Q. Could you please clarify if janazah prayer offered in a different country is valid or not? We sometimes offer this prayer for relatives who die in India. However we have been told by some Imams that it is not valid, as it is a deviation or bid’ah, while others have not said so. May I add that I have witnessed this type of prayer offered for the famous Indian scholar Ali Mia and for the late kings of Jordan and Morocco.
M.A. Sadat, Jeddah
A. When news of the death of Negus, the ruler of Abyssinia was conveyed to the Prophet, he and his companions offered this prayer, which is a special prayer for a deceased person before his burial. The Prophet was in Madinah while the Negus died and was buried in Abyssinia. Hence, to suggest that this prayer is a deviation betrays total ignorance. Some scholars, however, suggest that if we know for certain that this prayer has been offered for the deceased person in his home town or village, then to offer this prayer when away is not necessary. But there is nothing in the Sunnah to support this restriction. The fact that the Prophet and his companions offered this prayer for a deceased person who died more than 1000 kilometers away shows that it is perfectly appropriate. No one can argue otherwise.
Prayer for an away deceased person may be offered by an individual or a congregation. When we offer it, we should turn towars the Qiblah in Makkah, even though the person might have died in a place that lies in a different direction. The prayer is offered in the same way as if the deceased’s body was present, without any difference.
Working in computer games
Q. After my graduation in computer science, I want to be a professional game developer. However, I have heard that in Islam, picture and music are not allowed. In computer games, there is character animation where figures and characters are not drawn by hand, but are generated by using mathematics. The same is often the case with the music sound. Do these fall in the same prohibited categories? Is it permissible for me to pursue my interest in a professional way?
Omar Alvi, Pakistan
A. The prohibition on pictures and images is clearly stated by the Prophet to apply to such pictures as are intended to be similar to Godís creation. This includes statues, 3-D imaging, and other works of art where the artist aims to produce a life-like image. The case well known when a famous sculptor was so much enthralled in his work that on completion of a statue, he ordered it to speak. When it would not, he broke it with an axe. This is the sort of work the Prophet refers to when he says of such artists, "They want to produce the like of Godís creation." Nothing of this applies to our modern pictures, whether taken by camera or generated by computers.
Moreover, numerous scholars of the highest repute agree that photography is not included in the Prophetís condemnation of making images. Photography is no more than a print-out of a reflection with a lens in the same way as a mirror, which is practically a lens, reflects our images. No one suggests that looking in the mirror is forbidden.
Forbidden music is that which instigates obscene or sinful thoughts, or is associated with evil thoughts or beliefs, such as devil worship. Music played as game background is very different from that, and it is mostly monotonous and boring. Unless the game has some obscenities or evil thoughts, its music is hardly likely to generate such thoughts.
