Book of Ablution (Wuḍūʾ)
A comprehensive discussion of the fundamentals of this act of worship may be arranged under five chapters:
Chapter One: The proofs of its obligation, upon whom it is obligatory, and when it becomes obligatory.
Chapter Two: Knowing its component acts.
Chapter Three: Knowing the substance with which it is performed—namely, water.
Chapter Four: Knowing its nullifiers.
Chapter Five: Knowing the acts of worship for which it is required.
Chapter One
The evidence for the obligation of ablution is found in the Qur’an, the Sunnah, and the consensus (ijmāʿ).
- The Qur’an: The Almighty says,
“O you who believe! When you rise to pray, wash your faces and your hands up to the elbows …” (al-Māʾidah 5:6).
Muslims unanimously agree that heeding this command is mandatory for everyone for whom the prayer itself is mandatory once its time has begun.
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The Sunnah: The Prophet ﷺ said, “Allah does not accept a prayer without purification, nor charity taken from stolen spoils,” and he ﷺ said, “Allah does not accept the prayer of one who is in a state of ritual impurity until he performs ablution.” Both ḥadīths are sound according to the leading scholars of ḥadīth.
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Consensus: No disagreement has ever been reported from any Muslim on this point; had there been any, it would have been transmitted, for prevailing custom dictates as much.
Upon whom is ablution obligatory? Upon every adult of sound mind. This, too, is established by the Sunnah and by consensus.
a) The Sunnah: The Prophet ﷺ said, “The pen has been lifted from three: from the child until he reaches puberty, and from the insane until he regains his sanity ….”
b) Consensus: No divergence has been reported in this regard, although jurists have disagreed over whether one of the conditions