Social:Ritual purity in Islam
Purity (Arabic: طهارة, ṭahāra(h)[1]) is an essential aspect of Islam. It is the opposite of najāsa, the state of being ritually impure. It is achieved by first removing physical impurities (for example, urine) from the body, and then removing ritual impurity by means of wudu (usually) or ghusl.
In the Quran
The Quran says: "In it there are men who love to observe purity and Allah loves those who maintain purity."[Quran 9:108] and also there is one verse which concerned with Taharah or purity and impurity of Humans: "O you who have believed, indeed the polytheists are unclean, so let them not approach al-Masjid al-Haram after this, their [final] year. And if you fear privation, Allah will enrich you from His bounty if He wills. Indeed, Allah is knowing and wise."[Quran 9:28]
Importance in Islam
Observing cleanliness of the soul, the clothes, and the surroundings is obligatory upon every Muslim, and this is considered one of the pillars of Islam.
Before offering prayers, it is necessary to perform wudu, and in certain cases, ghusl. The purifying agent is always clean water. However, during times when water is not available or is scarce, symbolic wudu and ghusl can be performed with clean dry earth which is known as Tayammum.
If the body or clothes show traces of urine, feces, semen or alcohol, then taharah becomes essential. Many juridical opinions add blood and pus to that list. The clothes should be washed and the affected part of the body cleaned with pure water, or the whole body given a ghusl as the case may be.
Most Muslims believe that they must perform a ritual cleansing with water (Wudu) before touching a copy of the Quran, although this view is not universal.[citation needed]
When in a state of major ritual impurity, one should not even to recite the Quran, let alone touch it. [citation needed]
In a state of minor ritual impurity, it is forbidden (in some schools, makruh) to handle the Quran and to read it, and is considered to be acceptable (neutral, mubah) to recite it, although it is better liked (recommended, mustahabb) to be ritually pure. [citation needed]
A mushaf is only a Quran if it is the Arabic Quranic text, and a book that contains more than 50% non-Quranic material is not viewed as a Quran for the above purposes, even if it contains verses of the Quran or the entire Quranic text. Examples would be a tafsir, or a translation of the Quran such as Yusuf Ali's (with commentary) which contains over fifteen times as much text in footnotes than it does in Quranic text or Quranic interpretation in either Arabic or English, or a book of hadith that contains Quranic verses embedded in the narrations. [citation needed]
Shia views
In respect to purity of non-Muslims, some of the Shia Muslims believe in the impurity of non-Muslims. However, there are others which believe in the purity of non-Muslims.
Some people such as Shaykh Tusi believed that it is not permissible to eat with Kuffar or non-Muslims. Considering non-believers as Najis has been prevalent until twentieth century. Muhaqiq Hilli also believes in impurity of non-believers. Most of maraji (authorities such as Sayyid Ruhollah Khomeini, Nasir Makarim Shirazi, Sayyid Muhammad Rida Gulpaygani, and Sayyid Abu al-Qasim Khu’i) believed in impurity of Kuffar, including Ahle Al Kitab. Of course, Khu'i pointed out precaution ruling in the subject. However, there are some authorities such as Muhammad Baqir al-Sadr, Muhammad Fadil Lankarani, Sayyid ‘Ali al-Sistani, and Sayyid ‘Ali Khamene’i who did not believe in impurity of Ahle-Al-Kitab.
Some scholars such as Mulla Muhsin Fayd al-Kashani (d. 1680) and Al-Muhaqqiq al-Bahrani (d. 1708) did not believe in the impurity of non-believers, and particularly non-Kitabi. For instance, Kashani believes that the impurity of Kuffar is spiritual and internal, so there is no need to wash after touching them. This group believes in the purity of non-Muslims and of all humans. Muhammad Ibrahim Jannaati, Sayyid Muhammad Husayn Fadlullah, Seyed Mostafa Mohaghegh Damad and Yusuf Sani‘i are part of this group.[2]
Sex
See also
- Ghusl
- Istinja
- Junub
- Najasah
- Tahir
- Tayammum
- Wudu
- Ḥadath akbar
- Ḥadath aṣghar
References
- ↑ The same term taharah is also found in Hebrew, applying to purity in Ancient Israel and modern Judaism also.
- ↑ VARRICCHIO, 2010 & The Purity of Non-Muslims in Shi‘a Jurisprudence. Journal of Shi‘a Islamic Studies, p. 170.174
External links
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