Benefits of the Hadith: “Whoever washes a corpse, let him take a bath. And whoever carries it, let him perform wudu.”

The Shaykh : As for the benefits of this hadith:
It indicates the obligation of taking a bath for whoever washes a corpse, whether the deceased is a child or an adult, based on the apparent command in his saying: .
However, some scholars reported a consensus that no one holds the view that it is obligatory, meaning that the scholars agreed that taking a bath after washing a corpse is not obligatory. Accordingly, it is a recommended practice (mustahabb) and not obligatory.
But do we say: Is this based on the assumption that the hadith is authentic, or do we say, as the author of al-Nukat held, that if a hadith is not a proof—meaning it is weak and does not reach the level of being used as evidence—then the command in it is understood as a precaution and a recommendation? And if it is a prohibition, it is understood as being disliked (makruh) as a precaution, in case it might be a proof?
And among the benefits of this hadith is the prescription (mashru') of washing the dead, based on his saying: . The reason for its prescription is that a legal ruling is established based on this bath; if the bath were not prescribed, nothing would be established based on it.
But who performs the washing of the corpse?
A man performs the washing of men, and a woman performs the washing of women, except for spouses, for whom there is no harm in one of them washing the other. Likewise, a man may wash his concubine, based on the generality of the saying of Allah the Exalted: . The scholars mentioned that for a child under the age of seven, there is no ruling regarding their private parts, so men and women may wash them, whether the child is male or female.
And among the benefits of the hadith is that a person should prepare to perform an act of worship before engaging in it, based on the assumption we mentioned in his saying: .
And among its benefits is the obligation of performing wudu for the funeral prayer, based on the assumption we mentioned: that whoever carries it—meaning intends to carry it to pray over it—should perform wudu.
There is no doubt that the funeral prayer is not valid without wudu, based on the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): and the generality of his saying: .