❖ 8 Shari’ah Evidences for Using Stones for Istinjā’ Even When Water Is Available ❖
📚 Taken from: Fatāwā ad-Dīn al-Khāliṣ, Volume 1, Page 306
❀ Question:
Is it permissible to perform istinjā’ with stones even when water is available?
✅ Ruling
Yes — it is permissible without dislike (bila karāhah) to perform istinjā’ with stones even if water is present.
This was the regular practice of the Prophet ﷺ and the majority of the Companions (رضي الله عنهم).
Those who reject this practice or consider it invalid fall into bid‘ah (innovation) and ignorance, contradicting authentic Sunnah.
◈ 8 Evidences Supporting This Practice
➊ Hadith of ʿAbdullāh ibn Masʿūd (رضي الله عنه)
“The Messenger of Allah ﷺ went to relieve himself and asked me to bring three stones. I found two and brought a dung piece as the third.
He ﷺ threw away the dung and took the stones, saying:
‘This (dung) is impure.’”
(Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, Aḥmad, Dāraqutnī)
✔ Demonstrates that stone usage was commanded even when other options existed, and impure materials were rejected, not stones.
➋ Hadith on Odd Number of Stones
“When any one of you uses stones for cleansing, let him use them in odd numbers.”
(Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī)
✔ Emphasizes ritual completion using 3, 5, or 7 stones, even without water.
➌ Hadith of Salmān al-Fārsī (رضي الله عنه)
The Prophet ﷺ forbade:
- Facing the Qiblah while relieving oneself,
- Using the right hand for cleansing,
- Using fewer than three stones,
- Using bones and dung for cleansing.
(Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim)
✔ Clear guidelines for stone-based istinjā’, not conditioned on absence of water.
➍ Consensus of Scholars and Jurists (Ijmaʿ Jamhūr al-ʿUlamāʾ)
✔ Stone istinjā’ is documented in:
- Ṣaḥīḥayn (Bukhārī & Muslim),
- Sunan books,
- Muwaṭṭaʾ,
- Musnad Aḥmad, etc.
All schools of Islamic law and major jurists agree on the validity of using stones for istinjā’ if impurity is removed.
➎ Imām al-Tirmidhī’s Commentary
He states:
“The ḥadīth of Salmān is authentic. Most of the Companions and scholars after them said that stone-based istinjā’ is sufficient, even if water is not used, provided impurity is removed.”
➏ Rejection of False Claim: “Water Must Be Used If Present”
Claiming that water must be used when available, or that prayer is invalid if only stones are used despite water being present — this is:
- An innovation,
- Contradicts prophetic Sunnah,
- A statement deserving retraction or disciplinary correction (taʿzīr) if persisted in.
➐ Statement from al-Sunan al-Mubtadaʿāt
“Using stones for istinjā’ is established from the Prophet ﷺ, as is istinjā’ with water.
Both are authentic Sunnah, and there’s no textual evidence requiring combination.”
➑ Refutation of Superstitious Beliefs
Some individuals falsely believe:
“If someone who performed istinjā’ with stones is touched, the prayer of the other person is invalid.”
This belief is:
- Irrational,
- Baseless,
- Contrary to the Sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ and his Companions.
✅ Conclusion:
✔ Istinjā’ with stones is valid, even in the presence of water,
✔ There is no requirement to combine both,
✔ The Prophet ﷺ and his Companions frequently used stones,
✔ Denying this is bidʿah, and such views must be corrected,
✔ The Sunnah should be followed as it is, without imposing unnecessary restrictions.
ھٰذا ما عندي، والله أعلم بالصواب
