Help on these questions!

Muslim_Gurl

Thank You Allah!
Assalamu alaykum
I hope everyone is doing very well. It's Eid tomorrow, inshaAllah, yaaaaay :hearts:

So, there is a student nurse in my college who asked some questions about Medicinal practices and death. She wanted someone with a different cultural backround and religion to answer these questions so I decided to help her out because unfortunetely I'm the only different one. I'm really happy about it though, it could be a way to do da'wah.

Here are the questions she asked. The first one I can answer, but I'm still putting it out there if you guys want to add some things, but the other two I don't know the answer for at all. I hope you all can help me inshaAllah.

1.What do you believe happens after death?
2. How do you feel a body should be handled (by nurses or doctors) after a person dies? And special measures?
3. Is there anything that may be done in a hospital that would be considered offensive to your culture or religion during the process of death?

Also, with any answers please give a slight explanation of why that is custom.


Thanks!
Wasalam
 

Aapa

Mirajmom
Assalaam alaikum,

What happens after you die.

You know that question had me weeping one day. So I asked a sister with knowledge.

I told her I was so scared of the big hug. I do not want to be squeezed and frightened in a dark and small place. She smiled and told me after the hug if we have been kind to everyone; if we have been gentle with the Earth we will have the Earth welcome us to the next tempoary abode. I walk gently on the Earth.

Someone posted a great video of a sheik visiting graves. He actually climbs down into the grave and sits there. It is here on TTI.

As for washing the body. There are rubrics in Islam. I will see if I can dig them up. ( no pun intended)
 

islamerica

1 Ummah under God
1.What do you believe happens after death?

http://www.formspring.me/dawaah/q/1149844696


2. How do you feel a body should be handled (by nurses or doctors) after a person dies? And special measures?

Body should be treated with out most respect, and if possible only the same gender should take care of it. It should be properly covered and local Muslim community center contacted soon as possible, if the kin don't know how to proceed.

There are a number of rites that Muslims must hasten to perform as soon as a person dies. The Prophet (s.a.w) said: "Hasten the funeral rites." Preparing the body for burial is a Fard Kifaayah - A communal obligation on Muslims. Washing the dead body prior to shrouding and burial is obligatory, according to numerous recorded instructions given by the Prophet (s.a.w). Preparing the deceased begins with the washing of the body. As a general rule, males should take the responsibility of washing males, and females should wash females. The only exception to this rule is in the case of husband and wife, or small children. The evidence given that it is permitted for a husband to wash his wife and vice versa is the hadith collected by Ibn Majah and others. Aisha (r.a) reported that when the Prophet (s.a.w) returned from a funeral at al-Baqee', she was suffering from a headache and said: "Oh my head." The Prophet (s.a.w) replied: "No, it is I who am in pain from whatever hurts you. If you were to die before me, I would wash you…" Furthermore, when Abu Bakr (r.a) died, it was his wife Asmaa' along with his son Abdur-Rahmaan who washed him.


Those who take on the responsibility of washing the dead should be the most knowledgeable of the procedures, preferably from amongst the immediate family members and relatives. If relatives are unavailable, it is recommended that those who wash the body be among the pious. Washing a dead person is a meritorious deed that Muslims should be encouraged to take part in. The Prophet (s.a.w) said: "He who washes a Muslim and conceals what he sees (i.e. bad odors, appearance, and anything loathsome), Allah grants him forgiveness forty times (or for forty major sins)…" For this reward to be considered, a Muslim should only seek Allah's pleasure, and not thanks, pay, or any other worldly reward. Taking a bath after washing the body is an important hygienic measure introduced in Islam. However, there is difference of opinion amongst the scholars whether it is wajib (mandatory) or not to perform ghusl (ritual bath). The correct opinion and Allah knows best is that is not compulsory. This is based on the hadith: "You are not to take a bath after washing your deceased, because he is not najis (filthy). It is sufficient that you wash your hands."

A Guide for the Muslim Funeral
http://www.isna.net/Services/pages/A-Guide-for-the-Muslim-Funeral.aspx

3. Is there anything that may be done in a hospital that would be considered offensive to your culture or religion during the process of death?

Not leave it out in the open for everyone to see, especially uncovered. It should be properly covered and taken care of soon as possible. There should be no push for autopsy or harvesting or organ or any damage to the body until council is sought from local Muslim community center.

This is not allowed either:

Basically, in embalming, the mouth is wired shut using a needle injector and the eyes are kept closed using instruments (eye caps) placed between the eyelid and eyeball. Incisions are made to access the arteries and organs, which later have to be sewn up with needle and thread. The body is nude and the genital area may or may not be covered during the process. Men can embalm women and women can embalm men.


Next, all the blood – all of it - is pumped out of the deceased’s body and is replaced with a highly toxic compound of formaldehyde, methanol, and other solvents. Embalming fluid includes 9% to 56% ethyl alcohol (the same intoxicating alcohol that is found in alcoholic beverages). The embalming fluid is treated to simulate blood color and provide the skin with a “natural” look. A similar process is done to the organs, during which an 18-inch long metal needle (trocar) is stuck into the abdominal and thoracic cavities.


http://www.muslimlinkpaper.com/islam/islam/916-Islamic Funerals - the Epitome of Respect.html
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