Yahya related to me from Malik that Yahya ibn Said said that hehad heard that when Abu Bakr as-Siddiq was ill he asked A'isha, "Howmany shrouds did the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and granthim peace, have?" and she replied, "Three pure white cotton garments."Abu Bakr said, "Take this garment (a garment he was wearing on whichred clay or saffron had fallen) and wash it. Then shroud me in it withtwo other garments." A'isha said, "Why's that?", and Abu Bakr replied,"The living have greater need of the new than the dead. This is onlyfor the body fluids that come out as the body decays."
USC-MSA web (English) reference: Book 16, Hadith 6
Arabic reference: Book 16, Hadith 528