Religious Rites Prepared and delivered by: Nada Roude, Islamic Educator/Trainer August, 2006

Islamic Funeral Rites Death is a fact of life Allah the Almighty is the only source of determining life and death Islam teaches that our journey in life is nothing but a trial and that we will all be judged for our actions Islam teaches that death is inevitable and that it is a temporary passage into the third stage of life-our time in the grave until the Day of judgement when accountability for our actions begins.

Funeral procedure/service “ Traditional condolences: “To god we belong and to him we return Following the death, the body is prepared for shrowding. The body is washed and then wrapped in white cotton material following which the family bids the deceased good by. The body is then carried in a funeral precision to the mosque for a funeral service known as the Janazah. The people at the mosque line up in rows with the coffin infront of them. The janazah prayer begins but there is no call to prayer, no bowing, no prostrations during this ritual. This procedure is carried out standing and takes up to 5 minutes to complete. The mourners make special appeals to god seeking his forgiveness for the deceased and all those who have passed away before him/her.

Burial Procedure According to the Sunnah, the body must be buried immediately as a way of honouring the deceased. A funeral precision to the graveyard is conducted and the deceased is laid to rest in the grave as verses of the Quran are recited. According to Islamic practice, it is encouraged to bury the deceased in no container so that the earth can reclaim our physical bodies as quick as possible. A three days mourning period is declared, enabling condolences to be made to the family.