Abstract

The current study attempts an exposition of the opinions of Fuqaha’ with regard to the issue of funeral orations and arrives at the most probable among them, sustained by evidence, given the urgent need for studies clarifying this matter to place in the hands of interested researchers, scientists and students the knowledge of the judgment concerning such issue. The study consists of three sections and a following conclusion. As such, the first section introduces a definition of funeral orations and elaborates on the history and timing thereof. The second section highlights the opinions of the Fuqaha’ and their respective evidence concerning the issue of funeral orations while the third section offers a discussion of these opinions and points out the most probable among them. For this purpose, the researcher sought to employ the descriptive method while deriving from both deductive and inductive methods being well-suited for this type of studies. The study has concluded with the following results: that funeral orations are a sort of compliment, an act of complimenting a dead person, grieving him or her. Elegy and lament are relevant to the concept of funeral orations. There are differences between orations and obituaries as there is not specific time for orations by which a dead person is complemented. Finally, the Fuqaha’ have disagreed with the judgement concerning such orations. Some went for allowing them and others favored their prohibition while, still, some others disliked them.