The Book of Friday Prayer, the Two Festivals, the Prayer for Rain, the Eclipse Prayer, and Funerals-06b

The Reciter: And Abu al-Kamil al-Juhdari, Fudayl ibn Husayn, and Uthman ibn Abi Shaybah, both of them from Bishr. Abu al-Kamil said: Bishr ibn al-Mufaddal narrated to us, 'Ammarah ibn Ghaziyyah narrated to us, Yahya ibn 'Ammarah narrated to us, saying: I heard Abu Sa'id al-Khudri say: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: .

The Shaykh : In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
The Book of Funerals
Al-Jana'iz: The plural of janaazah, and it is also said jinaazah, and both mean the same. Some said: janaazah with an open alif (fathah) means the deceased on top of the bier, and jinaazah with a closed alif (kasrah) means the bier.
The scholars (may Allah have mercy on them) mentioned the Book of Funerals in the Book of Prayer, because the most important thing done for the deceased is the prayer, the prayer over him. Otherwise, it has a connection to the Book of Wills, the Book of Inheritance, and the like.
Then the author (may Allah have mercy on him) mentioned the hadith of Abu Sa'id al-Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him), saying: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: .
He said "Teach them": and teaching (ta'lqin) is instruction, and it usually applies to those who do not have full reason, such as children and the like. To teach means to say something to him so that he says it. This is because the dying person, most people generally, are in a state of intoxication, as Allah the Exalted said: , meaning they are absent, and their minds are absent, due to the severity of what has befallen them, between fear of the punishment of the Hereafter and sadness at parting with this world, family, and children, and the like. So the person is in a state of intoxication. Therefore, he said: Teach your dying ones. And "the dying" here means those who are on the verge of death, to whom death has come, and it does not mean after their death, because after their death, teaching them is of no benefit. As for the hadith of Abu Umamah that is narrated from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that he , this is a weak hadith that cannot serve as proof. And regarding teaching: the scholars said: it is not commanded as an order, meaning it is not said: Say "There is no god but Allah," because he might say "No," due to the severity of what has befallen him and the tightness of his chest. So a person comes and orders him, saying to him: Say "There is no god but Allah." He might say "No," he might say "No." Therefore, the scholars said: it is recommended to mention Allah in his presence, saying: There is no god but Allah. And if he hears it and his mind is with him, he will say it, because he knows what has befallen him.
So if someone asks: Did not the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) say to his uncle: Say "There is no god but Allah"? We say: No, but his uncle was a disbeliever. So if he had said "There is no god but Allah," we would not have prevented him from his religion, because he remained a disbeliever. And some of the scholars distinguished between a man who is strong in spirit, strong in determination, who knows that he is dying and that he is transitioning from this world. So if "There is no god but Allah" is said to him, there is no harm. But it is better to mention Allah in his presence. If he mentions Allah, that is what is sought. Otherwise, it is repeated a second and third time. If he says "There is no god but Allah" and then speaks, his teaching is repeated, so that the last thing he says is: There is no god but Allah. And the meaning of "There is no god but Allah" according to the theologians, the Asha'irah, and others: There is no one capable of creation except Allah. And by this, we know that the tawhid of the theologians is the tawhid of the polytheists, because the polytheists say: There is no creator except Allah. And yet, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) fought them and considered them polytheists. But the true meaning of it is: There is no true object of worship except Allah. So all objects of worship are false except Allah (Mighty and Majestic). And the evidence for this is His saying, the Exalted: . And this clarifies for us the correct meaning of "There is no god but Allah": There is no true object of worship except Allah. And it is obligatory for us to say "true", because if we said "There is no object of worship except Allah," "except Allah" would be the predicate of "no," and the objects of worship would be Allah. If we say "There is no object of worship except Allah," it becomes that every object of worship is Allah. And this is a false meaning that no one can affirm.
And on this basis, the news (khabar) is omitted, and the estimation is: true. And this is better than the estimation of some of them: There is no existing object of worship except Allah. This is also an error, because we say: there is an existing object of worship other than Allah. And it is also better than the saying of some of them: There is no object of worship with truth except Allah. Because if we say "There is no true object of worship," it matches the verse exactly. And what is the verse? . So: the predicate is omitted with the word "true." As for Allah, it is a proper name for Allah (Mighty and Majestic), and no one else is called by it.
So if someone asks: Who teaches him? We say: The one who is present with him teaches him, and the one who is dearest to the deceased is preferred over others. Yes, and it is not the closest relative, because the closest relative may not have a complete relationship with him, and there may be a stronger relationship. So the one who is seen to be dearest to the deceased is the one who teaches him.