Customs of Death in Pakistani Culture

TO THE GLORY OF ALLAH ALMIGHTY

THIS PROJECT

CUSTOMS OF DEATH IN PAKISTANI CULTURE

IS DEDICATED TO

MY LOVING PARENTS, MY TEACHERS AND

ESPECIALLY TO SIR COL M.FAROOQ KHAN.

HE IS A GREAT TEACHER & VERY CO-OPERATIVE.

SPEACIAL THANKS TO

SIR COL M.FAROOQ KHAN

&

MY PARENTS

THOSE LED ME TO MAKE THIS PROJECT.

Customs Of Death In Pakistan Culture of 19

CONTENT

INTRODUCTION

CHAPTER # 1

WHAT IS DEATH MUSLIM’S VIEW ABOUT DEATH

CHAPTER # 2

MOMENT OF DEATH

WASHING AND WRAPPING THE BODY

SHOWING THE FACE OF DEAD BODY

FUNERAL PRAYERS

BURIAL PROCEDURE

CHALPTER # 3

AFTER DEATH

EXPRESSIONS OF GRIEF

MEAL AND RECITING QURAN

CEREMONY OF FUNERAL

CHALPTER # 4

CAUSES OF DEATHS

CONCLUSION

REFERANCES

BIBLIOGRAPHY


INTRODUCTION

Before the coming of Islam, Arabian belief in an afterlife was virtually nonexistent. When

Muhammad (peace be upon him) first preached to the Arabian tribes about the Day of Judgment,

many reacted with scorn and rejected his teachings. Nevertheless, he continued to preach the

Qur'an's message of the complete power of God to resurrect and judge all people on the last day.

The Day of Judgment symbolizes the ultimate and absolute power of God over human destiny,

and it symbolizes the responsibility that individuals bear in following God's laws. The Qur'an

teaches that God alone is the judge and master over both life on earth and the afterlife.

Funerals in Islam follow fairly specific rites, though they are subject to regional interpretation

and variation in custom. In all cases, however, sharia (Islamic religious law) calls for burial of

the corpse, preceded by a simple ritual involving bathing and shrouding the body, followed by

Salah (prayer). Cremation of the body is generally forbidden.


CHAPTER # 1

WHAT IS DEATH?

Death is the termination of the biological functions that sustain a living organism. The word

refers both to the particular processes of life's cessation as well as to the condition or state of a

formerly-living body. Phenomena which commonly bring about death include predation,

malnutrition, accidents resulting in terminal injury and disease.

The nature of death has been for millennia a central concern of the world's religious traditions

and of philosophical enquiry, and belief in some kind of afterlife or rebirth has been a central

aspect of religious belief. In modern scientific enquiry, the origin and nature of consciousness

has yet to be fully understood; any such view about the existence or non-existence of

consciousness after death therefore remains speculative. [1]

MUSLIM’S VIEW ABOUT DEATH

To Muslims, death serves as a transitional stage between life on earth and life in the next world.

The Arabic word for death " الموت" means "cessation of breathing.

For those practicing Islam, death is one of the most important parts of the life cycle. Although

the life of a Muslim is ending, it truly is only the beginning as they make their final, eternal

journey to join Allah.

As written in the Holy Quran

ان ه ヱانゅ اليه راجعヲن

“To Allah we belong, and to Him is our return” (2:156).

A main focus for a Muslim's life is to have their soul become closer to Allah, and, in Islam, death

is what brings a Muslim to this most desired point. Cremation and full body autopsy is forbidden

because the body must be capable of making the journey to Allah after death. In Islamic nations,

death is taken extremely seriously and can be seen as the pinnacle aspect of one's religious

journey.


CHAPTER # 2

MOMENT OF DEATH

As death approaches, multiple events occur. Close friends and family are called to gather round

and give means of comfort and support as well as to recite verses from the Qur’an. The one

dying is reminded to stay calm and not be afraid of death because of God’s mercy and

forgiveness. As the person is dying they are encouraged to recited words of remembrance and

prayer. If possible, their last words should be the declaration of faith:

“I bear witness that there is no god but Allah, and Muhammad is His messenger.”

Upon death, prayers for the departed are said and preparations for the burial begin. Muslims are

taught to give the utmost respect to those dying and to that of a dead body. The eyes are closed

and the body of the person is temporarily covered with a clean sheet. It is important to bury the

deceased as soon as possible (within 24 hours of death) so as to not need the use of embalming

fluids. If an autopsy is necessary, it needs to be completed with the utmost respect for the dead.

The Islamic people do not believe in cremation because when the Day of Judgment comes, their

bodies will be resurrected and they need to be fully intact. When son of Muhammad (PBUH)

died, he said,

“The eyes shed tears and the heart is grieved, but we will not say anything except which pleases

our Lord.”

Therefore, crying is viewed as normal and acceptable, while excessive wailing, screaming and

thrashing are forbidden. Muslims strive to be patient during the time of death and must

remember that Allah is the one who created life, and he can take it away as well. It is not to be

understood and no one is to question his wisdom as to why and when he takes life away.


WASHING AND WRAPPING THE BODY

Bathing the dead body, (2) except in extraordinary circumstances as in battle of Uhud. (3)

Enshrouding dead body in a white cotton or linen cloth. (4)

Before washing the body, the washer plugs the body's openings with cotton, wraps the corpse

tightly in a cloth shroud, and applies strong-smelling ointments, such as camphor.

The next steps of washing the body are very important. First, the person washing the body of the

deceased must be a trustworthy and honest Muslim. They must know the correct, traditionally

way to wash the body and may not make any comments about the body as they wash it. The

actually steps of the body washing are very specific. The person needs to be placed on the table

and their clothes removed. If they are not already, the person’s eyes are closed and their jaw is

secured shut. The genitals are covered and the washer starts the wash by saying “ه ユبس”. The

person is then washed with warm, clean water 3, 5, or 7 times (always an odd number of times).

Some people use “ュゴョコゆآ” to wash dead body at the last time after washing it with water.

The wrapping of the body is important as well. For men, three pieces of clean, white cotton linen

is used. For women, five pieces of cloth are used. The pieces must be large enough to cover the

entire body and be wrapped and fitted in the correct manner. Non-alcoholic perfume is applied to

the linen and the pieces are knotted at the foot and the head. Throughout the cleansing process,

the body should face Mecca.

If a Muslim dies as a martyr, in childbirth, or as the result of an accident, the body is not washed

at all, but is buried as it fell. If a man dies at the hajj, his shroud must have no seams. If the

deceased is a woman, her face must show through her coverings.


SHOWING THE FACE OF DEAD BODY

After washing the dead body, there are many people gathered to see the face of dead body.

Family members are also present to see dead body last time with sorrow. Some people courage

the relative’s of dead.

FUNERAL PRAYERS

“りコゅالجن りヲヤص” is a prayer that is carried out after the wrapping of the body and before the actual

procession occurs. It is performed outside the Mosque and the Muslims should form a minimum

of three lines facing Mecca. The one who leads to “りヲヤص” he is the Imam. The Imam should also

face Mecca, standing behind the head of a deceased man or behind the middle of a deceased


woman. Unlike other types of worship, there is no “عヲرك” (bowing) and no“キヲسج” (the position of

the prayer that involves having one’s forehead, nose, hands and feet touching the ground

simultaneously.) The service is also largely silent. It begins with everyone silently thinking of

their “るني”, or intentions to pray. Once they have the proper “るني”, the Imam says the first four

“ゲيらムت” (translated as “God is Great”) aloud and the Muslims in attendance repeat the “ゲيらムت”

silently to themselves. Once this has been completed, they silently recite the “るتحゅヘال りرヲس”, which

is the opening chapter of the Qur’an. Following this, the Imam says the second“ゲيらムت” before the

group silently recites the “ギヰتش”, or the obligatory prayer. Finally, the Imam recites the final

“ゲيらムت” followed by a silent“ゅعキ” , or a supplication, asking a higher power to provide peace

through the act of prayer for the deceased (Siala).(5)

“りコゅالجن りヲヤص” is Fard Kafayah, that is, if one prays the prayer than all are bareeuz zimma [free of

the responsiblity] otherwise all those who received the news but did not come are sinners.

Jammat is not a condition for this prayer, it is sufficient even if one person prays, and to deny the

fardiat, compulsion, of this salah is kufr, an act of disbelief.

There are two parts of this“りヲヤص”:

1) To say “ゲらه اك” four times

2) “ュゅقي” which was three “りギكヲョるسن”: Sana, Durood Shareef, and Duaa for the deceased

How to pray? (6)

Muqtadee should make the niyyat,

“I make the niyyat for the prayer of this janaza for Allah, duaa for this deceased, behind this

imam.”

Now the Imam and muqtadee should raise their hands to their ears and fold their hands

underneath the navel as usual while saying Allahu Akbar and read Sana, a slight difference is

that after wa ta’ala jadduka one must read wa jalla sanauka wa laailaha gairuk. Then without

raising the hands, say Allahu Akbar and read duroode Ibraheem; then without raising the hands,

say Allahu Akbar and read the duaa. The Imam must say all the takbeer aloud whereas the

muqtadee must say it slowly, the rest of the azkar (supplications) are to be read slowly by the


Imam and Muqtadee. After the duaa, say Allahu Akbar and now drop the hands and then turn the

head both sides for salaam.

Snaa:

Glory be to You Oh Allah, and praise be to You, and blessed is Your name, and exalted is Your

Majesty, and there is none to be served besides You.

Darood e Ibraheemi:

O Allah! Shower Your mercy upon Muhammad and the followers of Muhammad, as You

showered Your mercy upon Ibrahim and the followers of Ibrahim. Behold, Your are

Praiseworthy, Glorious.

Oh Allah! Shower Your blessing upon Muhammad, and the followers of Muhammad as You

showered Your blessings upon Ibrahim and the followers of Ibrahim. Behold, You are

Praiseworthy, Glorious.


Duaa for adult man or woman:

Oh Allah! Forgive those of us that are alive and those of us that are dead; those of us that are

present and those of us who are absent; those of us who are young and those of us who are

adults; our males and our females. Oh Allah! Whomsoever You keep alive, let him live as a

follower of Islam and whomsoever You cause to die, let him die a Believer.

Duaa for a boy:

Oh! Allah, make him (this child) a source for our salvation and make him a source of reward and

treasure for us and make him an intercessor for us and one whose intercession is accepted.

Duaa for a girl:

Oh! Allah, make her (this child) a source for our salvation and make her a source of reward and

treasure for us and make her an intercessor for us and one whose intercession is accepted.


Twelve ahkam e jnaza:

1) Some people pray while wearing shoes and many people pray Janzah while standing on the

shoes. If one prays wearing the shoes then it is necessary that the shoes and the earth underneath

be pure and if one stands on the shoes then it is necessary that the shoes be pure.

2) There is more care that one does not pray while standing on the shoes. Stand on the earth, if

you want you can stand upon your handkerchief.

3) It is necessary for the body of the deceased to be present; the janzah of the absent is not

permissible.

4) It is mustahab that the Imam stands in front of the chest of the deceased.

5) Several janzah maybe prayed at the same time; there is the option of putting the deceased in a

row so that the chest of all is in front of the imam or in a line so that ones’ head is in line with the

other’s feet and the others’ feet is in line with the others’ head. Wa ala hazal qayas (and presume

the rest on this).

6) It is better to make three saf (rows) as it is mentioned in the Hadith that, “Whosevers’ salatul

janzah was read by three saf, they will be forgiven.”

7) If there are, for example, seven people, then one should become the Imam, three people

should stand in the first saf, two in the second saf, and one in the last saf (Guniyah).

8) In Janzah, the last saf is the best out of all the saf. [Durre Mukhtar]

9) Masbooq, one who missed some takbeer, should say the rest of his takbeer after the Imam

says salaam, and he should say only the takbeer without the supplicatoins if he fears that people

while start to give shoulder to the janzah before he finishes all the supplications. [Durre

Mukhtar]


10) One can join the janzah even after the fourth takbber until the Imam has not said salaam.

After the salaam of the Imam, he should say Allahu Akbar thrice (Duree Mukhtar) and say

salaam.

11) The duaa for a boy or girl will be read for whoever died in a condition of madness in which

they were born in or madness which occurred before puberty and lasted until death.

12) There is Gusul, Kafan, and Janzah for the child of a Muslim whose akhtar (most) body had

come out otherwise the child will be bathed, covered in sheet, and buried without gusul, kafan

and salah. Akthar (most), from the head, means from the head to the chest; so there is no janzah

for the child who was born crying from the head but passed away before the chest came out, and

from the feet, akthar means from the feet to the back. A child born alive or dead will be given a

name and on the day of Qayamat the child will be resurrected. (Durre Mukhtar, Raddul Muhtar)

The order of going with the janazah procession:

1) It is an act of ibadat to give shoulder to a janazah.

2) It is sunnat to give shoulder to all four legs ten steps each in such a manner that one shoulders

the top head-right first, bottom leg-right second, then top head-left third, and then bottom-leg left

last making a total of forty steps. It is in a Hadith Shareef that, “Whoever took the Janzah forty


steps; his forty large sins will be forgiven.” It is also in a Hadith Shareef that, “Whoever

shoulders all four legs; Allah will give him permanent magfirat (forgiveness).” [Alamgeeri]

3) There is no harm if one person holds a small child in his arms and people hold the deceased

one after the other. [Alamgeeri]

4) It is not permissible nor allowed for ladies to go with the Janzah. [Bahare Shariat]

5) One should not return without praying the Janzah if he is with the Janzah, and he may return

after the prayer with the permission of the awliyae mayyat and there is no need for permission

after the burial. [Alamgeeri]

6) A husband may shoulder his wife’s janazah, lower it into the grave, and see the face. He may

not give his wife gusul or touch her without anything between the body. The wife may give her

husband gusul. [Bahare Shariat]

BURIAL PROCEDURE

When beginning the burial procedure, there are two types of graves:

“ギحヤال” and “ベゅالش”.

For the “ギحヤال” grave, one is to make a deep vertical hole in the ground and in the bottom make a

side horizontal hole big enough to cover the entire body.

In a “ベゅالش” grave, one is to simply make a deep vertical hole in the ground.

Male relatives will place the deceased into the ground on their right side, facing Mecca (the

Islamic holy ground). While entering the body into the grave, the men must recite:

”بسユ ه ヱ عヤョヴヤته رسメヲ ه“

This translates to “in the name of Allah and in the faith of the Messenger of Allah” (Huda). After

placing the body into the ground, the person who arranges the body in its final position recites

the “りキゅヰالش” in its ear. After the men climb out of the grave the male relatives must undo the ties

on the head and feet and then begin to place either wood or rocks on top of the body. Finally, one

throws three handfuls of soil into the grave. With the first handful, one must recite “ユه ゅقنヤخ ゅヰنョ”,


meaning “from the earth did We create you”. While throwing the second handful, recite

“ ヱユك ギنعي ゅヰنョ ”and meaning “and into it shall We return you”. Recite “ ンゲاخ りرゅت ユムجゲガن ゅヰنョヱ” with

the last handful, saying “and from it shall We bring you out once again” (Huda).

Finally, a member of the party gives a blessing containing a summary of the key beliefs of Islam.

Shee’a Muslims also recite the names of the 12 holy imams. Some family members mark the

grave with a simple headstone, but tradition discourages the use of elaborate monuments.


CHAPTER # 3

AFTER DEATH

Death is one of the most important times in a Muslim’s life because it is the time in which one

can continue their spiritual advancement. In the Islamic tradition, one will either go to Heaven

(サヱキゲف), known as Paradise or the Garden, or to Hell (ユنヰج). There are seven levels associated

with each, depending on your level of devotion during your life. Traditional Muslims believe that

the dreaded angels Munkar and Nakir visit the deceased in the grave and question him or her

about the shahadah and other tenets of Islam. Prayers from the living are considered to help the

deceased during this interview. When the body enters the grave, their soul begins to experience

the effects of their afterlife destination: those going to Heaven remain peaceful in their graves,

while those going to Hell begin to suffer.

Satisfactory answers allow the deceased to wait in comfort until the Day of Judgment.

According to tradition, if the person gives incorrect answers, he or she experiences various

torments, such as feeling the crushing weight of the earth. The deceased remains in this

intermediary state, called the barzakh, until the resurrection, when all the dead arise and rejoin

their souls for God's judgment on the Last Day. This day is described as a person walks over Hell

on a narrow bridge to paradise. Those who are weighted down by their bad deeds will fall to

Hell, while those who have lived a good life will continue on to Paradise.

EXPRESSIONS OF GRIEF

Grief at the death of a beloved person is normal, and weeping for the dead (by males or females)

is perfectly acceptable in Islam. (7)

Muslims are encouraged to refrain from making loud expressions of grief at funerals because

these are believed to increase the deceased person's suffering during the angels' questioning.

Visiting the grave and offering prayers are considered worthy acts, but Muslim tradition specifies

that mourning should be limited to three days. For widows, the period can last for four months

and ten days.


RECITING QURAN AND MEAL

The relatives serve a communal meal on behalf of the dead person to seek God's mercy and

forgiveness. They offer a similar meal every Thursday for 40 days following the death. After the

meal, they recite the first chapter of the Qur'an. Some Muslims read the entire Qur'an every

Thursday night for the 40 days following a death.

CEREMONY OF FUNERAL

A funeral is a ceremony for celebrating, sanctifying, or remembering the life of a deceased

person. Every year relatives of deceased go to their burials, tombs with the gifts of flowers. They

pray for dead and hope for the blessings of Allah on him. Relatives pray Quran for their

deceased.


CHAPTER # 4

CAUSES OF DEATHS

The World Health Organization has traditionally classified death according to the primary type

of disease or injury. However, causes of death may also be classified in terms of preventable risk

factors — such as smoking, unhealthy diet and sexual behavior—which contribute to a number

of different diseases. Such risk factors are usually not recorded directly on death certificates. (8)

In Pakistan there are many causes of deaths as injury, poor diet, unsafe water and poor sanitation,

smoking tobacco, suicides, traffic collisions, infection diseases, drug abuse, drowning, burns,

falls and toxins etc.

CONCLUSION

Muslims are always buried, never cremated. It is a religious requirement that the body be ritually

washed and draped before burial, which should be as soon as possible after death. Those carrying

out this duty should be immunized against hepatitis B and be aware of the hazards of AIDS.

There are over 1.5 million Muslims in the United Kingdom, 1 of whom well over 600 000 are

from Pakistan and Bangladesh.2 Most of the rest are from India. Muslims from the largest non-

Christian religious group in the United Kingdom, encompassing 43% of the Asian population

from the Indian subcontinent.3 Behaviors surrounding death as expected by the Muslim faith is

generally adhered to in Britain. Most of the customs followed have been laid down in the

Shari'ah (Muslim laws) which is derived from the Hadith (practices and sayings of the prophet

Mohammed) rather than the Koran. (9)


REFERENCES

1) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death

2) Sahih al-Bukhari 1254

3) Sahih al-Bukhari 1346

4) Sahih Muslim 943

5) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamic death rituals

6) how to pray janazah by Alyas attar qadri

7) Sahih Muslim Volume 2, Book 23, Number 391

8) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List of preventable causes of death

9) http://www.bmj.com/content/309/6953/521.extract


BIBLIOGRAPHY

1) how to pray janazah by Alyas attar qadri

2) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death

3) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamic death rituals

4) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List of preventable causes of death

5) http://www.bmj.com/content/309/6953/521.extract

6) Sahih al-Bukhari H#1254

7) Sahih al-Bukhari H#1346

8) Sahih Muslim H#943

9) Sahih Muslim Volume 2, Book 23, Number 391

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