Can a husband perform the ghusl of his deceased wife?

Question

Will it be possible for the husband to give ghusal to his wife ?

— Mohammed Fayyaz, Durban, South Africa

Answer

الجواب بعون الملك الوهاب

There is no harm in a husband and wife bathing together or giving each other a bath whether they are fit and healthy or they have become unable to bathe themselves, this has been proven from the Sunnah.

However, if the question is related to the Ghusl of the deceased then it is not permissible for the husband to give ghusl to the deceased wife, nor is he permitted to touch her body directly, without a barrier. However, he is not forbidden from looking at her.

`Allāmah `Alā’ al-Dīn al-Ḥaṣkafī states,

ويمنع زوجها من غسلها ومسها لا من النظر إليها

“Her husband is prohibited from bathing her and touching her, not from looking at her.”

Ṣadr al-Sharī`ah `Allāmah ‘Amjad `Alī 'A`ẓamī states,

عورت مر جائے تو شوہر نہ اُسے نہلا سکتا ہے نہ چھو سکتا ہے اور دیکھنے کی ممانعت نہیں

“If a female dies, neither can her husband give her ghusl, nor can he touch her [body directly]. He is not forbidden from looking at her.” And Allāh knows best.

Faqīr Muḥammad ‘Afzal al-Qādirī · (may he be pardoned)

Verified by Muftī Zāhid Ḥussain al-Qādirī