ISLAMIC LESSONS / Jurisprudence (Fiqh) - Purification (Taharah) | Contents |
Ghusl (Full Shower)
You must perform a ghusl (full shower) in order to pray after:
1. You perform sexual intercourse.
2. Your menstruation ends.
3. Your postpartum bleeding ends.
4. You give birth to a child, even if it was without bleeding.
5. Your maniyy is emitted
How to Perform Ghusl
After removing any najas from the body, the ghusl is performed in the following way:
When performing either the wudu' or ghusl, all substances which prevent water from reaching the parts to be washed and wiped must be removed.
Examples are: nail polish on fingernails and toenails and waterproof mascara.
| Contents |Invalidators of Wudu'
If you have wudu' and any of the matters which invalidate wudu’ takes place, you must not pray until you make a new wudu' Among the invalidators of wudu' are:
| Contents | Preparations Before Praying
There are five prayers which are obligatory and rewardable. There are other prayers which are rewardable but optional to perform. The optional prayers require the same preparation as the five required prayers. There are several requirements of the person who performs the prayer. The person praying must be Muslim and must have reached the state of mental discrimination which is usually around seven lunar years (about 6 3/4 solar years).
Taharah (Purification)
The Muslim must have the proper Taharah (purification) before performing the prayers. This comprises the removal of najas (filthy) substances and performing wudu’ (ablution) or ghusl (full shower).
Removal of Najas (Filthy substances)
Islamically, there are substances that are considered filthy and must not be on the person’s body, clothes, place of prayer, or even carried when praying. Some of these substances include urine, feces, blood, vomit, pus, and discharges from the penis and vagina, except maniyy (semen and the woman’s fluid of orgasm) which is not filthy.
To clean oneself after urinating and defecating, the person dries himself of all urine with toilet paper after urinating, and then pours water on the areas where the urine was. In the case of defecation, the person is correct if he removes the defecation with toilet paper and then pours water on the stained area to remove the traces. It is also acceptable to use either toilet paper or water only. However, the exclusive use of toilet paper has conditions. The urine must not go beyond the exit area and must not dry there. Also, one’s defecation must not spread past the area of the buttocks which comes together when one is standing.
| Contents |Wudu' (Ablution)
Verse 6 of Surat al-Ma’idah means: “0 believers, if you stand up for prayer, wash your face and arms up to [and including] the elbows and wet wipe [part of] your head and wash your feet up to [and including] the ankles.”
Wudu' (Ablution) has obligatory and recommended parts. The obligatory parts are those parts which if left out the wudu' is not valid. The recommended parts are those parts which if left out the wudu' would still be valid, but one misses out on that reward. The wudu’ must be made with water only.
How to Perform Wudu’
1-It is recommended to say “Bismillah” (with the Name of Allah) while washing the hands.
2-It is recommended to wash the two hands with the wrists three times (Fig. 1.1).
3-It is recommended to rinse the mouth three times using the right hand (Fig. 1.2).
4-It is recommended to draw water into the nose with the right hand and to blow it out of the nose with the left hand three times(Fig. 1.3).
5-It is an obligation to have the proper intention. When the water touches the first part of your face say in your heart “I intend to perform wudu'”.
6-It is an obligation to wash your
face, from the normal hairline to the chin and from one ear to the other including
the hair and skin. The inner part of the man’s thick beard is excluded (Fig.
1.4).
If a string was put at the middle of the forehead at the
normal hairline and drawn to the top of the ear, then one washes all that would
be below that string, both hair and skin, with the ears excluded (Fig.
1.4a, Fig. 1.4b).
It is recommended to wash the face three times.
7-It is an obligation to wash the hands, forearms, and elbows once.
8-It is recommended to wash them three times each. Start with the right and then the left(Fig. 1.5).
9-It is an obligation to wet wipe part of the head, between the normal hairline and the occiput(Fig. 1.6).
10-It is recommended to wet wipe both ears three times (Fig. 1.7).
11-It is an obligation to wash the feet with the ankles. It is recommended to wash them three times starting with the right foot(Fig. 1.8).
12-Do the obligatory parts (within steps 1 to 11) in the aforementioned order.
13-It is recommended to say a supplication after finishing wudu’
Benefit
It is preferred to use a small amount of water in wudu’ and ghusl. It is mentioned in Sahih Muslim that the Messenger of Allah used a mudd مد (about half a cup) of water for wudu' and a sa^ صاع (about a pint) for ghusl. A mudd is the fill of a pair of average-sized hands cupped together. The sa^ is four mudds. It is also mentioned in Sahih Muslim that the Messenger of Allah used six (6) mudds (about 3 cups) of water for wudu’ and thirty (30) mudds (about one cup less than a gallon) for ghusl.
Figure 1.1 - 1.2 - 1.3 - 1.4 - 1.4a - 1.4b - 1.5 - 1.6 - 1.7 - 1.8
| Contents |What is Recommended to Say After Finishing Wudu'?
Ashhadu alla ilaha illallah (u), wahdahu la sharika lah (u), wa ashhadu anna Muhammadan ^ abduhu wa rasuluh (u). Allahumma-j ^ alni minat-tawwabin (a), waj ^ alni minal¬mutatahhirin. Subhanaka-llahumma wa bi hamdik (a), ashhadu alla ilaha illa ant (a), astaghfiruka wa atubu ilayk.
The Meaning of the Wudu’ (Ablution) Supplication
I testify that no one is God but Allah, alone, without a partner, and I testify that Muhammad is His slave and messenger. 0 Allah, make me among the frequent repenters and make me among the purified. Praise and thanks be to You, 0 Allah. I testify that no one is God but You. I ask You for forgiveness and I repent to You.
| Contents |Tayammum (Dry Purification)
In the absence of water or when unable to use water, one may instead of performing wudu or ghusl perform tayammum. This is stated in the Qur’an in verse 6, Chapter Al-Ma’idah which means:
“If you do not find water, then perform tayammum
with the pure soil. Pass it onto your faces and arms”.
The Prophet peace be upon him said what means:
“The earth is made as a place
for our prayers, and its soil is made for our purification” (Related
by Imam Muslim).
One must make sure that the time of the prayer has set in before performing
the tayammum. The tayammum is valid for one obligatory prayer only and for as
many optional prayers as one wishes. However, one repeats the tayammum before
each obligatory prayer.
How to perform Tayammum
One needs to make sure that
the soil is pure, dusty (generates dust when hit unlike beach sand) and unused
(has not been used before) before performing tayammum (Fig. 2.1
).
It is recommended to say Bissmillah. It is an obligation to
strike the soil with your palms. In your heart, make the following intention:
“I intend to perform tayammum to make performing the prayer permissible” while
transferring the soil until it touches your face (Fig. 2.2).
Pass the soil on all of your face (Fig. 2.3)
Strike the soil again and pass it on both hands and forearms, including the elbows. It is recommended to pass it on the right arm first then the left (Fig. 2.4). It is an obligation to make sure that the soil on the left palm reaches all the parts of the right arm and conversely (Fig. 2.5-2.6-2.7-2.8).
Figure 2.1 - 2.2 - 2.3 - 2.4 - 2.5 - 2.6 - 2.7 - 2.8
