of the period—whether one day and one night or three days—begins from the occurrence of ritual impurity after putting them on. This is the position of the school, because ritual impurity makes ablution obligatory, so the ruling is attached to it. Otherwise, wiping does not actually occur except the first time one wipes.

A parallel case is their statement concerning the sale of fruit: if someone sells palm trees whose fruit-spathes have split open, then the fruit belongs to the seller, even though the hadith states: “Whoever sells palm trees that have been pollinated …” (1). Yet they said that the splitting open is the cause of pollination, so the ruling is attached to it (2).

There are three possible points from which the beginning of the period may be reckoned:

First: the time of putting them on.

Second: the time ritual impurity occurs.

Third: the time of wiping.

As for the time of putting them on, the period does not begin from that point according to any view within the school. As for the time ritual impurity occurs, the school’s position is that the period begins from it.

The second view is that it begins from the time of wiping (3), because the hadiths state: “The traveller wipes over the leather socks for three nights, and the resident for one day and one night” (4), and so forth. A person cannot truly be described as one who wipes except by actually performing the wiping. This is the correct view.