Sunan Abi Dawud
Sunan Abi Dawud 116
حَدَّثَنَا مُسَدَّدٌ، وَأَبُو تَوْبَةَ قَالاَ حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو الأَحْوَصِ، ح وَحَدَّثَنَا عَمْرُو بْنُ عَوْنٍ، أَخْبَرَنَا أَبُو الأَحْوَصِ، عَنْ أَبِي إِسْحَاقَ، عَنْ أَبِي حَيَّةَ، قَالَ رَأَيْتُ عَلِيًّا - رضى الله عنه - تَوَضَّأَ فَذَكَرَ وُضُوءَهُ كُلَّهُ ثَلاَثًا ثَلاَثًا - قَالَ - ثُمَّ مَسَحَ رَأْسَهُ ثُمَّ غَسَلَ رِجْلَيْهِ إِلَى الْكَعْبَيْنِ ثُمَّ قَالَ إِنَّمَا أَحْبَبْتُ أَنْ أُرِيَكُمْ طُهُورَ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم .
Musaddad and Abu Tawbah narrated to us, saying: Abu al-Ahwas narrated to us. (A second chain:) ‘Amr ibn ‘Awn narrated to us, saying: Abu al-Ahwas informed us, from Abu Ishaq, from Abu Hayyah, who said: ‘I saw ‘Ali, may Allah be pleased with him, perform ablution. He performed the whole ablution three times; then he wiped his head and washed his feet up to the ankles. Then he said: “I only wanted to show you how the Messenger of Allah purified himself.”’
Translation notes
قَالَ رَأَيْتُ عَلِيًّا - رضى الله عنه - تَوَضَّأَ فَذَكَرَ وُضُوءَهُ كُلَّهُ ثَلاَثًا ثَلاَثًا - قَالَ - ثُمَّ مَسَحَ رَأْسَهُ ثُمَّ غَسَلَ رِجْلَيْهِ إِلَى الْكَعْبَيْنِ ثُمَّ قَالَ إِنَّمَا أَحْبَبْتُ أَنْ أُرِيَكُمْ طُهُورَ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم .
The Arabic says he performed his whole ablution three times, then separately mentions wiping the head and washing the feet. The scope of “three times” in relation to those later actions is not explicit.
Should “three times” be understood to describe the washing of each limb, while the head wipe and foot washing are distinct actions, or should the translation preserve the wording without resolving that scope?