Jurisprudence

Fatwās of the Grand Ayatollah Khamenei (d.)

1- If a Muslim – male or female, old or young – is dying, his/her body must be placed so that he/she would lie on his/her back while the sole of the feet face qiblah.

1- It is proper to place the body of a Muslim person who is dying in a position that he/she lies on his/her back while the sole of the feet face qiblah. Many mujtahids hold that it is incumbent on the dying person to lie like that, if he/she can, and on the others. One does not disregard caution by doing so.

2- Giving ghusl to, shrouding, praying on, and burying a dead Twelver Shi‘a Muslim is obligatory upon every mukallaf. If these acts are done by some individuals, they cease to be obligatory for others and if nobody does so, all are ruled guilty of it. As per obligatory caution, the same ruling applies to the Muslim dead who is not a Twelver Shi‘a.

2- Giving ghusl to, shrouding, praying on, and burying a dead Muslim is mandatory for every mukallaf. If some people do so, these acts cease to be obligatory for others and if nobody performs such a duty, all are ruled guilty.

3- A person who gives ghusl to the dead has to be a Twelver Shi‘a, sane, well acquainted with the religious issues regarding ghusl and, by obligatory caution, ritually mature.

3- The person who gives ghusl to the dead has to be a Twelver Shi‘a who is ritually mature, sane and well acquainted with the religious issues regarding ghusl.

4- The loincloth [first piece of the shroud] should cover from the navel to knees all round the body and it is better to make it extends from the chest to the back of the feet. According to the obligatory caution, the shirt [the 2nd piece of the shroud] covers the area from the top of the shoulders to the middle of the calves completely. Finally, the wrapper [the 3rd piece of the shroud] should be long enough so that its ends could be tied [over the head and under the feet] and wide enough so that its sides overlap each other.

4- The Muslim dead should be shrouded with three pieces of cloths. First, the loincloth which is wrapped around the waist and legs; second, the shirt which has to cover the area which extends from the top of the shoulders to the calves back and front; and third, the wrapper which should cover the body from the head to the feet so that its two ends could be tied [over the head and under the feet] and its width should be enough to make its two sides overlap each other.