This is reported from the early generations. Among the sermons of Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz is his statement: “You place the deceased in a cleft in the earth, without a pillow beneath him and without any bedding prepared for him.”

Thus, the basic principle is that this is not prescribed as sunnah. I know of no sunnah concerning it, and whoever claims that it is sunnah must provide evidence. For this reason, some scholars have counted it among religious innovations.

Some scholars have considered it preferable to place beneath him a pillow made of a small brick, not a large one.

The author did not mention uncovering any part of the face. Accordingly, it is not sunnah to uncover any part of the deceased’s face; rather, he is buried wrapped in his burial shrouds. This is the view of many scholars.

Some scholars said that his right cheek should be uncovered so that it comes directly into contact with the earth. They cited the statement of Umar ibn al-Khattab: “When I die and you place me in the grave, put my cheek directly upon the earth”—that is, make it touch the earth—because this expresses submission and humility.

As for uncovering the entire face, it has no basis and there is no evidence for it, except when the deceased is in a state of ihram. The Prophet said, “Do not cover his face” (1). However, the scholars differed over whether the wording “his face” is authentically established. As for the head of one in ihram, it is not to be covered.