Short answer
Yes. In the relied-upon Hanafi position, a Muslim who died by suicide is washed, shrouded, prayed over and buried in a Muslim cemetery like any other Muslim. Suicide is a grave sin, but it does not take a person out of Islam, and their affair is with Allah.
A Muslim who killed themselves is washed and prayed over; this is the fatwa position. Imam Abu Yusuf held that no prayer is offered, but that is not the relied view. A leading scholar may choose not to lead the prayer as a lesson to others, while the community still prays it.
Other madhhabs
- Hanbali
- The ruler or main imam does not lead the prayer, following the hadith, but the rest of the Muslims pray it.
Explanation
Losing someone to suicide brings a grief that is heavy and confusing. Families often fear that their loved one will be denied a Muslim funeral. In the Hanafi school, and in the other schools too, the janazah is prayed.
The ruling. Taking one's own life is a major sin, and the Quran forbids it. But Ahl al-Sunnah agree that major sins, apart from disbelief, do not make a person a non-Muslim. So the person is treated as a Muslim: washed, shrouded, prayed over, buried among Muslims and remembered in dua.
The hadith. Once, a man who had killed himself was brought, and the Prophet ﷺ did not pray over him. Scholars explain that he did not forbid others from praying; he did the same with a man who died owing debts, telling the Companions "pray over your companion". It was a strong lesson for the living, not a denial of the person's Islam.
Mental illness. Many people who die this way were suffering from severe depression or illness that clouded their judgement. Allah knows what they were carrying, and He is the most just and the most merciful. It is not our place to say where they are. What we can do is pray for them.
- Hold the janazah normally and bury them in the Muslim cemetery.
- Make dua for their forgiveness, give sadaqah and recite Quran for them.
- Do not speak harshly of them to the family.
- If you are struggling yourself, please reach out to someone today; see mental health in Islam.
The evidence
Quran, Surah An-Nisaa 4:29
يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ لَا تَأْكُلُوٓا۟ أَمْوَٰلَكُم بَيْنَكُم بِٱلْبَٰطِلِ إِلَّآ أَن تَكُونَ تِجَٰرَةً عَن تَرَاضٍۢ مِّنكُمْ ۚ وَلَا تَقْتُلُوٓا۟ أَنفُسَكُمْ ۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ كَانَ بِكُمْ رَحِيمًۭا ﴿٢٩﴾
O you who have believed, do not consume one another's wealth unjustly but only [in lawful] business by mutual consent. And do not kill yourselves [or one another]. Indeed, Allah is to you ever Merciful.
Suicide is forbidden, which is why it is a grave sin.
Quran, Surah Az-Zumar 39:53
۞ قُلْ يَٰعِبَادِىَ ٱلَّذِينَ أَسْرَفُوا۟ عَلَىٰٓ أَنفُسِهِمْ لَا تَقْنَطُوا۟ مِن رَّحْمَةِ ٱللَّهِ ۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ يَغْفِرُ ٱلذُّنُوبَ جَمِيعًا ۚ إِنَّهُۥ هُوَ ٱلْغَفُورُ ٱلرَّحِيمُ ﴿٥٣﴾
Say, "O My servants who have transgressed against themselves [by sinning], do not despair of the mercy of Allah. Indeed, Allah forgives all sins. Indeed, it is He who is the Forgiving, the Merciful."
Allah's mercy is wide, and the matter of the dead is with Him.
Sahih Muslim 978
Sahih... برجل قتل نفسه بمشاقص فلم يصل عليه ...
"A man who had killed himself with arrowheads was brought, and he did not pray over him."
The Prophet ﷺ held back himself as a lesson.
Sahih al-Bukhari 2289
Sahih... صلوا على صاحبكم ...
"Pray over your companion."
In a similar case he told the Companions to pray, showing others still pray.
Where the ruling is recorded
- al-Durr al-Mukhtar, Kitab al-Salah, Bab Salat al-Janazah. Whoever kills himself, even deliberately, is washed and prayed over, and this is the fatwa.
- Radd al-Muhtar (Ibn Abidin), Kitab al-Salah, Bab Salat al-Janazah. The view of Abu Yusuf and why it is not relied upon.
This answer is pending review by the scholars on our team. Quran translation by Sahih International. Hadith Arabic from the standard editions of the six books and the Muwatta, with gradings as recorded there; the English is our own rendering. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.