Children born after four months of pregnancy or had lived and made a sound go through the normal burial process. In this case, the Janazah prayer is offered.

Non-Muslims can attend the Janazah and burial, provided that they observe the proper etiquettes by dressing modestly. This means that they should wear full- length clothing, and women should observe the headscarf in the Mosque.

Yes. The funeral service consists of the washing, shrouding, Salah and burial. Up to 3 family members can attend the washing and shrouding. The Janazah prayer is open to anyone of any gender, however the mosque is compartments into male and female sections. In addition, women can choose to attend the burial at the cemetery.

Yes. However, some families choose not to due to cultural reasons. If in doubt about whether you should attend, it is advisable to contact your imam. When attending the cemetery, it is forbidden to express overt grief through wailing, attempting to throw oneself into the grave, shrieking, and tearing off clothing. This is also disrespectful towards the deceased, and increases their pain in the afterlife.

SYDNEY ISLAMIC FUNERALS employs washers who are the same gender of the deceased, and skilled in washing the dead body in the Islamic way. The spouse of the deceased can take part in the ghusl with assistance from the washers. SYDNEY ISLAMIC FUNERALS provides gloves, caps and requires certain sanitary measures to be observed which must be respected when dealing with a dead body.

Up to 3 family members can choose the accompany SYDNEY ISLAMIC FUNERALS washers. I am a woman participating in the Ghusl.

Grieving over the death of a loved one is a very difficult and traumatic milestone that most people experience. Although it is very overwhelming in the beginning, the grief should subside to some extent within a week. Islam gives us the concession of the three-day mourning period, so we have time to process the death before we return to living. Even when returning to normal functioning, it is not unusual for the grieving person’s behaviours or mood to be impacted by the death, but this should not overtake their life. If their eating, activities and functioning suffers, this is a sign that they may have difficulty coping, and they may need to be referred to a support service.

Organ donation is generally acceptable for Muslims, as it follows the Qur’an’s teaching that "Whosoever saves the life of one person it would be as if he saved the life of all mankind. “If there is any question as to whether or not organs may be donated, it is best to consult with an imam (religious leader) or Muslim funeral director.

Mourners at the funeral may express grief but may not engage in loud wailing or cause a scene. After the funeral, you gather at the family’s home with food to offer your condolences and support during the first three days of mourning. Traditionally, widows have a longer mourning period being 4 months and 10 days.

The best things to do in this case are to recite the Quran and pray for their forgiveness.

Islamically a headstone isn’t required, however a headstone with a simple inscription can be organized and is included in the burial plot packages.

Taking photos and videos of the deceased is haram as it is disrespectful and will mortify the deceased. Out of respect to the deceased, SYDNEY ISLAMIC FUNERALS discourages any taking of photos or videos of the dead body. The dead has not given us permission to take their photo or video, so we must preserve their right.

Organ donation is generally acceptable for Muslims, as it follows the Qur’an’s teaching that "Whosoever saves the life of one person it would be as if he saved the life of all mankind. “If there is any question as to whether or not organs may be donated, it is best to consult with an imam (religious leader) or Muslim funeral director.

Routine autopsies are not acceptable in Islam as they are seen as a desecration of the body. In most cases, the family of the deceased may refuse to have a routine autopsy performed.

What can we do if an autopsy is requested? Sometimes, due to the nature of the death the coroner may need more information through an autopsy for legal reasons. In these cases, we advise compliance with the process, and our funeral director corresponds directly with the autopsy and picks up the body from there.

Embalming and cosmetology are not allowed for Muslims unless required by state or federal law. The SYDNEY ISLAMIC FUNERALS advises against it but we actually do conduct the embalming service due to many families requesting the body to be transported overseas. If the body is being repatriated interstate or overseas, in certain cases it must be embalmed. What if we want to transport the body interstate because our family live there? Yes, we do provide interstate transport of bodies.

Cremation is forbidden for Muslims, so we do not cremate dead bodies or engage with the cremation of the deceased. As Muslims we believe that we will be resurrected after our deaths and are against the desecration of dead bodies. Thus, SYDNEY ISLAMIC FUNERALS stays away from this process to protect the dignity of the deceased.

After the funeral director picks up the dead body, it is transported to the SYDNEY ISLAMIC FUNERALS mortuary and kept in the cool room. This way it is respectfully maintained in a way that prevents decomposition.

The body is picked up by SYDNEY ISLAMIC FUNERALS director and is picked up as soon as possible. The length of time before pickup is dependent on where the body is. The funeral director would have taken all relevant details of where the deceased is kept and how to contact the family and promptly begins the process of receiving the body.

• If the body is being picked up from the hospital, the funeral director contacts the hospital and makes sure that a medical death certificate for the deceased has been completed. Only then can the body be picked up. This usually takes half an hour in most cases, where the medical cause of death is clear (pending hospital allowances).

• If the body is being picked up from the coroner, the coroner will contact the next of kin that the body is ready to be released. In turn, the next of kin calls the funeral director who books an appointment for pick-up of the body. Please bear in mind that from the time of contacting next of kin, there is still 2-3 hours of paperwork which may delay the pick-up. The pick-up is also usually delayed by the times available for appointment. If the body is being retrieved from the family’s premises, a doctor must issue a medical cause of death. Only then can the funeral director arrange transport for the dead body as soon as possible. If the police is attending the premises, they may request that the body be transported to the coroner for further examination. In this case, the funeral director cannot take the dead body.

When we visit the dead at the grave do they know we have visited them? There is evidence that the dead can hear the living and are pleased by their visits. It is encouraged to send salutations to the dead when entering the graveyard.

When being washed during ghusl, the soul is present and can see, feel and hear us.

We endeavor to complete the funeral as soon as possible, in accordance with the Sunnah. The latest time we can bury the body at the cemetery is 3 pm, and Janazah prayers are offered after dhuhr and asr. The earliest we do the ghusl for the dead bodies we have received on the day and the night before are at 9.30 am. The time between washing and leaving for the cemetery is usually 3.5 hours. This time includes the Janaza prayer and viewing. The body is then transported to Rockwood, Riverstone cemetery.

The risk of being contaminated from touching the deceased is not greater when they are dead than when they were alive. However, care should be taken from touching any area or thing which has been contaminated with body fluids (blood, saliva, feces or urine). As a precaution, hands should be washed after touching the deceased, and before rubbing the eyes, nose or mouth. Any open wounds should also be covered and prevented from touching body fluids.

What allotment sizes are offered? Burial plots vary in size depending on allotment. All SYDNEY ISLAMIC FUNERALS adult graves are double plots. There are allotments for:
• angel babies (1-20 weeks pre-gestation),
• babies (20-40 weeks old),
• children (40 weeks-12 years old),
• adults (12 years and above).

By the nature of the Islamic burial in SYDNEY ISLAMIC FUNERALS graves, the body is placed in the ground with a slab of concrete on top. Bodies are buried on top of each other in this way, so any Muslim can be buried on top of the person in the first plot.

Cemeteries offer rights of interment, which allow people to pre purchase their own graves. The cemetery holds the grave undisturbed in anticipation of the person who holds the right to it.

Although ISLAMIC FUNERAL HOME provides the Kaffan during its burial process, relatives of the deceased can buy their own, or the deceased may have provided their own Kaffan before death. However, the requirements of the Kaffan need to be met. It is a sheet or number of sheets that cover the whole body. It is preferable white and made of an odd number of cloths and should not be extravagant or made out of silk.

Camphor is a powder that originally came from the bark and wood of the Camphor tree, which sanitizes and acts as an insect repellent. It is used as a recommended (wajih) part of the ghusl and is placed on the 7 areas of the body which would have touched the ground during prostration.