The shroud (kafan): pieces and how to wrap it
How many pieces of cloth make up the kafan for a man and for a woman, what cloth may be used, and the order of wrapping.
The kafan is the clean white cloth a Muslim's body is wrapped in before it is buried. Getting the kafan ready is something the community must take care of, just like the washing.
Providing the kafan is farḍ kifāyah, a duty on the whole community: the same kind of duty as washing the body.
| Piece | For a man | For a woman |
|---|---|---|
| A big sheet, covering the whole body from head to toe | Yes | Yes |
| A waistcloth, a bit smaller than the sheet | Yes | Yes |
| A shroud like a long shirt with no sleeves, from the neck to the feet | Yes | Yes |
| A chest cloth, from the chest down to the thighs | None | Yes |
| A headscarf to cover the hair | None | Yes |
So a man's kafan has 3 pieces, and a woman's has 5.
The cloth should be something the person would have been allowed to wear while alive, so a man is not wrapped in silk or bright saffron-yellow cloth (a woman may be). White is the best colour for everyone. The cloth can be new or clean and used; either is fine. Before dressing the body, the cloth is perfumed a few times with a nice scent.
Wrapping a man in his kafan
- Lay the sheet flat, then the waistcloth on top of it, then half of the shroud, leaving the other half up near where the head will be.
- Place the body on top, with the hands resting gently at the sides, not on the chest.
- Pull the shroud's other half over the head to cover the top of the body, and put a little perfume and camphor on the head, beard and body.
- Wrap the waistcloth around, left side first, then the right side over it.
- Wrap the big sheet around the same way, right side over left.
- Tie soft strips of cloth around the waist and at both ends so nothing comes loose.
Wrapping a woman in her kafan
- Lay the sheet flat, then the chest cloth, then the waistcloth, then half of the shroud.
- Place her on top and pull the shroud over her, then apply perfume and camphor.
- Part her hair into two, and lay it on her chest, over the shroud.
- Cover her head and hair with the headscarf.
- Wrap the waistcloth around her, then the chest cloth, then the big sheet, each time with the right side folded over the left.
- Tie soft strips of cloth around the waist and at both ends.
Providing the kafan is a communal obligation, like the ghusl. A recommended set of pieces exists for a man and for a woman, with a reduced set permitted when the fuller kafan cannot be arranged.
Providing the kafan is farḍ kifāyah: a communal obligation, discharged when enough people see to it.
| Piece | For a man | For a woman |
|---|---|---|
| Sheet (large enough to cover the body head to toe) | Yes | Yes |
| Waistcloth (similar to the sheet, slightly smaller) | Yes | Yes |
| Shroud (a sleeveless, tunic-like garment, neck to feet) | Yes | Yes |
| Chest cloth (covers chest to thighs) | None | Yes |
| Headscarf (about three hands long, two fists wide) | None | Yes |
The recommended kafan is three pieces for a man and five for a woman. If it cannot be arranged, two pieces (sheet and waistcloth) suffice for a man, and three (sheet, waistcloth and headscarf) for a woman.
Where it can be arranged, men should be given no fewer than three pieces and women no fewer than five; where cloth is short, whatever is available and sufficient to cover the body properly is enough, and the fuller kafan is not required in that case.
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| What kind of cloth? | Cloth that would have been permissible to wear in life. A man is not shrouded in silk or saffron-coloured cloth; a woman may be. White is preferred for everyone. |
| New or used? | Either is acceptable. |
| How costly? | Comparable to what a man would wear for Jumuʿah and Eid prayers, or what a woman would wear to visit her parents' home. |
| Who pays if the deceased left nothing? | Whoever supported them financially in life; failing that, the public treasury (Bait-ul-Mal) or donations collected from the Muslim community. |
Dressing a man in the kafan
- Lay the sheet on a mat or board, place the waistcloth over it, then lay half of the shroud on top, leaving the other half towards where the head will lie.
- Bring the body from the washing table and lay it on the prepared cloth, with the hands resting at the sides, not folded on the chest.
- Pull the remaining half of the shroud over the head to cover the upper body. Apply perfume on the head, beard and body, and place camphor at the places of prostration: the forehead, nose, palms, knees and feet.
- Wrap the waistcloth around the body, folding the left side over first, then the right side over it, so the right covers the left.
- Wrap the sheet around the body in the same way, with the right side over the left.
- Tie strips of cloth around the waist and at both ends to keep the kafan from opening.
Dressing a woman in the kafan
- Lay the sheet on a mat, then the chest cloth, then the waistcloth, then the shroud on top.
- Place her on this, dress her in the shroud, then apply perfume and camphor, placing camphor at the places of prostration as for a man.
- Part her hair into two sections and lay them on her chest, over the shroud.
- Place the headscarf over her head, covering her hair.
- Wrap the waistcloth around her, then the chest cloth, then the sheet, each time with the right side folded over the left.
- Tie strips of cloth around the waist and at both ends.
Kafan al-mayyit is farḍ kifāyah, discharged as ghusl is: by sufficient performance on the part of some, and left unfulfilled by the community as a whole if no one attends to it. Two accounts of the pieces and method appear in the source, the main funeral chapter (rulings-of-funeral/kafan-and-related-rulings) and the Supplement (the-supplement/note, the-supplement/shrouding-the-deceased-and-related-guidelines), and they agree on every substantive point below.
Providing the kafan is farḍ kifāyah, on the same footing as ghusl and the funeral prayer.
| Piece | For a man | For a woman | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sheet (izār al-kafan / large sheet) | Yes | Yes | Large enough to cover the whole body from head to toe. |
| Waistcloth (lower wrap) | Yes | Yes | Similar to the sheet, slightly smaller. |
| Shroud (qamīṣ, the tunic-like garment) | Yes | Yes | Covers from the neck to the feet, without sleeves. |
| Chest cloth | None | Yes | Covers from the chest to the thighs. |
| Headscarf | None | Yes | About three hands long and two fists (hand-spans) wide. |
Recommended totals: three pieces for a man, five for a woman. Reduced kafan: two pieces (sheet and waistcloth) for a man, three (sheet, waistcloth and headscarf) for a woman. Below the reduced kafan: any cloth sufficient to cover the body properly; failing any cloth at all, clean grass, after which no further cloth is required.
Where it can be arranged, no fewer than three pieces should be used for a man and no fewer than five for a woman; it is disliked in this sense to reduce the number needlessly, though the reduced kafan is not itself blameworthy when the fuller one genuinely cannot be arranged.
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Permitted material | Cloth that would have been lawful to wear in life. A man may not be shrouded in silk or saffron-coloured cloth; a woman may be. White is preferred for both. |
| New or used | Either is acceptable; a new cloth is ideal, per the Supplement's account, but a clean used one is equally valid. |
| Standard of quality | Comparable to what a man wears for Jumuʿah and Eid, or what a woman wears visiting her parents' household. |
| Funding when the deceased left no means | First, whoever supported them financially in life; failing that, the public treasury (Bait-ul-Mal), or donations collected from the Muslim community. |
Dressing a man in the kafan
- Spread the sheet on a mat or board, the waistcloth over it, and half of the shroud on top, with the remaining half left towards the head.
- Lay the body on the prepared cloth, hands at the sides rather than folded on the chest as in prayer.
- Draw the remaining half of the shroud over the head. Apply perfume to the head, beard and body, and camphor to the places of prostration: forehead, nose, palms, knees and feet.
- Fold the waistcloth left side first, then right side over it.
- Fold the sheet the same way, right over left.
- Secure the kafan with ties at the waist and at both ends.
Dressing a woman in the kafan
- Spread the sheet, then the chest cloth, then the waistcloth, then the shroud on top.
- Lay her on the cloth and dress her in the shroud; apply perfume and camphor to the places of prostration as for a man.
- Divide her hair into two sections and lay them on her chest, over the shroud.
- Place the headscarf over her head, securing the hair beneath its edges.
- Fold the waistcloth, then the chest cloth, then the sheet, each time right over left, as with a man.
- Secure with ties at the waist and both ends.
Terms on this page
Related
- Washing the body (ghusl of the deceased) Who washes the body, the method used, and the water and materials, the full sunnah way of giving ghusl to a deceased Muslim.
- The funeral prayer: ruling and conditions Why the funeral prayer (salat al-janazah) is fard kifayah, its conditions, who has the right to lead it, and when it may not be prayed.
- Miscellaneous rules of death and burial Seeing the deceased's face, a spouse's rights, handling a non-Muslim relative's body, visiting graves, and how long mourning lasts.
- Ghusl: who may wash whom, and special cases Who is allowed to wash whose body, and what to do for a martyr, a newborn, a drowned person, a decayed body, or when water or a same-sex washer is not available.