is not to be made a direction for impurities; Allah, the Exalted, says: “Whoever venerates the sacred ordinances of Allah – that is best for him in the sight of his Lord.” (al-Ḥajj 30)
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To honour the Noble Kaʿbah by avoiding every sin that could infringe upon its sanctity and standing; Allah, the Exalted, says: “Whoever seeks therein to commit deviation by wrongdoing – We shall let him taste a painful punishment.” (al-Ḥajj 25)
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To sanctify it through acts of obedience such as Hajj, ʿumrah, circumambulation, prayer, and all other forms of worship and devotion; Allah, the Exalted, says: “Indeed, the first House established for mankind was that at Bakkah – blessed and a guidance for the worlds.” (Āl ʿImrān 96)
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Venerating the Ancient House extends to its ḥaram, delineated by the boundary markers that separate the sanctuary from the surrounding land, and likewise to the sacred sites: the Station of Abraham, Zamzam, Ṣafā and Marwah, the walkway between them, ʿArafāt, Muzdalifah, Minā and the jamarāt – all of them are among the symbols of Allah.
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Based on the principle that acts of worship are restricted to what Allah and His Messenger have prescribed, these sacred sites do not share with the Noble Kaʿbah the ruling that forbids facing or turning one’s back toward them while relieving oneself; rather, they share only the underlying principle of veneration.
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The prohibition of performing istinjāʾ or istijmār with the right hand, out of respect for it. One should therefore cleanse with the left hand, unless the left holds a ring bearing the name of Allah, in which case he turns the ring inward and uses the right.
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The prohibition of performing istijmār with fewer than three stones is conditioned on one’s not intending to follow the stones with water. If he plans to wash afterwards, it is permissible to use fewer than three, because the purpose here is merely to lessen the impurity at the site, not to achieve full purification.
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Stones are mentioned because they are what most people use, but the intent is to purify with stones or with anything else that serves the same cleansing function – such as pieces of wood, cloth, or paper.