A guide for families and volunteers

Washing and shrouding the deceased

A short, step-by-step guide to the Ghusl and the Kafn, following Hanafi practice. Read it through once before you begin.

Hasten, gentlyWash, pray and bury without needless delay, but take your time over the washing itself.
Cover and concealKeep the body covered from navel to knee the whole time. What you see stays with you.
Ask your imamPractice differs between the schools and between communities. Where this guide and your imam differ, follow your imam.
Part 1

What you need

Shaded items come in our packs. Lay everything out and cut the kafn to size before you start washing.

Kafn sheets
Two sattar cloths (one for washing, one dry)
Gloves and aprons
Cotton wool and unscented soap
Camphor and alcohol-free attar
Towels and ties
Scissors for clothing
Washing table
Warm water, buckets and jugs
Sidr leaves or powder (optional)
In our packsYou provide
Before you start

The washers should be Muslim and trustworthy, and ideally in wudu. Two to four people is enough. Men wash men and women wash women.

Close family of the same gender have the first right to wash. If they cannot, any trustworthy person who knows the method may do it.

Part 2

The Ghusl

“
Wash her three or five times, or more if you see the need, with water and sidr, and put camphor in the last wash. Begin with her right side and the places of wudu.
The Prophet ﷺ to the women washing his daughter Zaynab. Sahih al-Bukhari 1253, 1255; Sahih Muslim 939
1

Cover and prepare

Lay the body on its back, with the right side towards the Qiblah if you can. Make the intention and say Bismillah. Cover the body from navel to knee with the sattar cloth, then remove clothing, jewellery and dentures beneath it. Cut clothing away if it will not come off easily.

2

Clean gently

Gently press the abdomen downwards. With a gloved hand and without looking, wash the private parts under the cover. Change your gloves.

NoteDo not press the abdomen of a woman who was pregnant.
3

Plug with cotton

Place small pieces of cotton wool in the nostrils, ears and mouth to keep water out. Remove them at the end.

4

Wudu

Give wudu as for prayer, but do not put water into the mouth or nose. Wash the face, then the arms to the elbows, right arm first. Wipe the head, then wash the feet, right foot first.

NoteIf the person died in a state that required ghusl (janabah, menstruation or post-natal bleeding), wipe inside the mouth and nose with damp cotton.
5

Wash the head

Wash the hair and beard with sidr water or soap. Loosen any braids with your fingers so the water reaches through. Do not comb the hair.

Other schoolsShafi’i and Hanbali practice is to comb the hair gently and re-braid it. (Sahih al-Bukhari 1254)
6

Right side, then left

Tilt the body onto its left side. Pour water from head to foot over the right side, rubbing gently with soap. Then tilt it onto its right side and wash the left side the same way.

7

Press again

Raise the body slightly towards sitting, supporting the head. Stroke the abdomen gently downwards and wash away anything that comes out.

8

Final wash with camphor

Tilt the body onto its left side again and pour camphor water over it from head to foot. That makes three washes. If the body is not yet clean, wash five or seven times, always stopping on an odd number, with camphor in the last wash.

9

Dry

Remove the cotton and pat the body dry. Swap the wet sattar cloth for the dry one without uncovering the body.

Do not cut the hair or nailsThe deceased is buried as they are. If anything is cut by mistake, place it in the kafn.
If something comes out after washingWash that place only. The ghusl is not repeated, even if the kafn is already on.
Part 3

The Kafn for a man

Three pieces:

LifafahThe outer sheet, running from head to feet, with extra length at each end for tying.
IzaarThe wrap, running from head to feet.
QameesA sleeveless shirt running from the shoulders to the shins.
1

Lay out

Place the ties across the table. Spread the lifafah over them, then the izaar on top of it. Lay the back half of the qamees on the izaar, and gather the front half up towards the head.

2

Dress

Lift the body, still covered, onto the kafn. Bring the front of the qamees over the head and down the body, then slide out the sattar cloth.

3

Perfume

Put attar on the head and beard. Rub camphor on the places of sajdah: forehead, nose, palms, knees and feet. Do not put perfume on the kafn itself.

4

Fold and tie

Fold the izaar left flap first, then right flap over it. Fold the lifafah the same way. Tie at the head, the feet and the middle.

NoteThe ties are undone once the body is laid in the grave.
Part 4

The Kafn for a woman

Five pieces: the same three as for a man, plus:

SinabandA chest wrap running from the chest to the thighs.
KhimarA head covering.
1

Lay out

Place the lifafah first, then the sinaband, then the izaar, then the qamees as for a man.

2

Dress

Put on the qamees as for a man and slide out the sattar cloth.

3

Arrange the hair

Divide the hair into two parts and lay them on the chest, over the qamees, one on each side.

Other schoolsThe hair is put in three braids and placed behind the back. (Sahih al-Bukhari 1263)
4

Cover the head

Lay the khimar over the head and hair. Do not tie it.

5

Perfume, fold and tie

Perfume as for a man. Fold the izaar left flap first, then right. Wrap the sinaband over the chest. Fold the lifafah left then right, and tie at the head, feet and middle.

Local practiceSome communities tie the sinaband under the izaar, or last of all over the lifafah. Either is acceptable.
Part 5

Common questions

Practice varies. Please confirm with your imam.

If rubbing would damage the skin, pour water over the body without rubbing. If even pouring would cause harm, give tayammum instead: strike clean earth with your hands and wipe the face, then strike again and wipe the arms to the elbows. Wash whatever parts you can. The Janazah prayer still takes place.

All four schools agree that a wife may wash her husband. In the Hanafi school, a husband may not wash his wife, though he may see her. Women relatives or sisters from the community should wash her instead.

Other schoolsThe Shafi’i, Maliki and Hanbali schools allow a husband to wash his wife.

Call your mosque first; most have trained volunteers. If there is truly no one, the body is not washed. A mahram relative gives tayammum instead, or a non-mahram gives it with a cloth over the hands. A young child may be washed by a man or a woman.

Wash him with water and sidr, shroud him in his two garments, and do not perfume him or cover his head.
The Prophet ﷺ, of a man who died in ihram. Sahih al-Bukhari 1265; Sahih Muslim 1206

The Shafi’i and Hanbali schools follow this for every pilgrim who dies in ihram. The Hanafi and Maliki schools hold that ihram ends at death, so the pilgrim is washed and shrouded like anyone else.

A baby born alive, even for a momentNamed, washed, shrouded, prayed over and buried.
A stillborn baby, or a miscarriage with limbs formedNamed, washed, wrapped in one cloth and buried, without the Janazah prayer.
A miscarriage with no limbs formedWrapped in a cloth and buried.
Other schoolsOther schools differ on the prayer.

Someone killed in battle for the sake of Allah is buried in their clothes without washing (Sahih al-Bukhari 1343). Others given the reward of martyrs, such as a woman who dies in childbirth or someone who drowns, are washed and shrouded as normal.

The body is washed and shrouded as normal. Cover any incisions with waterproof dressings and do not open stitches.

In OntarioThe coroner decides whether an autopsy is needed, but must take religious beliefs into account. Tell the coroner straight away that the deceased is Muslim and that you need an early burial. Office of the Chief Coroner: 1-877-991-9959.

No. Embalming is not required in Ontario and is generally not permitted in Islam. Tell the funeral home in writing: no embalming and no cosmetics.

NoteIf the body is being flown overseas, check with the airline and the receiving country, as they may require it.
A du’a for the deceased From the Prophet’s ﷺ Janazah prayer (Sahih Muslim 963)
اللَّهُمَّ اغْفِرْ لَهُ وَارْحَمْهُ وَعَافِهِ وَاعْفُ عَنْهُ
Allahumma-ghfir lahu warhamhu wa ‘afihi wa‘fu ‘anhu. “O Allah, forgive him, have mercy on him, give him peace and pardon him.”
For a woman
اللَّهُمَّ اغْفِرْ لَهَا وَارْحَمْهَا وَعَافِهَا وَاعْفُ عَنْهَا
Allahumma-ghfir laha warhamha wa ‘afiha wa‘fu ‘anha.
Everything for the Ghusl and Kafn, in one pack.