Washing the feet in wudu is obligatory. This is an issue on which the Ahl al-Sunnah wal-Jama’ah agree, and the Ummah acts upon it. The evidences from the Qur’an and the Sunnah bear witness to it. Let us examine the consensus of the Ummah and the evidences from the Qur’an and the Sunnah in the light of the understanding of the early generations:
Consensus of the Ummah
➊ Abdul Malik bin Abu Sulayman asked the Tabi’i Imam Ata bin Abi Rabah (may Allah have mercy on him):
هل علمت أحدا من أصحاب رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم كان يمسح قدميه ؟
“Do you know of any of the Companions of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ who would wipe over his feet (bare feet)?” He said: لا، والله ! ما أعلمه . “By Allah! I do not know of any Companion like that.”
❀ In another narration these words are found:
أدركت أحدا منهم يمسح على القدمين ؟
“Have you seen any Companion wiping over his feet?” He replied: محدث . “It is an innovation invented by those after the Companions.”
➋ Imam Hakam bin Utaybah, the Tabi’i (may Allah have mercy on him), said:
مضت السنة من رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم والمسلمين، يعني بغسل القدمين .
“Washing the feet in wudu is the mutawatir Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and of the Muslims.”
➌ Imam Ibn al-Mundhir (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
وقد أجمع عوام أهل العلم علٰي أن الذى يجب علٰي من لا خف عليه غسل القدمين إلى الكعبين، وقد ثبتت الـأخبار بذٰلك عن رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم، وعن أصحابه .
“The scholars in general agree that whoever does not have socks on him must wash his feet up to the ankles, which is obligatory. Hadiths of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and reports from his Companions on this are established.”
➍ Ibn Hubayrah (d. 560 AH) said:
واتفقوا [ أى الإمام أحمد والشافعي ومالك وأبو حنيفة] علٰي وجوب غسل الوجه كله، وغسل اليدين مع المرفقين، وغسل الرجلين مع الكعبين، ومسح الرأس .
“Imam Ahmad, Imam al-Shafi’i, Imam Malik and Imam Abu Hanifah all agree that in wudu it is obligatory to wash the entire face, the hands including the elbows, the feet including the ankles, and to wipe the head.”
➎ Abu Bakr Ibn al-Arabi, the Maliki (may Allah have mercy on him) (d. 543 AH) said:
هٰذه سنة، اتفق المسلمون عليها، ورٰي أئمة الـأحاديث الصحاح فيها .
“This is the way of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, and the Muslims agree upon it. The muhaddithun have narrated sahih hadiths on this.”
➏ Hafiz al-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) (676-631 AH) said:
وأجمع العلماء علٰي وجوب غسل الوجه، واليدين، والرجلين، واستيعاب جميعهما بالغسل، وانفردت الرافضة عن العلمائ، فقالوا : الواجب فى الرجلين المسح، وهٰذا خطأ منهم .
“Complete washing of the face, both hands and both feet in wudu is obligatory; the scholars agree upon this. However, the Rafidah have separated from the people of knowledge on this issue and say that wiping both feet is obligatory in wudu. This is their error.”
◈ He also said:
فذهب جمع من الفقهاء، من أهل الفتوٰي فى الـأعصار والـأمصار، إلٰي أن الواجب غسل القدمين مع الكعبين، ولا يجزئ مسحهما، ولا يجب المسح مع الغسل، ولم يثبت خلاف هٰذا عن أحد يعتد به فى الإجماع، وقالت الشيعة : الواجب مسحهما، وقال محمد بن جرير والجبائي، رأس المعتزلة، : يتخير بين المسح والغسل .
“The position of a large body of jurists from the people of fatwa in every era and every region is that washing the feet along with the ankles is obligatory in wudu; wiping them does not suffice, and wiping and washing are not obligatory together. Nothing contrary to this has been established from any scholar whose opinion is given weight in consensus. On the contrary, the Shi’ah say that wiping both feet is obligatory, while Muhammad bin Jarir and al-Jubba’i, the leader of the Mu’tazilah, say that the one performing wudu has the choice to wipe over his feet or wash them.”
Important warning:
The Muhammad ibn Jarir mentioned in this passage is not the Sunni exegete Ibn Jarir al-Tabari (may Allah have mercy on him), but Ibn Jarir the Shi’i. The Sunni exegete Ibn Jarir al-Tabari (may Allah have mercy on him) held that washing the feet in wudu is obligatory, and he strongly refuted those who did not consider it obligatory, as we will quote from him in the following lines. The scholar Imam al-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) mentioned the Ibn Jarir who held that one may choose between washing or wiping the feet in wudu.
Some people were misled by a passage of Ibn Jarir al-Tabari (may Allah have mercy on him), and they took Ibn Jarir, who gave the option of wiping the feet or washing them, to be the Sunni exegete Ibn Jarir al-Tabari.
Refuting this:
◈ The Sunni exegete Ibn Kathir (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
فمن العلماء من يزعم أن ابن جرير اثنان ؛ أحدهما شيعي، وإليه ينسب ذٰلك، وينزهون أبا جعفر من هٰذه الصفات، والذي عول عليه كلامه فى التفسير أنه يوجب غسل القدمين، ويوجب مع الغسل دلكهما، ولكنه عبر عن الدلك بالمسح، فلم يفهم كثير من الناس مراده جيدا، فنقلوا عنه أنه يوجب الجمع بين الغسل والمسح .
”Some scholars have explained that there are two Ibn Jarirs: one is a Shi’i, and such statements are attributed to him. These scholars declare Abu Ja’far (al-Tabari, may Allah have mercy on him) free of these attributes. The passage from his exegesis that has been used as evidence for the obligation of both washing and wiping the feet together in wudu uses the word دلك (rubbing the feet while washing them) to refer to wiping. Most people did not properly understand his intended meaning and began to narrate from him that he considered it obligatory in wudu to both wash the feet and wipe them.”
◈ The well-known Indian scholar, Allamah Abu al-Hasan Ubaydullah Mubarakpuri (may Allah have mercy on him) (1327-1414 AH), speaking about the attribution of incorrect views to scholars regarding wudu, says:
ومثله نسبة التخيير إلٰي محمد بن جرير الطبري، صاحب التاريخ الكبير والتفسير الشهير، وقد نشر رواة الشيعة هٰذه الـأكاذيب المختلقة، ورواها بعض أهل السنة، ممن لم يميز الصحيح والسقيم من الـأخبار، بلا تحقق ولا سند، واتسع الخرق على الراقع، ولعل محمد بن جرير القائل بالتخيير، هو محمد بن جرير بن رستم الشيعي، صاحب الإيضاح للمترشد فى الإمامة، لا أبوجعفر، محمد بن جرير بن غالب، الطبري الشافعي، الذى هو من أعلام أهل السنة، والمذكور فى تفسير هٰذا، هو الغسل فقط، لا المسح، ولا الجمع، ولا التخيير الذى نسبه الشيعة إليه .
”The same applies to Imam Muhammad ibn Jarir al-Tabari (may Allah have mercy on him), author of the Tarikh al-Kabir and the famous exegesis, regarding the attribution to him of the view that there is a choice between washing the feet and wiping them in wudu. These are lies fabricated and spread by Shi’i narrators, and some Sunnis who could not distinguish sound reports from weak ones transmitted these false statements without verification or chain, thereby declaring an innocent man guilty. The Muhammad ibn Jarir who holds the option of washing or wiping the feet in wudu is most likely Muhammad ibn Jarir ibn Rustam the Shi’i, author of the book الإيضاح للمترشد فى الإمامة, and not Abu Ja’far, Muhammad ibn Jarir ibn Ghalib, al-Tabari, al-Shafi’i, who is among the major scholars of Ahl al-Sunnah. In his exegesis there is only mention of washing the feet, not wiping, nor doing both together. The Shi’a attributed this to him without basis.”
◈ Imam al-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) says elsewhere:
فقد أجمع المسلمون علٰي وجوب غسل الرجلين، ولم يخالف فى ذٰلك من يعتد به .
”There is consensus among the Muslims on the obligation of washing the feet in wudu. No scholar who has any scholarly standing has opposed this.”
➐ Ibn Nujaym al-Hanafi (d. 970 AH) writes:
فإن الإجماع انعقد علٰي غسلهما، ولا اعتبار بخلاف الروافض .
”Consensus has been established on washing the feet in wudu. The opposition of the Rafidis carries no weight.”
Benefit:
Abu al-Mahasin, Mufaddal ibn Muhammad, al-Tanukhi, al-Hanafi, al-Mu’tazili, al-Shi’i (d. 442 AH) also wrote a treatise titled وجوب غسل القدمين on the obligation of washing the feet in wudu.
◈ The well-known jurist and man of letters, Salim ibn Ayyub, Abu al-Fath, al-Razi (d. 447 AH), also wrote a book under the title ”Ghasl al-Rijlayn”.
◈ The renowned jurist and scholar Abu al-Walid, al-Baji, al-Maliki (403-474 AH) also authored a book named ”Ghasl al-Rijlayn”.
Quranic Evidence
The Almighty said:
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا إِذَا قُمْتُمْ إِلَى الصَّلَاةِ فَاغْسِلُوا وُجُوهَكُمْ وَأَيْدِيَكُمْ إِلَى الْمَرَافِقِ وَامْسَحُوا بِرُءُوسِكُمْ وَأَرْجُلَكُمْ إِلَى الْكَعْبَيْنِ
“O believers! When you rise to prayer, wash your faces and your hands up to the elbows, and wipe your heads and [wash] your feet up to the ankles.”
In this noble verse, Allah commands the washing of the feet. This proves that washing the feet in wudu is obligatory. This is the correct interpretation of the verse, because:
① The Prophet ﷺ, who is the most authoritative interpreter of the Quran and who explains the Quranic verses through his words, actions and tacit approval in the light of Divine revelation, taught only the washing of bare feet in wudu, not wiping over them, as is shown by:
❀ The Companion of the Messenger of Allah, Sayyidina ‘Amr ibn ‘Abasah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates:
قلت : يا نبي الله ! أخبرني عن الوضوئ، قال : ’ما منكم من أحد يقرب وضوئ ه، ثم يتمضمض ويستنشق وينتثر، إلا خرت خطاياه من فمه وخياشيمه مع المائ، حين ينتثر، ثم يغسل وجهه، كما أمره الله تعالٰي إلا خرت خطايا وجهه من أطراف لحيته مع المائ، ثم يغسل يديه إلى المرفقين، إلا خرت خطايا يديه من أطراف أنامله، ثم يمسح رأسه، إلا خرت خطايا رأسه من أطراف شعره مع المائ، ثم يغسل قدميه إلى الكعبين، كما أمره الله عز وجل، إلا خرت خطايا قدميه من أطراف أصابعه مع المائ، ثم يقوم، فيحمد الله عز وجل، ويثني عليه بالذي هو له أهل، ثم يركع ركعتين، إلا خرج من ذنوبه، كهيئته يوم ولدته أمه‘ .
“I said: O Prophet of Allah! Inform me about wudu. The Prophet ﷺ said: None of you approaches his wudu, then rinses his mouth, sniffs water into his nose and blows it out, except that his sins fall out from his mouth and his nostrils with the water when he blows it out. Then he washes his face as Allah the Exalted has commanded, and his sins from the edges of his face fall out with the water from the edges of his beard. Then he washes his hands up to the elbows, and his sins from his hands fall out from the tips of his fingers. Then he wipes his head, and his sins from his head fall out with the water from the edges of his hair. Then he washes his feet up to the ankles as Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, has commanded, and his sins from his feet fall out with the water from the tips of his toes. Then he stands, praises Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, extolling Him with what is fitting for Him, then performs two rak’ahs, and he comes out of his sins like the day his mother bore him.”
This sahih hadith shows that Allah the Exalted commanded the washing of the feet in wudu. Where is that command? It is in this very noble verse.
◈ Imam al-Bayhaqi (may Allah have mercy on him) says about this hadith:
وفي ذٰلك دلالة علٰي أن الله تعالٰي أمر بغسلهما .
“This hadith shows that Allah the Exalted commanded the washing of the feet in wudu.”
◈ The seal of the exegetes, Hafiz Ibn Kathir (may Allah have mercy on him), says:
وفيه : ’ثم يغسل قدميه، كما أمره الله‘، فدل علٰي أن القرآن يأمر بالغسل .
“This hadith mentions that the one performing wudu then washes his feet as Allah commanded. This shows that the Quran commands the washing of the feet.”
The Prophet ﷺ also taught the washing of the feet through his blessed practice, and never wiped over bare feet in his lifetime. More detail on this will follow later.
As for those who say that in وارجلكم إلى الكعبين the word وارجلكم is read with a kasrah instead of a fathah, so that it is conjoined to برء وسكم and, just as the head is wiped, the feet will be wiped too, their refutation is found in this hadith.
Whether read with fathah or kasrah, both readings are sahih, but in both cases the meaning is washing the feet, because the Prophet ﷺ has made clear to the Ummah that Allah commanded the washing of the feet. The Prophet ﷺ also confirmed this through his blessed action. The hadith is itself the most authoritative explanation and commentary of the Quran.
◈ Allamah al-Mawardi (364-450 AH) writes:
غسل الرجلين فى الوضوئ مجمع عليه بنص الكتاب والسنة، وفرضها عند كافة الفقهائ الغسل دون المسح .
“Washing the feet in wudu is established by the texts of the Book and the Sunnah, and there is consensus upon it.
According to all the jurists, the obligation for the feet is to wash them, not to wipe them.”
◈ Allamah al-Kasani, Hanafi (d. 587 AH), writes:
وقد ثبت بالتواتر أن النبى صلى الله عليه وسلم غسل رجليه فى الوضوئ، لا يجحده مسلم، فكان قوله وفعله بيان المراد بالـآية .
“It has been established by mass transmission (tawatur) that the Prophet ﷺ washed his blessed feet in wudu. No Muslim can deny this. Thus the saying and action of the Prophet ﷺ are the explanation of the verse of the Quran.”
◈ Hafiz Ibn Kathir (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
هٰذه الآية الكريمة دالة علٰي وجوب غسل الرجلين، مع ما ثبت بالتواتر من فعل رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم، علٰي وفق ما دلت هٰذه الآية الكريمة، وهم مخالفون لذٰلك كله، وليس لهم دليل صحيح فى نفس الـأمر، وللٰه الحمد .
“This noble verse indicates the obligation of washing the feet in wudu. Then, by mass transmission, the blessed action of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ in accordance with this noble verse has also been established. The Rafidis oppose all these proofs, while they have no sahih proof at all on this issue, and all praise is for Allah!”
◈ The commentator on Sahih al-Bukhari, Hafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on him), says:
وقد تواترت الـأخبار عن النبى صلى الله عليه وسلم فى صفة وضوئه، أنه غسل رجليه، وهو المبين لأمر الله، وقد قال فى حديث عمرو بن عبسة، الذى رواه ابن خزيمة وغيره مطولا فى فضل الوضوئ، : ’ثم يغسل قدميه، كما أمره الله‘ .
“In the chapter on wudu, there are mutawatir hadiths from the Prophet ﷺ that he washed both his feet. The Prophet ﷺ is the one who clarifies the command of Allah. In the long hadith of Sayyidina ‘Amr ibn ‘Abasah (may Allah be pleased with him), which Imam Ibn Khuzaymah and others narrated in the virtue of wudu, the Prophet ﷺ said that then he washes his two feet, as Allah has commanded him.”
Reading with a fatha (zabar):
Ikrimah narrates about Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him):
إنه قرأ : (وارجلكم)، يعني : رجع الـأمر إلى الغسل .
’’ He read it with a fatha, meaning that the command is to wash the feet in this verse. “
◈ Imam Mujahid (may Allah have mercy on him), a Tabi’i, says:
رجع القرآن إلى الغسل، وقرأ : {وارجلكم}، ونصبها .
’’ The Qur’anic command returns to washing; he read it with a fatha (nasb). “
◈ Imam al-Dahhak ibn Muzahim, a Tabi’i, (may Allah have mercy on him), recited this noble verse with a fatha and said:
اغسلوها غسلا . ’’ Wash your feet thoroughly. “
◈ Urwah ibn al-Zubayr, a Tabi’i, (may Allah have mercy on him), is reported to have said:
إنه قرأها بذٰلك (وارجلكم)، وقال : عاد إلى الغسل .
’’ He read it with a fatha and said: its conjunction is to washing. “
◈ Imam Malik (may Allah have mercy on him) was asked whether it is to be read with a fatha or a kasra? He said:
إنما هو الغسل، وليس بالمسح، لا تمسح الـأرجل، إنما تغسل .
’’ However it is recited, what is meant is washing, not wiping. There is no wiping on the feet; rather they must be washed. “ Then he was asked whether one who wipes over the feet has a valid wudu? He said: No.
◈ Isa ibn Mina, Qalun (may Allah have mercy on him), the reciter of Madinah, student of Nafi’, a well-known expert in tajwid and grammar, says:
قرأت علٰي نافع بن عبد الرحمٰن بن أبي نعيم القارئ هٰذه القرائ ة غير مرة، نذكر فيها : {برئ وسكم وارجلكم} مفتوحة .
’’ I recited this reading to the Imam and reciter Nafi’ ibn Abd al-Rahman ibn Abi Na’im many times. In it we would read with a fatha, as follows: برئ وسكم وارجلكم .
◈ Imam al-Shafi’i (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
ونحن نقرأها : {برئ وسكم وارجلكم} علٰي معنٰي : اغسلوا وجوهكم، وأيديكم، وأرجلكم، وامسحوا برؤوسكم .
’’ We read it with a fatha, and the meaning is: wash your faces, your hands and your feet, and wipe your heads. “
◈ Imam Isma’il ibn Abd al-Rahman, al-Suddi al-Kabir, (may Allah have mercy on him), in his commentary on it says:
فيقول : اغسلوا وجوهكم، واغسلوا أرجلكم، وامسحوا برؤوسكم، فهٰذا من التقديم والتأخير .
’’ Allah the Exalted says: wash your faces and your feet, and wipe over your heads. This is from the category of inversion (taqdim wa ta’khir). “
◈ Imam Ibn al-Mundhir (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
وبالقراء ة الـأولٰي نقرأها (وارجلكم)، والدليل علٰي صحة هٰذه القراء ة الـأخبار الثابتة عن نبي الله صلى الله عليه وسلم، الدالة علٰي ذٰلك، وهو أنه غسل رجليه، وفي غسله رجليه دليل علٰي صحة ما قلنا، لأنه المبين عن الله، وعن معنٰي ما أراد بقوله : (وارجلكم) .
’’ We read it with the first (fatha) reading. The evidence for the soundness of this reading is the established narrations from the Prophet of Allah ﷺ which mention that he washed his feet, and his washing of his feet is evidence for the soundness of our position as well, since he is the one who explains on behalf of Allah and the one who clarifies what He intended by His saying: “and your feet.” “
◈ The Sunni Imam Abu Ja’far Muhammad ibn Jarir al-Tabari (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
اختلفت القرائ فى قرائ ة ذٰلك، فقرأه جماعة من قرائ الحجاز والعراق : (وارجلكم إلى الكعبين) نصبا، فتأويله : إذا قمتم إلى الصلاة، فاغسلوا وجوهكم، وأيديكم إلى المرافق، وأرجلكم إلى الكعبين، وامسحوا برئ وسكم، وإذا قرئ كذٰلك، كان من المؤخر الذى معناه التقديم، وتكون الـأرجل منصوبة عطفا على الـأيدي، وتأول قارئ وا ذٰلك كذٰلك : أن الله جل ثناؤه إنما أمر عباده بغسل الـأرجل، دون المسح بها .
’’ The reciters differed over the reading of this place. A group of reciters from Hijaz and Iraq read it with a fatha (nasb): “and your feet up to the ankles”. Its interpretation: when you rise to prayer, first wash your faces, your hands up to the elbows, and your feet up to the ankles, and wipe your heads. When it is read thus, it is a word placed later but meaning earlier. أيدي [hands] being conjoined, أرجل [feet] is read in the accusative. Those who read with a fatha interpreted it as: Allah the Exalted commanded His servants to wash the feet in wudu, not to wipe them. “
The reading with the kasra and its correct interpretation
Although the reading with the kasra (zer) is also established, it does not negate washing the feet. Rather, its correct interpretation is also that the feet are to be washed, as follows:
❀ The Companion of the Messenger, Sayyiduna Anas ibn Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) said:
نزل القرآن بالمسح، والسنة الغسل .
“The Qur’an was revealed with the wording of wiping, and the Sunnah is washing [the feet].”
The meaning is that in the Holy Qur’an the words وارجلكم were stated, joining the feet to the wiping of the head, meaning that wiping was commanded for the feet; but the correct meaning of this wiping is washing, as is established from the Sunnah of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) in both word and deed.
How can the meaning of wiping be washing? In the Arabic language, wiping is used in the sense of washing. Arabic speakers are well aware of this. A sahih hadith narrated by the Tabi’i Nazzal ibn Sabrah (may Allah have mercy on him), which we will mention later, uses wiping in the sense of washing; moreover, the practice of Sayyiduna Anas ibn Malik (may Allah be pleased with him), the very one who made this statement, also indicates this, as follows:
◈ The well-known Tabi’i, Humayd al-Tawil narrates:
إن أنسا كان يغسل قدميه ورجليه، حتٰي يسيل الماء .
“Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) would wash his feet so thoroughly that water would flow.”
◈ Humayd al-Tawil also narrates:
قال موسي بن أنس لأنس، ونحن عنده : يا أبا حمزة ! إن الحجاج خطبنا بالـأهواز، ونحن معه، فذكر الطهور، فقال : اغسلوا وجوهكم وأيديكم وامسحوا برئ وسكم وأرجلكم، وإنه ليس شيئ من ابن آدم أقرب إلٰي خبثه من قدميه، فاغسلوا بطونهما وظهورهما وعراقيبهما، فقال أنس : صدق الله، وكذب الحجاج، قال الله : {وامسحوا برئ وسكم وارجلكم}، قال : وكان أنس إذا مسح قدميه بلهما .
“We were with Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him), when his son Musa ibn Anas said to him: O Abu Hamzah! We were with Hajjaj in Ahwaz; he delivered a sermon to us and, mentioning purification, said: Wash your faces and your hands, and wipe your heads and your feet. Nothing of the son of Adam is closer to his impurity than his feet, so wash their underside, upper side and heels thoroughly. Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) said: Allah has spoken the truth, and Hajjaj has lied. Allah has said: وامسحوا برء وسكم وارجلكم (wipe your heads and your feet). Whenever Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) wiped his feet, he would soak them.”
This shows that for Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him), the Qur’anic command of wiping meant washing; that is why he himself, acting on Allah’s command in light of the Prophetic Sunnah, would wash his feet.
As for calling Hajjaj a liar, Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) did not call him a liar for commanding the washing of the feet; rather, he declared false his self-made argument that a person’s feet are closest to his impurity. If, in Sayyiduna Anas’s view, washing the feet were a lie, why would he wash his own feet himself, and why would he call it the Sunnah of the Messenger?
◈ Imam Ibn al-Mundhir (may Allah have mercy on him) said regarding the reading with the kasra:
وقد زعم بعض أهل العلم أن ليس فى قراء ة من قرأ (وارجلكم) على الخفض، ما يوجب المسح دون الغسل، لأن العرب ربما نسقت الحرف علٰي طريقة المجاور له، قال الـأعشٰي :
لقد كان فى حول ثوائ ثويته …… تقضي لبانات ويسأم سائم قال : فخفض الثوائ لمجاورته الحول، وهو فى موضع رفع، قال : ولغة معروفة لتميم قولهم (جحر ضب خرب)، قال : والخرب صفة للجحر، فخفضوه لمجاورته الضب، قال أبو بكر : وغسل رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم رجليه، وقوله : ’ويل للـأعقاب من النار‘، كفاية لمن وفقه الله للصواب، ودليل علٰي أن الذى يجب غسل القدمين، لا المسح عليهما، لأنه المبين عن الله معنٰي ما أراد مما فرض فى كتابه .
“Some scholars have stated that in the reading of one who reads (wa-arjulikum) with the kasra there is no evidence that requires wiping rather than washing, because the Arabs sometimes give a word the case-ending of a neighbouring word, as the poet A’sha said: لقد كان فى حول ثوائ ثويته …… تقضي لبانات ويسأم سائم Here the poet gave thawa’ the kasra because of its proximity to hawl, though it was in the nominative position. Similarly, there is a well-known dialect of Banu Tamim in their saying: جحر ضب خرب In this phrase the word خرب is an adjective of jahr, but they gave it the kasra because of its proximity to the word ضب. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) washed his blessed feet during wudu and said that for dry heels there is the valley of ‘wayl’ in Hell. For the one whom Allah has enabled to accept the truth, this is sufficient. These hadiths are evidence that washing the feet in wudu is obligatory, not wiping, because the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) is the one appointed by Allah to make clear the reality of what was made obligatory in the Holy Qur’an.”
◈ The hadith scholar of Andalus, Hafiz Ibn Abd al-Barr said:
وإن كانت قد قرئت : (وارجلكم)، بالجر، فذٰلك معطوف على اللفظ، دون المعنٰي، والمعنٰي فيه الغسل، على التقديم والتأخير، فكأنه قال عز وجل : إذا قمتم إلى الصلاة فاغسلوا وجوهكم وأيديكم إلى المرافق وأرجلكم إلى الكعبين وامسحوا برؤوسكم، والقرائتان بالنصب والجر صحيحتان مستفيضتان، والمسح ضد الغسل، ومخالف له، وغير أن تبطل إحدي القراء تين بالـأخرٰي، ما وجد إلٰي تخريج الجمع بينهما سبيل، وقد وجدنا العرب تخفض بالجوار،…، فعلٰي ما ذكرنا تكون معنى القرائة بالجر النصب، ويكون الخفض على اللفظ للمجاورة، والمعني الغسل، وقد يراد بلفظ المسح الغسل عند العرب، من قولهم : تمسحت للصلاة، والمراد الغسل، ويشير إلٰي هٰذا التأويل كله قول النبى صلى الله عليه وسلم : ’ويل للـأعقاب من النار‘ .
’’ Although it has also been read with a kasra (jarr), that word is only a conjunction with the preceding word in its form, not in its meaning. This is a case of inversion (taqdim and ta’khir), and its meaning is washing. The meaning of Allah’s statement is: when you rise to pray, wash your faces, your hands up to the elbows, and your feet up to the ankles, and wipe your heads. Both readings, with fatha (nasb) and with kasra (jarr), are sahih and widely transmitted. (Apparently) wiping is the opposite of washing and contrary to it, but it is not permissible to declare one of the two readings invalid by the other as long as a way to reconcile them exists. We have seen that the Arabs give kasra because of proximity…. According to what we have mentioned, the meaning of the reading with kasra is the same as the reading with fatha, and the kasra is only lexical because of proximity, so its meaning is washing. Then the Arabs sometimes use the word “wiping” to mean washing, as they say: تمسحت للصلاة (I performed wiping for prayer), meaning washing (of the limbs in wudu). The Prophet’s saying, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, points to this same meaning: ويل للـأعقاب من النار (Woe to the heels from the Fire). ”
◈ The scholar Muhammad ibn ‘Ali ibn Muhammad, Ibn Abi al-‘Izz al-Hanafi (731-792 AH), says:
ولفظ الآية لا يخالف ما تواتر من السنة، فإن المسح كما يطلق ويراد به الإصابة، كذٰلك يطلق ويراد به الإسالة، كما تقول (العرب) : تمسحت للصلاة، وفي الآية ما يدل علٰي أنه لم يرد بمسح الرجلين المسح الذى هو قسيم الغسل، بل المسح الذى الغسل قسم منه، فإنه قال : (الي الكعبين)، ولم يقل : إلى الكعاب، كما قال : (الي المرافق)، فدل علٰي أنه ليس فى كل رجل كعب واحد، كما فى كل يد مرفق واحد، بل فى كل رجل كعبان، فيكون تعالٰي قد أمر بالمسح إلى العظمين الناتئين، وهٰذا هو الغسل، فإن من يمسح المسح الخاص يجعل المسح لظهور القدمين، وجعل الكعبين فى الآية غاية يرد قولهم، فدعواهم أن الفرض مسح الرجلين إلى الكعبين، اللذين هما مجتمع الساق والقدم، عند معقد الشراك، مردود بالكتاب والسنة،…، فالسنة المتواترة تقضي علٰي ما يفهمه بعض الناس من ظاهر القرآن، فإن الرسول بين للناس لفظ القرآن ومعناه.
’’ (With the reading in kasra as well,) the words of the noble verse do not contradict the mutawatir Sunnah (washing the feet in wudu), because just as wiping means touching, wiping also means pouring water. The Arabs’ saying تمسحت للصلاة (I performed wudu for prayer) is evidence for this. The verse contains indications that Allah did not intend the wiping that is the opposite of washing, but the wiping of which washing is a type. Allah said الي الكعبين ((in dual form) up to the two ankles), and did not say إلى الكعاب ((in plural form) up to the ankles). Regarding the hands, He said (in plural form) up to the elbows. This shows that just as each hand has one elbow, not every foot has one ankle; rather each foot has two ankles. Thus Allah ordered wiping up to the two protruding bones, and this is possible only through washing, since dry wiping is only on the upper part of the foot. In this verse, the command to wipe up to the two ankles refutes the claim of the Rafidis. Their claim is that wiping of the feet up to the two ankles, which are at the place where the sandal strap is fastened, where the foot and shin meet, is obligatory; but this claim is rejected by the evidence of the Book and the Sunnah… Thus the mutawatir Sunnah rules out the meaning some people understand from the apparent wording of the Qur’an. The Messenger explained to the people both the wording of the Qur’an and its meaning. ”
◈ The renowned imam of lexicography and literature, Muhammad ibn Ahmad ibn al-Azhari (282-370 AH), writes:
وهي أجود القرائ تين، لموافقتها الـأخبار الصحيحة عن النبي، عليه السلام، فى غسل الرجلين، ومن قرأ (وارجلكم) عطفها علٰي قوله : (وامسحوا برء وسكم)، وبينت السنة أن المراد بمسح الـأرجل غسلها، وذٰلك أن المسح فى كلام العرب يكون غسلا، ويكون مسحا باليد، والـأخبار جائ ت بغسل الـأرجل ومسح الرؤوس، ومن جعل مسح الـأرجل كمسح الرؤوس، خطوطا بالـأصابع، فقد خالف ما صح عن رسول الله، صلى الله عليه وسلم، أنه قال : ويل للعراقيب من النار‘ .
’’ This (the fatha reading) is the most excellent reading, because it agrees with the sahih narrations from the Prophet, peace be upon him, regarding washing the feet in wudu. Whoever read it with kasra has made it a conjunction with wiping the head. The meaning in the Sunnah of the Prophet is explained as washing the feet, because in the speech of the Arabs wiping is used both in the sense of passing the hand over and in the sense of washing. From the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, the hadiths of wiping the head and washing the feet are established. Therefore, whoever wipes the feet with the fingers drawing lines as on the head, opposes the sahih saying of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him: Woe to the heels from the Fire. ”
◈ The hafiz Isma’il ibn ‘Umar, Ibn Kathir (701-774 AH), says:
وهٰذه قرائة ظاهرة فى وجوب الغسل، كما قال السلف .
’’ According to the Salaf, this reading is entirely clear on the obligation of washing the feet. ”
◈ Renowned commentator on hadith, Allamah Tibi (may Allah have mercy on him) (d. 743 AH) says:
ذهب الشيعة إلٰي أنه يمسح على الرجلين، لقوله تعالٰي : ﴿وامسحوا برئ وسكم وارجلكم﴾ علٰي قرائ ة الجر، فإنه تعالٰي عطف الرجل على الرأس، والرأس يمسح، فكذا الرجل، قلنا : وقد قرئ بالنصب، عطفا علٰي قوله : ﴿وايديكم﴾ ، وإذا ذهب إلى المسح يبقٰي مقتضي النص غير معمول به، بخلاف العكس، فإن المسح مغمور بالغسل، علٰي أن الـأحاديث الصحيحة تواترت، معاضدة لقرائ ة النصب، فوجب تأويل القرائ ة بالكسر، وفيه وجوه ؛ أحدها العطف على الجوار، كقوله تعالٰي : ﴿عذاب يوم اليم﴾ [هود 11 : 26] ، والـأليم صفة العذاب، فأخذ إعراب اليوم للمجاورة، وقوله تعالٰي : ﴿عذاب يوم محيط﴾ [هود 11: 84] ، …..، والثاني الاستغنائ بأحد الفعلين عن الآخر، والعرب إذا اجتمع فعلان متقاربان فى المعنٰي، ولكل واحد منهما متعلق، جوزت ذكر أحد الفعلين، وعطف متعلق المحذوف علٰي متعلق المذكور، علٰي حسب ما يقتضيه لفظه، حتٰي كأنه شريكه فى أصل الفعل، كما قال الشاعر :
يا ليت ! بعلك قد غدا ……… متقلدا سيفا ورمحا
وكقول الـآخر: ……، علفتها تبنا وماء ا باردا، تقديره : علفتها تبنا، وسقيتها مائ ا باردا، ومتقلدا سيفا، وحاملا رمحا، والثالث قول الزجاج : يجوز {ارجلكم} بالخفض، علٰي معنٰي : فاغسلوا، لأن قوله تعالٰي : (الي الكعبين) قد دل عليه، لأن التحديد يفيد الغسل، كما فى قوله تعالٰي : ﴿الي المرافق﴾ ، ولو أريد المسح لم يحتج إلى التحديد، كما فى قوله : ﴿وامسحوا برئ وسكم﴾ من غير تحديد، ويطلق المسح على الغسل .
’’ The Rafidi Shia hold that wiping is to be done on the feet in wudu. Their evidence is the saying of Allah, the Exalted: ﴿وامسحوا برئ وسكم وارجلكم﴾. They argue that Allah conjoined رجل (feet) to راس (head); therefore, just as the head is wiped, so the feet are wiped. We say that it has also been read with a fatha, conjoined to ايدي (hands). When the doctrine of wiping is adopted, the requirement of the divine statement is not fulfilled; conversely, if one washes, wiping is also acted upon. Furthermore, mutawatir sound hadiths also support the fatha reading, so the kasra reading must be interpreted. There are several forms of this: one is to accept the kasra by virtue of a neighbouring word (proximity), as in the saying of Allah, the Exalted: ﴿عذاب يوم اليم﴾
. Here the word اليم is an attribute of the word عذاب, but because of proximity it took the case of يوم. Likewise, the saying of Allah, the Exalted: ﴿عذاب يوم محيط﴾
, in which the word محيط is an attribute of the word عذاب (yet by virtue of proximity it accepted the case of يوم)…… The second form is to accept that one of two verbs is omitted and the other is sufficient. The Arabs do this regularly: when two verbs are close in meaning and both have complements, according to the requirement of the wording they permit omitting one of them and conjoining the complement of the omitted verb to the complement of the stated verb. In such cases it appears that the second complement also shared in the original verb with the first complement. An example is the poet’s saying:
يا ليت ! بعلك قد غدا ……… متقلدا سيفا ورمحا
Another poet said: علفتها تبنا وماء ا باردا،
The original wording of the second was: علفتها تبنا وسقيتها ماء ا باردا ., while the original wording of the first was: متقلدا سيفا وحاملا رمحا . (so the original wording of this noble verse is: wipe your heads and wash your feet up to the ankles). The third form is that stated by Allamah al-Zajjaj: that when read with a kasra, it means washing here, because the qualifier “up to the ankles” indicates it. Just as the hands have the qualifier “up to the elbows” and they are washed, so too the feet have the qualifier “up to the ankles”, therefore they too are to be washed. Had wiping of the feet been meant, no qualifier would have been needed, just as no qualifier is mentioned for wiping the head. The second point is that the word “masah” (wiping) is also used for washing. ”
Scriptural Evidence from Hadith
In the course of the Quranic proof, we have already cited the hadith narrated by the Companion of the Messenger of Allah, Sayyiduna Amr ibn Abasa (may Allah be pleased with him), that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ commanded the washing of the feet and declared it to be a command of Allah.
Let us now consider further prophetic hadiths on this matter:
① Sayyiduna Abdullah ibn Amr (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates:
تخلف النبى صلى الله عليه وسلم عنا فى سفرة سافرناها، فأدركنا وقد أرهقنا العصر، فجعلنا نتوضأ ونمسح علٰي أرجلنا، فنادٰي بأعلٰي صوته : ’ويل للـأعقاب من النار‘، مرتين أو ثلاثا .
“On a journey, the Prophet ﷺ fell behind us. He caught up with us when the time of Asr had already become pressing. We began to perform wudu and to wipe over our feet, so he called out in a loud voice, twice or three times: ‘Woe to the heels from the Fire.'”
② Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates:
إن النبى صلى الله عليه وسلم راٰي رجلا، لم يغسل عقبيه، فقال : ’ويل للـأعقاب من النار‘ .
“The Prophet ﷺ saw a man who had not washed his heels, so he said: ‘Woe to the heels from the Fire.'”
❀ The wording in Sahih Muslim is:
ويل للعراقيب من النار .
“Woe to the hamstrings (heel tendons) from the Fire.”
③ Sayyida Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) said to her brother Abdur Rahman ibn Abi Bakr:
أسبغ الوضوء، فإني سمعت رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم يقول : ’ويل للـأعقاب من النار‘ .
“Perform wudu thoroughly, for I heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ say: ‘Woe to the heels from the Fire.'”
④ Sayyiduna Abdullah ibn Harith ibn Jaz al-Zubaidi (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates:
سمعت رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم يقول : ’ويل للـأعقاب، وبطون الـأقدام من النار‘ .
“I heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ say: ‘Woe to the heels and the dry lower parts of the feet from the Fire, which is the valley of Wail.'”
Imam Ibn Khuzaymah
and Imam al-Hakim (may Allah have mercy on him) have called this hadith “sahih”.
Hafiz Ibn Kathir (may Allah have mercy on him)
has declared its chain to be “sahih”.
⑤ Sayyiduna Jabir ibn Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates:
سمعت رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم يقول : ’ويل للـأعقاب من النار‘ .
“I heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ say: ‘Woe to the dry heels from the valley of Wail.'”
Benefit:
Sayyiduna Abu Sa’id al-Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
’ويل واد فى جهنم، يهوي به الكافر أربعين خريفا، قبل أن يبلغ قعرها‘ .
“Wail is a valley in Hell; a disbeliever who falls into it will take forty years to reach its bottom.”
Imam al-Hakim (may Allah have mercy on him) has called this hadith “sahih”, and Hafiz al-Dhahabi (may Allah have mercy on him) agreed with him. The narration of Darraj from Abu al-Haytham is at least “hasan”.
The hadith about dry heels and the jurists
On these words, Imam al-Bukhari (may Allah have mercy on him) gave the following chapter heading:
باب غسل الرجلين، ولا يمسح على القدمين .
“Chapter: The washing of the feet, and not wiping over the feet.”
◈ Imam al-Tirmidhi (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
وفقه هٰذا الحديث أنه لا يجوز المسح على القدمين، إذ لم يكن عليها خفان أو جوربان .
“From this hadith it is understood that when there are no socks or stockings on the feet, wiping over them is not permissible.”
◈ Imam Ibn al-Mundhir (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
وغسل رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم رجليه، وقوله : ’ويل للـأعقاب من النار‘، كفاية لمن وفقه الله للصواب، ودليل علٰي أن الذى يجب غسل القدمين، لا المسح عليهما، لأنه المبين عن الله معنٰي ما أراد مما فرض فى كتابه .
“The Messenger of Allah ﷺ washed his blessed feet in wudu and said that there is a valley in Hell called ‘Wayl’ for dry heels. For the person whom Allah has granted the tawfiq to accept the truth, this is sufficient. These hadiths are evidence that in wudu it is obligatory to wash the feet, not to wipe them, because the Prophet ﷺ was appointed by Allah to explain the reality of what was made obligatory in the Noble Qur’an.”
◈ The chapter heading of Imam Ibn Khuzaymah (may Allah have mercy on him) is:
باب التغليظ فى ترك غسل بطون الـأقدام فى الوضوئ، فيه أيضا دلالة علٰي أن الماسح علٰي ظهر القدمين غير مؤد للفرض، لا كما زعمت الروافض أن الفرض مسح ظهورهما، لا غسل جميع القدمين .
“A statement on the warning against not washing the inner parts of the feet in wudu. This hadith also shows that one who wipes over the top of the feet does not fulfil the obligation. The claim of the Rafidah that wiping over the top of the feet is obligatory in wudu, and that washing the entire feet is not obligatory, is baseless.”
◈ Elsewhere, Imam Ibn Khuzaymah gave the following chapter heading for the same hadith:
باب التغليظ فى ترك غسل العقبين فى الوضوئ، والدليل علٰي أن الفرض غسل القدمين لا مسحهما، إذا كانتا باديتين غير مغطيتين بالخف، أو ما يقوم مقام الخف، لا علٰي ما زعمت الروافض أن الفرض مسح القدمين لا غسلهما، إذ لو كان الماسح على القدمين مؤديا للفرض، لما جاز أن يقال لتارك فضيلة : ويل له، وقال صلى الله عليه وسلم : ’ويل للـأعقاب من النار‘، إذا ترك المتوضئ غسل عقبيه .
“A statement on the warning against not washing the heels in wudu. This hadith is evidence that when the feet are bare and not covered by socks or the like, washing them in wudu is obligatory, not wiping them. If one who wipes over them fulfilled the obligation, then (washing the feet would be) merely a virtuous act, and it would not be permissible to threaten its neglecter with the valley of Hell, whereas a person performing wudu did not wash his heels, and the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said that for dry heels there is a valley ‘Wayl’ in Hell.”
◈ Hafiz Ibn Abd al-Barr (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
فى هٰذا الحديث من الفقه إيجاب غسل الرجلين، وفي ذٰلك تفسير لقول الله عز وجل : ﴿وأرجلكم إلى الكعبين﴾ ، وبيان أنه أراد الغسل، لا المسح .
“This hadith contains the jurisprudence that washing the feet is obligatory in wudu. This hadith is an explanation of the saying of Allah: وأرجلكم إلى الكعبين
and it clearly shows that what Allah intended is washing the feet, not wiping them.”
◈ Hafiz al-Dhahabi (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
غسل الرجلين شرع لازم، بينه لنا الرسول، اللهم صل عليه، وقال : ’ويل للـأعقاب من النار‘، وعليه الـأمة، ولا اعتبار لمن شذ .
“Washing the feet in wudu is obligatory. Our Prophet ﷺ made this clear by saying: For dry heels there is a valley ‘Wayl’ in Hell. The whole Ummah acts upon this. Those who break away from the Ummah have no standing.”
◈ Ibn Kathir (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
ووجه الدلالة من هٰذه الـأحاديث ظاهرة، وذٰلك أنه لو كان فرض الرجلين مسحهما، أو أنه يجوز ذٰلك فيهما، لما توعد علٰي تركه .
“The inference from these hadiths is very clear, because if wiping the feet were obligatory, or if it were sufficient in wudu, the Prophet ﷺ would not have threatened those who neglect it.”
◈ Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
وما تقوله الإمامية من أن الفرض مسح الرجلين إلى الكعبين، اللذين هما مجتمع الساق والقدم، عند معقد الشراك، أمر لا يدل عليه القرآن بوجه من الوجوه، ولا فيه عن النبى صلى الله عليه وسلم حديث يعرف، ولا هو معروف عن سلف الـأمة، بل هم مخالفون للقرآن والسنة المتواترة، ولإجماع السابقين الـأولين والتابعين لهم بإحسان .
“The Imamiyyah Rafidah have fabricated the claim that wiping the feet is obligatory, and that this is up to the ankles, which in their view are the joints where the shin and the foot meet, near the place where the shoelace is tied. This is a matter on which the Qur’an does not indicate in any way, nor is there any known hadith from the Prophet ﷺ about it, nor is it known from the early generations of the Ummah. Rather, they oppose the Qur’an, the mutawatir Sunnah, and the consensus of the foremost early Muslims (al-Sabiqun al-Awwalun) and their followers with excellence.”
⑥ Umar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates:
إن رجلا توضأ، فترك موضع ظفر علٰي قدمه، فأبصره النبى صلى الله عليه وسلم، فقال : ’ارجع، فأحسن وضوئك‘، فرجع، ثم صلٰي .
“A man performed wudu but left a spot the size of a fingernail on his foot dry. The Prophet ﷺ saw him and said: Go back and perform wudu properly. He went back (and performed wudu again), then prayed.”
⑦ Anas ibn Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates:
إن رجلا جاء إلى النبى صلى الله عليه وسلم، قد توضأ، وترك علٰي قدمه موضع الظفر، فقال له رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم : ’ارجع، فأحسن وضوئك‘ .
’’ A man came to the Prophet ﷺ; he had performed wudu but had left a spot on his foot the size of a fingernail dry. The Prophet ﷺ said to him: Go back and perform wudu properly. “
⑧ A wife of the Prophet ﷺ, the Mother of the Believers, narrates:
إن رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم راٰي رجلا يصلي، وفي ظهر قدمه لمعة قدر الدرهم، لم يصبها المائ، فأمره رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم أن يعيد الوضوء .
’’ The Messenger of Allah ﷺ saw a man praying, and on his foot there was a dry spot the size of a dirham where water had not reached. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ commanded him to repeat the wudu. “
◈ Hafiz Ibn Kathir (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
وهٰذا إسناد جيد قوي صحيح .
’’ This chain is good, strong and sahih. “
⑨ Sayyiduna Abdullah ibn Zayd (may Allah be pleased with him), in describing the wudu of the Prophet ﷺ, says:
ثم غسل رجليه إلى الكعبين .
’’ Then he washed his feet up to the ankles. “
⑩ The Tabi’i Abd Khair (may Allah have mercy on him) narrates:
أتانا علي، وقد صلٰي، فدعا بطهور، فقلنا : ما يصنع بالطهور وقد صلي، ما يريد إلا ليعلمنا، فأتي بإنائ فيه مائ وطست، فأفرغ من الإناء علٰي يمينه، فغسل يديه ثلاثا،…، فمسح برأسه مرة واحدة، ثم غسل رجله اليمنٰي ثلاثا، ورجله الشمال ثلاثا، ثم قال : (من سره أن يعلم وضوء رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم، فهو هٰذا ) .
’’ Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) came to us, and he had already prayed. He asked for water for wudu. We thought: what will he do with water when he has already prayed? He only wants to teach us. A vessel of water and a basin were brought. He poured from the vessel over his right hand and washed his hands three times… Then he wiped his head once, then washed his right foot three times and his left foot three times. Then he said: Whoever wishes to know the wudu of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, let him look at this wudu. “
⑪ Jubayr ibn Nufayr (may Allah have mercy on him) narrates:
إن أبا جبير الكندي قدم علٰي رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم، فأمر له بوضوئ، فقال : ’توضأ يا أبا جبير!‘، فبدأ بفيه، فقال له رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم : ’لا تبدأ بفيك، فإن الكافر يبدأ بفيه‘، ودعا رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم بمائ، فتوضأ ثلاثا ثلاثا، ثم مسح برأسه، وغسل رجليه .
’’ Abu Jubayr al-Kindi came to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, and he ordered water for his wudu and said: Abu Jubayr! Perform wudu. He started with his mouth. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: Do not start with your mouth, for the disbeliever starts with his mouth. Then the Messenger of Allah ﷺ asked for water and performed wudu three times three times, then he wiped his head, and washed his feet. “
⑫ Regarding the wudu of Sayyiduna Uthman ibn Affan (may Allah be pleased with him):
ثم غسل رجليه إلى الكعبين، ثم قال : هٰكذا كان وضوء رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم .
’’ Then he (may Allah be pleased with him) washed both his feet up to the ankles, then said: The wudu of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ was like this. “
⑬ Regarding the wudu of Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both), it is narrated:
……، ثم مسح برأسه، ثم أخذ غرفة من مائ، فرش علٰي رجله اليمنٰي، حتٰي غسلها، ثم أخذ غرفة أخرٰي، فغسل بها رجله، يعني اليسرٰي، ثم قال : هٰكذا رأيت رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم يتوضأ .
’’ He wiped his head, then took a handful of water and poured it over his right foot until he had washed it, then took another handful and washed his left foot with it. Then he said: I saw the Messenger of Allah ﷺ perform wudu just like this. “
⑭ Sayyiduna al-Mustawrid ibn Shaddad (may Allah be pleased with him), a Companion from the Quraysh, narrates:
رأيت رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم يدلك بخنصره ما بين أصابع رجليه .
’’ I saw the Messenger of Allah ﷺ (during wudu) rubbing the space between the toes of his feet with his little finger. “
◈ Imam Malik (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
إن هٰذا حديث حسن .
’’ Indeed this hadith is hasan. “
◈ Imam al-Tahawi, the Hanafi (may Allah have mercy on him), writes:
وهٰذا لا يكون إلا فى الغسل، لأن المسح لا يبلغ فيه ذٰلك، إنما هو علٰي ظهور القدمين خاصة .
’’ Such (rubbing the space between the toes) can only happen in washing, because in wiping such a situation does not arise; wiping is only on the upper surface of the feet. “
⑮ Sayyiduna Luqayt ibn Sabrah (may Allah be pleased with him) said to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ: Teach me the method of wudu. The Prophet ﷺ said:
أسبغ الوضوء، وخلل بين الـأصابع، وبالغ فى الاستنشاق، إلا أن تكون صائما .
’’ Complete the wudu well, make khilal between the fingers, and rinse the nose thoroughly with water unless you are fasting. “
↰ This hadith has been declared “sahih” by Imam Ibn Khuzaymah
, Imam al-Hakim (may Allah have mercy on him)
, and Imam Ibn Hibban (may Allah have mercy on him)
. Hafiz al-Dhahabi (may Allah have mercy on him) agreed with Imam al-Hakim (may Allah have mercy on him).
There are other sahih ahadith about washing the feet in wudu. Regarding the aforementioned ahadith, Imam al-Tahawi, the Hanafi (may Allah have mercy on him) (321-238 AH), says:
فهٰذه الـآثار قد تواترت عن رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم أنه غسل قدميه فى وضوئه للصلاة .
’’ These ahadith are proven mutawatir from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, that he washed his blessed feet in his wudu for the prayer. “
◈ Regarding these ahadith, Imam al-Bayhaqi (may Allah have mercy on him) (458 – 384 AH) says:
فهذه الروايات اتفقت على أنه غسلها.
’’ All these ahadith unanimously indicate that he ﷺ washed his feet in wudu. “
The Companions and the Tabi’in
None of the Companions of the Prophet ﷺ denied the obligation of washing the feet in wudu.
On the contrary, in the earlier pages we have already established from several Companions and eminent Tabi’in that washing the feet in wudu is obligatory. Please observe further:
◈ Imam Mujahid ibn Jabr, a Tabi’i (may Allah have mercy on him), reports about Sayyidina Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both):
ان كنت لاسكب عليه الماء، فيغسل رجليه.
“I would pour water (for wudu), and he (may Allah be pleased with him) would wash his two feet.”
◈ Concerning the renowned jurist Tabi’i, Abu Mijlaz, Lahiq ibn Humayd (may Allah have mercy on him):
انه كان يغسل قدميه.
“He used to wash his feet (in wudu).”
◈ Concerning Yazid ibn Abi Ubayd (may Allah have mercy on him), the freed slave of Sayyidina Salamah ibn al-Akwa’ (may Allah be pleased with him):
كان يغسل قدميه.
“He used to wash his feet.”
Removing Doubts
Doubt No. ➊
Nazzal ibn Sabrah, a Tabi’i (may Allah have mercy on him), narrates:
صلينا مع علي، رضوان الله عليه، الظهر، ثم خرجنا إلى الرحبة، قال : فدعا بإناء، فيه شراب، فأخذه، فمضمض، واستنشق، ومسح وجهه و ذراعيه و رأسهٔ وقدميه، ثم شرب فضلهٔ، و هو قائم، ثم قال : إن ناسا يكرهون أن يشربوا، وهم قيام، إن رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم صنع مثل ما صنعت، وقال: هذا وضوء من لم يحدث.
“We prayed Zuhr with Sayyidina Ali (may Allah be pleased with him), then we went out toward al-Rahbah. He called for a vessel containing water, took it, rinsed his mouth, sniffed water into his nose, wiped his face, his arms, his head and his feet, then drank the remainder of the water while standing, and said: Some people dislike drinking while standing, but the Messenger of Allah ﷺ did exactly what I have done, and he said: This is the wudu of one who has not become impure.”
↰ This hadith cannot serve as evidence for wiping the feet. Rather, this hadith clearly shows that wiping here is used in the sense of a light washing, i.e., washing lightly, because in the wording of this hadith that we have cited, wiping is mentioned for the face and both hands along with the feet, while in the same hadith the words of washing the face and both hands also occur. Look at the wording of one narration of this same hadith:
❀ The words in Musnad al-Tayalisi are:
فغسل وجهه ويديه — .
“He washed his face and both hands.”
Secondly, this hadith also establishes that this form of light washing can be adopted when the one performing wudu is already in a state of wudu and is repeating it for some other purpose, such as teaching someone or removing lethargy.
◈ Imam al-Nasa’i (may Allah have mercy on him) placed this hadith under the following chapter heading:
صفة الوضوء من غير حدث.
“The method of performing wudu without having become impure.”
◈ Imam Ibn Khuzaymah (may Allah have mercy on him) established this chapter on this hadith:
باب ذكر الدليل على أن مسح النبى صلى الله عليه وسلم على القدمين كان، و هو طاهر، لا محدث.
“The proof that the Prophet ﷺ wiped over the feet while he was in a state of wudu, not while impure.”
◈ Imam Ibn Hibban (may Allah have mercy on him) placed this hadith under the following heading:
ذكر العلة التى من أجلها كان يمسح على بن أبى طالب، رضوان الله عليه، رجليه فى وضوئه،
“The reason for which Sayyidina Ali ibn Abi Talib (may Allah be pleased with him) used to wipe over the feet in his wudu.”
◈ Imam al-Bayhaqi (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
وفي هذا الحديث الثابت دلالة على أن الحديث الذى روي عن النبى صلى الله عليه وسلم فى المسح على الرجلين، إن صح، عنى به : وهو طاهر، غير محدث، إلا أن بعض الرواة كانه اختصر الحديث، فلم ينقل قولهٔ: هذا وضوء من لم یحدث .
“This established hadith indicates that the hadith in which wiping over the feet is narrated from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, if it is authentic, means that he ﷺ was in a state of wudu when doing so, not impure. However, some narrators, while abridging, did not transmit his ﷺ statement: This is the wudu of one who is not impure.”
Doubt No. ➋
Abd Khayr, a Tabi’i (may Allah have mercy on him), narrates:
رايت على بن ابي طالب، يمسح ظهور قدميه، ويقول : لو لا اني رأيت رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم مسح على ظهورهما، لظننت أن بطونهما أحق .
“I saw Sayyidina Ali ibn Abi Talib (may Allah be pleased with him) wiping the upper side of his feet. He was saying: If I had not seen the Messenger of Allah ﷺ wiping over his feet, I would have thought that the lower side of the feet had more right (to wiping).”
This hadith is not about wiping bare feet, but about wiping over socks (khuffayn). The reason is that we have already shown, from Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both), the cousin of Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him), that washing the feet is the Sunnah of the Prophet. For this reason some scholars have also called this hadith abrogated (mansukh), as follows:
❀ After mentioning this hadith, Imam al-Humaydi (may Allah have mercy on him) himself says:
إن كان على الخفين، فهو سنة، وإن كان على غير الخفين، فهو منسوخ.
“If the hadith refers to wiping over socks, then it is a Sunnah, and if it mentions wiping bare feet, then it is abrogated.”
◈ Imam of Andalusia, Hafiz Ibn Abd al-Barr (may Allah have mercy on him) says regarding this:
من أهل العلم من يحمل هذا على المسح على ظهور الخفين، ويقول : مغنى ذكر القدمين ههنا أن يكونا مغيبين فى الخفين، فهذا هو المسخ الذى ثبت عن النبى صلى الله عليه وسلم فعله، وأما المسيخ على القدمين، فلا يصح عنه بوجه من الوجوه، ومن قال : إن هذا الحديث على ظاهره، جعله منسوخا بقوله صلى الله عليه وسلم : ويل للأعقاب من النار .
“Some scholars interpret this hadith as wiping over the top of the socks. They say that the meaning of ‘feet’ here is feet covered by socks. Thus this wiping is the one that is established from the Prophet ﷺ in practice. By contrast, wiping bare feet is not established from him anywhere. Those scholars who interpret this hadith according to its apparent meaning (wiping bare feet) declare it abrogated by the Prophet’s ﷺ saying: ويل للاعقاب من النار (Woe to the heels from the Fire).”
◈ Imam al-Darimi (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
هذا الحديث منسوخ بقوله : ﴿وامسحوا برء وسكم وأرجلكم إلى الكعبين﴾.
“This hadith has been abrogated by the saying of Allah the Exalted: ﴿وامسحوا برء وسكم وأرجلكم إلى الكعبين﴾ (Wipe your heads and wash your feet up to the ankles).”
The correct view appears to be that the hadith of Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) is about wiping over socks, because it is Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) who narrated from the Prophet ﷺ the wiping over socks, and other Companions also relied on Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) in this matter, as follows:
◈ Shurayh ibn Hani (may Allah have mercy on him) narrates: I came to Sayyidah Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) to ask about wiping over socks, and she said:
عليك بابن أبى طالب، فاسئله، فإنه كان يسافر مع رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم، فسألناه، فقال: جعل رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم – ثلاثة أيام ولياليهن للمسافر، ويؤما وليلة للمقيم
“Go to the son of Abu Talib (Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) and ask him, for he used to travel with the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, and we asked him, and he related that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ set the period for wiping for the traveller as three days and three nights, and for the resident one day and one night.”
That is, the narration of wiping on the feet which Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) related refers to wiping over socks, as has been established in Sahih Muslim. The Rafidi Shia did not accept wiping over socks, which is established from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ by mass transmission (tawatur), rather they set out to prove wiping on the feet from the hadith about wiping over socks.
◈ Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
وقد تواترت السنة عن النبى صلى الله عليه وسلم بالمسح على الخفين، وبغسل الرجلين، والرافضية تخالف هذه السنة المتواترة.
“Wiping over socks in wudu and washing bare feet is the mass-transmitted (mutawatir) Sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ, but the Rafidah oppose these mass-transmitted Sunnahs.”
◈ The scholar Muhammad ibn Ali ibn Muhammad, Ibn Abi al-Izz al-Hanafi (may Allah have mercy on him) (731-792 AH) says:
تواترت السنة عن رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم بالمسح على الخفين، وبغسل الرجلين، والرافضة تخالف هذه السنة المتواترة.
“Wiping over socks and washing the feet are established from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ by the mass-transmitted Sunnah, but the Rafidah oppose this mass-transmitted Sunnah.”
◈ In this same connection Ibn Kathir (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
وقد ثبت بالتواتر عن رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم مشروعية المسح على الخفين، قولا منه وفعلا،—، وقد خالفت الروافض ذلك كله بلا مستند، بل بجهل وضلال، مع أنه ثابت فى صحيح مسلم، من رواية أمير المؤمنين على بن أبى طالب، رضي الله عنه.
“Wiping over socks is established from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ by tawatur, both verbally and practically… but the Rafidis, out of their ignorance and misguidance, have opposed all these hadiths without any evidence, even though the hadith of the Commander of the Faithful Sayyiduna Ali ibn Abi Talib is established on this in Sahih Muslim.”
Objection No. ➌
Aflah, mawla of Abu Ayyub al-Ansari (may Allah be pleased with him), narrates:
أنه كان يأمر بالمسح، وكان هو يغسل قدميه، قال : فقيل له فى ذلك، كيف تأمر بالمسح؟ فقال : بئسما لي إن كان مهنأه لكم، وإثمه علي، قد رايت رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم يفعلهٔ، ويامر به ولكنه خبب الي الوضوء.
“He used to order wiping and himself washed his feet. He was asked how he orders wiping. He said: (If I were to order wiping from myself) it would be very bad for me that you gain benefit from it (in the form of wiping instead of washing) and the sin (of ordering from myself) keeps falling upon me. I have seen the Messenger of Allah ﷺ wipe, and he ﷺ also used to order it, but washing the wudu (feet) is more beloved to me.”
Hafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on him) has declared its chain to be “sahih”.
This hadith too is not evidence for wiping bare feet; rather it speaks of wiping over socks. The matter is simply this: Sayyiduna Abu Ayyub al-Ansari (may Allah be pleased with him) used to order people to wipe over socks, but he personally preferred to take off his socks and wash his feet.
Objection No. ➍
It is narrated from Sayyiduna Aws ibn Abi Aws al-Thaqafi (may Allah be pleased with him):
إن رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم توضا ومسح على نعليه وقدميه.
“The Messenger of Allah ﷺ performed wudu and wiped over his shoes and his blessed feet.”
This narration is “da’if” (weak), because apart from Imam Ibn Hibban (may Allah have mercy on him)
, no one has declared its narrator ʿAṭāʾ al-ʿĀmirī reliable (thiqah). Therefore he is “majhul al-hal” (of unknown condition).
Hafiz Ibn al-Qattan al-Fasi (may Allah have mercy on him) has also declared him “majhul al-hal”.
◈ Hafiz al-Dhahabi (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
لا يعرف إلا بابنه.
“He is known only through his son.”
◈ Hafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on him) has described him as “maqbul” (majhul al-hal).
Doubt No. ➎
It is attributed to Sayyiduna Ibn ʿAbbas radiyallahu ʿanhuma that:
الوضوء غسلتان، ومسحتان.
“In wudu, washing is done twice and wiping is done twice.”
In the chain of this narration there is a narrator named Muhammad ibn Qays al-Khurasani, whose reliability could not be established. Moreover, it contains the “tadlis” (concealment of defects in the chain) of Ibn Jurayj (may Allah have mercy on him).
This same narration is also found in Musannaf ʿAbd al-Razzaq
, where there is the “tadlis” of Imam ʿAbd al-Razzaq (may Allah have mercy on him).
Doubt No. ➏
Sayyiduna Ibn ʿAbbas radiyallahu ʿanhuma, in the explanation of وارجلكم, said:
هو المسح .
“It means wiping.”
Its chain is “da’if” because of ʿAli ibn Zayd ibn Jadʿan ضعيف عند الجمهور.
Doubt No. ➐
From Imam Hasan al-Basri, the Tabi’i (may Allah have mercy on him), it is narrated:
إنما هو المسح على القدمين
“Only wiping on the feet is obligatory.”
Its chain is “da’if” due to the “tadlis” of Yunus ibn ʿUbayd.
Doubt No. ➑
ʿIkrimah, mawla of Ibn ʿAbbas (may Allah have mercy on him), says:
ليس على الرجلين غسل، إنما نزل فيهما المسح.
“Washing the feet is not obligatory; rather, the ruling of wiping was revealed concerning them.”
◈ Similarly, Imam Ayyub al-Sakhtiyani (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
رأيت عكرمة يمسح على رجليه، وكان يقول به .
“I saw ʿIkrimah (may Allah have mercy on him) wiping over his feet, and he also gave fatwa on this.”
◈ Also, Imam al-Shaʿbi (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
إنما هو المسح على الرجلين، ألا ترى أنه ما كان عليه الغسل جعل عليه الغسل، وما كان عليه المسح أهمل.
“Only wiping on the feet is obligatory. Do you not see that the part on which washing was required, washing was made obligatory on it, and the part on which wiping was required was dropped altogether?”
◈ Mundhir al-Thawri (may Allah have mercy on him) narrates:
كنا مع ابن الحنفية، فأراد أن يتوضأ، وعليه خفان، فنزع خفيه، ومسح على قدميه.
“We were with (Abu al-Qasim, Muhammad ibn ʿAli ibn Abi Talib) Ibn al-Hanafiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him). He intended to perform wudu, and he was wearing socks. He removed his socks and wiped over his feet.”
Some of these statements concern wiping over socks, and in some, wiping means light washing (ghusl khafif, a light washing), as:
◈ Ibn Kathir (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
فهذه آثار غريبة جدا، وهى محمولة على أن المراد بالمسح، هو الغسل الخفيف، لما سنذكره من السنة الثابتة فى وجوب غسل الرجلين،—، ومنهم من قال : هي محمولة على مسح القدمين إذا كان عليهما الحفان…، وعلي كل تقدير، فالوا جب غسل الرجلين فرضا، لا بد منه، للآية والأحاديث التى سنوردها.
“These are very unusual reports. In them, wiping means light washing (ghusl khafif). The evidence for it is the sahih hadith on the obligation of washing the feet, which we will mention… and some scholars say that these are to be understood as the case of wiping the feet when socks are worn on them… Whatever is meant by these reports, washing the feet in wudu is obligatory (fard wajib) by the noble verse and the ahadith that we are going to cite.”
The statement of Hafiz Ibn Kathir (may Allah have mercy on him) is also supported by these ahadith:
❀ Sayyiduna Tamim ibn Zayd al-Mazini radiyallahu ʿanhu narrates:
رأيت رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم توضأ، ومسح بالماء على لحيته ورجليه .
“I saw the Messenger of Allah ﷺ perform wudu. He ﷺ wiped his blessed beard and his blessed feet with water (i.e., washed them).”
Imam Ibn Khuzaymah (may Allah have mercy on him)
declared this hadith “sahih”.
◈ Hafiz al-Haythami (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
ورجاله موثقون . “Its narrators have been declared reliable.”
◈ Hafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
زعم ابن عبد البر أنه لا يقوم به حجة، وهو طعن مردود، ورجاله رجال الصحيح.
“Hafiz Ibn ʿAbd al-Barr (may Allah have mercy on him) said that it is not a valid proof, but this criticism is rejected, and all the narrators of this hadith are the narrators of Sahih al-Bukhari.”
◈ He also says:
رجاله ثقات . “Its narrators are thiqah.”
It is established that the word “mash” (wiping) is shared (mushtarak), and it also applies to washing.
❀ Similarly, from Sayyiduna ʿAbdullah ibn ʿAmr ibn al-ʿAs radiyallahu ʿanhu it is narrated:
تخلف رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم فى سفرة سافر ناها، فادركنا، وقد ارهقتنا صلاة العصر، ونحن نتوضا، فجعلنا نمسح على أرجلنا، فنادى بأعلي صوته : ﴿ويل للأعقاب من النار﴾ ، مرتين أو ثلاثا.
“On a journey the Messenger of Allah ﷺ fell behind us. When he caught up with us, the time for the ʿAsr prayer had already come and we were performing wudu. We were busy washing our feet, when he ﷺ called out in a loud voice two or three times: Woe to the heels from the Fire.”
This hadith is explicit evidence that “mash” in the sense of “ghasl” (washing) is also used.
❀ In the same category is the saying of the Prophet ﷺ narrated by Sayyiduna Rifa’ah ibn Rafi’ radiyallahu ʿanhu:
فيغسل وجهه ويديه إلى المرفقين، ويمسح برأسه ورجليه إلى الكعبين .
“Then he washes his face and both hands up to the elbows, wipes his head, and washes his feet up to the ankles.”
In this hadith too, “mash” for the feet means washing them, or the order of the wudu limbs is taken into account and there is a change of sequence, and the feet are conjoined with the washing of the face and hands, not with the wiping of the head. Mutawatir ahadith support this.
Summary
Washing the feet in wudu is obligatory. The Prophet ﷺ never wiped over bare feet throughout his life, but rather also commanded that the feet be washed thoroughly. He also warned of the severe threat of the valley of Wail in Hell for a dry spot left on the feet during wudu. If wiping over bare feet in wudu were permissible, why would there be such a severe warning?
Regarding the blessed verse of the Quran, whether وارجلكم is read with a fatha or a kasra, in both cases the feet must be washed, because the Prophet ﷺ himself washed his feet in wudu and taught the Ummah to do the same, and he indicated that washing the feet is the command of Allah. All these verbal and practical hadiths are a reliable explanation of the Quranic verse.
According to the reading with a fatha, وارجلكم is connected to the limbs that were commanded to be washed; the mention of the feet after wiping the head is in keeping with the order, and in this blessed verse the style of advancing and delaying (taqdim wa ta’khir) is used, which is common in the Arabic language. As for the reading with a kasra, according to the well-known Arabic style, since the neighbouring word ‘ru’us’ had a kasra, ‘arjul’ was also read with a kasra. This is a matter of wording; in meaning, the feet are connected to the same limbs that were commanded to be washed. One way of reconciling the two readings is that both readings establish two different states: with bare feet, they are washed according to the reading with a fatha, and if there are socks on the feet, wiping is done over them. The mutawatir Sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ supports both of these situations, but it is regrettable that the Shi’a deny both of these Sunnahs.
Consider: if there were a command to wipe over bare feet, the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) would certainly have acted upon it, yet not a single Companion’s wiping over bare feet is established at all. It was the Companions who conveyed the verses of the blessed Quran to us, and it was they who transmitted from the Prophet ﷺ the verbal and practical teaching of washing the feet in wudu. Then what sense does it make to accept the Quran while making a self-invented interpretation of it, and to completely reject the hadith, which is the true explanation of the Quran?
◈ Regarding this, the scholar Muhammad bin Ali bin Muhammad, Ibn Abi al-Izz al-Hanafi (may Allah have mercy on him) (731–792 AH), says:
فيقال لهم : الذين نقلوا عن النبى صلى الله عليه وسلم الوضوء قولا وفعلا، والذين تعلموا الوضوء منه، توضئوا على عهده، وهو يراهم ويقرهم، ونقلوه إلى من بعدهم، أكثر عددا من الذين نقلوا لفظ هذه الآية، فإن جميع المسلمين كانوا يتوضئون على عهده، ولم يتعلموا الوضوء إلا منه، فإن هذا العمل لم يكن معهودا عندهم فى الجاهلية، وهم قد رأوه يتوضا ما لا يحصي عدده إلا الله تعالى، ونقلوا عنه ذكر غسل الرجلين فى ما شاء الله من الحديث، حتى نقلوا عنه من غير وجه، فى كتب الصحيح وغيرها، أنهٔ قال : ”ويل للأعقاب، وبطون الأقدام، من النار “، مع أن الفرض إذا كان مسح ظاهر القدم، كان غسل الجميع كلفة لا تدعو إليها الطباع، كما تدعو الطباع إلى طلب الرياسة والمال، فلو جاز الطعن فى توائر صفة الوضوء، لكان فى نقل لفظ آية الوضوء أقرب إلى الجواز، وإذا قالوا : لفظ الآية ثبت بالتوائر الذى لا يمكن فيه الكذب ولا الخطأ، فثبوث التواتر فى نقل الوضوء عنه أولى وأكمل.
“Say to the Shi’a: those Companions who narrated from the Prophet ﷺ verbal and practical hadiths about wudu, who learned wudu from him, performed wudu in his presence, he approved it, and who conveyed the Sunnah wudu to those after them, are far more numerous than the Companions who narrated the wording of the verse of wudu. All the Companions who performed wudu during the lifetime of the Prophet ﷺ learned this wudu from him, because the method of this wudu did not exist in the Jahiliyyah. The Companions saw the Prophet ﷺ perform wudu countless times and narrated in many hadiths from him the washing of the feet. Even the Companions narrated from the Prophet ﷺ this saying, which is transmitted in the Sihah and other books through many chains: ويل للأعقاب، وبطون الأقدام، من النار (woe to the heels and soles of the feet from the Fire). Moreover, if wiping the upper part of the feet were obligatory, washing the whole foot would be a hardship which human nature, which generally inclines toward wealth and status, would never incline to, (so the washing of whole feet would not have become customary among all Muslims). If it is possible to cast doubt on the mutawatir hadiths describing the wudu of the Prophet ﷺ, then it would be even more possible to cast doubt on the blessed verse of wudu. If the Shi’a say that the words of the blessed verse are transmitted with such mass transmission that error and lying are not possible, then the mass transmission in the hadiths describing wudu is stronger and more complete.”
It is thus established that both readings provide evidence for washing the feet in wudu. This is why the Muslim Ummah has continued to act upon it, as:
◈ Hafiz al-Dhahabi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
وعليه عمل الأمة، ولا اعتبار بمن شذ.
“The Ummah has acted upon it (washing the feet in wudu). No weight is given to those who break away from the Ummah.”
◈ Shah Waliullah Dehlawi Hanafi (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
صفة الوضوء على ما ذكره عثمان، وعلى، وعبد الله بن زيد، وغيرهم، رضي الله عنهم، عن النبى صلى الله عليه وسلم، بل تواتر عنه صلى الله عليه وسلم، وتطابق عليه الامة أن يغسل يديه قبل إدخالهما الاناء، ويتمضمض، ويستنثر، ويستنشق، فيغسل وجهه، فذراعيه الي المرفقين، احد، مما هو كالشمس فى رابعة النهار. فيمسح برأسه، فيغسل رجليه إلى الكعبين، ولا عبرة بقوم تجارت بهم الأهواء، فأنكروا غسل الرجلين متمسكين بظاهر الآية،
فإنه لا فرق عندي بين من قال بهذا القول، وبين من أنكر غزوة بذر أو
“The description of wudu that has been narrated from the Prophet ﷺ by Sayyidina Uthman, Sayyidina Ali, Sayyidina Abdullah bin Zayd, and others (may Allah be pleased with them), indeed it is established from him ﷺ by mass transmission (tawatur), and the entire Ummah is in agreement upon it, is this: the one performing wudu should wash both hands before putting them into the vessel, rinse the mouth, put water into the nose, clear the nose, then wash the face, then wash both arms including the elbows, then wipe the head, and then wash both feet including the ankles. No weight is given to those who rejected washing the feet, following their desires, and sought to argue from the apparent wording of the Quran. In my view, there is no difference between those who say this and those who deny the battles of Badr and Uhud, which are as clear as the light of day.”
Some people, while departing from the congregation of Muslims, wash their feet before wudu and wipe over them at the end of wudu. Perhaps they consider their feet to be impure.
This is an explicit contradiction of the Quran, the Sunnah, and the consensus of the Ummah, and an action without evidence.
We pray that Allah grants us the ability to understand the Quran and Hadith according to the understanding of the righteous predecessors and to act upon it, keeps us upon the truth, and makes our end upon it. آمين يا رب العالمين
