PURIFICATION SECTION · 83 – THE RULING ON MADHI
206 – It is narrated from ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said: I was a man from whom madhi (madhi: pre-seminal fluid, a sticky discharge from the male organ, usually due to arousal or sexual thoughts) would come in abundance. Because I would perform ghusl (ritual bath) for every occurrence of madhi, my back became cracked. I mentioned the situation to the Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him), or it was mentioned to him. The Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “When you see madhi, wash your private part and perform ablution as you do for prayer, but do not perform ghusl. If semen is emitted, then perform ghusl.” [164]
EXPLANATION
Madhi is the sticky moisture that comes out of the male organ of a person who has engaged in foreplay with his wife or thinks about lying with his wife. This hadith is evidence that madhi does not require ghusl, but only that the private part should be washed and ablution renewed. There is also an indication that if madhi is frequent, washing the penis and scrotum with cold water will stop the madhi. However, if semen comes out due to sexual arousal, in whatever manner, ghusl becomes obligatory.
207 – It is narrated from al-Miqdād ibn al-Aswad (may Allah be pleased with him): ʿAlī (may Allah be pleased with him) said to him: I am embarrassed to ask the Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) because his daughter is married to me. So, ask the Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) what is required of a man if, when he approaches his wife, madhi comes out. Al-Miqdād said: I asked him (peace and blessings be upon him), and the Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “If any of you encounters such a thing, let him clean his garment and perform ablution as he does for prayer.” [165]
208 – It is narrated from ʿUrwa (may Allah be pleased with him) that ʿAlī (may Allah be pleased with him) said to al-Miqdād, as mentioned in the previous hadith. Al-Miqdād asked about this. (The Messenger of God, peace and blessings be upon him, said:) “Let him wash his penis and testicles.” Abū Dāwūd said: This hadith was narrated by al-Thawrī and a group from Hishām, from his father, from al-Miqdād, from ʿAlī, from the Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him).
209 – From Hishām’s father, ʿUrwa (may Allah be pleased with him): In the hadith he narrated from ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib, ʿAlī said to al-Miqdād, as mentioned in the previous hadith. Abū Dāwūd said: This hadith was narrated by al-Mufaḍḍal ibn Fuḍāla, a group, and al-Thawrī, Ibn ʿUyayna, from Hishām, from his father ʿUrwa, from ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib. Also, this hadith was narrated by Ibn Isḥāq from Hishām ibn ʿUrwa, from his father ʿUrwa, from al-Miqdād, from the Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him), but he did not mention the word “testicles” (unthayayh).
210 – It is narrated from Sahl ibn Ḥunayf (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said: Madhi would come to me frequently, and I would perform ghusl because of madhi. I asked the Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) what should be done regarding madhi. The Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “It is sufficient for you to perform ablution when madhi comes.” – I said: O Messenger of Allah, what should I do if madhi gets on my garment? – He said: “Take a handful of water and sprinkle it over the places where you see that madhi has touched; that is sufficient.” [166]
EXPLANATION
This hadith indicates that if madhi gets on one’s garment, it is possible to purify that part by sprinkling water over it. Imām al-Shāfiʿī and Mālik, however, say that it is not sufficient to sprinkle water over the madhi on the garment, but the garment must be washed. There is a narration from Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal that sprinkling water is sufficient. (Bazl al-Majhūd, vol. 2, p. 168)
211 – It is narrated from ʿAbdullāh ibn Saʿd al-Anṣārī (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said: I asked the Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) about things that require ghusl and about the water that comes after water (i.e., successive emissions of madhi). The Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “That is madhi; every male has madhi. When madhi comes, wash your penis and testicles and perform ablution as you do for prayer.”
EXPLANATION
Regarding the water that comes after water, the following explanations have been given: 1- It means successive emissions of madhi. 2- It means madhi that comes after semen. 3- It means madhi that comes after urine.
212 – It is narrated from Ḥarām ibn Ḥakīm, from his uncle, that he asked the Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him): “What is permissible for me when my wife is menstruating?” The Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “Everything above the waistcloth (izār) is permissible for you.” He also said that eating together with a menstruating woman is permissible. The narrator, either Marwān ibn Muḥammad or Haytham ibn Ḥumayd, transmitted this hadith. [167]
EXPLANATION
Sexual intercourse with a menstruating woman is not permissible. However, this hadith is evidence that after a woman puts on her lower garment, it is permissible to touch above that garment.
213 – From Muʿādh ibn Jabal (may Allah be pleased with him): I asked the Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him), “What is permissible for a man from his wife when she is menstruating?” He said: “Everything above the waistcloth (izār) is permissible. However, it is better to avoid even that.” Abū Dāwūd said: This hadith is not strong.