Q 1.: How should the Imam stand in Janazah (Funeral) Prayer in case there are two male and one female dead persons?

A 1.: The two male corpses should be placed near the Imam and the female corpse should be placed subsequent to them to the direction of the Qiblah (Ka`bah-direction faced in Prayer). This is indicated in the Hadith reported by Yahya ibn Subayh who said: I was told by `Ammar, the freed slave of Al-Harith ibn Naufal: that he attended the Janazah of Um Kulthum and her son. As the body of the boy was placed near the Imam, I objected to it. Among the people there were Ibn `Abbas, Abu Sa`id Al-Khudry, Abu Qatadah and Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with them all). They said: This is the Sunnah (action following the teachings of the Prophet). (Related by Abu Dawud and Al-Nasa'y through an authentic Sanad (chain of narrators).)In this respect, the Imam should stand opposite to the heads of the two male corpses and to the waist of the female corpse. Thus, the waist of the female corpse should be opposite to the heads of the two male corpses. This is indicated in the Hadith related by Al-Tirmidhy in his "Al-Jami`" on the authority of Hammam, who reported Abu Ghalib as saying: I witnessed Anas ibn Malik offering Janazah Prayer for a man, and he stood by his head. Thereafter, the dead body of a woman from Quraysh was brought. The people said: O Abu Hamzah! Offer Janazah Prayer for her. Offering Janazah Prayer for her, he stood opposite to her waist. Al-`Ala' ibn Ziyad said to him, "Is this how Allah's Messenger (peace be upon him) used to stand, like you stood, with respect to the corpses of a man and a woman?" He replied, "Yes!" When he finished, Al-`Ala' said, (Part No. 7; Page No. 274) "Keep this in mind!" Moreover, Abu Dawud and Ibn Majah reported a similar Hadith in their Sunan (Hadith compilations classified by jurisprudential themes) and Al-Tirmidhy judged it as Hadith Hasan (good Hadith). The same notion is also indicated in the Hadith related by the Six Hadith Compilers (Al-Bukhari, Muslim, Abu Dawud, Al-Tirmidhy, Al-Nasa'y, and Ibn Majah) on the authority of Samurah Ibn Jundub that when the Prophet (peace be upon him) offered Janazah Prayer for a woman, he stood opposite to the middle of her body. The Hadith is judged by Al-Tirmidhy as Hasan Sahih (a Hadith which according to Al-Tirmidhy stands at a higher level than a mere Hasan Hadith, but at a bit lower level than Sahih).May Allah grant us success. May peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and Companions.