ABLUTION SECTION · 123 – ABLUTION BY DRY CONTACT
Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) narrated: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings upon him) sent Usayd ibn Hudyr with a group of people to search for Aisha’s lost necklace. The time of prayer arrived, and they prayed without ablution due to their inability to find water. They came to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings upon him), and he was informed that they had performed the prayer without ablution. Following this, the verse regarding tayammum was revealed. Ibn Nufayl added: Usayd said to Aisha, “May Allah have mercy on you. Whenever something befalls you that you dislike, Allah provides an ease for you and for the Muslims in it.”
[231]
EXPLANATION
Tayammuum, in dictionary terms, means intending. In Islamic jurisprudence, it is to intend to make the prayer permissible by striking one’s hands upon clean earth and then wiping the face, and again striking the hands upon the earth, then wiping first the right arm and then the left arm.
Usayd ibn Hudyr and his companions prayed without ablution because they could not find water, and the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings upon him) did not object. Therefore, Imam Shafi’i said: “The person who cannot find water or earth should perform his prayer without ablution, then repeat it when water is found.”
Other scholars cite the hadith, "Allah does not accept a prayer performed in impurity," as evidence that a prayer cannot be performed without ablution or tayammum. (Maalim, vol. 1, p. 199)
Ammar ibn Yasir, may Allah be pleased with him, narrated:
The Companions performed tayammum with clean earth along with the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, for the Fajr prayer. They struck their palms against the earth once and wiped over their faces. Then they turned and struck their hands again against the earth. Afterwards, they wiped from the insides of their hands up to their shoulders and armpits. [232]
COMMENTARY:
This hadith mentions that the wiping should extend from the palms to the shoulders and armpits. However, since tayammum takes the place of ablution, it is only wiped as far as the elbows, not to the shoulders and armpits.
It is related on the authority of Ibn Wahb, in a manner similar to the preceding hadith, that he said: The Muslims rose and struck their palms against the earth, but they did not grasp anything from it. A similar narration was related, omitting mention of the shoulders and armpits. [233]
Ibn al-Layth said: Up to the elbows.
EXPLANATION
This honorable hadith is evidence that the elbows are included within the arms in ritual purification (tayammum). This is also the view of Imam Abu Hanifa, Shafi’i, and Malik.
Ammar ibn Yasir, may Allah be pleased with him, reported: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, spent the night at Zat al-Jayš with Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her. A string of beads from Aisha’s necklace broke off, and searching for it detained people until dawn. As they had no water with them, Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him, rebuked Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her, saying: “You have detained the people and there is no water with you.”
Then Allah, Exalted and Most High, revealed permission for purification with clean earth. The Muslims rose with the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, and struck their hands on the ground, raising them with earth adhering to them, and used them to wipe over their faces, and then wiped over their arms from the elbows to the armpits.
Ibn Yahya added in his narration: People do not give credence to this report.
Abu Dawud said: Ibn Ishaq narrated it likewise, wherein Ibn Abbas mentioned two strikes, as Yunus related.
Ma’mar narrated this hadith from Zuhri and reported two strikes.
Malik said: From Zuhri, from his father, from Ubaydullah ibn Abdullah, from his father, from Ammar. Abu Uways said: Ibn Uyayna hesitated at this point, saying it once in one way.
From Ubaydullah, from his father, or from Ubaydullah, from Ibn Abbas. He said it once in another way.
From his father.
He said it once from Ibn Abbas.
Ibn Uyayna doubted the reliability of hearing it from Zuhri. In this hadith, none of them mentioned the two strikes, except those whose names I have mentioned.
Shaqeeq, may Allah be pleased with him, narrated:
I was sitting between Abdullah and Abu Musa. Abu Musa said, “O father of Abdurrahman, do you know that a person who is in a state of ritual impurity and cannot find water for a month, would he not perform tayammum?” Abdullah replied, "No, he would not perform tayammum even if he does not find water for a month." Abu Musa said, “How would you apply the verse in Surah al-Ma’idah, which means: ‘If you are unable to find water, then perform ablution with clean earth?’” Abdullah said, “If such concession were given to people, they might perform tayammum with earth when water appears cold to them.” Abu Musa said, "Is that why you dislike tayammum?" Abdullah replied, "Yes, because of that." Abu Musa said to him, "Did you not hear Ammar’s statement to Umar? Ammar said: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, sent me on an errand. I became ritually impure and could not find water, so I rolled in the earth as animals do, and when I came back, I told the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him." The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: “It would have been sufficient for you if you had done so,” and he struck his hands on the ground, wiped them, then rubbed his right hand over his left, and the inside of his left hand over his right, and applied it to his face.” Abdullah then said to Abu Musa, "Do you not know? Umar was not convinced by Ammar’s statement."
Abdurrahman bin Ebza (may Allah be pleased with him) relates: I was in the company of Umar ibn al-Khattab when a man came and said, “We are finding ourselves in a state of ritual impurity for one or two months.”
Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said, "I will not perform the prayer until I find water." Ammar replied: “O Commander of the Believers, do you not remember when I was with you tending camels and we became ritually impure? I rolled in the earth. I recounted the matter to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said, ‘That would have sufficed you.’ He then struck his hands upon the ground (raising dust) and wiped over his face and up to half of his forearms with his hands.” Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: “O Ammar, fear Allah!” Ammar replied: “O Commander of the Believers, if you wish, I swear by Allah, I will not relate this to anyone forever.” Umar said: "No, I do not forbid you from relating it. By Allah, we leave to you what you have narrated concerning *tayammum*." [236]
EXPLANATION
Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said, “No, I do not forbid you from relating this hadith. We entrust to you the matter regarding *tayammum* that pleases your soul. The sin and its reward are yours.”
Ammar ibn Yasir, may Allah be pleased with him, narrated: In a prior narration of the hadith mentioned above, the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said to me, “O Ammar, it would have sufficed you to do so,” and after striking his hands on the ground, he struck one hand upon the other, wiping over his face and wrists up to the middle of his forearms. He did not reach the elbows. And he struck the ground once.
Abu Dawud said: This hadith was narrated by Waki from Ma’ash, from Salam ibn Kuhayl, from Abdurrahman ibn Abzi. And this hadith was narrated by Jarrir from Ma’ash, and he from Salam ibn Kuhayl, and he from Said ibn Abdurrahman ibn Abzi, that is, his father.
It is related from Ammar that the Messenger of Allah, ﷺ, struck his hands upon the earth, blew upon them, and then wiped his face and palms after saying to me, “This would have been sufficient for you.” Salama questioned with doubt, asking, "Did he intend up to the elbows? Or up to the palms?"
Shu'ba narrated from before, with the same chain of narration, the hadith mentioned previously. Ammar said: Then he blew upon his hand and rubbed his face and hands up to his elbows or forearms. Shu’ba says: In Salamah’s narration, it was “palms, face, arms.” Pay attention to what Mansur said to him one day: "Others are saying 'arms'."
Ammar (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated: It is related in this hadith that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings upon him) said: “It would have sufficed you to wipe your face and palms with your two hands striking them against the ground.”
Hakim rejected this hadith.
Abu Dawud said: Shu’ba narrated from Husayn, from Abu Malik, who said: I heard Ammar relate something similar to this. But he (the Prophet) did not blow upon the dust in his hand. Husayn ibn Muhammad narrated from Shu’ba, from Hakim, in this hadith, saying: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings upon him) struck his two palms against the ground and blew.
Ammar ibn Yasir, may Allah be pleased with him, reported: I asked the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, about *tayammum*. He commanded me to strike the earth once for the face and arms.
(Ḥayyāṭī’s explanation) This hadith is the basis on which Awza'i and Ahmad ibn Hanbal ruled that striking the earth once suffices for wiping the face and arms in *tayammum*.
From Eban, may Allah be pleased with him:
He asked Katada about purification by dry ablution during travel, and a messenger reported to me that he heard it from Sha’bi, from Abdurrahman bin Abza, from Ammar bin Yasir, may Allah be pleased with him.
The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: “Up to the elbows.”