The Legislated Prayer For the Deceased
Fatwa No: 404557

Question

Assalamu alaikum,is there any Sunnah Salah for the dead after burrying them in order to save from the torments of grave to be prayed by their children.I recently heard such a prayer in which you recite surah fathiha and then ayatulkursi,surah athakasur and 15 times surah iklas in both the raqahs.I tried to stop them saying there is no so called prayer .Is there such a prayer.

Answer

All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that none is worthy of worship except Allah and that Muhammad is His slave and messenger.

According to the Sharee'ah, there is no prayer for the in the manner described in the question. In fact, the described manner is considered a Bid'ah (religious innovation). The prescribed prayer for the deceased is the known funeral prayer, in which the worshippers recite Al-Faatihah only, and it should be performed outside the graveyard. It is permissible, however, for those who missed the funeral prayer to perform it inside the graveyard.

The Prophet urged the bereaved family and others to seek forgiveness for the deceased and implore Allah, The Exalted, to make him/her steadfast while being questioned by the angels in the grave. ‘Uthmaan ibn ‘Affaan narrated: "Whenever the Messenger of Allah finished the burial of a dead person, he would stand by the grave and say: ‘Seek forgiveness for your brother and pray for him to be steadfast; he is now being questioned.'" [Abu Daawood]

Allah Knows best.

Related Fatwa