Purification before Prayers
Purification (Tahara in Arabic):-
One of the most important rituals in Islam is purification (Tahara in Arabic), Allah says in The Holy Quran chapter 2 verse 222 “Allah loves those who frequently repent, and He loves those who cleanse themselves”
In the daily life of the Muslim, purification (Tahara) plays an important role starting from the toilet manners, and Wudu before prayer, to purification of the cloth and place of prayer.
Muslim manners in toilet:-
-It is recommended for the Muslim to enter Toilet with the left foot and leave it with the right foot
-A Muslim must be in a private place that can’t be seen, if he is in an open place, he must be careful not to reveal himself in a hole because it might have some creatures that can harm him, or he might harm them and this is totally forbidden.
-He must cover his private parts during this process and must not face The Qibla (The direction to Mecca which we face while praying).
-He must make sure that his body and clothes are clean from any impurities.
-once he is done, he must clean his private parts with water, if water is not available then he can use tissues.
Things that invalidate Wudu:-
1-Everything that came out from the two tracts, whether it was urine, feces, or wind.
2-Loss of consciousness because of madness, fainting, sleep, or drunkenness.
3-Touching the private parts with lust.
4-Eating camel meat.
-If a Muslim has one of those impurities, he can perform Wudu (Ablution) to be able to pray.
-A Muslim can pray many prayers with the same Wudu as long as he doesn't break it.
-A Muslim is allowed to wipe over the top of his socks or shoes with wet hands when he wishes to renew his Wudu as long as he put those socks or shoes after performing the last Wudu, he can do so for a whole day if he is a resident and for 3 days if he is a traveler.
Things that require a ritual bath (Ghusl): -
1-Penetration of the vulva even if ejaculation does not occur.
2-Ejaculation with pleasure while awake or asleep, this includes masturbation.
3-Menstruation which is the monthly blood that an adult woman has, and postpartum which is the bleeding a woman has following a childbirth.
-To do a ritual bath (Ghusl), a Muslim must have a full bath with the intention of purity, making sure that water reaches his/her private parts, and then performing Wudu, doing this puts the Muslim in the state of purification.
What if there is no water?
If the Muslim cannot use water for Wudu or Ghusl due to sickness, or water is not available, or if using water for Wudu and Ghusl will leave not enough water for drinking, one can use pure earth to perform (Tayammum) as an alternative for ablution, Tayammum can be performed simply by striking both hands slightly on pure earth and wipe the face, then wipe both palms of the hands starting with the right one.
Purification of the cloth and place of prayer: -
If a Muslim wants to pray then he must make sure that his body, cloth, and place of prayer are purified from all kind of impurities which are: -
1-Blood, except if it is very little
2-Human urine and feces
3-Animal urine and dungs
4-Dogs and pigs
5-Dead animals except those which have been slaughtered according to the Islamic rules.
-Removing this physical impurity can be washed off with water or otherwise, except in the case of dog’s saliva, urine, or dung it must be washed 7 times, one of them with dust.
-It is not a problem if some stains or smell remain after washing.