Re: Wuzu required for each namaz ?
Peace Mirch bro
I see a difficulty in your rationalising and perhaps this may help explain a few things, inshaAllah I shall try my best.
- It is true that we should not put our words in the mouth of Allah (SWT). Then we must be sure that the Qur’an is truly saying whenever we stand up for prayer we must “perform wudu every time” as opposed to just when we stand up for prayer we must “be in a state of wudu every time”. Often the Qur’an will omit words such as “wudu” for example and go on to the explanation thereof. This is the nature of many verses. i.e. the subject is understood and implied. In English translation therefore it would not be incorrect to write
when you intend to offer Salat (be in a state of wudu, where the requirements are that one must) wash the face, the hands etc … (not in doing sequence).
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The order of the wudu in the ayat is not as per hadith does this mean we base our wudu on this ayat also? Are we to first wash the face, then the hands up to the elbows, do the head and then do our feet to the ankles? We will miss the mouth rinse, the nostrils and the neck wash and ears. Tarteeb (Sequence) is taken from hadith whereas (hukm) Injunction is taken from Qur’an in this case.
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To be in ablution is a state of being. Read Surah 4 verse 43. It specifies certain states of being where to approach prayer is forbidden, however, it also specifies when these forbidden states end and the prayer becomes approachable again. One such condition is to be in a state of Ghusl. According to this ayat as per your understanding one needs to perform ghusl for every prayer, but this is not the case one need only be in a STATE of ghusl such is the same with wudu. One need only be in a state of wudu in addition to being in a state of ghusl in order to approach prayer.
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The hadith therefore does not contradict the Qur’an what does however is the limitation we apply on the verse to mean that wudu is done expressly for offering the prayer which is not true. However, in order to offer prayer we should be in a STATE of wudu.
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And if you read even closer the requirement for washing is not for prayer at all. It is only for standing up to pray. i.e. when we stand up to pray we must be in a state of wudu.
However, if this is taken to the extreme understanding that for every separate prayer where we begin to pray i.e. after every salam when we stand again we must do more washing. It defies the purpose intended in the ayat. If we can assume it means every prayer then we should not limit it to every fard either it should also extend to every nufl and sunnah attached to those faraid also.
- An ayat may not be mutashabihat but it does not mean that it does not require a specific interpretation to be given. It may be clear in the articles and clauses but may not be fully expressive to the literalists among us. Myself included reading just this ayat alone I could not possibly know what it is truly talking about. After reading hadith and knowing what prayer is and what our traditions are can we then go back and pretend to argue a different understanding.
I think it is best to be in a state of wudu for as much of the day as we can possibly be. I admit I do not do this. By this I do not mean we keep a fajr wudu all day that is like saying my bowels are more stronger than yours … however, I am saying that when a need to lose wudu becomes manifest then we actively seek to make wudu again afterwards. Those who seek to make wudu are ‘ready’ for prayer. Those who are ready for prayer outside the mandatory prayer times are ready for anything. i.e. if the angel of death should approach, or a calamity or so on.
There are many things in the Qur’an that are not explained and if they are so in hadith and our understanding thinks they are contradictory, then we should rather than second guess the established hadith upon which is consensus, second guess our own understanding of the two readings.