If you’ve been asked to go to a funeral, you might be wondering whether you should send flowers. Sending flowers is a tradition that dates back over 60,000 years. Family and close friends tend to arrange flowers that are placed in the hearse alongside the coffin, or sprays that sit on top of the coffin during the funeral service. But many families will accept flowers from guests too.
If you do decide to order flowers, you’ll usually find they have a card attached where you can write a message. This can leave you wondering what to write on funeral flowers. While there’s no right or wrong message, the suggestions below could help you come up with something appropriate for the funeral you’re going to.
Keep things short
The first thing to consider when choosing what to write on a funeral flowers card is the length of your message. Most cards that come with flowers will be quite small. This means you won’t have much space for a handwritten message, or you’ll have a limited character count for printed messages.
If you’ve ordered the flowers online and the florist hasn’t let you know how many letters or words you can use, it’s a good idea to get in touch with them and check how much space you have. They’ll be able to give you an idea of what will and won’t fit on the card.
Remember, this isn’t your only chance to say something to the family or close friends of the person who’s passed away. You can write a short message on the flowers and share anything else you want to say in a sympathy card, letter, text message, phone call or face-to-face conversation. So, try to keep your message to 1 or 2 lines.
What to write on funeral flowers
As we’ve mentioned above, the cards that come attached to funeral flowers tend to be quite small. So this isn’t the best space to share longer stories, memories or sentiments. Instead, the purpose of the card is usually to show who the flowers are from.
It’s completely fine to simply write a short message like “With love, from _____”. But, if there’s enough space, you might want to add a more personalised message. We’ve listed some different examples below.
Popular messages for funeral flowers
- Rest in peace
- In loving memory
- Missing you already
- You’ll always be missed
- You’ll be sorely missed
- Gone from our sight, but never from our hearts
What to write on a funeral flowers card for Mum
- Thanks for being the best mum
- I’ll miss you mum
- Thank you for raising me to be the person I am today
- I’ll always be grateful for your love
What to write on a funeral flowers card for Dad
- To the best dad
- Thank you for the strength, I need it most now
- I wouldn’t be the person I am today without you
- Missing your wisdom and wit
What to write on funeral flowers for Nan
You might be writing this for one of your grandparents, or helping decide what to write on a funeral flowers card from grandchildren:
- Thank you for all the life lessons you shared with me
- You were always there for me
- You were an inspiration
What to write on a funeral flowers card for Grandad
- To my loving grandad
- Thank you for all the wonderful memories
- You’ll always be in my heart
What to write on a funeral flowers card for your husband or wife
- To my greatest love
- Thank you for being the best partner
- Life will never be the same without you
- I’m missing my better half
What to write on a funeral flowers card for a friend
- To my dearest friend
- Words can’t express how much I’ll miss you
- Your friendship was a blessing
What to write on funeral flowers for someone religious
Christian messages for funeral flowers
If the person who passed away was Christian, you might find that a short bible verse or psalm is a good choice of words for the card on their funeral flowers.
- For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all (2 Corinthians 4:17-18)
- I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die (John 11:25-26)
- My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever (Psalm 73:26)
- If we live, we live for the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord (Romans 14:8)
- God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble (Psalm 46:1)
- He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever. (Revelation 21:4)
- The Lord is close to the broken hearted; he rescues those whose spirits are crushed (Psalm 34.18)
- Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go (Joshua 1:9)
Hindu messages for funeral flowers
Hindus believe in Moksha – that through Karma, a soul will eventually become liberated from endless cycles of rebirth and death. Some short messages for funeral flowers could include:
- Om Sadgati – this means “salvation” or “liberation”.
- Aatma Ko Sadgati Prapt Ho – this means “may the soul attain Moksha”.
- Om Shanti – this is an invocation to God and means “om peace”. When said aloud, it’s usually repeated 3 times to become “om shanti shanti shanti”. This invokes peace on 3 levels of consciousness – waking, dreaming and sleeping. It could be a good message for funeral flowers for the family or close friends of the person who’s passed away.
Buddhist messages for funeral flowers
In Buddhism, life is impermanent and consciousness continues after death. Someone’s spirit can be reborn or may become liberated from the cycle of life, death and rebirth. Some short messages for funeral flowers could be:
- Sending metta – “metta” is loving-kindness
- May the dharma guide you – “dharma” is universal truth
- May your spirit find nirvana – “nirvana” is the ultimate goal of Buddhism, and refers to the extinction of desire, hatred, ignorance and the birth-death cycle.
Religions that don’t typically accept funeral flowers
Jewish traditions
Flowers aren’t appropriate for Jewish funerals. So, if you’ve been asked to attend a Jewish funeral, it’s usually better to offer a donation as a tribute to the person who’s passed away. If you’d like to send something to the family or close friends of the person who’s passed away, you could bring Kosher food to Shiva (the mourning period before the funeral takes place).
Islamic traditions
Whether flowers are accepted at an Islamic funeral depends on the family and the religious beliefs of the person who’s passed away. Islamic funerals usually place emphasis on simplicity, and flowers may not tie in with this. If the family do accept flowers, an option for the card could be:
- Inna Lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji'un – this is a phrase taken from the Quran (chapter 2, verse 156) and means “Indeed, we belong to God. And to him, we return'.
What to write on funeral flowers for the family
If you’re considering buying flowers for family members or close friends of the person who’s passed away, it’s usually a good idea to send these to their home, or to give them the flowers on a different day to the funeral. During the service they may already be feeling overwhelmed, without having to carry flowers around with them too. Some messages for these kinds of flowers could include:
- With condolences
- Deeply sorry for your loss
- You’re in my/our thoughts
- Sending my/our love
- We’re always here for you
Image by Andrzej Gdula on Pexels.
