Rulings on wiping over the socks for purification -III

Question: What is your stance on the saying of Ibn 'Abbaas : “The Messenger  did not wipe [over his Khuffs (leather socks)] after (the revelation) of Soorah (Quranic chapter) Al- Maa’idah” and that what is related from 'Ali  preceded this revelation?

Answer: I am not sure if this narration is authentic. I have previously mentioned that 'Ali Ibn Abu Taalib  was among those who narrated the Hadeeth (narration) of wiping after the death of the Messenger of Allaah . He explained that the Messenger  set its time limits, and this indicates that this ruling has been established to exist after the death of the Messenger of Allaah  and it is not possible to abrogate anything after the death of the Messenger .

Question: Are the rulings for wiping the same for women as for men? Or is there a difference?

Answer: There is no distinction between men and women in this. It is desired that you learn a basic rule: In principle, whatsoever is established with regards to men is also established with regards to women, and whatsoever is established with regards to the women is also established with regards to men, unless there is evidence which indicates otherwise.

Question: What is the ruling of removing the sock, or part of it, to examine one's feet or to remove a small stone, for example?

Answer: If one puts his hands in his socks (without removing them) then there is no problem in this. If he removes only a small portion then this is alright, but if he removes the majority of the sock then wiping over them in the future becomes invalid.

Question: It has become common amongst the masses to wipe over the socks for the five daily prayers only, then after this they put them on another time (i.e. after washing their feet).

Answer: Yes, this has become common amongst the generality of the people who think that wiping for one day and night means that one wipes only for the five daily prayers, and this is not correct. Rather, the limitation of one day and night means that he can wipe for one day or night, whether it is for five prayers or more. The beginning of the period of wiping starts with the first wiping. So it is possible that the person prays ten (obligatory) prayers with this wiping, or even more. For if he were to make Wudhoo' (ablution) for Fajr on Tuesday, then put his Khuffs on, and his state of purity lasted until he slept on Tuesday night (with his Khuffs on), then he wakes up Wednesday morning for Fajr and wipes over his feet for the first time, then he can continue wiping till the Fajr of Thursday. Hence, in this case he has prayed the Fajr, Thuhr, 'Asr, Maghrib, and 'Ishaa' of Tuesday wearing his Khuffs, and none of these are counted in the period of wiping because they occurred before he wiped over his socks. Then he prayed the Fajr, Thuhr, 'Asr, Maghrib, and 'Ishaa' of Wednesday with wiping. It is even possible that he pray the prayers of Thursday in this manner. So, for example, say he wiped over his socks at 5am on Wednesday morning for Fajr, then he woke up for Fajr Thursday and made Wudhoo' at 4:45am, he can wipe over his socks again in this case. Then, if he were to remain in his state of purity until the 'Ishaa' of Thursday, then he can pray the five prayers of Thursday with that same wiping. Therefore, in this example he has prayed fifteen prayers (without removing his Khuffs).

Question: If a person were to make Wudhoo' and wipe over his Khuffs, then the period of wiping expires and he removes his socks before the 'Asr prayer, for example, can he pray that 'Asr prayer, with his prayer being acceptable, or does his Wudhoo' break upon removing the socks?

Answer: The strongest opinion from the sayings of the scholars, which was adopted by Shaykh Al-Islam Ibn Taymeeyyah and a group of scholars is that the Wudhoo' does not break with the removal of the Khuffs. So if he were to remove his Khuffs while he is in a state of purity in which he had wiped over his socks, then his Wudhoo' does not break. This is because he is in a complete state of purity as required by the dictates of the Sharee'ah (Islamic Law), and it is not possible to break this state of purity except with evidence from the Sharee'ah itself. There is no evidence which states that removing the Khuffs or socks that have been wiped over breaks the Wudhoo'. However, if he were to put the socks on again intending to wipe over them in the future, then this is not allowed as far as I know.

Allaah knows best.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Answered by: Shaykh Muhammad bin Saalih Al-'Uthaymeen 

Methods of Tafseer -II

Tafseer of the Quran by Aathaar (explanations of the Sahaabah)

Whenever the Sahaabah (companions of Prophet Muhammad ) could not find the Tafseer (exegesis) of a passage in the Quran itself or in the Sunnah (Prophetic narrations), they would use their own reasoning based on their knowledge of the contexts of the verses and the intricacies of the Arabic language in which the Quran was revealed.

One of the greatest commentators of the Quran, Imaam Ibn Katheer  wrote in the preface of his Tafseer: "If we are unable to find a suitable Tafseer in the Quran or in the Sunnah, we go to the opinions of the Sahaabah, for it is certain that they knew the Quran better than anyone else due to their knowledge of the circumstances of its revelation, their complete and accurate understanding of it, and their righteous deeds." These explanations of the Sahaabah are known as the Tafseer by Aathaar (sayings of the Sahaabah). For example, when Ibn 'Abbaas  was questioned about the verse (which means): “And tell the believing women to reduce [some] of their vision and guard their private parts and not display their adornment except that which [ordinarily] appears thereof…” [Quran: 24:31] he replied: ‘It refers to the face and hands'. On another occasion, after reciting the verse (which means): “…And whoever does not judge by what Allaah has revealed – then it is those who are the disbelievers.” [Quran: 5:44] Ibn 'Abbaas  said: "It is a form of Kufr (disbelief) that is less than real Kufr.’

The Sahaabah also provided information about the circumstances under which the verses were revealed, which further clarified their meanings. However, the Tafseer transmitted from the Prophet  and the Sahaabah did not cover all of the verses of the Quran. The Prophet explained only what was unclear to the Sahaabah.

Tafseer of the Quran by the Arabic Language

With the passage of time, words took on new meanings and old meanings became lost, foreign words entered into the language and vast sections of vocabulary fell into disuse. This natural process necessitated the explanation of some of the Quranic verses according to their literal and logical meanings. Consequently, this period witnessed the appearance of dictionaries such as Mukhtaar As-Sihaah, written specifically to deal with the Quranic Arabic vocabulary and philology.

In cases where words had more than one meaning, this step created differences of opinion, which could only be solved by finding some support in the Sunnah. For example, the word 'Lams' literally means to touch but figuratively means sexual intercourse, thus Muslim scholars were of two basic opinions concerning the following verse (which means): “…Or you have touched women and find no water, then seek clean earth and wipe over your faces and your hands…” [Quran: 4:43]

Imaams Ash-Shafi'ee and Maalik  held that it meant the touch of the hand, though each Imaam added certain stipulations to it. On the other hand, Imaam Abu Haneefah  ruled that it meant sexual intercourse. The Prophet’s wives  reported that on some occasions, he  kissed them before performing prayers, which indicates that touching was not intended by this verse.

Tafseer of Quran by Opinion

Opinions based on a careful study can be considered valid as long as they do not contradict any known authentic explanations. Likewise, the application of obvious meanings of the Quran to existing situations and the formation of conclusions based on their similarities is also allowed as long as such interpretations do not clash with authentic classical explanations. However, free interpretation based on philosophical, scientific or sectarian ideas is totally forbidden. The Prophet  was reported to have said thrice: "Opinion-based arguments about the Quran is Kufr (disbelief)." Then he said: "What you know of it, act on it; and what you are ignorant of, refer it to one who knows." [Ahmad]

We can see from the above mentioned narration that the Prophet sternly warned his companions and later generations of Muslims concerning the interpretations of the Quran based on speculation and unsubstantiated opinions. This was done because the Quran is the foundation of Islaam and, as such, it had to remain pure and untampered with.

If free rein were given to any and everyone to interpret the Quran as he wished, its value would be totally destroyed and Islam itself would be undermined from its foundation. Thus, the only accepted Tafseer is that which follows the following sequence: Tafseer of the Quran by the Quran, Tafseer by the Sunnah, Tafseer by the sayings of the Sahaabah, Tafseer by language, and finally, Tafseer by opinion.

Optional aspects of ablution

'Sunnah' (optional) Acts of Ablution:

The following acts are not obligatory, yet, once done, are rewarded for since they constitute the way the Prophet  used to perform ablution:

1. Reciting 'Bismillah' (saying: 'Bismillahir-rahmaanir-raheem', which means: 'In the name of Allaah, the Most Merciful, the Most Compassionate).
2. Washing the hands, three times, up to the wrists.
3. Brushing the teeth with a tooth-stick (Miswak).
4. Rinsing the mouth, thrice.
5. Sniffing water into the nostrils, thrice.
6. Combing the beard with the fingers (this is called Takhleel in Arabic).
7. Passing the fingers of both hands against each other, and also passing them through the toes (the Takhleel of the fingers and toes).
8. Washing each limb, three times.
9. Wiping the whole head with wet hands once
10. Wiping the two ears (inside and outside).
11. Performing the Wudhoo' in the proper order (as stated above).
12. Washing each part, one after the other, without pause, to ensure that no part dries up before the next step.

Humraan, the freed slave of 'Uthmaan bin 'Affaan  narrated that 'Uthmaan  once asked for a tumbler of water in order to perform ablution; when it was brought to him, he poured water from it over his hands and washed them thrice, and then put his right hand in the water container and rinsed his mouth and washed his nose by putting water in it and then blowing it out. Then, he washed his face thrice and then his forearms up to the elbows thrice; then, he passed his wet hands over his head and then washed each foot thrice. After that, 'Uthmaan  said: "I saw the Prophet  performing ablution like this of mine, and he then said: "If anyone performs ablution like that of mine and offers a two-Rak'ah (units) prayer during which he does not think of anything else (not related to the present prayer) then his past sins will be forgiven.""

Actions that require ablution as a prerequisite:  

There are three actions that require ablution as a prerequisite in order for them to be accepted Islamically. These are:

1- Any type of prayer (Salaah)

This involves only obligatory, voluntary, or funeral prayers. This is based on Allaah's statement (which means):

"O you who have believed, when you rise to [perform] prayer, wash your faces and your forearms to the elbows and wipe over your heads and wash your feet to the ankles." [Quran 5:6]

Also, the Messenger of Allaah  said,

"Allaah does not accept a prayer from a person who is not in a state of purity. Nor does He accept charity from misappropriated booty." [Muslim]

2- Circumambulating the Ka'bah

Ibn 'Abbaas  reported that the Messenger of Allaah  said,

"Circumambulation is a type of prayer, but Allaah has permitted speaking during it. Whoever speaks during it should only speak good." [At-Tirmithi and others]

3- Touching a copy of the Quran

Abu Bakr Ibn Muhammad  related from his father on the authority of his grandfather that the Prophet  sent a letter to the people of Yemen, which stated:

"No one is to touch the Quran except one who is purified."

[An-Nasaa'i and others]

Source:

Fiqh-us–Sunnah – I, by: Sayyid Sabiq