ‘alal-Islam, wa man tawaffaytahu minna fa tawaffahu ‘alal-iman. Allahumma la tahrimna ajrahu wa la tudillana ba’dah.
“O Allah, forgive our living and our dead, those who are present and those who are absent, our young and our old, our males and our females. O Allah, whomever of us You cause to live, let him live in Islam, and whomever of us You cause to die, let him die in (a state of) faith. O Allah, do not deprive us of his reward, and do not let us go astray after him.”
Dua 02
Allāhumma `abduka wabnu ‘amatik iḥtāja ilā raḥmatik, wa anta ghaniyyun `an `adhābih, in kāna muḥsinan fazid fī ḥasanātih, wa in kāna musī’an fatajāwaz `anh.
“O Allah, Your male slave and the child of Your female slave is in need of Your mercy, and You are not in need of his torment. If he was pious, then increase his rewards, and if he was a transgressor, then pardon him.”
Where To Pray The Funeral?
The sunnah is to pray the Janazah prayer in a place designated for funerals. In a hadith, it is stated:
“The Prophet PBUH informed people of the death of An-Najashi on the same day he died. Then the Prophet PBUH went towards the Musallah (the praying place), and people stood behind him in rows, and the Prophet PBUH offered the funeral prayer.”
But even if the prayer is performed in the mosque, there is nothing wrong with it, as the hadith states that people criticized offering the janazah prayer inside the mosque. When Aisha RA came to know about this, she said,
“How quick are people to criticize that about which they know little? They criticize us for carrying the Janazah inside the mosque. The Prophet PBUH didn’t offer the funeral prayer of Suhail b. Baida except in the mosque’s innermost part.”
Is Wudu Required For Praying Janazah?
For the Janazah prayer to be valid, the Muslim must be in a state of purity, since it is also a form of prayer. One of the pieces of evidence for the need for this purity is taken from the Quran, where Allah states:
“And never (O Muhammad) pray for one of them who dies, nor stand by his grave. Lo! They disbelieved in Allah and His messenger, and they died while they were evildoers.”
Because Allah called it “prayer.”
To achieve this purity, one needs to perform wudu or tayammum if water isn’t available or one isn’t able to use it. Some scholars also stated that it is permissible to perform Tayammum if one fears they might miss the janazah by taking too long to complete their wudu.
Is Janazah Prayed In Congregation?
The sunnah is to pray the janazah in congregation, as this was the way of the Prophet PBUH and his companions. But if one offers it individually, it is permissible.
An-Nawawi RA stated;
“It is permissible to pray it individually, but it is sunnah to pray it in congregation because of the hadith in which the Prophet PBUH stated, ‘If a Muslim dies and three rows of Muslims pray Janazah, then it will be his assurance of paradise
There are many other authentic hadiths, except this one, that indicate the greater the number of the congregation, the better it will be.
This is something that the schools of thought differ about. The Hanafis, Shafais, and Hanbalis state that the funeral prayer is valid even if the Janazah isn’t offered in congregation; rather, it is sunnah. Whereas the Malikis stated that one of the conditions for the Janazah to be valid is that it be prayed in congregation, as in the Friday prayer.
Is Janazah Prayer Obligatory?
The Janazah prayer is Fard-e-Kiayah, meaning it is a communal obligation. If some people undertake it, then the rest are absolved of the responsibility. But if none of the people do it, then all of them are guilty of sin.
Reward For Praying The Janazah
The reward for praying the Janazah and staying until the body is lowered to the ground is immense. There are many authentic hadiths stating the rewards for the one who attends the Janazah, such as:
Abu Huraira RA narrated that the Prophet PBUH stated, “Whoever attends the funeral procession until offering the prayer will have a reward equal to one Qirat. And whoever accompanies the funeral to the graveyard until the burial will have a reward equal to two Qirats.” He was asked, “What are two Qirats?” to which he replied, “Like two great mountains.”
“Abu Hurairah RA narrated the Prophet PBUH stated that he who offers the Janazah will have the reward of one qirat. And he who follows it will the burial will have a reward of two qirats. When Abu Hurairah was asked was is a qirat, he replied that it is like a hill of mount Uhud”
Can Women Pray The Janazah?
Praying the Janazah is something prescribed for both men and women. There is no religious text that forbids women from offering it. The women used to attend the funeral prayers with the Prophet PBUH in the mosque and even after his time. Whether it is done in a mosque, at home, or in a prayer place, it is permissible for women to perform it.