Step 1
Set your intention
In your heart, intend that this wudu is so you can pray. There is no formula to say out loud.
Worship learning tool
Washing before prayer (wudu and ghusl)
Awaiting scholar review
A simple guide to washing before prayer, made to be printed. Learn the essentials first, and take anything that depends on your own situation to a qualified teacher.
What matters most
The water reaches everywhere it needs to.
You are washing for Allah, not out of panic.
You ask someone when a medical, work, or family situation makes this complicated.
Before wudu: cleaning after the toilet (istinja)
Few people explain this, and it is awkward to ask in person. Muslims clean the private parts after using the toilet, and this cleaning (istinja) is its own step, separate from wudu. The Prophet (peace be upon him) used water for it (Sahih al-Bukhari 150), and a hadith treats carelessness about urine on the body as a serious matter (Sahih al-Bukhari 218).
- Wipe with toilet paper first, then wash with water from a bottle, a jug or a bidet spray if you can.
- Use your left hand for cleaning. The Prophet taught not to clean with the right hand (Sahih Muslim 262a).
- If only paper is available, wipe until you are clean. In the Hanafi answers we link, paper alone meets the basic sunnah while the mess stays at the exit. Once it has spread beyond the exit and the area right around it, washing with water is required.
- Pat dry with paper. If a spot got onto your underwear, rinse it or change before you pray.
- Many Canadian washrooms have no bidet. A small refillable bottle in your bag or at work does the job.
- You do not need a shower after each visit. Clean yourself, then make wudu.
- Clean once, properly, then leave it. A Hanafi answer on misgivings says doubts after a proper istinja should be ignored, and it points to help for obsessive doubts (OCD) for anyone who keeps getting pulled back.
Where the schools differ
- Facing the qibla: the hadith forbids facing the qibla while relieving yourself (Sahih Muslim 262a). The schools differ on whether this applies inside a building, so ask your teacher. Where you can, set things up so you do not face it.
- When wiping alone is enough: the rule above is the Hanafi one. We have not yet checked the other schools' conditions in their own sources, so ask your teacher.
If a disability or a medical device makes this hard, ask a local imam how to manage it.
Washing before prayer (wudu), step by step
Wudu is the partial washing you normally do before prayer. Quran 5:6 sets out which parts are washed and which are wiped, and beginner guides fill in the practical order.
Step 2
Begin with Allah's name
Say Bismillah if you remember. If you forget, carry on. There is no need to start again.
Step 3
Wash hands
Wash both hands up to the wrists, making sure water reaches between the fingers.
Step 4
Rinse mouth and nose
Rinse your mouth, then gently clean your nose. Use as much water as is comfortable and safe.
Step 5
Wash face
Wash the face from the hairline to the chin and from ear to ear.
Step 6
Wash arms
Wash the right arm through the elbow, then the left arm through the elbow.
Step 7
Wipe head and ears
With wet hands, wipe over your head. Most beginner guides also have you wipe your ears once.
Step 8
Wash feet
Wash the right foot through the ankle, then the left foot through the ankle.
Watch it done once
This video has background music at the start and no spoken English. It shows one method; small details differ between schools.
Watch on YouTube(opens in a new tab)
Nothing loads from YouTube until you press play. After that, the video plays in YouTube's privacy-enhanced player. If the video will not play or you are offline, use the Watch on YouTube link. More in our privacy policy.
The full-body wash (ghusl), step by step
Ghusl is the full-body wash. Keep it modest and keep it simple: intend it, clean what needs cleaning, and make sure water reaches your whole body.
Step 1
Set your intention
In your heart, intend a full-body wash for the sake of Allah. The minimum is that water reaches your whole body, including the roots of your hair.
Step 2
Wash private areas if needed
Clean whatever needs cleaning first, privately, before you go on.
Step 3
Make wudu
Make wudu as part of the ghusl. If your wudu breaks afterwards, do it again before you pray.
Step 4
Wash head and hair roots
Get the water down to your scalp and hair roots as best you can. A woman with tightly braided hair does not have to undo the braids: pour water over the head three times so it reaches the roots (Sahih Muslim 330a, where one narration mentions the wash after menstruation too). For extensions, locs, wigs, glued hair or a medical dressing, ask someone qualified.
Step 5
Wash the whole body
Wash your whole body so water reaches the skin everywhere, usually the right side first and then the left.
Watch it done once
Shows a simple way and the fuller Sunnah way. Schools differ on whether rinsing the mouth and nose is required in ghusl.
Watch on YouTube(opens in a new tab)
Nothing loads from YouTube until you press play. After that, the video plays in YouTube's privacy-enhanced player. If the video will not play or you are offline, use the Watch on YouTube link. More in our privacy policy.
What breaks wudu
Taught across the schools
- Using the toilet: passing urine or stool, and passing wind. A hadith says prayer is not accepted from someone whose wudu has broken until they make wudu again.
- Deep sleep. The schools differ on details, such as sleeping while sitting firmly.
- Losing consciousness. Scholars treat this like sleep.
- If you only think you passed wind, your wudu stands until you are sure, for example when you hear a sound or notice a smell.
Where the schools differ
- Bleeding and vomiting. In the Hanafi school, a mouthful of vomit breaks wudu, and so does blood from the mouth that equals or outweighs the saliva. Other teaching, such as the Islamic Foundation of Ireland booklet, says bleeding and vomiting do not break it.
- Touching your private parts directly. Some teaching lists it as breaking wudu (the Ireland booklet does). It is not on the Hanafi list.
- Laughing out loud in prayer. The Hanafi list includes an adult laughing out loud during a prayer with bowing and prostration. The Ireland booklet lists laughing in prayer as not breaking wudu.
No single source we checked compares all four schools side by side. If one of these comes up often for you, ask a local teacher which view you follow.
When ghusl is needed
- After sexual intimacy or a sexual discharge, including a wet dream.
- After menstruation or bleeding after childbirth ends.
- On becoming Muslim. The schools differ on whether this is required or recommended. See the note below.
- Recommended rather than required: a full-body wash before Friday prayer and on the morning of each Eid. See the card on Friday and Eid washes below.
If you have just become Muslim
- Your Shahada is valid without it. The wash is not a condition of becoming Muslim.
- A hadith reports the Prophet telling a man who had just become Muslim to bathe (Sunan Abi Dawud 355, graded Sahih by al-Albani).
- In the relied-upon Hanafi and Shafi'i view, the wash is recommended, and it is required if you were already in a state that needs ghusl, such as after sexual intimacy.
- The Maliki and Hanbali schools are reported to treat it as required in all cases, though the sources we checked disagree on the Hanbali position.
- If you have not done it yet, do it when you can, and before you pray if you were in a state that needs ghusl. A local imam can help you with your own situation.
When you cannot use water (tayammum)
When you cannot use water, because there is none, or because you are ill or injured and water would harm you, there is a dry alternative called tayammum. The Quran allows it for people who are ill, travelling or cannot find water.
How to do it
- Make the intention in your heart and say Bismillah.
- Lightly strike clean earth, or a natural surface with dust on it, with both palms.
- Blow or shake off the excess, then wipe your face.
- Wipe your hands.
One method uses a single strike and wipes the hands to the wrists, as in Sahih al-Bukhari 338. The Hanafi method uses two strikes: one for the face, and a second to wipe both arms including the elbows.
Tayammum ends when you find water you can use, and with anything that breaks wudu or calls for ghusl.
If an illness or injury keeps you away from water for a while, ask a local teacher how to manage it day to day.
Jump to a part
Chapter labels come from YouTube and may not show for everyone, but the jump links still work.
Watch on YouTube(opens in a new tab)
Nothing loads from YouTube until you press play. After that, the video plays in YouTube's privacy-enhanced player. If the video will not play or you are offline, use the Watch on YouTube link. More in our privacy policy.
Friday and Eid washes, and braided hair
Some full-body washes are recommended rather than required. The best known are the wash before Friday prayer and the wash on the morning of each Eid.
- The hadith wording on the Friday wash is strong. One report calls it compulsory for every male who has reached puberty (Sahih al-Bukhari 879), and another tells anyone going to Friday prayer to bathe (Sahih al-Bukhari 877).
- Another hadith says wudu alone on Friday is fine, and a bath is better (Sunan Abi Dawud 354, graded Hasan by al-Albani). Your Friday prayer is valid with wudu.
- In the Hanafi answer we link, the Friday wash is a sunnah for the prayer. Someone who needs to, such as a person who works on Fridays, may follow the view that it is a sunnah for the day. A full-body wash before work, with that intention, then counts.
- The Hanafi answer on Eid lists a wash on the morning of Eid among the sunnahs of the day.
- The wash itself is the same as any ghusl: water over the whole body, with the intention.
- Braids: a woman does not have to undo tightly braided hair for ghusl. Pouring water over the head three times is enough (Sahih Muslim 330a). Ask someone qualified about extensions, locs, wigs or glued hair.
Where the schools differ
- Because the wording of Sahih al-Bukhari 879 is strong, scholars discuss how firm the Friday wash is. The Hanafi answer we link treats it as a sunnah. Ask your teacher what your school says.
Clean clothes and a clean place (najasah)
Your body, your clothes and the spot you pray on should be free of impurity such as urine, stool or blood. Wash it until the substance, its colour and its smell are gone as far as you reasonably can.
- A doubt does not make something impure. What you know to be clean stays clean until you are sure it is not.
- Pets, a baby's wet clothes, alcohol in perfume and laundry done by family all have calm answers on the purification topic.
- If you are unsure, go with what you know for certain and ask a teacher afterwards rather than skipping a prayer.
If a health condition keeps breaking your wudu
Some conditions keep breaking wudu: constant wind with IBS, leaking urine, bleeding outside the period, or a stoma or catheter. Keep praying. A woman whose bleeding would not stop was told to keep praying and to make wudu for every prayer (Sahih al-Bukhari 228).
- In the Hanafi answer we link, you count as an excused person when the condition does not leave you enough time within a prayer window to make wudu and pray the obligatory prayer without it happening.
- Once you are excused, make wudu after the prayer time begins. The condition does not break that wudu until the prayer time ends, even while it carries on.
- If you are not excused, a doubt still does not break your wudu. The Prophet said not to leave the prayer unless you hear a sound or notice a smell (Sahih al-Bukhari 137).
- In hospital, pray in the way your body allows, sitting or lying down if you need to, and use tayammum if water would harm you. You can ask the nurses whether the hospital has a spiritual care team.
- If you use a stoma bag or a catheter, ask a local imam how these rules apply to you, and keep praying while you wait for an answer.
Where the schools differ
- The rule above is the Hanafi one. The other schools set out the excused person differently, and we have not yet checked their own sources, so ask your teacher.
Describe your pattern to an imam once and get a clear answer for your situation. You are not being asked to make wudu again every few minutes.
Winter socks, nail polish and casts
Many scholars allow wiping over leather footwear (khuffs) or suitable socks, with conditions. You must have put them on after a full wudu, and the permission lasts one day and night at home, or three days and nights when travelling. For ghusl you still wash your feet. The schools differ on which socks count. In the Hanafi answer we link, they must be sturdy enough to walk about 3.5 miles (5.5 km) in without tearing, and water must not soak through, so ordinary dress socks usually do not qualify while hiking socks often do. Other teaching allows ordinary socks. Ask your local imam which view your community follows.
Regular nail polish stops water reaching your nails, so wudu made over it does not count. If you made wudu first and then put the polish on, you can pray with that wudu. Take the polish off before your next wudu. If you are unsure about a particular product, ask a local teacher.
The Hanafi answer we link says: wash the injured part if you can; if you cannot, wipe it with a wet hand; if that would harm you, wipe over most of the bandage; and if even that would cause harm, leave that part out. The Shafi'i school also wipes over the cast but adds tayammum for that limb, and in some cases the prayer is repeated later. Past experience, clear signs or a trustworthy doctor's advice help you judge harm. Please ask a local imam about your own situation.
In the Hanafi answer we link, you must wipe at least a quarter of the head itself, and wiping over the scarf does not count. One practical way is to loosen the front of the scarf in a private stall and slide a wet hand underneath. The Hanbali school allows wiping over a scarf that is wrapped under the chin, as long as you put it on while in wudu, for one day and night (three when travelling). A SeekersGuidance answer says you may follow the Hanbali view for this, provided your wudu and your prayer are both valid in that school. Making wudu at home and keeping it, and wiping over suitable socks for your feet, also cut down on washing at work. Ask your teacher which option suits you.
A hadith in Sahih Muslim (258) says trimming the moustache, cutting the nails and removing underarm and pubic hair should not be left for more than forty nights. A weekly grooming day, often Friday, keeps you well inside that. The modesty topic covers these grooming habits (fitrah) and the school differences on the beard.
Common worries, and what to do about them
I keep restarting because I feel unsure.
Do the steps once, with attention, then stop. Repeating out of anxiety turns purification into something that wears you down.
I forgot one recommended detail.
Nothing has gone wrong. Learn the essentials first, then ask a teacher which parts are required in your school of law.
Water is hard to use because of illness or injury.
Ask a qualified person about the concessions, such as wiping over a bandage, or tayammum. Islam does not ask you to make your health worse.
I am confused by different videos.
Pick one reliable beginner method and learn it properly. Small differences between teachers do not mean your worship is broken.
When doubts will not stop (waswas)
Wanting to get wudu and prayer right is a good sign. For some people that care turns into doubt that will not let go: washing an arm five times, restarting a prayer, or thoughts about Allah that you hate and cannot stop. This is often called waswas (whispering). The Prophet gave clear guidance for it. When it takes over a person's day, it can also be a form of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), which is treatable.
What the Prophet taught
Stay in your prayer unless you are sure
The Prophet told a man who thought he had passed wind during prayer not to leave it unless he heard a sound or noticed a smell (Sahih al-Bukhari 137). Scholars take a general rule from this: certainty is not removed by a doubt. If you made wudu and are not sure whether it broke, it has not broken.
Hating a bad thought is a sign of faith
Some companions told the Prophet they had thoughts too terrible to say out loud. He said, "That is the faith manifest" (Sahih Muslim 132a). Another man said he would rather be burned to charcoal than speak his thoughts, and the Prophet praised Allah, who had reduced the devil's plot to whispering (Sunan Abi Dawud 5112, graded sahih by al-Albani).
Thoughts you do not act on are overlooked
The Prophet said Allah has overlooked the bad thoughts that come into people's minds, as long as they do not act on them or say them (Sahih al-Bukhari 5269). Dr. Jibran Khokhar, a Canadian researcher writing for the Yaqeen Institute, cites this hadith for unwanted intrusive thoughts.
The rule that a doubt does not remove certainty is taught across the schools. The details differ, for example for a doubt during wudu compared with after it, or a doubt about how many units (rak'ahs) you prayed. The answer we link is from the Hanafi school, so ask your teacher for your own school's details.
If you lose count in prayer: the prostration of forgetfulness (sujud al-sahw)What to do
- Do wudu once, with attention, then stop.
- If you are not sure whether your wudu broke, carry on as if it did not, unless you are certain.
- Do not argue with an unwanted thought. Say "a'udhu billah" (I seek refuge in Allah) and go back to what you were doing.
- Ask one teacher for one simple standard, and stick to it.
- If it takes over your day, talk to a doctor or a mental health professional.
Common mistakes
- Asking many people the same question. The psychotherapist Najwa Awad explains that repeated reassurance feeds the doubt, and learning the rule once helps more.
- Choosing the strictest opinion on every detail.
- Taking an unwanted thought as proof that you have left Islam.
- Treating it only as a spiritual problem and never seeing a clinician.
Waswas and OCD
CAMH, Canada's largest mental health teaching hospital, says OCD affects about 1 in 40 adults. Common obsessions include repeated doubting and fear of having blasphemous thoughts. Common compulsions include excessive washing, checking and mental rituals such as praying. Treatment is usually cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), often with medication.
Najwa Awad writes that waswas "is not a Muslim disease" but a religious presentation of OCD in Muslims. She says a form of CBT called exposure and response prevention (ERP) has been shown to be quite effective, and that an imam and a clinician can work together. Dr. Khokhar writes that seeing a qualified professional is not a sign of weak faith but a means of healing.
When to see a clinician
- Washing, checking or repeating takes up a large part of your day.
- You avoid prayer or wudu because you are afraid of getting it wrong.
- The distress does not ease, even after a teacher has answered your question.
- The checking spreads to other parts of your life.
These signs are a rough guide, not a diagnosis, and a clinician is the right person to judge. CAMH describes OCD as obsessions and compulsions that get in the way of daily life.
Mental health support and where to startAsk a qualified person if
- A medical condition, a wound, a disability, or severe dryness makes using water difficult.
- You are unsure about menstruation, postpartum bleeding, discharge, or rulings around intimacy.
- Your job, school, travel, or family situation makes purification hard to manage.
- You feel stuck repeating wudu or ghusl because of anxiety.
Sources used
This is a beginner tool. Some purification details differ between schools of law, and your own situation is worth going over with a qualified local imam or scholar.
- Quran.comQuran source
Quran Foundation - Quran text and translation platform
Where the guide links Quran verses, so you can read the Arabic, compare an English translation of the meaning, and listen to the recitation.
- New Muslim Guide - Manner of Performing WudooBeginner guide
New Muslim Guide - Purification guide
Cited for the beginner sequence of wudu and an overview of ghusl, with the finer details left to a qualified teacher.
- New Muslim Guide - Ritual ImpurityBeginner guide
New Muslim Guide - Purification guide
Cited for the difference between minor and major ritual impurity, without turning the guide into a detailed fiqh manual.
- SeekersGuidanceScholar education
SeekersGuidance - Qualified Islamic education
Cited where the guide stops short and tells you to ask a qualified scholar about your own situation.
Green Lane Masjid and Community Centre (Birmingham, UK) - Video (YouTube)
A visual walk-through of wudu with no spoken English. Partially verified: the content description rests on auto-captions. The intro has background music according to the captions. Embedded through YouTube's privacy-enhanced player (youtube-nocookie.com) and loaded only after you press play. YouTube Standard Licence; the uploader allows embedding (checked 2026-09-23). No download or re-upload rights.
Green Lane Masjid and Community Centre (Birmingham, UK) - Video (YouTube)
When ghusl (the full-body wash) is needed, a simple method and the fuller Sunnah method. YouTube chapters: 0:00 introduction, 0:10 reasons, 0:45 simple method, 1:19 Prophetic way, 2:47 conclusion. Schools differ on whether rinsing the mouth and nose is required in ghusl. Embedded through YouTube's privacy-enhanced player (youtube-nocookie.com) and loaded only after you press play. YouTube Standard Licence; the uploader allows embedding (checked 2026-09-23). No download or re-upload rights.
Sunnah.com - Hadith reference
The prayer of someone who passes urine, stool or wind is not accepted until they make wudu. In Sahih al-Bukhari.
- Sunan Abi Dawud 203 - Sleep and wuduHadith reference
Sunnah.com - Hadith reference
The one who sleeps should make wudu. Graded Hasan (al-Albani) on Sunnah.com.
- Sahih al-Bukhari 137 - Doubt about passing windHadith reference
Sunnah.com - Hadith reference
Someone who imagines they passed wind in prayer should not leave the prayer unless they hear a sound or notice a smell. In Sahih al-Bukhari.
- What Are the Things That Break Wudu (Hanafi)Scholarly answer
SeekersGuidance - Scholarly answer
Shaykh Faraz Rabbani, 11 February 2024. The Hanafi list: anything leaving the front or back passage, a mouthful of vomit, blood from the mouth that equals or outweighs the saliva, sleep when not firmly seated, loss of consciousness, and an adult laughing out loud in a prayer with bowing and prostration. Link only.
- Prayer For Young and New Muslims (PDF)Beginner booklet
The Islamic Foundation of Ireland - Beginner booklet
Imam Yahya M. Al-Hussein, preface dated 1999. Rak'ah counts and where the tashahhud comes in each prayer (Fajr after the 2nd; Dhuhr, Asr and Isha after the 2nd and 4th; Maghrib after the 2nd and 3rd). Its list of what breaks wudu includes touching the private parts and excludes bleeding and vomiting, which is not the Hanafi view. Link only; no licence stated.
Sunnah.com - Hadith reference
Qays ibn Asim became Muslim and the Prophet told him to wash his whole body with water and lote-tree leaves. Graded Sahih (al-Albani) on Sunnah.com.
- Is Ghusl Obligatory Upon The New Muslim?Scholarly answer
MuslimMatters.org (Shaykh Abdullah Hasan) - Scholarly answer
13 February 2017. Three positions: required in all cases (Maliki and Hanbali), not required (some Hanafi scholars), and the relied-upon Hanafi and Shafi'i view: required if the person was in a state needing ghusl, otherwise recommended. An online magazine article, not a fatwa body. Link only.
- Ruling on Ghusl for those embracing Islam (Fatwa 11140)Scholarly answer
IslamWeb (Fatwa Centre) - Scholarly answer
3 October 2010. Ghusl is not a condition of a valid conversion; the two testimonies with conviction are enough. It calls ghusl on entering Islam recommended in the predominant view. Link only.
- Quran 4:43 - Purity before prayer and dry purificationQuran reference
Quran.com - Quran reference
Do not approach prayer in a state of full impurity until you have bathed; if you are ill, travelling or find no water, use clean earth.
- Quran 5:6 - Wudu, ghusl and tayammumQuran reference
Quran.com - Quran reference
Wash your faces and your hands up to the elbows, wipe your heads, and wash your feet to the ankles; bathe after full impurity; use clean earth if ill, travelling or without water.
- Sahih al-Bukhari 338 - Tayammum with one strikeHadith reference
Sunnah.com - Hadith reference
Ammar's report: strike the earth with the hands, blow into them, then wipe the face and hands. In Sahih al-Bukhari.
- Dry Ablution (Tayammum)Beginner lesson
NewMuslims.com - Lesson
Imam Mufti, 2012. When tayammum is allowed, the one-strike method wiping the face and hands to the wrists, valid surfaces, and what ends it (finding water, or anything that breaks wudu or calls for ghusl). Link only.
- How to Make Dry Ablution (Tayammum) (Hanafi)Scholarly answer
SeekersGuidance - Scholarly answer
Ustadh Tabraze Azam, checked by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani, 15 December 2013. The Hanafi method: two strikes, the face, then both arms including the elbows. Link only.
Green Lane Masjid and Community Centre (Birmingham, UK) - Video (YouTube)
Steps of tayammum (dry purification), when it is allowed, what ends it and valid materials. Schools differ on one or two strikes and how far the arms are wiped. Embedded through YouTube's privacy-enhanced player (youtube-nocookie.com) and loaded only after you press play. YouTube Standard Licence; the uploader allows embedding (checked 2026-09-23). No download or re-upload rights.
- Is It Permitted to Wipe Over Thick Socks? (Hanafi)Scholarly answer
SeekersGuidance - Scholarly answer
Ustadh Tabraze Azam, checked by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani, 30 October 2014. Footwear can be wiped over if you could walk about 3.5 miles in it without it tearing and water does not soak through; ordinary dress socks usually fail, hiking socks often qualify. Link only.
- Praying with Nail Polish (Hanafi)Scholarly answer
SeekersGuidance - Scholarly answer
Ustadha Shaista Maqbool, checked by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani, 11 July 2014. Nail polish stops water reaching the nail, so wudu over it is not valid; prayers with a wudu made before applying it are valid; remove it before the next wudu. Link only.
SeekersGuidance - Scholarly answer
Ustadh Tabraze Azam, checked by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani, 13 May 2016. Wash the area if you can; if not, wipe it; if not, wipe most of the bandage; if even that would cause harm, leave it. Harm is judged by past experience, clear signs, or a skilled, trustworthy Muslim doctor. Link only.
SeekersGuidance - Scholarly answer
Ustadh Shuaib Ally, 18 February 2015. Wash what you can, wipe the cast with water, and do tayammum in place of the covered part; whether prayers are repeated depends on where the cast is and whether it was put on in a state of purity. Link only.
- Etiquette of the Ritual Bath (Ghusl)Beginner lesson
NewMuslims.com - Lesson
Imam Mufti, 2011. When ghusl is needed; the minimum is that water reaches the whole body; the fuller Sunnah method step by step. Link only.
- Sahih Muslim 132a: That is the faith manifestHadith reference
Sunnah.com - Hadith reference
Sahih Muslim 132a, in Sahih Muslim (sahih). Cited for: companions troubled by thoughts too grave to speak were told, 'That is the faith manifest'; such thoughts are a sign of faith, not a loss of it (Book of Faith, chapter on waswasah).
- Sunan Abi Dawud 5112: whispering is all the devil hasHadith reference
Sunnah.com - Hadith reference
Sunan Abi Dawud 5112 (Book 43, Hadith 340), graded Sahih by al-Albani on Sunnah.com. A man said he would rather be burned to charcoal than speak his thoughts; the Prophet said 'Allahu akbar' and praised Allah who reduced the devil's plot to whispering.
- Sahih al-Bukhari 5269: thoughts not acted on are overlookedHadith reference
Sunnah.com - Hadith reference
Sahih al-Bukhari 5269 (Book 68, Hadith 19): Allah has overlooked the evil thoughts that occur to people's minds as long as they are not acted on or spoken. It sits in the Book of Divorce. Cited only for unwanted intrusive thoughts, as Khokhar does, and never for thoughts of suicide.
SeekersGuidance - Scholar answer (Hanafi)
Shaykh Faraz Rabbani, 17 September 2010. A Hanafi answer giving five principles: certainty is not lifted by a doubt, certainty is only lifted by certainty, doubts carry no legal weight, and following baseless misgivings is blameworthy. The maxim is shared across the schools, but this answer speaks for the Hanafi school.
- Overcoming intrusive thoughts and religious OCD: prophetic guidance on moral scrupulosityResearch education
Yaqeen Institute - Islamic research and education
By Dr. Jibran Khokhar, Yaqeen Senior Fellow and Canada Research Chair at Western University (a researcher, not a clinician), published 13 August 2026. Says intrusive thoughts are not sins (citing Muslim 132a, Bukhari 5269 and Muslim 127), advises dismissing whispers rather than analysing them, seeking refuge in Allah and practising response prevention, and says seeking help from a qualified mental health professional 'is not a sign of weak faith but a means of healing.'
- Clinicians, imams, and the whisperings of SatanResearch education
Yaqeen Institute - Islamic research and education
By Najwa Awad, psychotherapist, published 19 July 2017, updated 22 July 2024. Says waswasah 'is not a Muslim disease' but a religious presentation of OCD in Muslims, that exposure and response prevention (ERP) has been shown to be quite effective, that imams and clinicians should work together, and that imams should teach the principle that doubt does not negate certainty rather than keep answering the same question, since reassurance feeds the compulsion.
- Obsessive-Compulsive DisorderClinical information
Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) - Public health information
CAMH, Toronto. Supports: common OCD obsessions include 'preoccupation with religious images and thoughts or fear of having blasphemous thoughts' and repeated doubting; compulsions include mental rituals such as praying; treatment ideally combines counselling (most often cognitive behavioural therapy) with medication. Review date not shown on the page.
- Sahih al-Bukhari 150: Washing with water after the toiletHadith reference
Sunnah.com - Hadith reference
Sahih al-Bukhari 150 (Anas bin Malik), in Sahih al-Bukhari: a container of water was taken for the Prophet when he went to relieve himself, so he could wash. Supports the glossary entry for istinja.
- Sahih al-Bukhari 218 - Taking care with urineHadith reference
Sunnah.com - Hadith reference
Sahih al-Bukhari 218 (Ibn Abbas): of two people punished in their graves, one never kept himself clean of his urine. Sahih. Used gently for why cleaning after the toilet matters.
- Sahih Muslim 262a - Toilet etiquetteHadith reference
Sunnah.com - Hadith reference
Sahih Muslim 262a (Salman): the Prophet forbade facing the qibla when relieving oneself, cleaning with the right hand, cleaning with fewer than three stones, and using dung or bone. Sahih.
SeekersGuidance - Scholar answer
Shaykh Faraz Rabbani, 18 October 2011. Tissue then water is best; wiping alone fulfils the sunnah; if filth goes beyond the exit and its immediate surround, washing is required.
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Shaykh Yusuf Weltch, checked by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani, 27 July 2022. Toilet paper alone fulfils the basic sunnah when the impurity has not spread beyond the exit; washing is preferable.
- What Can I Do If I Have Misgivings After Istinja?Scholar answer
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Mawlana Ilyas Patel, 5 September 2023. After cleaning properly, doubts should be ignored; acting on baseless doubts is blameworthy; points to reading on OCD and misgivings (waswasa).
- Sahih al-Bukhari 877 - The full-body wash for Friday prayerHadith reference
Sunnah.com - Hadith reference
Sahih al-Bukhari 877 (Ibn Umar): anyone attending the Friday prayer should make the full-body wash (ghusl). Sahih.
- Sahih al-Bukhari 879 - The Friday full-body wash for adult menHadith reference
Sunnah.com - Hadith reference
Sahih al-Bukhari 879 (Abu Sa'id): the Friday full-body wash (ghusl) is described as due from every male who has reached puberty. Sahih. The strong wording is read differently by scholars.
Sunnah.com - Hadith reference
Sunan Abi Dawud 354 (Samurah): whoever makes wudu on Friday has done well, and whoever bathes, bathing is better. Graded Hasan by al-Albani.
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Salman Younas, checked by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani, 15 May 2010. The relied-upon view: the Friday ghusl is a sunnah for the prayer; in need, such as for those who work on Fridays, one may follow the view that it is a sunnah for the day.
- The Fiqh of Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha (Hanafi)Scholar answer
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Ustadha Naielah Ackbarali, 12 May 2021. Ghusl and best clothes among the Eid sunnahs; eat before the Eid al-Fitr prayer and delay eating on Eid al-Adha; three extra takbirs with raised hands in each rak'ah (in the second after the recitation); two short sermons after the prayer; wajib on sane, adult, resident, healthy men.
- Sahih Muslim 330a - Braided hair and ghuslHadith reference
Sunnah.com - Hadith reference
Sahih Muslim 330a (Umm Salama): she need not undo closely plaited hair for the full-body wash; pouring three handfuls of water over the head is enough. Sahih. Muslim 330b adds that one narration mentions the bath after menstruation as well as after intercourse.
- Quran 74:4 - Purify your garmentsQuran reference
Quran.com - Quran reference
'And purify your garments' (Al-Muddaththir 74:4). The basis for keeping clothes clean for worship.
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Shaykh Irshaad Sedick, 24 September 2023. Shafi'i: heavy filth (dog, pig) is washed seven times, one with earth; light filth (urine of a milk-fed boy under two) is sprinkled; other filth is washed until its substance, colour and smell are gone where feasible.
- Sahih al-Bukhari 228 - Persistent bleeding and wuduHadith reference
Sunnah.com - Hadith reference
Sahih al-Bukhari 228 (Aisha, about Fatimah bint Abi Hubaish): bleeding outside the period is not menstruation; keep praying and make wudu for every prayer. Sahih.
- What Is the Ruling regarding Excused Person?Scholar answer
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Supports: Hanafi excused person: wudu lasts until the prayer time exits.
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Ustadh Tabraze Azam, 31 October 2015. Wiping a quarter of the head is obligatory; wiping over the headscarf does not count.
- How Can a Working Woman Always Be in Wudu?Scholar answer
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Mawlana Ilyas Patel, 21 February 2023. Hanbali: a woman may wipe over a scarf wrapped under the chin, put on after wudu, for one day (three for travellers); one may follow the Hanbali school for this if both the wudu and the prayer are valid in that school.
- Sahih Muslim 258: The forty-night limit for groomingHadith reference
Sunnah.com - Hadith reference
In Sahih Muslim. Cited for: a time limit was set for trimming the moustache, cutting the nails, removing underarm hair and shaving pubic hair, that they not be left for more than forty nights.