7 Evidences Regarding Drying Body Parts After Wudu or Ghusl – In Light of Authentic Ahadith Source: Fatāwā al-Dīn al-Khāliṣ, Vol. 1, Page 387
❖ Question:
Is it permissible to dry the limbs after Wudu or Ghusl using a towel?
Does the Sunnah support this practice, or is it considered makrūh (discouraged)?
Summary Answer:
Yes, it is permissible to dry the limbs after Wudu or Ghusl using a towel.
However, the preferred practice is to avoid drying, as the Prophet ﷺ usually let the water drip naturally from his body.
There is a scholarly difference on whether this practice is supported by authentic narrations.
✿ 7 Evidences and Scholarly Views:
➊ General Consensus on Permissibility
Many scholars from the Sahabah, Tabi‘in, and later Imams held that there is no harm in using a towel after Wudu or Ghusl.
As per Imam Ibn al-Mundhir:
Sahabah who allowed drying:- ʿUthmān ibn ʿAffān (رضي الله عنه)
- al-Ḥasan ibn ʿAlī (رضي الله عنه)
- Anas ibn Mālik (رضي الله عنه)
- Bashīr ibn Mas‘ūd (رضي الله عنه)
Tabi‘īn who permitted it:- al-Ḥasan al-Baṣrī
- Ibn Sīrīn
- ʿAlqamah
- al-Aswad
- Masrūq
- al-Ḍaḥḥāk
Imams who saw no harm in it:- Imam Mālik
- Imam Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal
- Imam Sufyān al-Thawrī
- Imam Isḥāq ibn Rāhwayh
- The Aṣḥāb al-Ra’y (Ḥanafī jurists)
➋ Ibn al-Qayyim’s View:
In Zād al-Ma‘ād (1/68), he writes:
“No authentic Hadith proves that the Prophet ﷺ regularly dried his limbs after Wudu.
In fact, some narrations indicate the opposite.”
He discusses two weak narrations involving:
- ʿĀ’ishah (رضي الله عنها): that the Prophet ﷺ had a cloth he used to dry with
- Muʿādh ibn Jabal (رضي الله عنه): that the Prophet ﷺ wiped his face with the edge of his garment
Both are considered weak:
- One contains Sulaimān ibn Arqam (a rejected narrator)
- The other includes al-Afrīqī (a weak narrator)
➌ Imam al-Tirmidhī’s Statement:
“Nothing authentically proven from the Prophet ﷺ on this topic.”
Indicates absence of strong Hadith for drying limbs post-Wudu.➍ Imam Abū Dāwūd’s Report:
In Sunan Abī Dāwūd (1/37):
Al-Aʿmash said: “I mentioned this to Ibrāhīm al-Nakhaʿī,
and he said the Companions did not consider drying impermissible,
but considered making it a habit to be makrūh (disliked).”
✔ Drying occasionally is acceptable, habitually is less preferred.
➎ Authentic Narrations of the Prophet ﷺ Letting Water Drip
- Maymūnah (رضي الله عنها) said:
“I handed the Prophet ﷺ a towel after Ghusl, but he did not take it.
Instead, he shook water off his hands.”
Sahih Bukhari 1/40, Muslim 1/147, Mishkāt 1/48
- Abū Hurayrah (رضي الله عنه) said:
“The Prophet ﷺ came out and water was dripping from his head.”
Bukhari 1/89, Muslim 1/220, Abu Dawood 1/35
- Ibn ʿAbbās (رضي الله عنهما) said:
“Water was dripping from the Prophet’s ﷺ head when he arrived for prayer.”
Sahih Muslim 1/229
✔ These narrations show that the Prophet ﷺ did not dry his body after Ghusl or Wudu.
➏ Shaykh al-Mubārakfūrī’s View:
In Tuhfat al-Aḥwadhī (1/57):
“All the Hadiths about drying after Wudu are weak,
except for the narration of Abū Maryam, which is mursal from a Companion.”
✔ Again, no clear authentic proof for drying post-Wudu.
➐ Shaykh al-Albānī’s Conclusion:
In al-Silsilah al-Ṣaḥīḥah (5/133, Hadith 2099):
ʿĀ’ishah (رضي الله عنها) reported that the Prophet ﷺ had a cloth with which he used to dry his mouth and hands after Wudu.
Shaykh al-Albānī said:“After combining all available chains, the Hadith becomes Hasan (acceptable).”
✔ Thus, drying is permissible, but the preferred practice remains not to dry, following the Prophet’s ﷺ general routine.
Conclusion:
| Ruling | Status |
|---|---|
| Drying limbs after Wudu or Ghusl | Permissible |
| Regularly drying every time | Makrūh (discouraged) |
| Prophet ﷺ's usual practice | To let water drip naturally |
| Strong Hadith proof for drying | Absent or weak, with one Hasan report |
| Best practice | Avoid drying unless needed |
Permissible but not preferred — follow the Sunnah of leaving the limbs wet unless there's a valid reason.
وَاللهُ أَعْلَمُ بِالصَّوَاب
