Fath al-Rabbani

Benefits: … The neighborhood of Banu Sa‘idah, or the owner of the well, or the name of the place itself was Buza‘ah. There was a well there, which was called the Well of Buza‘ah (Bi’r Buza‘ah). The meaning of throwing impure things is that this well was situated in such a place that such affected things would fall into it through the wind or the flow of water. The reason for this interpretation is that such an act cannot be expected from people of sound intellect, especially since that was the era of the purest personalities. Imam Abu Dawud said in his Sunan: Qutaybah bin Sa‘id asked the caretaker of this well about its depth. He replied: Its water, at its fullest, reaches up to the private parts, and when the water decreases, it remains below the covered area. Imam Abu Dawud further says: I measured the width of this well with my sheet and found it to be six arm-lengths wide. Then I asked the one who opened the door of the garden whether its structure had been changed. He said: No, except that I have seen the color of its water has changed. It is thus known that the width of this well was nine feet, and if its length and depth are assumed to be three and a half feet, then it contains approximately 3,200 liters of water. From this detail, it is established that the water of this well was much more than the amount considered “large quantity of water” (mā’ kathīr), and the ruling regarding large quantity of water is that, due to impurity falling into it, as long as its color, smell, or taste does not change, it remains pure. The explanation of “large quantity of water” (mā’ kathīr) and “small quantity of water” (mā’ qalīl) will be given in the next chapter, in sha’ Allah Ta‘ala.