Muslim Funerals: 5 Things You Should Avoid
No matter the religion, grieving the loss of someone is never simple because we all mourn in our own ways.
However, since respect can look different across cultures and faiths, it’s best to know the basics about Islamic funeral and burial services. In this article, we’ll go over the top things you should avoid when attending a Muslim funeral.
Yelling or Crying Loudly
In a Muslim funeral service, it’s normal to express grief through crying and passing condolences to the family in mourning.
However, wailing or yelling is frowned upon because they believe that the deceased will suffer more after the passing of their earthly existence and will find it hard to begin his or her journey onwards.
Recording or Taking Pictures
Even if you’re probably curious and want to remember this event by capturing moments using your camera phone, digital camera, DSLR, or vlogging camera, don’t forget that mourners are not allowed to take any pictures or any form of recording during the funeral service.
In addition to that, Muslim funeral services are centered on giving respect and honor to the deceased individual, so it’s not the best time to catch up with an old friend or a relative.
Although it might be normal to share your condolences with the deceased’s family, talking loudly with other people at the funeral is unacceptable. You see, even the prayers during the service are silently recited, so unnecessary noise and chatter might be considered very disrespectful.
Wearing revealing or flashy clothes
Some Muslim communities prefer to wear all white during a funeral service, while others opt for darker colors such as black, grey, or brown.
If you’re not sure of what to wear, just make sure to find the right type of clothing that will cover your arms, legs, chest, and ankles.
Shirts and trousers or long skirts can be your best option. It’s a good thing that you can easily find these clothes in a shopping mall.
Bringing flowers
Since simplicity is one of the traits emphasized in the Islam religion, giving flowers or sending any gift is not usually observed in an Islamic funeral service. However, if you’re an immediate family, you can opt to give some funeral flowers.
On the other hand, if you’re a non-Muslim visitor, your safest option is food. Just make sure that the food you’ll bring meets the Islamic dietary laws.
Some food-related gift ideas you can try are baked goods, fruit baskets, and hampers.
Suggesting death is a tragedy
Comments suggesting that the person’s death is a “tragedy” or “unexpected” can be taken by some mourners in the wrong way.
You see, Muslims greatly believe in accepting Allah’s will, so talking about these things might come off as rude, especially to close relatives of the deceased individual.
If you want to know more general information about Muslim funerals, you can also check out our article about the Muslim funeral customs in Singapore.