Funeral reading

Salat al-Janazah — the Islamic funeral prayer

Traditional

“Salat al-Janazah — the Islamic funeral prayer” (traditional) is a prayer read at a funeral or memorial service. It takes about 5 minutes read aloud, usually by the officiant. We do not reprint the words here — the note below says why, and what to bring instead.

Why the words are not printed here

Not ours to set out. The funeral prayer is led by a Muslim, ordinarily an imam, and the rites around it — the washing, the shrouding, the burial timing — are the community’s. Contact the family’s mosque or an Islamic funeral service first; they will take the service.

Pieces still in copyright are listed by title and author only — we name them and tell you where to get them, but we do not reproduce the words. Public-domain text is printed in your script in full.

Where it comes from

Salat al-Janazah is performed standing, in congregation, without the bowing or prostration of the daily prayers, and it is a communal obligation: when some Muslims perform it, the duty is met for all.

What it says

The Janazah prayer is the Islamic funeral prayer, offered by the community for the person who has died and for all Muslims who have died. Its purpose is to ask forgiveness and mercy for the deceased. It is led by a Muslim, usually an imam, and it sits inside a set of rites the community carries out: washing and shrouding the body, and the burial that follows. It is a duty of the Muslim community, not a reading someone else can borrow.

Led by an imam. Your job here is to put the family in touch, not to lead. Read at a funeral or memorial service. Themes: Janazah · Islamic burial · an imam leads · defer.

Who it suits

Muslim families who want the Islamic rites. For a lay or non-Muslim officiant, the role here is to help the family reach a mosque or an Islamic funeral service, which will lead the prayer and the burial. For interfaith families, a separate memorial gathering may be the right place for other readings.

Where it goes in the ceremony

The prayer usually takes place at a mosque or in an open space, before burial, and is led by an imam. Any additional gathering the officiant leads is better held separately, before or after, rather than as part of the prayer itself.

Reading it aloud

Allow about 5 minutes at a ceremony pace of about 130 words a minute, from the reader’s first word to their last.

Do not lead or recite it yourself. Contact the family’s mosque or a local Islamic funeral service first; they will take the prayer and the burial.
If you are asked to speak at a separate gathering, ask the family what is appropriate. Keep readings respectful of Islamic practice, and avoid music if they ask you to.
Let the mosque set the timing. Make your call early, and do not plan your gathering around a date the family and the mosque have not confirmed.

Questions about reading it aloud

How long does “Salat al-Janazah — the Islamic funeral prayer” take to read aloud?

“Salat al-Janazah — the Islamic funeral prayer” takes about 5 minutes read aloud at a ceremony pace, which is slower than conversation — roughly 130 words a minute. That is the figure the run-sheet uses when it works out the timing for the whole service.

Who usually reads “Salat al-Janazah — the Islamic funeral prayer”?

Usually the officiant rather than a guest reader. “Salat al-Janazah — the Islamic funeral prayer” runs about 5 minutes, which sits inside the part of the service the officiant is already leading, and keeping it there means it is carried by the person who has rehearsed it.

Can “Salat al-Janazah — the Islamic funeral prayer” be printed in a ceremony script?

Not by us. Not ours to set out. The funeral prayer is led by a Muslim, ordinarily an imam, and the rites around it — the washing, the shrouding, the burial timing — are the community’s. Contact the family’s mosque or an Islamic funeral service first; they will take the service.

Can a friend or family member lead “Salat al-Janazah — the Islamic funeral prayer”?

A lay non-Muslim officiant does not lead this. If the family are Muslim and want the Islamic rites, your role is to help them reach a mosque or an Islamic funeral service, not to build a service around it. You may still be asked to speak at a separate gathering afterwards.

A reading is two minutes of the hour.

The rest is the welcome, the life, the remembrances, the committal — and knowing what comes next. Answer some questions about them and get the whole service, written out, with this reading in its place.

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