Waki' bin al-Jarrah وكيع بن الجراح · Chapters Regarding Funerals

“ ‘Abdullah bin Mas’ud said: ‘Whoever follows a funeral (procession), let him carry all (four) corners of it (in turn), for that is Sunnah. Then if he wishes let him voluntarily carry it, and if he wishes let him not do so.’”

“I saw the Prophet (ﷺ), Abu Bakr and ‘Umar walking ahead of the funeral (procession).”

“The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), Abu Bakr, ‘Umar and ‘Uthman used to walk ahead of the funeral (procession).”

“If a child utters a sound (after being born), the funeral prayer should be offered for him and (his relatives) may inherit from him.”

“There are three times during the day when the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) forbade us to offer the funeral prayer or bury our dead: When the sun has fully risen (until it is higher up in the sky), when it is overhead at noon until it has passed the meridian, and when it is starting to set until it has set.”

“The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: ‘Your brother Najashi has died, so offer the funeral prayer for him.” Then he stood and we prayed behind him. I was in the second row and two rows prayed for him.”

“The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) used to teach them, when they went out to the graveyard, to say: As-salamu ‘alaykum ahlad-diyar minal-mu’minina wal- muslimin, wa inna insha’ Allah bikum lahiqun, nas’alul-laha lana wa lakumul-‘afiyah (Peace be upon you, O inhabitants of the abodes, believers and Muslims, and we will join you soon if Allah wills. We ask Allah for well-being for us and for you).’”

“Make a niche-grave for me, and block it up with bricks as was done for the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ).”

“I came one night to guard the Prophet (ﷺ), and there was a man reciting loudly. The Prophet (ﷺ) came out and I said: ‘O Messenger of Allah, this man is showing off.’ Then he died in Al-Madinah, and they finished preparing him, then they carried his dead body. The Prophet (ﷺ) said: ‘Be gentle with him, may Allah be gentle with him, for he loved Allah and His Messenger.’ Then his grave was dug and he (the Prophet (ﷺ))…

“The son of one of the daughters of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) was dying. She sent for him, asking him to come to her, and he sent word to her, saying: ‘To Allah belongs what He has taken and to Him belongs what He has given. Everything has an appointed time with Him, so be patient and seek reward.’ But she sent for him again, adjuring him to come. So the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) got up, and I…

“Your brother has been killed.” She said: “May Allah have mercy on him. Inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji’un (Truly, to Allah we belong and truly, to Him we shall return).” They said: “Your husband has been killed.” She said: “O grief!” The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: “The woman has a strong love for her husband, which she does not have for anything else.”

“The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: ‘The miscarried fetus will plead with his Lord if his parents are admitted to Hell. It will be said: “O fetus who pleads with your Lord! Admit your parents to Paradise.” So he will drag them out with his umbilical cord until he admits them to Paradise.’”

“By the One in Whose Hand is my soul! The miscarried fetus will drag his mother by his umbilical cord to Paradise, if she (was patient and) sought reward (for her loss).”

“When Ja’far was killed, the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) went to his family and said: ‘The family of Ja’far are busy with the matter of their deceased, so prepare food for them.’” (One of the narrators) Abdullah said: "That continued to be the Sunnah, until innovations were introduced, then it was abandoned."

“Breaking the bones of the deceased is, in sin, like breaking his bones when he is alive.”