Life and death are believed by Muslims to be in accord with the will of Allah – the timing of death is therefore predetermined with a fixed term for each human being. Death marks the passing to the Hereafter – the ultimate destination.
In Islamic belief, death is predetermined by God, and the exact time of a person's death is known only to God. Death is accepted as wholly natural, and merely marks a transition between the material realm and the unseen world.
After death, most Muslims believe that the soul will enter Barzakh, a state of waiting, until the Day of Judgement. When a person dies, their soul is taken by Azra'il, the Angel of Death. God sends two angels to question the waiting soul.
The Quran differentiates between the process of dying and death itself. Death is defined as biologic disintegration. Irreversible cessation of homeostasis and cellular, tissue, and organ integration indicates biologic death.
The ritual represents spiritual intercession on the part of the dead, who are believed to collectively await the Day of Judgment.
The general mourning period is three days following the death. Most families will stay together in a family home and receive guests- friends and more distant family coming to express condolences and offer prayers on behalf of the deceased and family.
The first, called “shiva,” meaning “seven,” takes place over the seven days immediately following the funeral. During shiva, the family gathers every day in a family home to mourn and pray. For seven days, family members do not go to work or participate in the routine of their normal lives.
When the end nears the dying person's breath quickens, the knees become so weak that they cannot move, the nose becomes bent and temples subside. By these signs understand that the person is nearing the end. The Talqeen must be read before the dying person takes his last breaths.
Those present when the person passes should continue tradition by saying “Inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji'un”. This means “Verily we belong to Allah, and truly to Him shall we return” and is a must for all Muslims who have since passed from this world.
On the day of one's death, one meets the angels that will take away one's soul in a full state of submission to them, while the body is placed into the grave prepared for it to rot. The life that passes with great bustle over the course of 60 or 70 years eventually comes to an end in the grave.
Just like letters that go together in a word, there are soulmates who came in the symbolic “Be.” Spiritual partnership found in soulmates are far from foreign to Islam: to the contrary, The Quran and Prophetic Tradition are replete with them.
True soulmates will never keep you stuck, stagnant or stale, but will push you to a new level through pleasure but often pain. This relationship pushes us to a new level of reflection. Allah says it best: “and all things We have created by pairs, that perhaps you may reflect” (Quran, The Scatterers 51:49).
The soul or atman, credited with the ability to enliven the body, was located by ancient anatomists and philosophers in the lungs or heart, in the pineal gland (Descartes), and generally in the brain.
The period of mourning usually lasts 40 days, but this will vary depending on the family. Traditionally, the mourning period for a widow is longer: four months and ten days.
Some pagan traditions believe that the soul of a recently deceased person continues to wander the earth for forty days; other religious traditions believe the soul will rest in the Lord's hands after death. The number 40 is often used in many spiritual traditions, but the specific reason is unknown.
Muslims believe in the concept of Paradise (Jannah ), which is where people go if they have lived a good life. Muslims also believe in Hell (Jahannam ), which is where people go if they have lived a bad life or have committed shirk .
When we die, our spirit and body separate. Even though our body dies, our spirit—which is the essence of who we are—lives on. Our spirit goes to the spirit world. The spirit world is a waiting period until we receive the gift of resurrection, when our spirits will reunite with our bodies.
Your heart stops beating. Your brain stops. Other vital organs, including your kidneys and liver, stop. All your body systems powered by these organs shut down, too, so that they're no longer capable of carrying on the ongoing processes understood as, simply, living.
A conscious dying person can know if they are on the verge of dying. Some feel immense pain for hours before dying, while others die in seconds. This awareness of approaching death is most pronounced in people with terminal conditions such as cancer.
In time, the heart stops and they stop breathing. Within a few minutes, their brain stops functioning entirely and their skin starts to cool. At this point, they have died.
What are the signs that death is near? Someone who is very close to death will likely refuse food and water. Their breathing and heart rates will slow and/or be abnormal and their hands, arms, feet, or legs may be cool to the touch. They may also be agitated, anxious, and confused.
For approximately the first 3 hours after death the body will be flaccid (soft) and warm. After about 3-8 hours is starts to stiffen, and from approximately 8-36 hours it will be stiff and cold. The body becomes stiff because of a range of chemical changes in the muscle fibres after death.
Trimming hair and nails
Generally, this emanates from the belief that nails and hair were given to the children by the deceased as a parent and as such they shouldn't be trimmed during the mourning period and after the burial. At least you should wait for 49 days.
By three days, internal organs have decomposed. From three to five days after death, the body will begin to bloat from gasses produced from internal decomposition. The body could actually double in size and turn a greenish color. Extremely unpleasant and long-lasting odors called putrification begins.
The Islamic faith doesn't allow coffins or burial caskets. Instead, those burying the body will place stones or wood at the bottom of the grave to prevent the body from contacting the soil and gently lay their loved one on top with their right side facing the qibla.