Issues and Questions
By Dr Muzammil H. Siddiqi

Preparing for Death, Marriage, Wearing T-Shirts in Masjid

Q 1. I would like to know the proper things to do for I have lung cancer and neither I nor my wife know what to do when I die. I have been given 12 months to live by my doctors. Please tell me what should be done after I go to the morgue. Should the brothers come and take me from there? Or do I have to go to a funeral home first. We really do not know what is the proper thing to do.
A 1. Allah is great and He has power to do all things. Keep your regular prayers, read the Qur'an, seek Allah's forgiveness and recite the Kalimah of Shahadah as much as you can. Pray to Allah to take your life in such a way that you have full Iman (faith) in Him and your soul and tongue are engaged in His praise.
Prepare a will, if you have not done so already. Give instructions in your will to your relatives to have your burial in an Islamic manner. Upon death the body should be taken to a mortuary for washing and preparation. The burial should be done as soon as possible. The relatives and/or friends should make the necessary arrangements for the burial. As soon as the arrangements are done and the time for burial is given, two or three adult Muslim males should wash the body and then put on the shroud (kafan). The shroud for males consists of three pieces of white cloth. A loose sleeveless shirt, a lower garment to cover the lower part of the body and a long sheet to cover the whole body and be fastened at the head and feet. Before the burial the janazah prayer should be done. The burial should be in a Muslim cemetery. If a Muslim cemetery is not available in your town, the arrangement should be made to take the body to the nearest town where Muslim cemetery is available. In case this is not possible because of heavy expenses or the body's condition, then the burial can be done in any general cemetery.
Also write in the will that your assets be distributed after the death among your relatives according to the portions prescribed in the Islamic law of inheritance. The Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) has prepared a will kit to help in preparing an Islamic will. May Allah bless you with health and happiness in this life and with success and salvation in the life to come. Ameen.
Q 2. A man married a woman who had a daughter from her ex-husband. Is it allowed in Islam for this man's son to marry the daughter of his father's new wife (from her previous husband)?
A 2. Yes, it is permissible for a man to marry to daughter of his father's wife, if this daughter was born to her from a previous husband, because there is no kinship between these two young people. This young man is not a Mahram to that young girl. Allah mentioned in the Qur'an the women who are forbidden for marriage and then He said, "Lawful unto you are all beyond those mentioned, so that you seek them with your wealth in honest wedlock…" (al-Nisa' 4:24)
Q 3. Is it allowed to read any Surah of the Qur'an in Ruku' or Sajdah? What should be done if by mistake one recites some short Surahs of the Qur'an in these positions?
A 3. According to the Sunnah, one should recite Subhuman rabbiyal Azeem in Ruku' and Subhana rabbiyal A'la in Sajdah. One can also make any other du'a in Ruku' and Sajdah. However, there are many Ahadith (reported in Sahih Muslim, al-Tirmidhi, al-Nasa'I etc.) that indicate that the Prophet - peace be upon him - prohibited reciting anything from the Qur'an in the state of Ruku' or Sajdah. If one reads the Qur'an deliberately then one has to repeat the prayer. If it is done by mistake in forgetfulness, then the Sajdah of Sahw should be done at the end of the prayer.
Q 4. I see some people coming to mosque wearing T-shirts that have pictures of human beings or animals. Is it permissible to pray wearing such types of shirts?
A 4. A Muslim's dress should be clean, honorable and dignified all the time. At the time of prayer, and especially when one comes to the Masjid, one should pay special attention to one's dress. There are many Ahadith of the Prophet - peace be upon him - that speak against making pictures. Although according to many jurists the photographic pictures do not come in the category of the pictures that are forbidden in Islam, nevertheless all jurists are unanimous that the places of worship must be free from any human and animal pictures. No pictures of any kind should be present at the places of worship. Muslims also should not wear pictures or hold pictures when praying. This is to preserve the Tawhid of Allah and to avoid any shirk or its resemblance in the places of 'ibadah.
Q 5. Is a Namaz valid if a child, who has worn a nappy (diaper) which may or may not contain urine, lies on the prayer mat or is carried by the person while saying his/her Namaz?
A 5. Your prayers are valid as long as you are with Wudu, with clean body, clothes and the place of prayer. Little children sometime do come to their parents when they are praying. It is good to keep the children clean and whenever they soil their diapers, it is a good habit to change their diapers as soon as possible. The parents who keep their children clean from early age make them conscious of their cleanliness when they grow up also. However, if a child wearing a soiled diaper comes to you during the prayer, lies on your prayer mat, or cries and you pick up or hold the child in your arms during the prayer, this will not affect your prayers, as long as nothing comes out of the diaper and does not touch your body, clothes and your prayer mat.

Editor: Akhtar M. Faruqui
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