Term Paper: The Funeral Process in Islam

Sample Term Paper

Words 1,430

This is a term paper on the funeral process in Islam. The funeral of a Muslim is the United States is not much different than anywhere else however there are certain things which have been taken into consideration keeping in mind that this is a western society.

The funeral of a Muslim is the United States is not much different than anywhere else however there are certain things which have been taken into consideration keeping in mind that this is a western society. The first thing we did after my father’s death was to contact some of our friends and relatives. Then one of my brothers contacted the local chapter of the Muslim Community Center. There are burial committees, and people heading the committees are always present to assist other Muslims during this hour of their need. There are several steps involved in first preparing the body for burial:

Washing of the body

According to Islam the body of a male is bathed by a male while a body of a female is washed by females and that of a minor can be washed either by males or females. My brothers and I took part in the washing where the whole body was first placed on a table designed to perform this specific task. All the private parts of the body were covered and while keeping it covered the other garments of the body were removed. First the stomach was cleansed by pushing gently on the stomach so that all the excretions came out of the body and it is wiped with a piece of cloth. The body was then cleaned with hands or a piece of washing cloth. The water had to be warm and clean. Each part was washed three times; there is always an odd number three, five or seven.

We had to turn our father’s body left so that the right side could be washed we used warm water and soap. Then the body was turned to the right side to wash the left side. Since my father’s hair was short we just washed his hair, whereas for women it is recommended that the hair be braided leaving the ends loose.   For the final washing some non-alcoholic perfume was added to the water. This was followed by performing ablution or wudu which is performed before praying. His nose and teeth were also cleaned at this stage. At the very end non-alcoholic perfume was again applied all over the body including the private parts and nostrils.

Kindly order custom made Essays, Term Papers, Research Papers, Thesis, Dissertation, Assignment, Book Reports, Reviews, Presentations, Projects, Case Studies, Coursework, Homework, Creative Writing, Critical Thinking, on the essay topic by clicking on the order page.