Cleanliness
Islam places great emphasis on cleanliness, in both its
physical and spiritual aspects. On the physical side, Islam requires the Muslim
to clean his body, his clothes, his house, and the whole community, and he is
rewarded by God for doing so. Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) said, for example:
"Removing any harm from the road is charity (that will be
rewarded by Allah)." (Bukhari)
While people generally consider cleanliness a desirable attribute, Islam
insists on it , making it an indispensible fundamental of the faith. A muslim is
required to to be pure morally and spiritually as well as physically. Through
the Qur'an and Sunnah Islam requires the sincere believer to sanitize and purify
his entire way of life. In the Qur'an Allah commends those who are accustomed to
cleanliness:
"Allah loves those who turn to Him constantly and He loves
those who keep themselves pure and clean." (2: 22)
In Islam the Arabic term for purity is Taharah. Books of Islamic
jurisprudence often contain an entire chapter with Taharah as a heading. Allah
orders the believer to be tidy in appearance:
"Keep your clothes clean." (74:4)
The Qur'an insists that the believer maintain a constant state of purity:
"Believers! When you prepare for prayer wash your faces, and
your hands (and arms) to the elbows; rub your heads (with water) and (wash) your
feet up to the ankles. If you are ritually impure bathe your whole body."
(5: 6)
Ritual impurity refers to that resulting from sexual release, menstruation
and the first forty days after childbirth. Muslims also use water, not paper or
anything else to after eliminating body wastes.
Prophet Muhammad )pbuh) advised the Muslims to appear neat and tidy in
private and in public. Once when returning home from battle he advised his army:
"You are soon going to meet your brothers, so tidy your saddles and clothes.
Be distinguished in the eyes of the people." (Abu Dawud)
On another occasion he said:
"Don't ever come with your hair and beard disheveled like a devil." [Al-Tirmidhi]
And on another:
"Had I not been afraid of overburdening my community, I would have ordered
them to brush their teeth for every prayer." (Bukhari)
Moral hygiene was not ignored, either, for the Prophet (pbuh) encouraged the
muslims to make a special prayer upon seeing themselves in the mirror:
"Allah, You have endowed me with a good form; likewise bless
me with an immaculate character and forbid my face from touching the Hellfire."
(Ahmad)
And modesty in dress, for men as well as for women, assists one in maintaining
purity of thought. Being charitable is a way of purifying one's wealth. A Muslim
who does not give charity (Sadaqah) and pay the required annual Zakah, the 2.5%
alms-tax, has in effect contaminated his wealth by hoarding that which rightfully
belongs to others:
"Of their wealth take alms so that you may purify and sanctify
them." (9: 103)
All the laws and injunctions given by Allah and His Prophet (pbuh) are pure;
on the other hand, man-made laws suffer from the impurities of human bias and
other imperfections. Thus any formal law can only be truly just when it is
purified by divine guidance - as elucidated by the Qur'an and the Sunnah - or if
it is divinely ordained to begin with - the Shari'ah.
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