General burial rules
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General rules for burial
1. If one forgets to place the deceased towards the qiblah when burying him and only remembers this after burying him and filling the grave with sand, then it is not permissible to dig up the grave. However, if only the wooden strips have been placed and no soil has been thrown as yet, it will be permissible to remove the timber and place him towards the qiblah.
2. It is makruh-e-tahrimi for women to accompany the janaazah.
3. It is prohibited for wailing women and those women who give lectures to accompany the janaazah.
4. It is a bid'ah to give the adhaanwhile lowering the deceased into the grave.
5. If the imam makes more than four takbeers in the janaazah salaat, it is not permissible for the muqtadis of the Hanafi mazhab to follow him. Instead, they should remain standing silently. When the imam makes the salaam, they should also make salaam. However, if they do not hear the extra takbeers from the imam, but from the mukabbir, then the muqtadis should follow him and regard each takbeer as the takbeer-e-tahreemah. They should think that the four takbeers before this which the mukabbir had made were wrong and that the imamonly made thetakbeer-e-tahreemah now.
6. If a person passes away in a ship and the coast is so far away that there is a fear that the corpse will begin to decompose, then in such a case ghusl and kafan should be given to him and thereafter he should be lowered into the sea. But if the coast is not so far and there is hope of reaching land soon, the corpse should be left aside and upon reaching land, it should be buried in the ground.
7. If a person does not know the dua that is recited in the janaazah salaat, it is sufficient for him to recite the following dua:
اَللّٰهُمَّ اغْفِرْ لِلْمُؤمِنِيْنَ وَالْمُؤمِنَاتْ
If he does not even remember this and only suffices with the four takbeers, his salaat will be valid. This is because the dua is not fard but sunnah. In the same way, the durood is also sunnah.
8. Once sand has been thrown over the grave, it is not permissible to remove the deceased from the grave. However, if in burying him, the right of someone has been transgressed, then it will be permissible to dig up the grave. Examples: (i) the land on which he is buried belongs to someone else and the owner is not happy about the burial taking place on his land, (ii) someone's wealth has been left behind in the grave.
9. If a woman passes away and there is a living child in her womb, then her womb will have to be cut and the child removed. Similarly, if a person passes away after swallowing someone else's money, and the person asks for the money, his stomach will be cut and the money removed. However, if the deceased has left behind some wealth, this money will have to be given from his wealth and his stomach will not be cut.
10. It is not good to move the corpse from one place to another for the purpose of burial. This is if the place is less than 2-3 kilometres. If it is more than 2-3 kilometres, it is not permissible to do so. Digging up the grave and moving the corpse from one place to another is not permissible under any circumstances.
11. It is permissbible to praise the deceased person irrespective of whether it is in the form of a poem or in prose. This is on condition that there is no exaggeration in praising him, and he is not praised for characteristics that were not found in him.
12. It is permissible to do the following: sympathize and comfort the relatives of the deceased, to mention the virtues of patience and thereby create an inclination towards patience, to make dua for them and the deceased. All this is known as ta'ziyat. It is makruh-e-tanzihi to make ta'ziyat for more than three days. However, if the person making the ta'ziyat, or a relative of the deceased, was away on a journey and returned after the stipulated three days, then this ta'ziyat will not be makruh. It is makruh for a person to make ta'ziyat for a second time when he has already made it before.
13. It is not makruh to keep the kafan ready for oneself. However, it is makruh to keep the grave ready for oneself.
14. It is permissible to write a dua on the kafan, or Bismillahir Rahmaanir Raheem on his chest, or the kalimah on his forehead. This will only be permissible if it is done by moving the fingers and without using a pen. However, this practice has not been established from any Sahih Hadith. Therefore, this practice should not be regarded as sunnah or mustahab.
15. It is mustahab to place a green twig (not to plant anything which grows) on the grave after burying. If a plant or tree begins to grow near it, it will be makruh to chop it off.
16. More than one corpse should not be buried in one grave. However, this will be permissible if there is an absolute necessity for it. If all the corpses are males, the most virtuous among them should be placed in the front. Thereafter, all the rest should be placed behind him in order of their position. However, if there are a few males and a few females, the males should be placed in front and the females behind them.
17. It is mustahab for men to go and visit the graves. It is preferable to visit the graves at least once a week. It is preferable that this day be Friday. It is also permissible to undertake journeys in order to visit the graves of the pious. This is permissible as long as no belief or action contrary to the Shariah takes place. Like the evils that take place in the present day "birth-anniversary" (meelad, urs) celebrations.
