and the remainder of the verse—and that prayer, linguistically, denotes any supplication? Allah, Mighty and Majestic, says: “And pray for them; indeed, your prayers are a source of reassurance for them” [al-Tawbah: 103]—meaning, supplicate for them. In Islamic law, however, prayer has come to denote a particular form of supplication. Likewise, fasting linguistically denotes any abstention, but in Islamic law it has come to denote a particular form of abstention: refraining from food, drink, and sexual intercourse from dawn until sunset, accompanied by the intention to fast. Pilgrimage, too, linguistically denotes any act of seeking, but in Islamic law it has come to denote one particular form of seeking, to the exclusion of others.
Thus, if someone washes all or some of his limbs in a manner other than that which Allah has prescribed for prayer, his action is not called ablution in Islamic law, nor does the designation “ablution” apply to it, even though it is ablution linguistically. Likewise, if someone supplicates concerning any matter, his supplication is not called prayer in Islamic law, nor does the designation “prayer” apply to it, even though it is prayer linguistically. Similarly, if someone abstains from anything, or from food and drink in a manner other than that which Allah has prescribed, his abstention is not called fasting in Islamic law, nor does the designation “fasting” apply to it, even though it is fasting linguistically. Likewise, if someone sets out for any place, or sets out for Mecca in a manner other than that which Allah has prescribed, his undertaking is not called pilgrimage in Islamic law, nor does the designation “pilgrimage” apply to it, even though it is pilgrimage linguistically.
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When the terms ablution, prayer, fasting, and pilgrimage are used without qualification, they are understood only in their legally prescribed senses. They are not interpreted as referring to anything else covered by their linguistic meanings unless this is expressly stated and clarified. Do you not see that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, instructed his Companions to perform ablution after eating food touched by fire, and they understood this to mean legally prescribed ablution, not washing the hands? A narrator also related that whenever ‘Abd Allāh ibn ‘Umar had a nosebleed, he would withdraw, perform ablution, then return and resume his prayer, and would not