Question:

Can you attend a funeral service for a non muslim where they would do religious rituals? (Even if you are not participating, you would have to watch it)

Answer:

The scholars mention that it is not allowed for a Muslim to attend a funeral service of a non-Muslim. That includes religious rituals because it involves witnessing evil and possibly Shirk/Kufr. In Islam, we are not allowed to witness evil without prohibiting it as Allah says: “And those who do not witness falsehood, and if they pass by some evil play or evil talk, they pass by it with dignity” [25:72]

Likewise, the scholars mention it is not allowed to follow the funeral of a disbeliever [See: Majmoo’ al-Fatwa (24/256)]. And they made an exception for a Muslim participating in the burial of their non-Muslim parents as a last form of dutifulnes towards them. For more on this, see Shaikh al-Albani’s speech in Silsilatus-Saheeha (no. 161).

And Allah knows best

Faisal bin Abdul Qaadir bin Hassan
Abu Sulaymaan