—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—will recognize with certainty that the position of the scholars of Medina, which embodies ease in this matter, accords more closely with the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, than the position that entails hardship. In an authentic hadith, when the Bedouin urinated in the mosque and the Prophet instructed them to pour water over his urine, he said:

“You were sent to make things easy, not to make them difficult.”

This is the position of the scholars of Medina and the scholars of hadith. Those who disagree with them maintain that the area must be washed and that pouring water over it does not suffice. They cite in support of this a disconnected hadith that is not authentic.

Section

As for the second category of prohibited things—those prohibited because of how they are acquired—this includes whatever is taken wrongfully through various forms of appropriation, such as theft, breach of trust, and forcible seizure; whatever is acquired through usury or gambling; and whatever is received in exchange for a forbidden item or benefit, such as the price paid for wine, blood, swine, or idols, a prostitute’s earnings, a soothsayer’s fee, and the like.

The position of the scholars of Medina on this matter is among the most balanced. The prohibition of wrongdoing and whatever necessarily entails it is more emphatic than the prohibition of the first category. Allah prohibited foul foods because they provide foul nourishment that leads a person to wrongdoing, as when someone feeds on swine, blood, or predatory beasts. For the consumer resembles what he consumes, and oppression and aggression develop within him in keeping with what he has consumed.