❀ Water Purification Method in Case of Impurity Falling into a Well ❀
Excerpted from: Fatāwā ʿIlmiyyah, Volume 1, Kitāb al-ʿAqāʾid, Page 197
According to the Ḥanafī school of thought, there are instructions stating that if an impure substance (like a rat, etc.) falls into a well, a specific number of buckets must be drawn out. In light of the Qur’ān and Ḥadīth, what is the correct Sharʿī method of purifying water?
Al-Ḥamdu lillāh, and blessings and peace be upon the Messenger of Allāh. To proceed:
There is consensus among the scholars that if the falling of an impurity causes a change in the color, taste, or smell of the water, then that water becomes impure. In such a case, enough water must be drawn out or added until the water returns to its original state.
Imām Ibn al-Mundhir (رحمه الله) states:
"There is consensus that if the color, taste, or smell of water changes due to impurity, it becomes impure."
(al-Ijmāʿ li Ibn al-Mundhir, p. 33, Text 11,12)
It is narrated from Sayyidunā ʿAlī (رضي الله عنه):
"If a rat falls into a well and dies, then its water will be drawn out."
(Sharḥ Maʿānī al-Āthār by al-Ṭaḥāwī, Vol. 1, p. 17; sanad is ḥasan. Also found in Āthār al-Sunan, Ḥadīth 11 – and he said: its isnād is ḥasan.)
If a rat or any other impure substance falls into the well and dies, then after removing it, water should be drawn out until the three characteristics (color, smell, taste) return to normal.
✔ If the water’s characteristics have not changed, then the owners of the well have the option to draw out as many buckets as they determine necessary through ijtihād.
In the famous Ḥanafī book "al-Hidāyah", it is mentioned:
➤ If a rat falls into a well and dies, 20 buckets should be drawn.
➤ If a pigeon falls and dies, 40 buckets should be drawn.
(al-Hidāyah, Vol. 1, pp. 42-43, Bāb al-Māʾ alladhī yajūz bihi al-Wuḍūʾ wa mā lā yajūz bihi)
This condition is baseless and absurd, because the effect of impurity is on the water’s characteristics, not on the type of dead animal. If all three characteristics of the water have changed, more water will need to be removed; and if they remain unchanged, then no fixed quantity of removal is necessary.
✔ The real criterion is whether the attributes of the water remain intact, not the drawing of a specific number of buckets.
✔ The amounts specified by Ḥanafī fiqh (20 or 40 buckets) are not proven by any authentic ḥadīth.
✔ In light of the Qur’ān and Ḥadīth, the principle of purifying water depends solely on the change in the three attributes—not on any pre-determined count.
وَاللّٰهُ أَعْلَمُ بِالصَّوَابِ
(Shahādat, December 2001)
Excerpted from: Fatāwā ʿIlmiyyah, Volume 1, Kitāb al-ʿAqāʾid, Page 197
❖ Question:
According to the Ḥanafī school of thought, there are instructions stating that if an impure substance (like a rat, etc.) falls into a well, a specific number of buckets must be drawn out. In light of the Qur’ān and Ḥadīth, what is the correct Sharʿī method of purifying water?
❖ Answer:
Al-Ḥamdu lillāh, and blessings and peace be upon the Messenger of Allāh. To proceed:
◈ General Principle Regarding Impurity Falling into Water:
There is consensus among the scholars that if the falling of an impurity causes a change in the color, taste, or smell of the water, then that water becomes impure. In such a case, enough water must be drawn out or added until the water returns to its original state.
Imām Ibn al-Mundhir (رحمه الله) states:
"There is consensus that if the color, taste, or smell of water changes due to impurity, it becomes impure."
(al-Ijmāʿ li Ibn al-Mundhir, p. 33, Text 11,12)
◈ Ruling in the Light of Ḥadīth:
It is narrated from Sayyidunā ʿAlī (رضي الله عنه):
"If a rat falls into a well and dies, then its water will be drawn out."
(Sharḥ Maʿānī al-Āthār by al-Ṭaḥāwī, Vol. 1, p. 17; sanad is ḥasan. Also found in Āthār al-Sunan, Ḥadīth 11 – and he said: its isnād is ḥasan.)
◈ Method of Purifying a Well:
If a rat or any other impure substance falls into the well and dies, then after removing it, water should be drawn out until the three characteristics (color, smell, taste) return to normal.
✔ If the water’s characteristics have not changed, then the owners of the well have the option to draw out as many buckets as they determine necessary through ijtihād.
◈ Refutation of Fixed Bucket Numbers in Ḥanafī Fiqh:
In the famous Ḥanafī book "al-Hidāyah", it is mentioned:
➤ If a rat falls into a well and dies, 20 buckets should be drawn.
➤ If a pigeon falls and dies, 40 buckets should be drawn.
(al-Hidāyah, Vol. 1, pp. 42-43, Bāb al-Māʾ alladhī yajūz bihi al-Wuḍūʾ wa mā lā yajūz bihi)
This condition is baseless and absurd, because the effect of impurity is on the water’s characteristics, not on the type of dead animal. If all three characteristics of the water have changed, more water will need to be removed; and if they remain unchanged, then no fixed quantity of removal is necessary.
❖ Conclusion:
✔ The real criterion is whether the attributes of the water remain intact, not the drawing of a specific number of buckets.
✔ The amounts specified by Ḥanafī fiqh (20 or 40 buckets) are not proven by any authentic ḥadīth.
✔ In light of the Qur’ān and Ḥadīth, the principle of purifying water depends solely on the change in the three attributes—not on any pre-determined count.
وَاللّٰهُ أَعْلَمُ بِالصَّوَابِ
(Shahādat, December 2001)
