Praise be to Allah.
The funeral prayer is fard kifaayah; if some people do it then the rest are absolved of responsibility, but if all of them fail to do it then all are guilty of sin. It is not something that is only for men; rather it is prescribed for both men and women alike to offer the funeral prayer, even though in principle it it is men who are expected to do it. But women should not follow the funeral procession, because it was narrated that Umm ‘Atiyah said: “We were forbidden to follow the funeral processions, but not emphatically.” This was narrated by al-Bukhaari and Muslim. According to another report, “The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) forbade us…”
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