8 – Khalid narrated, through ʿAbd Khayr, from ʿAli (may Allah be pleased with him): “He asked for water, washed his hands three times, rinsed his mouth three times, drew water into his nose three times, washed his face three times, washed his forearms three times, wiped over his head three times, and washed his feet three times. He then said, ‘This is the ablution of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.’”

In another narration, transmitted by Khalid through ʿAbd Khayr from ʿAli: “He called for water, washed his hands three times, drew water into his nose three times, washed his face three times, washed his forearms three times, wiped his head once, and washed his feet three times.”

Yet another narration states: “He requested water. A vessel containing water and a basin were brought to him. ʿAbd Khayr said: We were watching him. He took the vessel with his right hand and poured it over his left, then washed his hands three times. He then put his right hand into the vessel, filled it with water, rinsed his mouth and inhaled water into his nose—doing that three times—then washed his face three times, washed his hands up to the elbows three times, took some water with his hand and wiped over his head once, and finally washed his feet, each of them three times. After that he scooped up water with his palm and said, ‘Whoever would like to look at the purification of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, this is his purification.’”

Another narration says: “He called for water, washed his hands three times, rinsed his mouth three times, inhaled water into his nose three times, washed his face three times, washed his forearms three times, then took some water in his palm and poured it over the top of his head. He then said, ‘Whoever wishes to behold the purification of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, let him look at this.’”

In yet another narration from ʿAli (may Allah be pleased with him): “He performed ablution, washing each limb three times.”

ʿAbd Allah ibn Muhammad reported from Yaʿqub: “As for those who relate from Abu Hanifah—through Khalid—that the Prophet ﷺ wiped his head three times, saying that he placed his hand on the crown of his head, then drew it to the back, then to the front, counting that as three wipes—this is in fact only one wipe, because his hand never left his head and he did not take water three separate times. It is like someone who puts water in his palm and then extends it to his wrist. Do you not see that the hadiths he narrated—transmitted by al-Jarud ibn Zayd, Kharijah ibn Musʿab, and Asad ibn ʿUmar—clearly state that the wiping was once only, and that their meaning is exactly what we have explained?”

He continued: “A large number of Companions have likewise transmitted, using similar wording, that the Prophet ﷺ wiped his head three times; among them are ʿUthman, ʿAli, ʿAbd Allah ibn Masʿud, and others—may Allah be pleased with them all.”

Al-Bayhaqi said: “Reports that mention a repeated wiping have also come through unusual chains from ʿUthman, but because they contradict the transmissions preserved by the reliable narrators, they carry no weight with the scholars. What else could their meaning be except what we have already set out? Whoever claims that Abu Hanifah was mistaken for narrating the wiping three times is himself in error and more deserving of blame. Shuʿbah, moreover, committed a flagrant mistake in this hadith—acknowledged by everyone—when he narrated it from Malik ibn ʿArfat, from ʿAbd Khayr, from ʿAli, thereby corrupting two names in the chain: he substituted Malik for Khalid and ʿArfat for ʿAlqamah. Had such an error come from Abu Hanifah they would have branded him ignorant and unlearned, even casting him out of the religion. That is nothing but a lack of scrupulousness and the following of base desire.”