How to Wash and Shroud the Deceased

Question:
He asks and says: Since I have not yet been present for the washing and shrouding of a deceased person, my knowledge on the matter is limited. One sees more than one hears or reads. I request a concise explanation of how to wash and shroud the deceased so that I may be aware of this important matter. May Allah reward you with good.

Answer:
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds. May Allah send prayers and peace upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and all his Companions. As for the work of washing the deceased, shrouding him, carrying him, and burying him, this is among the best of deeds. It is a collective obligation (fard kifayah); if enough people perform it, the sin is lifted from the rest, and it remains a recommended practice (sunnah) for them. The questioner asks about the method of washing and shrouding, and what else relates to preparing the deceased. May Allah reward him with good; this indicates his desire for good. As for explaining this, it is better for him to attend with those who wash the dead and shroud them, so that he learns through practice and observation, for that is more effective than verbal instruction. He should attend with those who wash the deceased, shroud him, and handle his affairs until he learns through practical experience. However, there is no harm in describing this work as established by the scholars in accordance with the Prophetic Sunnah. First, the deceased is "najiyya" (cleaned), meaning the two passages—the urinary and the anal—are squeezed gently and lightly to expel whatever is ready to come out from the two passages. Then the washer wraps a cloth around his hand and cleans the passages by pouring water over them. The washer should be behind a barrier, with a screen covering the deceased's private parts, entering from under a curtain that is placed over the deceased's private parts. He cleans and pours water. Then he performs wudu (ablution) for the deceased as he would for prayer, except that he does not put water into his mouth or nose for rinsing and sniffing. Instead, he inserts his finger, wet with water, and wipes his teeth, and likewise wipes the inside of his nostrils with his wet finger without putting water in. Then he washes his face and hands, then completes his wudu, then washes his head and pours water over his head. It is recommended to have some cleansers with the water, such as sidr (lote tree), soap, and other cleansers.
Then he pours water over his body, starting with the right side. It is obligatory to pour water over the body once so that it covers the entire body. If he repeats this three times, it is better. Otherwise, the obligation is to cover the body with water once. Then whatever is available of perfume is placed on the places of prostration and the joints. Then he is wrapped in his shrouds. For a man, something covering is placed over his private parts, then the shrouds are placed one over the other, and the deceased is placed on them lying on his back. Then the end of the upper shroud is folded over his right side and its left end over his left side, then the second shroud, then the third, and so on. Then it is tied with bands that keep the shroud in place so that it does not spread. The excess of the shrouds is placed over his head and his feet, then it is folded and tied with the bands. Then when he is placed in his grave, these bands are untied. And Allah is the Helper. Allah is the Helper. May Allah reward you with good. As for a woman, she is shrouded in five garments: a shirt, two wraps, a lower garment, a shirt, two wraps, and a head covering over her head. Yes.