ABLUTION WITH SEAWATER · 41
It is narrated from Muğira bin Abu Burda (may Allah be pleased with him) that he heard Abu Huraira say:
A man asked the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), “O Messenger of Allah, we are setting out on a sea voyage and taking very little water. If we were to perform ablutions with it, we would become thirsty. Can we use seawater for ablution?” The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said, "The seawater is pure, and its dead [creatures] are permissible.”
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**Explanation:**
This honorable hadith serves as evidence that seawater is pure, and it can be used for ablutions and ritual baths, and that the animals which live and die in the sea are permissible. Some among the sea creatures have flesh that is not eaten. Information regarding which of the sea creatures whose flesh is edible and which are not will come in Kitab al-Sayd (The Book of Hunting) and Kitab al-Zaba’ih (The Book of Sacrifices). What occupied the questioner's mind was this: Seawater is blue, it has a salty taste, and animals die in the sea. Do their corpses not pollute the sea? Indeed, the Messenger of Allah gave a comprehensive reply to all of that, stating, "The seawater is pure, and the creatures that die in it are permissible.”