MUSLIM PRAYERS REGARDING

DEATH

Life and death are two realities accepted in Islam. The Qur’an says: “Every soul
shall taste of death” [Qur’an 3:185]

Life and death are in the hands of God Almighty and Muslims believe death is a
passage, which takes one from this world to the next world.

Islam recommends that just before a person passes away, the dying person
should be reminded of the Sovereignty and Mercy of the Lord. It is an
appropriate time to seek forgiveness. It is traditional for the dying person or the
people around the dying person to recite the following:

There is no God except Allah the Generous and Patient

There is no God except Allah the Almighty and All-Wise.
Pure is that Allah Who is Creator of the seven heavens and the seven earths and
all that is in them and between them;
He is the Lord of all these things and the Arsh (Throne) and
all praise is due to Allah Who is the Lords of all the worlds.

Declare the shahadah (Testimony of faith)

If the dying person is able to speak, then is advised to recite the shahadah, or
the declaration of faith, “I bear witness that there is no god except Allah (God)
and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah (God.)”

If a dying person is going through the pain of death and is unable to speak, the
people around him should say these words. This method is called talqeen.

If the dying person can recite, then he/she may pray as follows:
O Allah! Forgive my sins which are many and accept my deeds which are very
little.

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 Prayer on hearing the news of Death

Indeed, we belong to Allah, and truly to Him shall we return”[ Qur’an

2:156]

Funeral Prayer

Before burial, Muslims perform funeral prayer, known as Salatul

Janazah, on the deceased. Muslims gather in a group to pray silently
that Allah will have mercy on the deceased and grant the deceased a
high place in the Gardens of Paradise.

The prayer that is silently said during the Salatul Janazah is:

“O God forgive our living ones and our deceased ones, and those of us
who are present and those who are absent, and our young ones and old
ones, and our males and our females. O God, those of us whom You
grant life keep them firm on Islam, and those of us who die, cause them
to die in the faith.”

If the deceased is a child, the following prayer is silently said:

“O Allah, make him/her a treasure for his parents, a forerunner, a

cause of reward and an intercessor whose prayer is answered. O Allah,
make this loss make their (the parents) scales heavy, and make their
reward great, and make him/her be with the righteous believers.”

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 Prayers for the deceased
“O Allah, forgive and have mercy upon him, excuse him and pardon him,
and make honourable his
reception. Expand his entry, and cleanse him with water, snow, and ice,
and purify him of sin as a white robe is purified of filth. Exchange home for
a better home, and his family for a better family, and his spouse for a
better
spouse. Admit him into the Garden, protect him from the punishment of the
grave and the torment of the Fire.”

“O Allah, …. [mention the name of the deceased who has passed away] is
under Your care and protection so protect him from the trial of the grave
and torment of the Fire. Indeed You are faithful and truthful. Forgive and
have mercy upon him, surely You are The Oft-Forgiving, The Most-
Merciful.”

[obviously, if the deceased is a women, then the reference to “him” in the

prayers will be replaced with “her”]

Offering Condolences to the Family

“O Allah! Forgive ………..[mention the name of the deceased who has passed
away] , elevate his status among the guided people and look after the
family that he left behind. O Lord of the universe! Forgive us and him,
comfort him in his grave and lighten his stay (in the grave).”

Imam Qari Asim, MBE

Chair of Mosques & Imams National Advisory Board

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