The Desirable Pieces of Shroud and the Undesirable Ones

“Abu ’Abd Allah (a.s.), has said, ‘Prepare good quality shroud for your deceased ones; it is beautification for them.’”

“Abu Ja‘far (a.s.), has said, ‘The Messenger of Allah has said, ‘In your dresses the best is white. Dress up with them your deceased ones also.’”

“Abu Ja‘far (a.s.), has said that the Holy prophet has said, ‘No other clothes in your clothes is better than white, so dress up and shroud your deceased ones in white.”

“He (the Imam) (a.s.), has said, ‘It is desirable to keep for shroud a piece which one has used in Salah (prayer). It should be clean; it is desirable.”’

“I once asked abu al-Hassan (a.s.), about a man who has purchased a certain amount of the covering of al-Ka‘bah of which he has used a certain amount for his needs, and a certain amount is left with him. Can he sell? He (the Imam) said, ‘He can sell whatever he wants or give it as gift or benefit thereby and seek blessings.’ I (the narrator) then asked, ‘Can it be used for shrouding a deceased person?’ He (the Imam) replied, ‘No, it cannot be used for this purpose.’”

“Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), has said, ‘Try to make your shrouds look beautiful; you will be raised with your shrouds.’”

“Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), has said, ‘The Israelites used silk for shroud; and cotton is for the followers of the Holy prophet, Muhammad, O Allah grant compensation to Muhammad and his family worthy of their services to Your cause.’”

“I once, heard abu al-Hassan al-Awwal (a.s.), say, ‘I shrouded my father with two pieces of Shatawiyayn (name of a place in Egypt) fabric. He (the Imam) had used them for ’Ihram, and with a shirt of his shirts, a turban which Ali ibn al-Husayn (a.s.), had used, and in a large sheet, which I purchased for forty dinars. Today it costs four hundred dinars.”’

“Abu Ja‘far (a.s.), has said that abu al-Hassan (a.s.), shrouded ‘Usamah ibn Zayd with a red Burd which was made in Hibarah and Ali (a.s.), shrouded Sahl ibn Hunayf with a red Burd which was made in Hibarah.”

“Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), has said, ‘Shroud can be made of Burd; if Burd is not available, then the whole shroud is of cotton. If a turban of cotton is not available, then Sabiriy fabric can be used for this purpose.’”

“Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), has said, ‘A deceased is not shrouded in black.’”

“I once asked him (the Imam) (a.s.), about the fabrics made in al-Basrah in the form of Yemenite workmanship out of silk or cotton if it can be used to shroud a deceased? He (the Imam) said, ‘If the amount of cotton in the fabric is more than the amount of silk, then it is permissible to use it for shrouding.’”