The ruling on placing Muslims in Wooden Coffins

All praise is due to Allâh alone, and may blessings and peace be upon he whom there is no Prophet after him - our leader and Prophet, Muhammad. May Allâh send blessings and peace upon him, his family and his Companions.

The Council of Islamic Fiqh Academy has looked into the matter of a question that came from the General Supervisor for the Islamic Youth and the Head of the delegation of the Islamic Society in the state of Victoria, Australia, concerning the ruling on burying deceased Muslims in wooden coffins in the way that the Christians do. The questioner says that some of the Muslims there (in Australia) continue to hold this way as something good and they follow it, even though the government of the mentioned country has allowed the Muslims to bury their dead in the Islamic way. Meaning, they allow them to be buried in an Islamic shroud without a casket.

After discussion and debate, the Council of Fiqh Academy decided the following:

1. Verily, every action or manner that comes from the Muslims with the intention of imitating and following the non-Muslims, then it is Islamically forbidden and prohibited by the clear Prophetic Hadiths.

2. Verily, burial in a coffin, if the intent behind it is to imitate the non-Muslims, is forbidden. If the intent behind it is not to imitate the non-Muslims, then it is disliked as long as there is no need that calls for it. If there is a need that calls for it, then there is no harm in it.

May Allâh send blessings and abundant peace upon our leader, Muhammad, his family and his Companions. And all praise is due to Allâh, the Lord of all the worlds.

Source:
Fatawa Islamiyah, Vol. 3