Wash her three times, or five times, or more if you find that necessary. Wash her with water and Sidr (ground lote leaves), add camphor—or a pinch of camphor—to water in the last time, and let me know when you finish
Chapter: To sprinkle camphor on the dead body
Authentic
hadith of Sahih al-Bukhari
Muttafaq ‘alayh (Bukhari and Muslim)Sahih al-Bukhari 1258
’Umm ‘Atiyyah (may Allah be pleased with her) reported:
One of the daughters of the Prophet (ﷺ) passed away, so the Prophet (ﷺ) went out and said: "Wash her three times, or five times, or more if you find that necessary. Wash her with water and Sidr (ground lote leaves), add camphor—or a pinch of camphor—to water in the last time, and let me know when you finish." She said: When we finished, we told him, so he gave us his lower garment and said: "Let it be the first thing you shroud her in." She said: We plaited her hair into three braids.
Reported by Al-Bukhari (No. 1258, 167, 1253, 1254, 1255, 1256, 1257, 1261), Muslim (No. 939a, 939c, 939f, 939h, 939i), Abu Dawud (No. 3142, 3145, 3146), At-Tirmidhi (No. 990), An-Nasa’i (No. 1881, 1884, 1885, 1886, 1887, 1889, 1890, 1893), Ibn Majah (No. 1458), Malik (No. 524) and Ahmad (No. 19860, 19865, 26034, 26036, 26039, 26043).
Zaynab, the daughter of the Prophet (ﷺ), passed away. The Prophet (ﷺ) entered upon the women who were to wash her and said to them: Wash her with water and lote leaves an odd number of times—three, or five, or more if needed—and in the final wash, add some camphor. When you finish, inform me. When they finished washing her, they informed him. He then gave his lower garment to the women who washed her and said: Wrap her in it, and make it the garment closest to her body. Then her hair was braided into three plaits.
Lessons
The washing of a deceased Muslim is obligatory, and it is a communal duty.
A woman is only to be washed by women, and a man only by men—except in the cases of a wife with her husband and a female slave with her master, for each of them may wash the other.
The washing should be done three times; if that is not sufficient, then five times; and if still not sufficient, more may be added as needed, according to what is beneficial and necessary. Afterward, if any impurities come out of the body, the place from which the filth exits should be sealed.
The one performing the washing should make the number of washings odd—three, five, or seven.
As-Sindi said: This Hadīth indicates that there is no fixed number of washings for the deceased; rather, what is required is cleanliness, but the odd number should be observed.
Lote leaves should be used with the water, because they cleanse and firm up the body of the deceased.
The deceased should be perfumed during the final washing, so that the scent is not washed away by water. The perfume should be camphor, because—in addition to its pleasant fragrance—it firms up the body and helps prevent it from decaying quickly.
The washing should begin with the honored parts of the body, namely, the right sides and the body parts required in ablution.
It is recommended to comb the hair of a deceased woman, braid it into three plaits, and place them behind her.
It is permissible to cooperate in washing the deceased, but none should be present except those who are needed.
Seeking blessings through the belongings of the Prophet (ﷺ), such as his clothing, is permissible—but this is something unique to him and does not extend to other scholars or righteous people, because such matters are based on religious texts. The Companions never practiced this with anyone other than him, for doing so with others would lead to Shirk (polytheism) and be a source of trial for the one whom people seek blessing through.
It is permissible to delegate a trustworthy person to carry out a task he has been entrusted with, provided he is qualified for such delegation.
Explanation in Arabic
توفيت زينب بنت النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم، فدخل صلى الله عليه وسلم على النسوة اللاتي سيغسلنها فقال لهن: اغسلنها بماء وسدر وترًا ثلاثًا، أو خمسًا أو أكثر من ذلك، إن كان هناك حاجة، واجعلن في الغسلة الآخرة شيئًا من كافور، فإذا فرغتنَّ فأخبرنني.
فلما فرغن من تغسيلها آذناه، فأعطى إزاره المغسلات، وقال: ألففنها فيه واجعلْنه هو الثوب الذي يلي جسدها، ثم جُعل رأسها ثلاثة ظفائر.
وجوب غسل الميت المسلم، وأنه فرض كفاية.
المرأة لا يغسلها إلا النساء، والرجل لا يغسله إلا الرجال، إلا ما استثنى من المرأة مع زوجها، والأمَة مع سيدها، فلكل منهما غسل صاحبه.
يكون الغسل بثلاث غسلات، فإن لم يكفِ، فخمس، فإن لم يكفِ، زِيدَ على ذلك، بحسب المصلحة والحاجة، وبعد ذلك إن كان ثَمَّ شيء من النجاسات خرج من الجسد، سُدَّ المحل الذي يخرج منه الأذى.
يقطع الغاسل غسلاته على وتر، ثلاثٍ، أو خمسٍ، أو سبعٍ.
قال السندي: يدل الحديث على أنه لا تحديد في غسل الميت بل المطلوب التنظيف لكن لا بد من مراعاة الإيتار.
يكون مع الماء سِدر؛ لأنه يُنَقي، ويُصلب جسد الميت.
يُطَيَّبَ الميت مع آخر غسلاته، لئلا يذهب الماءُ، ويكون الطيب من كافور، لأنه -مع طيب رائحته- يشد الجسد، فلا يسرع إليه الفساد.
البداءة بغسل الأعضاء الشريفة، وهي: الميامن، وأعضاء الوضوء.
استحباب تسريح شعر الميتة وضفره ثلاث ضفائر، وجعله خلف الميتة.
جواز التعاون في غسل الميت لكن لا يحضر إلا من يحتاج إليه.
التبرك بآثار النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم كملابسه، وهذا شيء خاصٌّ به، فلا يتعدَّاه إلى غيره من العلماء والصالحين؛ لأن هذه الأشياء توقيفية، والصحابة لم يعملوها مع غيره قط؛ ولأنه مع غيره وسيلة للشرك وفتنة لمن تُبرك به.
جواز تفويض الشخص الأمين في العمل بما أؤتمن عليه إذا كان أهلًا للتفويض.
فَكَانَ أَوَّلُ مَا أَعْطَانَا رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم الْحِقَاءَ ثُمَّ الدِّرْعَ ثُمَّ الْخِمَارَ ثُمَّ الْمِلْحَفَةَ ثُمَّ أُدْرِجَتْ بَعْدُ فِي الثَّوْبِ الآخِرِ قَالَتْ وَرَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه…
