Things that should be done with the deceased after his death

[ابوالوليد المسلم]

Things that should be done with the deceased after his death (1)

‘Abdullah bin Hamoud al-Furaih


Things that should be done with the deceased after his death

It is a Sunnah to close the eyes of the dead after his soul leaves then reciting the relevant invocation.

When a person dies, his eyes follows his soul to see its place.. It is a Sunnah to close his eyes so that they do not remain open and distort his shape thereafter.
The proof to this from the Sunnah is the Hadith of Umm Salamah (may Allah be pleased with her) who said: “The Messenger of Allah ((peace be upon him)) came to Abu Salamah (as he died). His eyes were fixedly open. He closed them, and then said: When the soul is taken away, the sight follows it. Some of the people of his family wept and wailed. So, he said: Do not supplicate for yourselves anything but good, for angels say: "Amen" to what you say. He then said: O Allah, forgive Abu Salamah, raise his degree among those who are rightly guided, grant him a successor in his descendants who remain. Forgive us and him, O Lord of the Universe, and make his grave spacious, and grant him light in it.”[1]

What is taken from this Hadith is that it is Sunnah to make this invocation after closing the eyes, following the Sunnah of the Prophet (peace be upon him) who said: O Allah, forgive so and so (the name of the deceased is mentioned) and then the remaining supplication comes.
It is part of the Sunnah to cover the deceased after his death with a cloth to covers them completely.

(This is) because of the Hadith of `A'ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) who narrated that: “When the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) died, he was covered with aHibra Burd”[2]


“Burd”: A cloth that includes and covers the whole body. “Hibra” Burd cloth that was known at the time and came from Yemen.


Is there any sign appears on the body to indicate death?

Yes, there are signs that indicate the death of a person which show on the body. Among them:
1: Relaxation of the “sadgh.” “Sadgh” is the area between the eyes and the ears
2: Inclination of the nose.
3: Separation of the palms – as if they are dislocated from arms.
4: Separation of the feet so that the legs seems to be separated from ankles. They are not upright but relax. Some people add: closing the eyes and stretching the skin of the face.[3]

[1] Narrated by Muslim number (920)

[2] Narrated by Al Bukhari number (5814). Narrated by Muslim number (942)

[3] Look at: Hashiyat Ibn Qassim (3/24)