This ḥadith, then, is clear evidence for the obligation we have stated—namely, that the place of prayer must be pure. Shaykh al-Islām writes in al-Ikhtiyārāt:

“Purity of the spot is established by the Prophet’s words in the ḥadith of the Bedouin: ‘These mosques are not suitable for any amount of urine or filth,’ and by his command that water be poured over the urine. Thus he ﷺ ordered that the place of prayer be cleansed, and a command indicates obligation.”

Further support is found in the ḥadith of Jābir, in which the Prophet said:

“The earth has been made for me [ṭayyibah]—wholesome—both a purifier and a place of worship, so whenever a man is overtaken by the time of prayer, let him pray wherever it overtakes him.”

This sentence is part of a longer report from Jābir that reads:

“I have been given five things that were not granted to anyone before me: I have been aided with awe for the distance of a month’s journey; the earth has been made for me a mosque and a purifier, so whenever a man of my community is overtaken by the time of prayer, let him pray; the war-booty has been made lawful for me whereas it was not lawful for anyone before me; intercession has been granted to me; and whereas a prophet used to be sent only to his own people, I have been sent to all mankind.”

Al-Bukhārī, Muslim, al-Nasāʾī, al-Dārimī, and Aḥmad all relate this ḥadith. The wording just quoted is that of al-Bukhārī, while the specific clause cited earlier is taken from Aḥmad. The material placed in square brackets is supplied by Muslim and al-Dārimī. The same addition is also authentically reported in the ḥadith of Anas with the wording: “Every wholesome stretch of land has been made for me a mosque and a purifier.”