Entaphiasmos (ἐνταφιασμός) is the noun form of the burial preparation rite, appearing in Mark 14:8 and John 12:7. It refers specifically to the act and materials of preparing a body for burial — the anointing, wrapping, and spicing that honored the dead in Jewish culture. In both Synoptic and Johannine accounts of Mary's anointing, Jesus uses entaphiasmos to interpret her action: 'She has done what she could. She poured perfume on my body beforehand to prepare for my burial.'
The theology of entaphiasmos in the Gospels reveals how the death and burial of Jesus were both foreseen and honored. Mary's act of anointing was a Spirit-prompted preparation — whether she knew it fully or not. The physical care of Jesus's body in death (burial preparation, costly spices, a new tomb) stands in continuity with Old Testament honorable burial traditions and anticipates the resurrection. The body prepared for death is the same body raised to glory. The care given to the body of Christ in his death is not wasted but honored in the resurrection.