Nasai

40. Commentary: From the mentioned narration, along with the prohibition of cleaning oneself with dung and bones, it is also understood that obedience to parents is obligatory upon children, and parents also have the right to teach their children manners and to provide them with religious education.

Explanation:
It is not permissible to perform istinja (purification after relieving oneself) with bones or dung; dung and bones are the food of the jinn. As is narrated from Ibn Mas'ud, he said that the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) said: "Do not perform istinja with dung or bones, for these are provisions for your brothers among the jinn." [رواه ابوداؤد والترمذي]

It is understood from this that purification can also be achieved with stones. However, attaining further purification with water is superior. [ديكهئے حديث: 152]

It was the blessed habit of the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) that after performing istinja with water, he would rub his hands with earth and then wash them.

Hadith Commentary:
1.
The purpose of Imam Bukhari rahimahullah is to refute those who declare it impermissible to perform istinja (purification after relieving oneself) with stones, or who consider their use inappropriate when water is available.
In this regard, he has presented the practice of the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam.
He instructed Abu Hurairah radi Allahu anhu not to bring bones or dung.
From this, it is understood that, apart from bones and dung, any absorbent substance that is not the food of a living being can be used for istinja.
Clay stones possess the quality of absorbing moisture.
(Fath al-Bari: 1/335)
Nowadays, tissue paper is prepared for cleaning purposes.
Because it is also absorbent, it can fulfill this purpose as well.

2.
Two reasons have been mentioned for not purifying oneself with bones and dung:
(a)
Purification is not achieved with either of these; some narrations clarify this.
From this, it is understood that this is not a specific characteristic of bones and dung, but rather, anything that is not suitable for purification is useless for istinja.
The impurity of dung is obvious.
Purification cannot be achieved with it; rather, when moisture is added, its impurity is doubled.
The objective of purification is also not achieved with bones because they do not have the capacity to absorb; rather, due to their greasiness, they cannot remove impurity.

(b)
Some narrations indicate that both of these are food for the jinn.
Abdullah ibn Mas‘ud radi Allahu anhu reports that the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said:
“The jinn came to me and requested provisions for their journey, so I gave them bones and dung as provisions.
They do not eat them, but rather, meat and fodder are produced for them on these, meaning that these are connected to the food of the jinn.
You (the Companions) were therefore prohibited from using them for istinja so that they would not be spoiled for the jinn.”
(Fath al-Bari: 1/336)
In some narrations, it is mentioned that the jinn came to the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam and said: “Tell your ummah not to use bones, dung, or coal for istinja, because Allah Ta‘ala has placed our food in these things.”
From this, it is understood that it is not permissible to use edible items for istinja, and this is out of respect for food. Therefore, anything that is respectable in any way should not be used for istinja.
In summary, any non-respectable pure thing that has the ability to remove impurity can be used for istinja, and anything that does not have the capacity to absorb, even if it is harmless and respectable, cannot be used for istinja, such as glass, because it does not remove impurity.
(Fath al-Bari: 1/336)

4.
There are three types of servants:
(a)
Those servants who are perceptive of their masters’ needs and take care of them without being told.
(b)
Those servants who, when instructed to serve their master, consider fulfilling it a matter of good fortune for themselves.
(c)
Those servants who, even after being told, show laziness in fulfilling the task.
Generally, the servants of mosques are of this kind.
As the saying goes, “The earth may move, but Gul Muhammad will not.”
From this hadith, it is understood that the servants of the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam considered it their good fortune to be at the forefront in serving him, and they would prepare his purification items before use so that he would not face any inconvenience.

Benefits and Issues
➊ It is absolutely impermissible to deliberately face or turn one's back towards the qiblah while urinating or defecating. Although small children are not legally accountable (ghayr mukallaf), it is still the responsibility of parents or guardians to be mindful of this matter.
➋ If three stones, or similarly, tissue paper have been used for istinja (purification after relieving oneself) and cleanliness has been achieved, then even if water is not used afterwards, the purification is considered complete in every respect.
➌ It is also not permissible to use the right hand for istinja.
➍ Purification cannot be achieved with dung or impure substances.
➎ Bones are the food of the jinn, therefore their use is not permissible. Likewise, purification cannot be achieved with other edible or drinkable items.
➏ The Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) holds the status of a spiritual father for the ummah, and his (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) pure wives hold the status of spiritual mothers. See: [Surah al-Ahzab, verse: 6 and 40]
➐ Among the duties of a father is that he should teach his children all the matters they will encounter in life, especially religious matters, and even explain specific issues to them. He should not let his adolescent children fall prey to people with liberal attitudes. Similarly, it is incumbent upon mothers to necessarily inform their daughters about the specific essential matters of their lives.
➑ One should always avoid dividing the rulings of the Shari‘ah into minor (saghirah) and major (kabirah), or regarding them as insignificant. All the commands of Allah (azza wa jall) and all the teachings of the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) are extremely great and honorable. A Muslim should act upon them and invite others to them with pride, honor, and gratitude, avoiding an apologetic attitude, and should express and call towards them, just as Sayyiduna Salman (radi Allahu anhu) did and said.

Commentary:

➊ All the rulings of the Shariah are important; therefore, just as one is diligent in fulfilling the obligatory acts (fara’id), one should also act upon the etiquettes (adab).

➋ The imam should inform his followers (muqtadis) about all kinds of issues; however, attention should be paid to the appropriateness of the occasion and the proper manner.

➌ It is not permissible to sit facing or with one’s back towards the Noble Ka‘bah at the time of urination or defecation. The scholars have specified that this ruling applies to open fields and open spaces, because sitting with one’s back towards the Ka‘bah inside a restroom (bayt al-khala’) is established from the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) himself. See: (Sahih al-Bukhari, al-Wudu’, Chapter: Relieving Oneself in Houses, Hadith: 148 and Sahih Muslim, al-Taharah, Chapter: Seeking Cleanliness, Hadith: 266)

➍ The command to use three stones (for istinja’) is given so that cleanliness is achieved thoroughly. If cleanliness is attained with water, then there is no need to use stones. One reason for the prohibition of using dung and bones for istinja’ is that Allah Ta‘ala has made these things food for the jinn. The Prophetic instruction is: “Do not perform istinja’ with dung or bones, for these are the food of your (Muslim) brothers among the jinn.” (Jami‘ al-Tirmidhi, al-Taharah, Chapter: What Has Been Reported Regarding the Dislike of What Is Used for Istinja’, Hadith: 18) Another reason is that dung itself is impure (najis), therefore, purity cannot be attained with it, as will be mentioned in the following hadith.

Benefit:
From this hadith, it is understood that the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) exerted tremendous effort in teaching the Qur’an and Hadith to his ummah—Subhan Allah. He strove to such an extent that even if the efforts of all the scholars of the Muslim ummah were combined, they would still not equal the effort of the Noble Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam). Scholars, too, should work for the religion with great diligence.

Furthermore, this hadith mentions the etiquettes of relieving oneself: in the open desert, it is prohibited to face or turn one’s back to the Ka‘bah, but within a bathroom or enclosed space, there is allowance for this. [صحيح البخاري : 145 صحيح مسلم : 266]

One should perform istinja (cleansing after relieving oneself) with at least three stones, and one should not use dung (whether from an animal whose meat is lawful to eat or not) for istinja, because it is the food of the jinn.