Ash-Shaykh Bin Baaz, rahimahullah was asked the following question,

س: بعض المرضى من المسلمين يموت على غير القبلة بسبب وضع السرير في المستشفى لغير القبلة؟

Question:

س: بعض المرضى من المسلمين يموت على غير القبلة بسبب وضع السرير في المستشفى لغير القبلة؟

Some of the sick from the Muslims are dying facing other than the qiblah due to the beds in the hospital being placed (in a direction) facing other than the qiblah. (So what do you have to say regarding this?)

Answer:

ج: لا حرج في ذلك، والسنة أن يستقبل بالمريض القبلة إذا تيسر ذلك عند حضور الوفاة، وإلا فلا حرج.

There is no harm in that, while the sunnah is to get the sick one to face the qiblah when that is easy when the person is dying. And if not, then (there is) no harm ”

Reference: Majmoo’u (9/440)

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However, some of the other scholars see otherwise; that it is not recommended to make the one dying to face the qiblah. Ash-Shaykh Bin Baaz’s proof is the hadeeth

“الكعبة قبلتكم أحياء وأمواتا”

“The Ka’bah is your qiblah, for the dead and the living“ (The hadeeth has been reported by Abu Daawud and others and it has been declared to be authentic by Albani rahimahullah.)

Ash-Shawkaani, rahimahullah, comments by saying:

وفي الاستدلال به على ذلك نظر لأن المراد بقوله أحياء عند الصلاة وأمواتا في اللحد ،

“It is problematic to use that (hadeeth) as a proof because what is intended by His statement ‘the living’ is for the prayer and ‘the dead ‘ is for the grave…”

Reference: Naylu Awtaar (4/50).

Also Ash-Shaykh Albani, rahimahullah, when mentioning some of the acts of innovations had included it by saying:

توجيه المحتضر إلى القبلة .( أنكره سعيد بن المسيب كما في ( المحلى ) ومالك كما في ( المدخل ) ولا يصح فيه حديث .

“Making the one dying to face the qiblah ([regarding this action, then] it was criticized by Sa’eed bin Musayyib as found in the book ‘al-Muhalaa’ and by Imam Maalik as found in the book ‘al-Madkhal’). Also, there is no hadeeth authentic pertaining to it”

A Side Note: What Shaykh Albani intends by his statement ‘there is no hadeeth authentic pertaining to it’ is a narration that comes on the sahaabi Baraa bin Maroor, reported by al-Haakim, and which is a weak hadeeth.

Translated by

AbdulFattaah bin Uthman
Abu Fajr