By Noor Hayati Muda
KUALA LUMPUR: Working as a concierge at a firm in Singapore requires Zainab Ash Shughra Amer to be adept at interacting with and handling various requests from clients.
However, once office hours are over, this 39-year-old woman steps into an entirely different “world” – a cold, sombre room where the atmosphere is heavy with silence, broken only by the hum of a machine as Zainab and her assistant go about their work.
Before them, a body covered with a cloth lies on a steel table. “Sorry,” murmurs Zainab as she lifts the cloth, but she knows her apology will go unanswered as the life of the person whose body lies before her ended several hours ago. Her eyes scrutinise the body, watching the body’s yellowish pale skin gradually turn reddish.
Embalmer
“Yes, I handle the deceased, especially the embalming process and preparing the body, whether for repatriation to the country of origin (if the deceased is a foreigner) or for burial,” she said when interviewed by Bernama here recently.
As a matter of fact, Zainab is the first Muslim woman embalmer – and currently the only one – in Singapore. It is understood that there are no Muslim women embalmers in Malaysia too.
Zainab embalms the bodies of Muslims and non-Muslims. In the case of Muslims – since embalming is not allowed in Islam – her services are only required if the deceased is a non-citizen and has to be repatriated to the country of origin.
This writer got to know Zainab through TikTok, where she shares, among other content, video clips of her carrying out her duties as an embalmer on her account doktermayat7.
She said her daily schedule has been quite tight since she became a certified embalmer more than a year ago.
“My services are in demand because there are no other Muslim women embalmers here (in Singapore). In fact, during the last Hari Raya, I received a call asking me to take care of two bodies,” she said, adding that most of the bodies she handles involve medical tourists and domestic workers from neighbouring countries.
“There have also been times when I was called to embalm not the complete body but amputated body parts,” she said, adding she once embalmed three bodies in a single night.
Dignity
Zainab pointed out that her field of work requires her to have immense mental strength, empathy and a deep sense of humility as she is providing a service to bodies that can no longer express pain or discomfort.
“From an Islamic perspective, we are required to handle the deceased with care and gentleness, as every touch can ‘hurt’ the body just as it would when alive.
“This is why I always make it a point to apologise whenever I perform any procedure on a body. The deceased’s modesty must also be protected by ensuring the body remains covered with a cloth at all times,” she added.
According to Zainab, non-Muslim embalmers, in general, tend to leave bodies uncovered to allow easier inspection of the flow of formalin solution, which gives the skin a reddish hue.
She said one of the reasons that motivated her to enter this field was to ensure that the dignity of the deceased, particularly Muslims, is not compromised.
“Like most Muslims in my country, I initially knew nothing about embalming. Previously, I used to volunteer to wash the bodies of deceased Muslim women at Ihsan Casket.
“Then one day, my friend who runs an international funeral management company suggested I become an embalmer, considering the factors I mentioned earlier.
“At first, I was sceptical but after researching and reading about embalming, I felt a sense of responsibility to pursue this field,” she said, adding one of her main reasons for taking up embalming was to ease the process of managing the remains of family members who pass away in foreign countries and need to be repatriated.
Zainab’s journey to becoming a certified embalmer was not without challenges as no institutions in her country offer courses in this field.
“There are none in Malaysia either while the licences issued by institutions in Indonesia are not recognised by most countries,” she said.
Zai eventually decided to train in embalming at the Philippine Embalmers and Undertakers Review and Training Centre in Manila in early 2023. This institution offers licences recognised globally.
“I’m actually quite fearful by nature. Even seeing a cockroach can make me scream and my mother understands this about me well. So, she was the one who was most worried when I expressed my intention to learn embalming,” shared the mother of five children, aged three to 15, with a laugh.
Certification
After completing her six-month training stint in Manila, Zainab returned to Singapore in August 2023, only to face another challenge: obtaining accreditation or permission to practice as an embalmer in the island nation.
To achieve this, she needed to complete hands-on training and embalm at least 25 bodies at a local funeral home, but no institution was willing to accept her.
“I faced difficulties during my practical training because most funeral management centres were unwilling to accept Muslims. When I visited their premises and expressed my intention to conduct practical sessions, they were hesitant, because to their knowledge, Muslims do not embalm bodies.
“But I did not give up and approached SFS (Singapore Funeral Services) in Tao Payoh. SFS not only accepted me but also welcomed the idea of more Muslim women entering this field.
“There, I completed the required embalming within just a month and earned my certification as an embalmer in Singapore,” said Zainab, who offers her embalming services on a freelance basis.
To raise awareness about the embalming process among the Muslim community in Singapore, Zainab shares her knowledge on social media as well as through talks at mosques and schools. She is also invited by radio stations, podcasters and others to talk on this subject.
“Not everyone accepts my profession, especially those over 70 years old who believe I am ‘torturing’ the deceased. In fact, some even asked the mosque authorities to advise me to leave this job,” she said.
Although disheartened by such reactions, Zainab understands that embalming remains a taboo subject among the Muslim community, particularly among the older and more conservative individuals.
“I try to explain the importance of embalming, especially for those who pass away abroad and need to be repatriated. Countries like South Korea, China, Japan and Taiwan don’t allocate burial plots for foreigners.
“Even if there are such options (for burial), not all regions have wakaf land, and, if buried on non-wakaf land, there is also the need to consider the annual fee.
“Usually, when a (Muslim) foreigner dies in these countries, the options are either cremation or embalming for repatriation. This is where the role of a Muslim embalmer becomes crucial,” she explained.
Costly
Zainab also stressed that it is preferable for the body of a Muslim to be buried in the country where the deceased passed away, provided it is allowed and wakaf burial land is available.
“It should be noted that the embalming process can cause harm to the body, but it is necessary (in the case of remains that have to be repatriated to the native country of the deceased) as it’s an international flight requirement. If we need a passport to travel abroad, the deceased’s body requires an embalming certificate to get clearance from Immigration.
“Furthermore, the cost of embalming is very high. For example, embalming a body for repatriation from Batam, Indonesia, to Singapore can cost up to S$6,000,” she said.
Elaborating on the embalming process, Zainab said an incision is made – usually in the neck because it is easier to locate a vein there – to inject formalin.
“The solution is pink in colour, so as it flows into the body through the veins and pushes out the blood, you’ll see the pale body regain a reddish hue, similar to living skin,” she explained.
The process can take anywhere from 45 minutes to over an hour, depending on the size of the body.
Dismissing claims that internal organs are destroyed, Zainab said what actually happens is that the fluids are suctioned out from within the organs such as the lungs, stomach, heart and intestines.
“For this, we use a tool known as trocar. It might look like we’re stabbing the organs, but we’re not. We have to insert the trocar forcefully because the body is usually stiff, making it challenging to perform the procedure,” she added.
When asked how other Muslim women view her career, Zainab said many have expressed interest in following in her footsteps, only to reconsider when they learn they have to get used to the smell of blood first.
“Many can’t handle this. They don’t realise that after we die, our bodies emit an odour as decomposition begins.
“During the embalming process, the smell of blood and decomposition is very strong, and those who can’t endure it may faint,” she said, recalling an instance when a friend was forced to withdraw from the practical training course after she fainted the first time she entered the mortuary to do the procedure.
Challenges
Like others in her line of work, Zainab too is often asked if she had any eerie experience whilst carrying out her work.
“There have been incidents but I consider them as tests. To avoid any untoward situation, I always make sure I am ‘clean’, perform ablutions and recite the first five verses of Surah Al-Mulk before starting work,” she said.
However, Zainab said her biggest challenge is not the possibility of encountering a supernatural occurrence but the job’s emotional toll on her.
“It’s emotionally exhausting and there was a time I wanted to quit… this happened while I was still training in Manila,” she said.
She said her heart would ache when she heard the cries of grieving families outside the mortuary.
“I found it particularly heart-breaking handling the bodies of infants. But I reminded myself that this is a responsibility, a communal obligation, so I pushed through to complete my course,” she added.
Recalling an experience involving the body of a pilot who died when his small aircraft crashed in Manila, Zainab said the plane had crashed in a forest during the rainy season and caught fire, while the body was submerged in water for seven days before being recovered.
“You can imagine the condition of the body and the smell. It was impossible to embalm. But the pilot’s mother insisted that her son’s body be embalmed and prepared like any other intact corpse. I was alone in the mortuary doing some work then when I heard the mother arguing with the manager of the (funeral services) centre outside.
“At the same time, I heard knocking sounds coming from the steel coffin containing the pilot’s remains. The knocking grew louder and louder.
“Only God knows how I felt. I left the room, trembling all over,” she recounted with a nervous laugh.
In the end, the pilot’s mother relented and agreed to have her son’s body cremated without undergoing the usual embalming process required for Christian burials.
According to Zainab, her scary experiences in Manila were far more intense than anything she has encountered in Singapore, which she described as only “mildly spooky”.
She also said her children are fully supportive of her work and she even hopes they will take up embalming.
“We never know where we might pass away, and ideally, we’d want family members to handle everything if we die abroad,” she said. – BERNAMA
