932/1 - ‘Ā’ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) reported that the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) said: “No person dies and a group of Muslims amounting to one hundred offer the funeral prayer for him, and all of them intercede for him, except that their intercession will be accepted.” [Narrated by Muslim]
933/2 - Ibn ‘Abbās (may Allah be pleased with him and his father) reported: I heard the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) say: “No Muslim man dies and forty men, who associate no partners with Allah, offer the funeral prayer for him except that Allah will accept their intercession for him.” [Narrated by Muslim]
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Associating partners with Allah takes place by invoking other than Him or devoting worship to anything other than Him, such as supplication, fear, or hope.
1) Supplication for the dead person during his funeral constitutes intercession for him before Allah Almighty requested by the people of faith in his favor.
2) The greater the group offering the funeral prayer, the more likely their intercession will be accepted.
3) They point out the merit of monotheism and sincerity to Allah Almighty. A monotheist believer who associates no partner with Him, is the one whose intercession and supplication are hoped to be accepted and answered. This demonstrates the significance of monotheism in the life of the believer.
934/3 - Marthad ibn ‘Abdullāh al-Yazani reported: When Mālik ibn Hubayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) offered a funeral prayer and found a small number of participants, he would divide them into three rows and would say that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) said: “If three rows offer the funeral prayer over a person, his entry into Paradise becomes certain.”
[Narrated by Abu Dāwūd and Al-Tirmidhi, who classified it as Hasan (sound)]
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1) It is recommended to increase the rows offering the funeral prayer, when people are small in number.
2) The funeral prayer is a reason for the dead person’s sure entry into Paradise. This is part of Allah’s grace towards this Ummah, as He made the mutual mercy and intercession between them during their worldly life and upon their death.