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Purity (Arabic:طهارة,romanized: ṭahārah)[1] is an essential aspect ofIslam. It is the opposite ofnajāsa, the state of being ritually impure. It is achieved by first removing physical impurities (for example, urine) from the body, and then removing ritual impurity throughwudu (usually) orghusl.
TheQuran says: "In it there are men who love to observe purity and Allah loves those who maintain purity."[Quran 9:108] and there is one verse which concerned withtaharah or purity, and impurity of humans: "O you who have believed, indeed the polytheists are unclean, so let them not approach al-Masjid al-Haram after this, their [final] year. And if you fear privation, Allah will enrich you from His bounty if He wills. Indeed, Allah is knowing and wise."[Quran 9:28]
AyatollahAli al-Sistani does not believe in the impurity ofPeople of the Book (Jews, Christians, andZoroastrians).[2]
Some scholars such asMohsen Fayz Kashani (d. 1680) andSulayman ibn Abdullah Mahuzi (d. 1708) did not believe in the impurity of non-believers, and particularly non-People of the Book. Kashani believes that the impurity of kuffar is spiritual and internal, so there is no need to wash after touching them. This group believes in the purity of non-Muslims and of all humans.Mohammad Ebrahim Jannaati,Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah (d. 2010),Mostafa Mohaghegh Damad,Kamal Haydari, andReza Hosseini Nassab are part of this group.[3]
AyatollahRuhollah Khomeini said that all non-Muslims, including People of the Book, are impure.[4]
Sunni Islam has its own hygienical jurisprudence. It is preferable for a Sunni Muslim to remove the hair directly below the navel and under the arms also as trimming the nails once a week. Leaving hair and nails is permissible after 15 days and disliked after 40 days.[5] The best day for removing needless hair and cutting nails is Friday. It is permissible to use shaving cream to remove needless hair. Needless hair and nails should be buried to prevent illnesses from spreading. Cuttingeyebrows is permissible if they are too long. Sunni women should put their nails and hair removed from below the navel, and under the arms in a place where nonon-permissible men can see it.[6]
Personal grooming is also a matter of focus in Islam, and comprises all the ritual purity practices of prophets known asfitra. Allowing abeard to grow while trimming the moustache is emphasized with it being seen asmandatory by some respected Sunni scholars fromthe 4 major Sunni schools of jurisprudence.
Islamic hygienical jurisprudence includes a number of regulations involving cleanliness duringsalat (obligatory prayer) throughwudu (partial ablution) andghusl (full ablution), as well asdietary laws andtoilet etiquette forMuslims. Thefiqh (Islamic jurisprudence) is based on admonitions in theQuran for Muslims to be ritually clean whenever possible,[citation needed] as well as inhadith literature (words, actions, or habits of the Islamic prophetMuhammad).
Cleanliness is an important part of Islam, including Quranic verses that teach how to achieveritual cleanliness.[citation needed] Keepingoral hygiene through cleaning the teeth with the use of a form of toothbrush calledmiswak is consideredsunnah, the way of Muhammad. Ritualablution is also very important, as observed by the practices ofwudu,ghusl, andtayammum (water-free alternative using any natural surface such as rock, sand, or dust).[citation needed]
InMuslim-majority countries, bathrooms are often equipped with abidet. Thisablution is required in order to maintain ritual cleanliness. The common Muslims practice of taking off shoes when enteringmosques and homes is also based on ritual cleanliness.[7]
Islamic dietary laws provide a set of rules as to what Muslims eat in their diet. These rules specify the food that ishalāl, meaning lawful. They are found in the Quran, usually detailing what is unlawful, orharām.[8]
Removal ofpubic hair andarmpit hair is prescribed by thesunnah, and is listed among the ritual purity practices known asfitra.
Urine is forbidden to be on a Muslim during prayer times, as it is considered impure. Theforeskin is a possible spot where urine and other impurities (smegma) can accumulate.Circumcision is used to prevent this.[9][10]
TheIslamic faith has particular rules regarding personalhygiene when going to thetoilet. This code is known asQaḍāʾ al-Ḥājah (قضاء الحاجة).[11][12]
Issues of laterality, such as whether one uses the left or right hand and the foot used to step into or out of toilet areas, are derived fromhadith sources.[13] The only issue which theQur'an mentions is the one of washing one's hands especially after using the toilet which is mentioned inQuran 5:6.
Examples of these rules include, but are not limited to:
Sexual hygiene in Islam is a prominent topic inIslamic jurisprudence (fiqh) due to its everyday nature.Ibn Abidin, a 13th centuryHanafiIslamic scholar explains:[15]
When there is discharge of thick, cloudy white fluid (wady) (that exits before or after urinating) or unlustful discharge of thin, sticky, white fluid (madhy) caused by play or kissing, it requires washing the private parts andwudu.
Regarding things that necessitates ghusl:
After partaking in sexual activity where penetration or ejaculation occurs, both men and women are required to complete a full-body ritualablution known asghusl in order to re-establish ritual purity before prayer.[17]Ghusl requires clean, odorless water that has not been used for a previous ritual and begins with the declaration of the intention of purity and worship.[18] A Muslim performing complete ablution then washes every part of his or her body.[18]
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