Consignment to Dust

The Sandaq would be placed in the prayer area with Ka’aba on its left. A raka’at of Namaz would be offered standing in front of the Janaza, which would then be moved to the brink of the grave, already dug and ready. The bandhs would now be loosened to help as ropes to lower the body into the inner pit, for the handlers standing on the shoulders of the outer pit. The body should be placed perpendicular to the direction of Ka’aba, as far as the layout of the burial ground would permit, with Ka’aba on the left, with the face slightly turned towards Qibla. After the body was lowered, the closest relatives would offer three fistfuls of mud formed as props that would be reverentially placed, one under the head, one under the chin and the third under the shoulder. The inner pit would then be closed with wooden planks  The mats were spread over the planks to prevent any mud entering the inner pit. The larger pit would then filled to ground level with the same mud excavated for making the grave. A tomb like formation being made two pieces of wood would be erected at either end, as markers, called Meezan and afterwards replaced with formed granite planks; a piece of the stem of a wild shrub would be planted at the head and the entire qabr wetted with water collected in the three pots which accompanied the Janaza. It was a custom to perambulate the qabr pouring water from one pot at a time, and breaking the pot at the end of each round, thus making three rounds. Somewhere in the unknown past, perambulation and breaking of the pots appears to have been discontinued as it closely resembled a non-Muslim culture. But the custom of carrying water in three pots had continued.