Fiqh Summary of the School of the Maliki Masters

(Muhammad al-'Arabi al-Qarawi)

Tayammum

99. What, essentially, is tayammum?

Tayammum is a method of purifying oneself utilising soil, whereby the one performing it wipes his face and hands with a specific intention.

100. What sorts of people are permitted to perform tayammum?

The one who is in a state of ritual impurity is permitted to perform tayammum instead of wudu (or ghusl) if he falls under one of the seven categories that follow:

1. Someone who lacks the requisite amount of water necessary for wudu' (or ghusl), regardless of whether he has no water at all or that the water he has got is not sufficient for the act of purification.

2. Someone who lacks the ability to use water - such as the one who is physically prevented from using water, or the one who is tied-up near water but cannot reach it, or the one who fears that, if he tries to get to the water, he will be set upon by wild animals or thieves.

3. Someone who fears that, if he uses water, he will fall ill (i.e. by catching a cold or fever or the like) or, if he is already ill, that it will delay his recovery or worsen his illness. However, this is not a matter of whim or caprice -there must be some substance in that person's fear, and this is obtained either through the recommendation of a knowledgeable doctor or through past experience.

4. Someone who fears that, by using the available water to perform wudu (or ghusl), a fellow living creature will go thirsty, even if that creature is not human (so long as that animal is held in respect by the Shari'a, even if that be a hunting dog or a guard dog. The sort of the animal which the Shari'a does not respect is like a pig or a dog). Again, when we say 'someone who fears', we are not referring to that sort of fear which has no substance, but rather to the one who is convinced, or at least considers it a strong probability, that the afore-said animal will become completely dehydrated and possibly die if it does not get water. If the animal is merely afflicted by a slight thirst, which will neither lead to injury or possible death, then that is not considered a valid excuse for performing tayammum (unless of course you despair of finding any more water in the foreseeable future - in such an instance you must preserve the water for drinking). Similarly to this, the person who needs water for his dough or for the purposes of cooking, puts that need ahead of using that water for wudu (if he has no water except for that) and performs tayammum.

5. Someone who fears that, if he leaves to perform wudu, he will be robbed or looted of items whose value is greater than the price he would have to pay if he were to buy the water necessary for performing his act of purification. So, for example, if the value of the items he feared for was three dirhams and the price of the requisite amount of water is two dirhams, he may perform tayammum (as for if the price of the water is three dirhams and the value of the items is only two dirhams, he must leave to perform wudu, or buy the water and may not perform tayammum).

This ruling holds for the one who knows a place where he can find water or at least thinks it highly probable that there is water in that place. As for the one who is uncertain of whether there is water there or not, he performs tayammum, even if the property he fears for is of negligible value. Similar to this are those who are engaged in guarding crops or harvesting them, regardless of whether they are their own crops or whether they have been hired to look after other people's crops, as crops are considered to be a form of property.

6. Someone who fears that he will miss the time of the prayer, either by using water (to perform wudu or ghusl) when he has it with him, or by searching for it when he has not. Praying the prayer in its time (be that time ikhtiyari or daruri) takes precedence over the obligation of wudu and he does tayammum in its stead. However, if he thinks that there is sufficient time, if he performs just the obligatory parts of his wudu (or ghusl), wiping each limb one time only, and leaves the sunna and recommended elements, for him to still catch one rak'at of the prayer in its time, then he must do so and may not perform tayammum (in other words he restricts his wudu to washing his face once, his arms once, wiping his head and washing his feet once and doing all that quickly. This type of wudu should also be performed by the one who does not have the requisite water for the full wudu, but does have enough for the obligatory elements - he also does not do tayammum).

If, fearing that he will miss the prayer's time, he performs tayammum and then, after entering into the prayer, realises that he was mistaken and that there is still enough time remaining for him to have performed wudu (or equally if the time has already ended), he does not break off his prayer, nor does he have to repeat it, as he entered into it in a permitted manner. The ruling is the same if he realised his mistake after finishing his prayer or didn't realise it at all. As for if he realised that before the takbir al-ihram (i.e. before beginning his prayer), then he must perform wudu.'*

[* The exception to this is the person who leaves his prayer to the end of its time deliberately in order to take advantage of this ruling, because he is too lazy to perform wudu. His ruling is the opposite of that which he intended by his action and he must still perform wudu (even if that means he misses the time). [Transmitted by As-Sawi]

7. Someone who is able to use the water, but either lacks someone to bring it to him (because he is bed-ridden for example) or lacks the means to extract the water from a source available to him (such as the one who has a well, but no rope or bucket to extract the water from it). This category is similar to number (2), but the difference is that the person in number (2) lacks the ability to use the water in reality, whereas here the person lacks the ability to use water only in a legal sense. However the same ruling applies.

If we examine the seven categories above, we will see that, in actuality, we can boil them down to two types of people:

1. Someone who lacks the water itself, regardless of whether he really has no water or merely lacks it in a legal sense. This includes sections (1), (4), (5) and (6) mentioned above.

2. Someone who lacks the ability to use water, again regardless of whether he really lacks the ability or merely lacks it in a legal sense. This includes all the remaining sections (i.e. (2), (3) and (7)).

The seven people referred to in the above-mentioned categories may perform tayammum regardless of whether they are at home or travelling, whatever sort of travel that may be. It makes no difference if the journey is of an obligatory type (such as hajj), or of a permitted type (such as trade) or of a forbidden type (such as someone who goes out with the intention of robbing people): they may still perform tayammum.

101. Is it permissible for a person to perform tayammum for all forms of prayer, be they obligatory or voluntary?

Anyone who has a valid excuse for performing tayammum, such as those mentioned above, may perform tayammum in order to pray a single obligatory prayer on its own (such as 'Asr), or a single obligatory prayer and other voluntary acts of worship immediately after it (with that same tayammum), or in order to perform a voluntary act of worship in its own right, such as performing tayammum in order to pray the two rak'ats for greeting the mosque, or in order to pray the Witr prayer, which is a strong sunna. He may also do tayammum for the Jumu'a prayer and for funeral prayers, regardless of whether that prayer is incumbent on him or not (i.e. he is the one who has been asked to lead it by the deceased, for example).

However the person who is neither sick nor travelling, but merely lacks the water with which to perform wudu, may only perform tayammum in order to pray the obligatory prayers. The only voluntary prayers he may pray with tayammum are those which immediately follow the obligatory ones (such as the two rakats immediately following Isha'). He may NOT perform tayammum for the express purpose of praying a voluntary prayer, even if that prayer is a strong sunna such as the witr prayer (in such an instance he must pray his witr prayer immediately after praying Isha'). A short gap between the obligatory prayer and the voluntary prayers that follow is overlooked (such as the period of time needed to perform the recommended dhikrs and supplications that one does immediately on completing the prayer). As for the funeral prayer, he may only perform tayammum for it when it is specifically incumbent on him and there is no other person present, even if that person is travelling or ill, who is in a state of wudu' and can lead the prayer in his stead.

As for whether it is permissible for the person in this situation (i.e. healthy and not travelling, but lacking water) to perform tayammum in order to pray Jumu'a, that depends on the exact circumstances of the situation. Someone who has no water at the time ofJumu'a, but knows that there will be water later, or someone who fears that, by performing wudu he will miss the Jumu'a is not permitted to perform tayammum for Jumu'a, according to the mashhur position, but must pray Dhuhr in its stead (even when he knows he will not get the water until after the time of Dhuhr, and therefore has to perform tayammum to pray Dhuhr. On the other hand, the one who lacks water at all times and does not know when he will be able to get a hold of any, may, and indeed should, perform tayammum for Jumu'a and there is no disagreement about that.

102. Is it permissible for someone who has performed tayammum in order to pray an obligatory prayer or tsomeone who has performed tayammum in order to pray a voluntary prayer to use that tayammum to perform another act of worship?

There are four possible permutations here:

1) Someone who performs tayammum for an obligatory prayer and then wants to perform another voluntary act of worship (such as praying a voluntary prayer, praying the funeral prayer, touching a copy of the Quran, reciting Quran (for the one in a state of major ritual impurity), performing the tawaf of the Ka'ba or praying the two rakats of the tawaf) with that tayammum after praying his obligatory prayer. This is permissible so long as those acts of worship immediately follow the obligatory prayer (i.e. he may not leave and do something else after finishing his obligatory prayer and then come back and perform these other acts, they must be performed as if they were connected to the obligatory prayer.)

2) Someone who performs tayammum for a voluntary prayer (only permissible for the one who is travelling or sick or fears that using water will make him sick) and then wants to perform a separate voluntary act of worship of worship with that tayammum AFTER praying that voluntary prayer. Again this is permissible if the condition of connectedness is met (that there is no delay between the acts of worship and the prayer).

3) Someone who performs tayammum for a voluntary prayer (only permissible for the one who is travelling or sick or fears that using water will make him sick) and wants to perform a separate voluntary act of worship with that tayammum BEFORE praying that voluntary prayer. This is also permissible and again, as before, the condition of connectedness must be observed.

4) Someone who performs tayammum for an obligatory prayer and wants to perform a separate voluntary act of worship with that tayammum before embarking on his obligatory prayer. If he were to do this, all his acts of worship would be valid except for the obligatory prayer itself (so, for example, if a person were to perform tayammum for Subh and then pray Fajr (the two recommended rak'ats before Subh) with that tayammum before praying Subh, his Fajr would be valid and his Subh would be invalid). He must renew his tayammum in order to pray that obligatory prayer.*

[* The one who touches a copy of the Quran or recites it with his tayammum before embarking on his obligatory prayer is permitted to pray the prayer with that tayammum provided that the length of time he spent reciting was short and did not break the condition of connectedness (short means a couple of minutes or so). {Transmitted by As-Sawi]

103. How many obligatory prayers may one pray with a single tayammum?

It is not permissible for a person to perform more than one obligatory prayer with a single tayammum, even if he included them all in his intention when he performed his tayammum. If he intended two obligatory prayers, the first one he prayed with that tayammum is valid, while the second one is invalid and must be repeated. This ruling applies under all circumstances, regardless of whether the second prayer shares its time with the first (such as 'Asr with Dhuhr or 'Isha' with Maghrib) or even if the person doing tayammum is very ill and finds it very hard to perform tayammum more than once./

104. Is it obligatory for the person who has no water and needs to perform wudu to buy it, if there is water for sale?

It is an obligation upon the person upon whom the prayer is mandatory, in the event that he has no water of his own and needs to perform wudu, to buy it, so long as it is for sale at what is considered to be its usual price (if the price is extortionately high, above what is considered the norm, he does not have to buy it, even if he is very rich), even if he has to buy water on credit with a promise to pay at a later date (NOTE: the date must be fixed. For example, the buyer says, "I will give the money after one month", or "on the 6th June" etc.). However, when it comes to buying it on credit, there are two conditions which must be met before it is made an obligation on him:

1. That he is either a wealthy man, or at least has expectations of money (with which to pay for the water on the agreed date) from either a sale that he has made, but has yet to receive the money on, or a debt that is due to him or something similar.

2. That he will not need that money to defray other expenses and obligations due on him (such as rent or taxes and the like).

If either of these two conditions is lacking, he does not have to buy the water and may perform tayammum.

105. Is it obligatory for the person who has no water and needs to perform wudu to take water that is given or loaned to him?

It is obligatory for the person who has no water and needs to perform wudu to accept a gift of water if it is has been given to him for the express purpose of purification, just as it is obligatory for him to try to borrow it, if he has high expectations of being able to repay the loan. As for if someone volunteers to lend him water without him first seeking to borrow it, he is obliged to accept that loan even if he does not think he will be able to repay the loan.

106. Is it always obligatory to search for water before resorting to tayammum?

This depends on the circumstances. There are three possible permutations here:

1. If the person upon whom the prayer is mandatory and who needs to perform wudu, knows for certain or at least thinks it highly likely that there is no water in the area in which he planned to search, then it is not obligatory for him to search for water and it is valid for him to pray with tayammum. It makes no difference if the possible water is less than two miles (NOTE: what is meant a mile here is generally considered to be 1750 metres) away or not, or whether it is hard to reach or not, what is taken into account is the belief of the person that it is not there, not the reality of the situation.

2. If the person upon whom the prayer is mandatory and who needs to perform wudu, knows for certain that there is water in the place in which he planned to look, or at least suspected that there might be water there, then he must search for it if the following two conditions are met:

i. That the distance to the water is less than two miles.

ii. That there is no unnecessary hardship entailed in looking for it.

3. If the two conditions mentioned above are not met (in that the water is more than two miles away or there is significant hardship involved in reaching it), then the person upon whom the prayer is mandatory and who needs to perform wudu, is not obliged to search for it, even if he is one hundred percent certain it exists.

107. Should an obligatory prayer be performed with tayammum at the beginning of its time, in the middle of its time or at the end?

This depends on how likely the one desiring to pray thinks it is that he will find water within the prayer's time. He falls into one of three categories: Someone who despairs of finding water; someone who is unsure about whether he will find it; and someone who has high hopes that he will find it.

) 1) Someone who despairs of finding water: This category includes both someone who is certain, or at least thinks it highly probable, that there is no water and someone who is certain, or at least thinks it highly probable, that he will be unable to reach the water in the time available, or that the impediment (such as wild animals or thieves) that prevents him from accessing it will be removed. It is recommended for the person who falls under this category to perform tayammum and pray at the beginning of the ikhtiyari time, as there is no point in delaying it. If he does this and then comes upon water within that prayer's time, he does not have to repeat his prayer (and indeed should not), even if the water he found was the self-same water he despaired of finding in the first place.

2) Someone who is unsure about whether he will find water or not: This category includes both someone who is unsure about whether there is any water and someone who is unsure about whether he will be able to reach that water in the available time or whether the impediment preventing him from accessing it will be removed. It is recommended for the person who falls under this category to perform tayammum in the middle of the ikhtiyari time. Also included under this category is the person who is ill and cannot find anyone to bring him water, the person who is imprisoned and has no access to water (and does not know if his jailers will bring him any) and the one who fears that thieves or animals will set upon him if he goes to look for water.

3) Someone who has high hopes that he will find water: This category includes both someone who thinks it highly likely that there is water in a certain place and that he will reach that place in the available time or remove the impediment that prevents from accessing that water and someone who thinks it highly likely that water will come to him before the end of the time (like someone expecting a tanker of water to be delivered). It is recommended for the person who falls under this category to perform tayammum at the end of the ikhtiyari time.

It is not permitted for any of the people mentioned in these three categories to delay their prayer to the daruri time if they know for certain there will be water available then. The rulings we have mentioned in these three categories, in terms of the division of the time to its beginning, middle and end, are only applicable if the following two conditions are met:

1. That the time referred to is the ikhtiyari time. If the person has entered into the daruri time, then he prays immediately regardless of his expectations - there is no beginning, middle or end in such an instance.

2. That the prayer taken into consideration is not the Maghrib prayer. If it is the time of the Maghrib prayer, then there no division of time, because the ikhtiyari time of Maghrib is immediately following the setting of the sun and does not extend long enough for it to be considered to have a meaningful beginning, middle and end.

108. In how many instances is it recommended for the person who prayed with tayammum to repeat his prayer?

It is recommended for the following seven people to repeat the prayer they prayed with tayammum (provided that they are still within the ikhtiyari time):

1. Someone who prays with tayammum and then finds the self-same water he had already searched for and not been able to find, provided that the water he had searched for was less than two miles away. If he finds the water, but it is more than two miles away, or finds a separate water source entirely then it is not recommended for him to repeat the prayer.

2 Someone who prays with tayammum and then finds the same water in his baggage that he had already searched for but not been able to find.

3. Someone who prays with tayammum because he was afraid of being set upon by thieves or wild animals if he tries to get to his water source, and then finds water, if the following four conditions are met:

a. That it turns out that he was mistaken in his fear, in that what he thought was a wild beast was only a bush for example.

b. That he knows for certain that there is actually water there (i.e. in the place he fears to go to).

c. That the water he finds is the same water he had feared to get to.

d. That there was real substance to his fear (i.e. he really thought or at least suspected that there thieves or wild beasts out there).

If any of the first three conditions is lacking, in that his fear is realised (he actually sees the thieves or animals in a way that removes all doubt), or that the situation remains unclear, or that he does not know for certain that the water exists, or that he finds a different source of water entirely, then it is not recommended for him to repeat his prayer. If there is no real substance to his fear, whereby he does not truly believe that there are thieves or wild animals, but prays with based on the possibility that there might be, then it is obligatory for him to repeat his prayer, even if its time has completely passed.

4. A sick person who, even though he is able to use water, prays with tayammum because he could not find anyone to bring him water, and then finds someone to bring it to him. This recommendation is qualified by the following condition - that people visit him on a regular basis. If it is rare for people to visit, then it is not recommended for him to repeat his prayer as he had no expectations that somebody would come. This is the mashhur position. Some other scholars say that it is not recommended for him repeat his prayer regardless of whether people visit him regularly or not.

5. Someone who prays with tayammum at the beginning of the time, even though he has high expectations of finding water in the time, and then finds that water (this is because the ruling for such a person is that he should wait to the end of the time before doing tayammum).

6. Someone who, being unsure about whether he will reach the water source or not, prays with tayammum in the middle of the time, and then reaches the water source within the prayer's time. As for the person who is unsure about whether there is any water there or not, there is no recommendation for him to repeat, even if he prayed with tayammum in the beginning of the time.

7. Someone who remembers that he has water with him after performing his prayer with tayammum. If he remembers during his prayer, then that prayer is invalidated.

The reason that these seven are recommended to repeat their prayer within the ikhtiyari time is that they are all guilty of some form of neglect. As for other than those mentioned above, it is forbidden for them to repeat their prayer (NOTE: except, of course, if they prayed individually and wanted to receive the reward of praying in a group).

109. In how many instances is it obligatory for the person who prayed with tayammum to repeat his prayer?

It is obligatory on the following three people to repeat the prayer they prayed with tayammum, even if the prayer's time has completely passed:

1. Someone who prays with tayammum without first searching for water that he knew or suspected was close by (i.e. less than two miles) and easy to get to or even in his luggage, and then finds that water.

2. Someone who finds water after performing tayammum, but before embarking on his prayer, and yet still goes ahead with his prayer without doing wudu. The finding of water rendered the tayammum invalid and so he must repeat that prayer as he prayed it without being in a state of purity.

3. Someone who prays with tayammum, because he has a flight of fancy that there may be thieves or wild beasts out there to prevent him from getting to the water. This is different from 109:3 in that there his fear was real whereas here he merely acts on a whim. *

[*Ad-Dardir said, "Any one who has to (or is recommended to) repeat a prayer he prayed with tayammum must do so with wudu, except for the following:

1) Someone who prayed with a tayammum in which he only wiped his arms to the wrists (i.e. not to the elbows).

2) Someone who prayed with a tayammum he performed on earth which had been urinated on.

3) Someone who finds an impurity on his clothing or his body or the place in which prayed, after completing his prayer with tayammum.

4) Someone who remembers that he has not prayed the first of two prayers that share the same time after he has finished praying the second (such as Dhuhr and 'Asr - he prays Dhuhr and then repeats 'Asr).

5) Someone who prayed on his own and wants to repeat the prayer to gain the reward of praying in a group.

6) Someone who prays the current prayer before making up a small number of prayers (less than six) that he had remembered he had missed (NOTE: This is as it is obligatory on him to pray the prayers he has to make up first if there are only a small number of them. Therefore if he prayed the current prayer first he must repeat it after making up those other prayers).

Each of these six people may use tayammum when they make their prayer. Additionally they each make up the prayer even in the daruri time, except for the one who only wiped to his wrists - he only repeats his prayer in the ikhtiyari time."]

110. What are the obligatory elements of tayammum?

There are five obligatory elements of tayammum:

1. The intention. This should be made simultaneously with the first striking of the earth. One of two things should be intended:

i) Permitting the prayer or permitting that which his state of ritual impurity prevents. He must make sure that he takes the state of major ritual impurity into account in his attention if he is in such a state. If he forgets that he is in a state of major ritual impurity and only intends in his tayammum to permit that which the state of minor ritual impurity prevents, then he must repeat his tayammum.

ii) Performing the obligation of tayammum. If a person intends this then it does not matter if he is a state of minor ritual impurity or major ritual impurity, his tayammum is valid.

It is recommended to for a person in a state of major ritual impurity to intend both the permitting of what the state of major ritual impurity prevents and the permitting of what the state of minor ritual impurity prevents (for if someone does ghusl they also perform wudu as part of it), but if he only intends to permit that which the state of major ritual impurity prevents then that suffices him. Similarly, his tayammum is valid if he performed it with the intention of permitting that which the state of major ritual impurity prevents and then realised that he was only in a state of minor ritual impurity.

Unlike what is done in wudu or ghusl, the person performing tayammum may not intend by his tayammum the lifting of the state of minor or major ritual impurity, as tayammum does not remove the state of ritual impurity but merely postpones it for the period of that act of worship. Anyone who intends this (lifting the state of ritual impurity) should repeat his tayammum. It is also recommended for the person performing tayammum to specify the act of worship he wants to use it for in his intention.

2. The first striking of the earth. What is meant by this is the placing of the palms of the hands on the pure earth.

3. Wiping the face and hands to the wrists thoroughly. The person performing tayammum must wipe between his fingers and must remove any ring he is wearing, regardless of whether it is tight or loose. When he wipes between them he must do so with the inside of his palm or the inside of his fingers, not with sides of his fingers or hand, as they did not touch the pure earth whereas the insides did.

4. Pure earth. What is meant by earth (sa'id) here is not merely soil, but rather all types of earth, be that sand, rock, mineral or something like gypsum or clay, before they are baked or processed for building purposes. If they have been baked or processed (in such a way that alters them from their original form), then it is not permitted to do tayammum with them (such as when they have been made into concrete or clay pots or baked bricks). . The best thing to use for tayammum is soil.

Tayammum is permitted on metals and minerals, such as alum, salt, iron, lead, tin and antimony if they remain in the earth and have not been transported to another spot, undergone a production process or entered into people's possessions as property. Tayammum is also permitted on snow and on marble (even after it has been made into pillars and used in building). As for gold and silver or precious stones such as emeralds, rubies and pearls, there is an exception made in their case and it is not permitted for you to do you tayammum on for a person to perform tayammum on them even if they remain in the natural form and in their original spot. It is not permitted to perform tayammum on wood or grass, even if there is nothing else around which the person could use.*

* [Al-Lakhmi said, "If there is nothing else available and he cannot uproot the grass or tree (to get to the soil below) and the time is short, then he may perform tayammum on them." Al-Bananni noted in terms of this position that al-Hattab viewed it as the stronger position and ar-Ramadi considered it to be the relied upon position in the madhhab. (Quoted from as-Sawi).]

5. Consecutiveness, both within the tayammum and between the tayammum and the act of worship that it is intended for: It is obligatory for the elements of tayammum to be performed one after the other without delay and for the act of worship intended by the tayammum to be performed immediately after it. If a long time were to pass between the wiping of the face and the wiping of the arms, for example, or between the tayammum and that act of worship intended by it, then the tayammum must be repeated. Unlike in wudu', if a person performs an incomplete tayammum he may not build on the incomplete tayammum if a long time has passed, but must perform a new complete tayammum (thus, if a person only wiped his arms in his first tayammum and forgot his face and then a long time passed, it would not be permissible for him to just wipe his face to make that tayammum complete. It would be incumbent on him to perform the full tayammum.)

There are four sunna elements of tayammum:

1. Putting the actions of tayammum in their correct order. The person performing tayammum should wipe his face first and then his arms. If he inverts the order then, provided that not a long time has passed and he has not yet prayed with that tayammum, he should repeat the arms. If a long time has passed or he has already prayed, then his prayer is valid, but he has missed out on one of the sunnas of tayammum (the correct order).

2. The second striking of the earth, in order to wipe the arms.

3. Wiping the arms up to the elbows.

4. After touching the earth, not wiping the palms of the hands on anything else before wiping the face or arms. [NOTE: What is meant by this is not covering your face in dust, as might be understood from the Arabic, for when a person performs tayammum on a stone there is no dust.]. ]. If the person performing tayammum does wipe something else before wiping his face or arms then his tayammum is valid, but he has done something which is disliked.

112. What are the recommended elements of tayammum?

There are four recommended elements of tayammum:

1. The basmala (i.e. saying bismillah at the beginning of the tayammum).

2. Being silent while performing tayammum, except for dhikr.

3. Facing the qibla

4. Performing it in the recommended way which is to; begin by placing the palm of the left hand at the tip of the back of the right hand and then to wipe with it, starting with the outside of the fingers of the right hand and wiping the outside of the arm until he reaches the elbow. When he reaches the elbow of the right arm, he places the palm of his left hand on the inside of the bend of the elbow of the right arm and wipes the inside of the arm until he has reached the tips of the insides of the fingers of the right hand. He then repeats this motion with the left arm, by placing the palm of the right hand on the outside of the fingers of the left hand and wiping the outside of the arm as far as the elbow and then placing the palm of the right hand on the inside of the bend of the elbow of the left arm and wiping the inside of the arm until he reaches the tips of the insides of the fingers of the left hand. When he has finished wiping the arms he then wipes between his fingers (NOTE: The best way of doing this is to start with the little finger of the right hand and to wipe it with the thumb and forefinger of the left hand and to continue until he reaches the thumb and then to do the same with the left hand. The reason for this is that he has to wipe the sides of his fingers with the insides of the fingers of his other hand. If he wipes the sides of the fingers with the sides of the fingers of his other hand, he is wiping them with a part of his hand that never touched the soil).

113. What invalidates tayammum?

Everything that breaks wudu' also invalidates tayammum. Tayammum is also rendered invalid if a person who is able to use water, finds sufficient water (to perform wudu or ghusl) after performing his tayammum and before embarking upon his prayer, so long as there is enough time remaining for him to use the water and still catch the prayer in its ikhtiyari time. If he finds the water after entering into his prayer (or if it finds him, such as somebody arriving carrying water on his person), then his tayammum remains valid, and he completes his prayer. However if, during that prayer, he remembers water that he has with him but had forgotten that he possessed, his prayer is rendered invalid and he must break off and perform wudu (provided that there is enough left for him to do that and still catch the prayer in its time). Finally, tayammum is also made invalid by a long time passing between his performing it and his performing the prayer (or act of worship) that he intended by it.

114. What things are disliked in tayammum?

If a person who is in a state of ritual purity has no access to water and has no expectations of getting any, then it is disliked for him to do something that might break his wudu, unless, of course, the action of preserving his wudu, whether it be by holding in his urine or wind or whatever, might cause him harm. If he does fear harm then there is no dislike in substituting tayammum for wudu. Similarly, in the event that he has no water, it is disliked for a person to invalidate his ghusl, even if he is not in wudu. If, however, he fears that holding back from sexual intercourse will cause him harm then there is no dislike in substituting tayammum for ghusl.

115. Is it permitted to perform tayammum on a wall?

It is permitted for both the person who is healthy, but lacks water and the person who is ill and cannot use water to perform tayammum on a wall, provided that that wall is built of sun-dried bricks or stone. [NOTE: If the wall is built with bricks that have been baked in a furnace or processed (such as concrete and cement), or if it has been painted or wallpapered, or if it is made of wood, metal or plastic (or any other artificial substance), then it is not permitted to perform tayammum on it].

116. What is the ruling on the person who neither has water nor anything with which he can perform tayammum?

Someone who neither has water nor any pure earth with which to perform tayammum, or has them but is unable to use them (such as the person who is tied up or crucified or is physically prevented from using them by another), does not have to perform the prayer and does not have to make it up.*

[*This is the position attributed to Imam Malik, may Allah be pleased with him, himself. However in the madhhab we have four positions that cover all the possible permutations: the position mentioned above; praying without purity and then making that prayer up; praying without purity and not making the prayer up; and not praying then but making the prayer up later. If a person ever finds himself in such a position he should do what feels most comfortable for him, and Allah knows best.]

Preconditions of Tayammum

117. What are the preconditions of tayammum?

The preconditions of tayammum are the same as the preconditions of wudu' and ghusl, the only differences being that water is replaced by earth and the arrival of the time of the prayer being a precondition of both obligation and soundness. As before, the preconditions are divided into three categories: preconditions of obligation, preconditions of obligation and preconditions concerned with both obligation and soundness.

There are three preconditions of obligation (if these are not met tayammum is not obligatory):

1. Adulthood

2. The ability to perform tayammum.

3. Having done something which makes tayammum necessary (i.e. losing one's wudu).

There are three preconditions of soundness (if these are not met tayammum is not valid):

1. Islam

2. The lack of a barrier (between the limb and the hand wiping it, such as a layer of wax or thick oil).

3. The absence of something occurring which negates tayammum (such as urinating while performing it or touching the penis and so forth).

There are five preconditions of both soundness and obligation (if these are not met tayammum is neither obligatory nor valid):

1. Sanity.

2. The absence of the blood of menstruation and lochia (for women).

3. The presence of that on which tayammum may be performed (i.e. pure earth).

4. The lack of sleep or absentmindedness.

5. The arrival of the time of the prayer (Tayammum is only performed for an obligatory prayer when its time has come in. Unlike wudu, it is not permitted to perform tayammum for a prayer before its time. As for a missed prayer, its time is the moment that the person remembers it).

Wiping over Leather Socks

118. What is the ruling on wiping over the khuff (leather socks) and jawrab (socks)? Is there a time limit on how long a person can wear his khuffs and wipe over them instead of washing his feet?

The ruling on wiping over khuffs, whilst performing one's wudu', instead of fully washing the feet, is that it is a dispensation (rukhsa), which is permitted by the Shari'a (as opposed to a dispensation which is recommended or sunna, such as shortening the prayer while travelling). It is not a condition that the person wearing them is travelling, he may wipe over them regardless of whether he is at home or travelling, even if his journey is of a forbidden type (such as setting out to rob people). As for jawrabs, it is only permitted to wipe over them if they are covered on the outside by leather (NOTE: So basically what is meant by a jawrab is a khuff whose inside is cotton or wool to make it more comfortable). If they are not covered by leather, then it is not permissible to wipe over them and the person performing wudu' must remove them and wash his feet.

There is no time limit to how long a person can continue to wear his khuffs and so there is no time limit to how long he can continue to substitute wiping over them for washing his feet in wudu' - he may do so for a year if he so wishes. If he removes them in that period, however, he must perform a full wudu', in which he washes his feet, before he is permitted to wipe over them again. (NOTE: The reason the issue of the time limit is mentioned is because, in some of the madhhabs, it is not permissible for a person to wear khuffs for longer than a day (or three days if the person wearing them is travelling), after which he has to perform a full wudu', in which he washes his feet, before he is permitted to wipe over them again).

119. What are the preconditions for wiping over the khuff and jawrab?

There are eleven preconditions which must be met before a person is permitted to wipe over his socks in wudu'; six preconditions relating to that which is wiped and five preconditions relating to the person who performs the wiping:

There are six preconditions relating to that which is wiped (in other words, the khuff. If any of these preconditions is lacking then it is not permitted to wipe over it):

1. That it is made from leather. If it is made from other than leather then it is not permitted to wipe over it.

2. That it is in itself pure. If it is made from the skin of an animal which died on its own or was not slaughtered properly then it is not valid to wipe over it, even if that skin has been tanned [NOTE: Just as the khuff must itself be pure, there must also not be anything impure (such as human urine or faeces) on it].

3. That it is put together with stitching. If the khuff is glued or cellotaped together, then it is not permitted to wipe over it.

4. That it covers the place which it is obligatory to wash when washing the feet in wudu'. In other words the khuff must completely cover the ankles. If the khuff stops short of the ankles or does not completely cover them, then it not permitted to wipe over it.

5. That it is possible to walk normally in it. If the khuff is so large that it will slip off when he walks with it (or so tight that it is impossible to walk whilst wearing it, or so thin that it will tear when he walks on it), then it is not permitted to wipe over it.

6. That there is no barrier between the water and the khuff, such as wax and the like.

There are five preconditions relating to the person who performs the wiping. (If any of these preconditions are lacking then it is not permitted for that person to wipe over the khuff):

1. That he put them on when he was in a state of ritual purity (i.e. he must be in wudu' before he puts them on). If he put them on when he was not in a state of ritual purity then he may not wipe over them and he must remove them when he wants to perform wudu'.

2. That his state of ritual purity was obtained using water, not earth (in other words, he may not perform tayammum in order to put on his khuffs and then still wipe over them, it must be wudu').

3. That his state of ritual purity was complete before he put on the khuffs. This means that, if he were to put on his khuffs before completing his wudu' (or ghusl), such as by washing his feet, putting on his khuffs and then wiping his head (after putting on his khuffs), it would not be permitted for him to wipe over them [NOTE: His wudu would be valid as the correct order is a sunna element of wudu', not an obligatory element]. Similarly, if he were to wash his right foot (whilst performing wudu' or ghusl), put his right khuff on, and then wash his left foot and put his left khuff on, it would not be permitted for him to wipe over his khuffs, as he put one of them on before he was in a complete state of ritual purity.

4. That he put them on for a valid reason. Valid reasons for wearing them include: following the sunna of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace; protecting oneself from the cold; protecting the feet from the ground when is very hot; protecting the feet from scorpions; or because it comes with the uniform (such as when worn by soldiers or judges, when that is the custom). If, however, a person were to wear the khuffs without valid reason, such as when he wears them to show off his importance and high station in society, or wears them to ensure that the henna he put on his feet (without a valid medical reason for doing so) is not washed in wudu', or wears them just to sleep in, or wears them to protect his feet from fleas and the like (unless of course he is someone who is allergic to fleabites, in which case wearing khuffs becomes a necessity in order to safeguard his health), then he is not permitted to wipe over them.

5. That the act of wearing is not in itself an act of disobedience to Allah. It is not permitted for a man who is in a state of ihram during a hajj or umra to wipe over khuffs (as he is forbidden to wear any garment which is stitched), except if he is compelled to wear them (for health reasons and the like), in which case he may wipe over them. As for women, they are permitted to wear stitched garments in ihram and so are also permitted to wipe over khuffs if they are wearing them. Another category of person not permitted to wipe over khuffs, is the person who has forcibly taken (ghasb) those khuffs from another person without their consent.

120. What are the disliked elements of wiping over the khuff?

There are three disliked elements of wiping over the khuff:

1. Washing the khuff instead of wiping it. This is excess in the Deen and doing so might damage the khuffs. If a person does this, however, then his wudu' is valid so long as he washed them with the intention of that being part of his wudu' or with the intention of lifting the state of ritual impurity. If his intention was merely to remove physical impurity (such as horse dung or urine) from the khuff, not his state of ritual impurity, then that washing does not take the place of wiping and his wudu' would not be valid.

2. Trying to wipe inside every crease and crevice of the khuff.

3. Wiping the khuff more than once.

121. What invalidates wiping over the khuff?

There are three things which invalidate wiping over the khuff:

1. Those things which make ghusl obligatory: That is to say, the insertion of the head of the penis into the vagina (or anus, which is forbidden), the emission of semen, the onset of menstruation and the onset of lochia (post-natal bleeding). If one is in a state of major ritual impurity then it is invalid to wipe over the khuff until such time as he has removed the state of major ritual impurity by performing a ghusl.

2. Rips or tears in the khuff amounting to a third the length of the foot or more, regardless of whether those tears have opened up to reveal the foot beneath or whether the two sides of the tears are still holding together in places (such as when the stitching has come apart, but parts of the leather are still stuck together). If the rips or tears amount to less than a third the length of the foot, then wiping over the khuff is valid, except when the rips have completely opened up to reveal the foot beneath. If the rips (that amount to less than a third) have only opened up a little, however, whereby the moisture of the hand does not reach the foot beneath during the wiping, then wiping is valid.

3. Removing most of one's foot from the khuff (according to the position of Shaykh Khalil in the Mukhtasar). If a person either completely takes off his khuff or partially takes it off so that most of his foot (not just the heel) is outside it, then wiping becomes invalidated. According to the other position, which is generally considered to be the stronger (this position is from the Mudawwana), removing most of the foot from the khuff does not invalidate wiping, it is only by completely removing it that it is invalidated.

122. What is the ruling when a person removes his khuffs whilst in a state of ritual purity? What is the ruling when a person removes his khuffs whilst he is in a state of ritual purity and he is wearing another pair of khuffs beneath them?

If a person performs a wudu' in which he wipes over his khuffs and then removes those khuffs, he must wash his feet immediately upon removing them. If he is wearing another pair of khuffs underneath the original khuffs, then he must wipe that second pair of khuffs straight away)*. Similarly, if he were to remove only one khuff, it would become incumbent upon him to remove the other khuff and immediately wash his feet. If he were to delay washing his feet or wiping over the second pair of khuffs for a long time, then his wudu would be rendered invalid. The reason for him having to wash his feet immediately is in order to preserve the consecutiveness of the wudu'. What is meant by 'a long time' here is the time it takes for an average-sized limb to dry in a moderate climate, as is explained more fully in section 29 in the chapter on wudu'.

*[NOTE: If a person wants to wear more than one pair of khuffs and wipe over them, he must ensure that he put on all the khuffs when in a state of ritual purity. If he put on the first pair when he was in a state of ritual purity and then put on a second pair over the top of them when he was not (in a state of ritual purity), then he may not wipe over the second pair and must remove them and wipe over the first pair.]

123. What are the recommended elements of wiping over the khuff?

There are two recommended elements of wiping over the khuff:

1. Removing the khuffs on every Jumu'a, even if he put them on on Thursday. If he does not remove them on Jumu'a, it is recommended for him to remove them on the same day on which he put them on (i.e. a week later. For example, if he put the khuffs on on Tuesday and did not remove them on Jumu'a, it is recommended that he remove them the following Tuesday).

2. Performing it in the recommended way, which is to: Place the palm of the right hand on top of the toes of the right foot and the palm of the left hand under the toes of the same foot and then, in a single motion, to pass the hands over the khuff until he reaches the top of the ankles (wiping the topside of the khuff with the right hand and the underside and heel of the khuff with the left hand). He then does the same thing with the left foot, but this time places the right hand on the underside and the left hand on the topside.

124. What is the ruling on wiping the topside and the underside of the khuff?

It is obligatory to wipe the topside of the khuff (the side which faces the sky when a person is standing). If the person performing the wiping does not wipe the topside and then prays with that wudu', his prayer is invalid. If he were to neglect to wipe the underside (the side facing the ground when a person is standing) of the khuff, however, and then pray with that wudu', his prayer would be valid, as it sunna, not obligatory, to wipe the underside. It is recommended, however, for the person who omitted the underside to repeat his prayer in the ikhtiyari time.

The rulings mentioned above, concerning the omission of the topside or underside of the khuff in the wiping, are equally applicable to the one who only omits part of the topside or part of the underside. Thus, if a person left out part of the topside, any prayers he prayed with that wudu' would be invalid, and if a person left out part of the underside, it would be recommended for him to repeat, in the ikhtiyari time, any prayers he prayed with that wudu'.

Wiping over Poultices, Splints and Bandages

125. When is it permissible for the person on whom the prayer is mandatory to substitute wiping over a poultice, splint or bandage for washing (when performing wudu' or ghusl)? What are the preconditions for wiping over poultices, splints and bandages?

If a person has cuts, burns or scabies and the like on parts of his body which he has to wash when performing wudu' (such as the arms or face) or ghusl, and fears that washing the injured parts of his body will either cause him great pain, make him ill, worsen his condition or delay the recovery of his wounds, then he should substitute wiping for washing. The ruling on this substitution (wiping instead of washing) varies according to the extent of his fears: if he fears that washing the injured area could result in death or severe harm, such as the loss of one of his five senses, then it is obligatory for him to wipe and forbidden for him to wash. If his fear is of a lesser degree than this in that he does not fear any long-term damage or harm, then it is recommended for him to wipe instead of wash.

If it proves impossible for the person to wipe the limb directly, then he may wipe over a poultice (NOTE: The word poultice is being used here to cover that which is put on a sore or cut or scabies for healing purposes, whether that be a compress, poultice, plaster or even that which is put over the eye when it is severely inflamed or swollen) or splint (or plaster cast or the like). If he IS able to wipe the limb directly, but wipes over a poultice or splint instead, then his wudu or ghusl would be invalid.

If he is unable to wipe* over the poultice or splint directly then he is permitted to wipe over the bandage or cloth that ties the poultice or splint in place. If he is unable to wipe over that bandage then he is permitted to wipe over a second layer of bandages tied on top of it and so on.

*[NOTE: When we say wiping we are referring to the same type of wiping the person performing wudu does when he wipes his head. In other words the person wets his hands in pure water and then wipes over the splint or the like one time only.]

Similarly, the person who suffers from ophthalmia or severely and painfully swollen eye(s), in the event that he is unable to wipe over the eyes or brow directly, may wipe over a cloth (preferably translucent if it is both eyes that are affected so he is able to see during his prayer) or eye-patch which he has placed or tied on top of them; and the person who suffers from splitting headaches or migraines may wipe over a piece of paper (soaked in medicine of some kind) stuck on to his temple to ease the pain.

If a person has injuries on his head or fears damage to either his hair or head by directly wiping over it (or has flu or a cold and fears that washing his head (in ghusl) or wiping it (in wudu') will make it worse), then he should wipe over his taqiyya (white skullcap traditionally worn under turbans or anything else worn under a turban, even if it is only a handkerchief placed on the head). If he is unable to do that, then he is permitted to wipe over a turban. If, however, if is able to wipe a part of his head, he should wipe over that and complete the wiping over his turban. Unlike the position in some of the other madhhabs, a person is not permitted to wipe over a turban just because it is difficult to take it off.

This wiping is permitted regardless of whether the person doing it is performing wudu' or ghusl, and regardless of whether he was in a state of complete ritual purity when he put them on. If, through the necessity of fixing them in place, the bandages cover an area larger than the injured area, then he is permitted to wipe over the whole bandage, even if part of what is underneath it is healthy (so, for example, if a person broke his wrist and it was NECESSARY for him to have a plaster cast fitted that covered most of his lower arm to help the wrist to heal, it would be permitted for him to wipe over the whole plaster cast, despite the fact that the only injured part of his arm was his wrist).

There is one precondition for the person wiping over splints and the like and that is that washing the healthy parts of the rest of his body (whilst performing ghusl) or washing or wiping the remaining healthy limbs which are obligatory in wudu' (whilst performing wudu') will not worsen the condition of the damaged limbs/parts of his body, or delay their recovery or bring about a new illness. If washing them (the healthy parts of the body) will cause any of those things mentioned (such as making him ill), then he may not wipe over his splints/bandages, but should perform tayammum instead. This precondition holds for both when the greater part of his body is healthy (or the majority of the limbs which are washed/wiped in wudu'), and when the greater part of his body is injured or damaged (or the majority of the limbs which are washed/wiped in wudu'). If, however, the whole body is injured except for an arm or a leg, then that person should perform tayammum (even if washing that arm or leg will not result in harm). Ophthalmia (an illness of the eyes) alone is not a valid reason to abandon wudu' in favour of tayammum and it is not permitted for a person suffering from this condition to do so. If he fears that wiping his eyes directly will cause him harm, then he should tie a (translucent) cloth over them and wipe over that cloth. He may not remove that cloth until after he has prayed, for removing that cloth would invalidate his wudu'.

[NOTE: If a person's hands are injured and heavily bandaged and he is thus unable to wash the healthy parts of his body himself, then he should find somebody else to do the washing for him. If he is unable to find anyone and is unable to perform wudu' or tayammum, then he is like the person who has no pure water or earth and the four different rulings mentioned in section 116 in the Tayammum chapter apply (i.e. he does not have to pray or make up; he does not pray, but makes up; he prays and makes up; or he prays and does not make up).]

126. What is the ruling if the poultice, splint or bandage falls off or is removed after it has been wiped over?

If a person performs a wudu' or ghusl in which he wipes over a splint or bandage (or the like) and then he removes that splint or bandage or it falls off of its own accord, then he should put it back on straight away (If he neglects to replace it for a long period of time* then his wudu' is invalid) and wipe over it again. If he delays wiping over it after putting it back on, then the rulings regarding consecutiveness in wudu' (or ghusl) come into play. If only a short period of time passes between him putting the splint/bandage back on and wiping over it, then his state of purity remains valid, regardless of whether he delayed deliberately or through forgetfulness or inability. If, however, a long time passes between him putting the splint/bandage back on and wiping over it, then the ruling depends on the reason for the delay. If he deliberately delays wiping it, then his state of ritual purity is rendered invalid (In other words, if he had performed a wudu' in which he wiped over that splint/bandage, then he returns to a state of minor ritual impurity and if he had performed a ghusl in which he wiped over that splint/bandage, then he returns to a state of major ritual impurity). If he delays wiping it through forgetfulness, then he should wipe it as soon as he remembers, but with a fresh intention. If he delays wiping over it because he is unable to do so, then he should wipe over it as soon as he is able without renewing his intention and his state of ritual purity remains valid.

127. What is the ruling if a splint, after it has been wiped over, falls off during the prayer?

If a person performs a wudu' (or ghusl) in which he wipes over a splint (or any of the other things mentioned above such as poultices and bandages) and begins a prayer with that wudu, and then that splint falls off while he is praying then that prayer is invalid and he must leave it immediately. He must then replace the splint, wipe over it again and begin the prayer anew. If a splint or poultice falls out from beneath a bandage and the person had wiped over that bandage, not the poultice or splint directly, then his prayer remains valid so long as that bandage remains in place.

128. What is the ruling if the wound heals underneath the poultice?

If the wound (or any of the other things that oblige a person to put on a splint, poultice, plaster or bandage) heals underneath a poultice (or the like) whilst a person is in the midst of his prayer, then that prayer is rendered invalid. He must cut off his prayer, immediately remove the poultice and wash (when it is an area of the body that it is required to wash such as an arm) the healed area that had previously been covered by it or wipe it (when it is an area of the body that it is required to wipe such as the head in wudu'). He may then re-enter his prayer.

If the wound (or any of the other things that oblige a person to put on a splint, poultice, plaster or bandage) heals underneath a poultice (or the like) when a person is NOT in a prayer, then he must follow the steps mentioned above if he wants to remain in a state of ritual purity. If he deliberately delays washing the healed limb for a long period of time, then his state of ritual purity is invalidated. If he delays washing the limb through forgetfulness, then he should wash it as soon as he remembers (making a fresh intention).

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