Writing s Du'aa and placing it on the Chest of the Deceased

Q: Janaa'iz-37: The Gujarati monthly Aabe Hayaat from Ahmedabad contains an article containing the following:

Kabeeri states that the following du'aa should be written on a paper and placed on the chest of the deceased when preparing the Kafan. Doing so will cause Allaah's unrestricted mercy and bounties to pour down on the person. The du'aa is:

Fatawa Rahimiyyah (vol. 3 pg. 51)

It then proceeds to state that the entire Surah Inshiraah should be written with Bismillaah on the paper. (Kabeeri (Pg.659) and Mtftaahul Jinaan (chapter 20))

Is this permissible? Please furnish a detailed reply.

Answer: Kabeeri neither speaks about the verses of the Qur'aan, nor the du'aa, nor any commentary, nor does it speak about writing these down and then placing them on the chest. Is states only that there is hope of forgiveness for a person when Bismillaah is written on the person's forehead, turban or Kafan.
It states no Hadith in support of this, but cites only the incident of a saint who bequeathed that Bismillaahir Rahmaanir Raheem be written on his forehead and chest, When someone saw him in a dream after his death and asked how he fared, he replied that when the angels of punishment saw the Bismillaah written on him, they said, "You are exempted from receiving punishment."

This means that the Bismillaah or anything else be written by the indication of the finger and not with ink, This is permissible. Shaami (Vol.1 Pg.848) states that after the bath but before the shrouding, the right index finger should be used without ink to write Bismillaah on the forehead of the deceased and the Kalimah on the chest.

Dirhamul Kays also verifies that the writing be done by the indication of the finger and not with ink.
If it is assumed that the quoted extract of Kabeeri means that the du'aa be written with ink then this has also been forbidden. Allaama Shaami RAH. and other research scholars sternly oppose this.

Shaami (Vol.1 pg.847) states that Imaam Ibnus Salaah RADI. issued a Fatwa stating that it is not permissible to write sacred words like Surah yaaseen or Surah Kahaf on the Kafan because it may be soiled by the blood of the deceased. Fat'hul Qadeer also makes it clear that it is forbidden to write verses of the Qur'aan and the names of Allaah coins, the Mihraab, walls, carpets, etc. because it is necessary to honour these words. The possibility of desecration exists in all these cases. If writing these words on the Mihraab and on walls is forbidden. It will certainly be forbidden on Kafans and the bodies of deceased people because the possibility of disrespect is greater and this is Haraam. This will therefore remain unlawful unless proven to be permissible by the Fatwa of a Mujtahid or a Hadith.

Referring to writing the family tree of the saints on the Kafan or body of the deceased, Hadhrat Shah Abdul Azeez Muhaddith Dehlawi RAH. writes that it is not permissible because of the imminent disrespect due to blood and pus reaching it.

In his Fawaa'idul Fawaa'id he states, "The Qur'aan and du'aas should not be written on graves or on the Kafan."

The irony of it all is that the famous and trusted book of the Ridaa Khan sect called Bihaare Shari'ut supports the view that such acts are forbidden. It states. "However, after bathing the body and before shrouding it, one should write with the finger and not with ink."

The gist of it all is that because of the disrespect and desecration involved, it is forbidden to write du'aas or the like with ink on the Body or Kafan. It is however permissible to write Bismillaah on the forehead and the Kalimah on the chest by the indication of the finger. This must however not be regarded as compulsory and it must also not be regarded as a definite means of attaining divine forgiveness. The act is based on people's expectations and dreams and can therefore not be regarded as a command of the Shari'ah since there is no substantive proof from the Ahadeeth. It may be done only with the hope of forgiveness.
And Allaah knows best what is most correct.

Fatawa Rahimiyyah vol.3