Ruling 530. It is obligatory for the guardian of a Muslim who has died to give him ghusl and to camphorate, shroud, perform prayers over, and bury him, even if the deceased is not a Twelver (Ithnā ʿAsharī) Shia. The guardian must either do these things himself or instruct someone else to do them; and in the event that someone else does these things with the guardian’s consent, the responsibility is lifted from the guardian. In fact, even if the burial and suchlike is carried out without the guardian's consent, the responsibility is still lifted from him and there is no need to repeat those things. If the deceased does not have a guardian or the guardian refuses to do those things, it is obligatory for every mukallaf to do them as a collective obligation (al‑wājib al‑kifāʾī), meaning that if someone or some people do those things, the responsibility is lifted from everyone else, and in the event that no one does them, then everyone will have committed a sin. In case the guardian refuses [to do those things or instruct someone else to do them], it is not necessary to obtain his permission.

Ruling 531. If a person is engaged in attending to the duties relating to a deceased person, it is not obligatory for others to start doing them. However, if the person leaves the duties half-finished, others must complete them.

Ruling 532. If a person is confident that others are engaged in attending to the duties relating to a deceased person, it is not obligatory for him to start doing those things. However, if one doubts or merely supposes [that others are engaged in attending to those duties], he must start doing them.

Ruling 533. If someone knows that the ghusl, shrouding, prayers, or burial of a deceased person has been performed incorrectly, he must perform that act again. However, if one merely supposes that it was performed incorrectly or doubts whether it was performed correctly or not, then it is not necessary for him to perform it again.

Ruling 534. The guardian of a woman is her husband. In other cases, the guardian of a deceased person is the heir in accordance with the order of the tiers of inheritance, which will be mentioned later. In each tier, men take precedence over women; however, it is problematic to consider [certain members of the family as having precedence over others, such as] the father of the deceased over the deceased’s son; his paternal grandfather over his brother; his brother over his paternal half-brother or his maternal half-brother; his paternal half-brother over his maternal half-brother; and his paternal uncle over his maternal uncle. Therefore, in these cases, the requisite precautionary action must be taken. Furthermore, if there are a number of guardians, the permission of one of them suffices.

Ruling 535. The guardian of a deceased person must not be a non‑bāligh child nor a person who is insane. Similarly, a person who is absent and cannot personally undertake the duties or instruct someone else to do them cannot be a guardian.

Ruling 536. If someone says he is the guardian of a deceased person or that the guardian of the deceased has given his consent to give ghusl, shroud, and bury the deceased, or if with regard to preparing the corpse he says that he is his executor (waṣī), then in the event that one is confident that what he says is the truth, or the deceased’s body is at his disposal, or two dutiful people testify to the veracity of what he says, his word must be accepted.

Ruling 537.* If a person specifies in his will (waṣiyyah) that an individual other than his guardian is to personally perform his ghusl, shroud him, or pray over him, it is not necessary for that individual to accept the request. However, if he does accept, he must perform those duties and there is no need for him to get the guardian’s consent. If a person specifies in his will that an individual has authority over these matters and is responsible for and in charge of matters concerning his body after his death, such that the individual may choose to perform the duties himself or appoint someone else to do them, then, in this case, the obligatory precaution is that the individual must accept the request. However, if accepting the request would be extraordinarily difficult for him, or if he rejects the request while the person who made the will is still alive and the news of his rejection reaches him and he is able to specify someone else in his will, then in these cases, it is not obligatory for him to accept.