Question:
When someone dies, people have certain practices that I am going to list, hoping that you will comment and show the juristic ruling on these practices:
Are such practices permissible? I would be grateful if you could explain this point, may Allah reward you with the best!
Answer:
All the practices referred to in the question mentioned above are newly-invented Bid’ahs (innovations in religion), except for the practice of offering condolences to the bereaved family which is a permissible practice for comforting the bereaved family. A consoler may say to the bereaved family, “May Allah grant you solace, relieve your affliction and forgive your deceased relative!”
Also, it is desirable to prepare food for the bereaved family and offer such food to them according to their need, as they become engrossed in their affliction and have no time to prepare food themselves.
Therefore, when the Prophet (peace be upon him) was informed of the death of Ja’far ibn Abu Talib (may Allah be pleased with him), he said: “Make food for the family of Ja’far for there has befallen them that which is preoccupying them.” 1
As for the practices done by people these days such as setting up pavilions and big tents for big gatherings, hiring reciters of the Qur’an, preparing big banquettes, spending a lot of money and time, all this costs the bereaved family and others a lot, these practices and others referred to in the question mentioned above are Bid’ahs for which Allah has sent down no authority. It was reported that Jarir ibn ‘Abdullah Al-Bajali (may Allah be pleased with him) said: “We used to regard gathering at the bereaved family’s house and making food after the burial a kind of wailing.” If the money spent for such funeral gatherings are taken from the inheritance, it is a kind of injustice to the inheritors, particularly when there are minors and orphans among the inheritors, in which case it shall be unjust consumption of their property.
May Allah grant us success. May peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and Companions.
Al-Tirmidhi, Sunan, Book on funerals, no. 998; Abu Dawud, Sunan, Book on funerals, no. 3132; Ibn Majah, Sunan, Book on funerals, no. 1610; and Ahmad, Musnad, vol. 1, p. 205. ↩