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Does the worshiper say the Taslim after the funeral prayer once or twice, and if the Imam says it twice, does the follower imitate him?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

The majority of scholars hold that the salutation (taslim) in the funeral prayer is given once, to the right. Ibn Abd al-Barr and Ibn Qudamah have reported the consensus of the Companions on this matter. Imam Ahmad mentioned the names of six Companions who performed a single taslim, and Al-Bayhaqi added four more. Ibn Abi Shaybah, Al-Hakim al-Naysaburi, and Ibn Baz have affirmed this view.

However, some scholars (such as the Hanafis and Shafi’is) are of the opinion that two salutations are given, basing their argument on a hadith narrated by Ibn Mas'ud, which is open to multiple interpretations. Additionally, some of the early generations, such as Salim ibn Zayd, Al-Sha'bi, and Ibrahim al-Nakha'i, would perform two salutations.

As for a worshipper praying behind an Imam who performs two salutations, it is legislated for him to follow the Imam, because the second salutation is a matter of considerable scholarly disagreement, and because following the Imam is a Sunnah. However, if he limits himself to one salutation, there is no harm, as the prayer concludes with the first salutation.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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