Ablution

Ablution(Wudhu) ia the act of purifying oneself by washing the face, hands arms, head and feet with water.


How to Perform Ablution
Step 1:
Intention:Islam teaches us that intention forms the basis of any action, Making the intention does not have to be a verbal act, you only have to mentally prepare yourself for an act that will cleanse and purify you.
Step 2:
Say Bismillah. Recite bismi-llāhi ar-raḥmāni ar-raḥīmi (In the name of Allah, the most Gracious, the most Merciful).

Step 3:
Begin by washing your hands. Completely wash your right hand three times with clean water, then move on to the left and repeat. When washing, remember not to miss any part of the hands - wash between the fingers and thumb

Step 4:
Rinse mouth. Take water in your right palm and rinse your mouth with it, thrice. Do not swallow the water on purpose, but spit it out every time.

Step 5:
Cleaning the nose. Using your right hand, carefully and gently put water into your nostrils, before exhaling it. Perform this step three times.

Step 6:
Wash your face. Thoroughly wash your face, beginning from the hairline on your forehead and from one ear to the other three times.

Step 7:
Wash your arms. Begin with your right hand. Wet it with water, and wash from your wrist up to your elbow. Repeat thrice; then do the same to your left arm.

Step 8:
Perform Masah. Usually, Masah refers to the religious act of cleaning one's head, in a specific way, with a small amount of water. wet your hands and place your palms, flat, on the top of your head,starting from the front of his head, then moved to the back and then returned his hands to the front.

The prophet(SAW) used to wipe the head in three ways
A. Wiping all of the head: It was  reported that the prophet(SAW) used to wipe the entire head with his hands, starting from the front of his head, then moved to the back and then returned his hands to the front.
B. Wiping over the Turban only: It was reported that the prophet (SAW) used to wipe over his turban and shoes.
C. Wiping over the front Portion of the scalp and the turban: It was reported that the prophet (SAW) wiped over the front portion of his scalp, his turban and his socks.
Note: Option B and C can only be done if one was in a state of purity(Ablution) before wearing the head cover and socks.

Step 9
Wipe your ears inside and out. With the same water, use your finger to clean all the crevices of your ear. Use your thumb to clean behind your ears from the bottom upward. This is also done one time.

Step 10:
Wash feet. Start with your right foot. Wash it thrice from the toes, up to the ankles. Make sure you wash between your toes, too. Do the same to your left foot.

Step 11:
Recite: "Ash-hadu anlaa ilaaha illALLAHu wahdahuu laa shariikalahu, wa ash-hadu anna Muhammadan 'abduhuu wa rasuuluhu."
Translation: "I bear witness that there is no deity other than Allah, He is One, He has no partner and I bear witness that  Muhammad (SAW) is His (chosen) servant and (true) Messenger."

The ablution has the obligatory parts and the sunan part.

The obligatory parts are the part  of ablution that if not fulfilled according to correct islamic procedure makes one ablution void .These are:

1. Intention
2. Washing the Face
3. Washing the arms to the elbow
4. Wiping the head
5. Washing the feet and the heels

The Sunan part of the Ablution: This includes parts of the ablution that are not obligatory and if not performed does not void the ablution. but they recommended by the Prophet(SAW).These include

1. Mentioning the name of Allah at the beginning: It is good to say bismillah before starting but if you do not say it the Ablution is still valid.
2. Dental Hygiene: Using the toothbrush before every ablution is recommended but not compulsory.One can use a brush or a stick and one can put water in the mouth and wash with the fingers (most esp a toothless person)
3. Washing the hand three times at the beginning
4. Rinsing the mouth three times
5. Sniffing up water in the nostrils and blowing out water three times
6. Running the fingers through the beard
7. Running water through the fingers and toes: It is preferred to remove jewelry e.g rings bracelet wristwatch etc while performing Ablution.
8. Repeating each washing three times. Washing the body part three times during Ablution is recommended but not compulsory.The prophet also washed once and twice, but its compulsory to wash every part properly.
9. Beginning each action with the right side and washing in close sequence.
10. Economizing the use of water, even if one is in front of the sea.
11. Supplication while performing ablution and after ablution: These acts are recommended but not compulsory.
12. Praying two rak'ah after ablution: It was reported that the prophet (SAW) said that if one perform and perfects his ablution and prays two rak'ah with his heart completely on the prayer, paradise becomes his/hers.

 Nullification Of Ablution 

The following acts render the ablution null and void
1. Any form of excretion from the private parts and anus. e.g Excretion, urine, passing gas, sperm, blood etc.
2. Deep sleep that makes a person completely unaware of his surroundings
3. Loss of consciousness
4. Touching the sexual organ  without any barrier (clothes etc) between the hand and the organ.
5. Missing any obligatory part of the Ablution.

Actions that do not nullify the Ablution
1. Touching a woman: Kissing your spouse does not nullify the ablution and fast too.
2. Bleeding from an unusual place: This involves  bleeding  due to a wound, cupping or a nosebleed either in small or large amount does not nullify the ablution.
3. Vomit does not nullify the ablution, its better to rinse the mouth afterwards.
4. Of doubt whether or not one has released gas: if one is not sure whether one has released gas or not, the ablution is valid till one is sure that he has nullified his ablution.

 Actions that require Ablution as a prerequisite are:
1. prayers
2. Circumambulating the Ka' bah
3. Touching a copy of the holy Quran

  Actions for which state of purity is preferred are:
1. While mentioning the name of Allah
2. Going to sleep
3. To remove sexual impurities: If one is in a state of post sex impurity wants to eat, drink or have intercourse again he should perform ablution.
4. Before eating food touched by fire. This refer to food that was smoked with fire not food cooked on fire.
5. Renewing the ablution for every prayer. One can pray with previous ablution made as far as its still valid. However, renewing the ablution for every salat is preferred.

 Useful Tips
1. It is permissible to speak while performing ablution
2. If one is having doubt about the no of times a particular part was washed, its ok to go with the number one is certain about.
3. People with unusual circumstances ie prolonged menstrual flow,people who can control their urine people with flatulence etc should perform one ablution for each prayer whether the problem exists all or part of the time. They can perform salat even while their problems are occuring.
4. One may be assisted by others in performing Ablution.
5. if any barrier such as wax is found on the body it will invalidate one ablution unless it is removed and the ablution is performed again.
However coloring like Henna is permissible and does not affect the ablution.
But this raises the question of using make up such as foundation, concealer and Face primer.
If you have a good knowledge of these products,Kindly tell us if they are water permissible.
Comment so we can learn from you.