Chapter: The Siwak (tooth-stick)

Using a fresh stick that does not splinter is a recommended practice.

In general, the siwak is recommended at all times. For a person who is fasting, however, it becomes disliked after the sun has passed its zenith; before that time it remains recommended with a dry stick and merely permissible with a moist one.

Whoever cleans his teeth with something other than a stick has not fulfilled the Sunnah.

Its recommendation is particularly emphasized when performing ablution, before prayer, on waking from sleep, when the breath has changed, on entering a mosque or one’s house, after a prolonged silence, and when the teeth have yellowed.