With the massive spread of COVID-19, concerns in the Muslim community have grown over burial rituals.
Victims of the virus around the world were being cremated which is unacceptable for Muslims. In addition to being prohibited, Cremation is considered as a profanation of the deceased.
In many cities, multiple councils are now banning funeral ceremonies and preventing families from attending the services. Instead, they offer “direct cremations” as a measure of protection from the spread of the virus.
On the other hand, the UK Government has confirmed that they will make sure that faith communities will be able to bury the deceased instead of cremating them if that falls in line with their faith. This legislation bans forced cremation against the wishes of the individual.
Only members of the deceased person’s household or close family members can attend the funeral. Any individual displaying symptoms of COVID-19 should not attend. Those who do attend will need to adhere to social distancing at all times, including when travelling to and from the funeral.
Musharraf Hussain, a UK-based academic and translator of The Majestic Quran declared that only “two people can conduct the funeral prayer if necessary, and corpses are not always washed".
We recommend the Muslim community check with their local funeral service for the provision and procedures in their area. Our prayers are with all those affected by this virus.
Please adhere to the procedures in place, we understand it is extremely difficult to keep away from comforting loved ones and being unable to attend funerals at this time, however it is imperative to protect yourselves and those around you.
