Q9 :I read in an Islamic monthly magazine that
when a Muslim does his ablution, i.e. ‘wudhu’, he may pass his wet hand
over his footwear, only if it is made of leather. Wiping of socks made
of cloth is not permissible. The writer supports his opinion by saying
that according to Arabic literature, the word “jawrab”, which denotes
socks, applies only to leather-made socks. Is this true?
A9 : What I find strange is the definition the
writer uses for the word “jawrab”. It is certainly not true that it
denotes only leather-made socks. According to one of the best Arabic
dictionaries, it means “feet wrapper”. There is no hint that it must be
made of any particular materials. Where the writer has probably got
confused is the fact that the question of wiping feet covers is entered
into books of fiqh, or Islamic rulings, under the use of the “khuff”.
This is traditionally made of leather, but is different from socks. It
is similar to shoes, although it is without heels. That scholars agree
that this concession meant to make it easier for people to have
ablution, applies to all the types of footwear which cover the area
which we normally wash when we have the ablution. That includes the
whole feet up to the ankles. In operating this concession we rely on
the Hadith which tells us that one of the Prophet’s netpanions was
helping him to do his ablution by pouring water for him. When that man
got ready to pour water over the Prophet’s feet, the Prophet motioned
him that he did not need to have his feet washed, but wiping his socks
was sufficient. He said: “I have put them in when they were pure.” That
meant that he wore his socks after having had ablution. It is perhaps
useful to mention the rule here that if you do your ablution in the
morning, or indeed at any time during the day, then put on your socks
or boots, you make the intention (not by words but by being conscious
of what you intend to do) to avail yourself of this concession. If your
ablution, or wudhu, gets invalidated afterward, you do not need to wash
your feet anew when you have a new ablution. It is sufficient to wet
your hand and pass your fingers over the top of your feet. To pass
one wet finger over a small area of each foot is adequate. You may
avail yourself of this concession for 24 hours at a time, provided you
do not take off your socks. If you take them off, after having used
this concession, you need to have full ablution, including washing your
feet, before using this concession again. Many people find this
concession very useful if they spend a long time at their place of
work, where ablution facilities may not be available. This applies
particularly in countries where Muslims are a minority or an immigrant
netmunity.
Our Dialogue ( Source : Arab News – Jeddah )