The Book of Purification and its Sunnah

"I entered upon 'Ali bin Abu Talib and he said: 'The Messenger of Allah used to go to the lavatory and relieve himself, then come out, and he would eat bread and meat with us and recite Qur'an, nothing stopped him' or perhaps he said: 'prevented him from doing so except sexual impurity.'"

"Aishah heard that 'Abdullah bin 'Amr was telling his wives to undo their braids (when they bathed). She said: 'How odd that Ibn 'Amr would do that! Why does he not tell them to shave their heads? The Messenger of Allah and I used to bathe from a single vessel, and I never did more than pour three handfuls of water over my head.'"

Abu Sa'ib, the freed slave of Hisham bin Zuhrah, told him that he heard Abu Hurairah say: "The Messenger of Allah said: 'No one of you should bathe in standing water when he is sexually impure.'" He (Abu Sa'ib) said: "What should he do, O Abu Hurairah?" He said: "Let him take some out (and pour it over himself)."

"The Messenger of Allah said: 'When the two circumcised parts meet, and (the tip of the penis) disappears, then bath is obligatory.'"

The Prophet said: "If anyone of wakes up and sees some wetness, but he does not think that he had an erotic dream, let him have a bath. But if he thinks that he had an erotic dream but he does not see any wetness, then he does not have to take a bath."

"I asked whether the Messenger of Allah prayed voluntary prayer when traveling, but I could not find anyone to tell me until Umm Hani' bint Abu Talib told me that he had come during the year of the Conquest (of Makkah). He ordered that a screen be held up, and that was done, and he took a bath; then he prayed eight Rak'ah (units) of voluntary prayer."

"The Messenger of Allah said: 'No one of you should bathe in open land or on a roof where he is not concealed; even if he does not see anyone, he can still be seen.'"

She went to the Messenger of Allah and complained to him about bleeding. The Messenger of Allah said: "Rather that is a vein, so look and see when your period comes, then do not perform the prayer. When the period is over, then purify yourself and perform the prayer between one period to the next."

'Aishah the wife of the Prophet said: "Umm Habibah Jahsh experienced prolonged non-menstrual bleeding for seven years when she was married to 'Abdur-Rahman bin 'Awf. She complained about that to the Prophet and the Prophet said: 'That is not menstruation, rather it is a vein, so when the time of your period comes, leave the prayer, and when it is over, take a bath and perform prayer.'" 'Aishah said: "She used to bathe for every prayer and then perform the prayer. She used to sit in a washtub belonging to her sister Zainab bint Jahsh and the blood would turn the water red."

"I asked the Messenger of Allah about menstrual blood that gets on clothing. He said, 'Wash it with water and lote leaves, and rub it, even with a piece of stick.'"

"The Messenger of Allah was asked about menstrual blood that gets on clothing. He said: 'Rub it off, wash it and perform prayer in (the garment).'"

A woman asked her: "Does a woman who menstruates have to make up for the prayers she misses?" 'Aisha said to her: "Are you a Haruriyyah? We used to menstruate with the Prophet and then become pure, and he did not tell us to make up for the prayers we missed."

"The Messenger of Allah said: 'Whoever has intercourse with a menstruating woman, or with a woman in her rear, or who goes to a fortuneteller and believes what he says, he has disbelieved in that which was revealed to Muhammad.'"

The Prophet said to her, when she was menstruating: "Undo your braids and bathe." (Sahih)(A narrator) 'Ali said in his narration: "Undo your head."

Asma asked the Messenger of Allah about bathing after ones's period. He said: "One of you should take her water and lote leaves, and purify herself well, or thoroughly. Then she should pour water over her head and rub it vigorously so that the water reaches the roots of her hair. Then she should take a piece of cotton perfumed with musk and purify herself with it." Asma said: "How should I purify myself with it?" He said: "Subhan Allah! Purify yourself with it!" 'Aishah said, as if whispering to her: "Wipe away the traces of blood with it." Then she (Asma) asked him about bathing to cleanse oneself from sexual impurity. He said: "One of you should take her water, and purify herself, and purify herself well, or thoroughly. She should pour water over her head and rub it so that the water reaches the roots of her hair, then she should pour water over her body." 'Aishah said: "How good were the women of the Ansar! For they did not let shyness keep them from understanding their religion properly."

"I used to eat the meat from a bone when I was menstruating, then the Messenger of Allah would take it and put his mouth where my mouth had been. And I would drink from a vessel, and the Messenger of Allah would take it and put his mouth where my mouth had been, and I was menstruating."

The Prophet entered upon her, and a freed slave girl of hers concealed herself. The Prophet asked: "Have her periods begun?" She said: "Yes." He tore a piece of his turban and said: "Cover your head with this."

"A bucket was brought to the Prophet; he rinsed his mouth and spat into it, and it was like musk or better than musk, and he rinsed his nostrils outside the bucket."

"A man came to the Prophet and said: 'I bathed to cleanse myself from sexual impurity, and I prayed Fajr, then I noticed a spot the size of a fingernail that the water did not reach.' The Messenger of Allah said: 'If you had wiped it that would have been sufficient for you.'"

A man came to the Prophet; he had performed ablution and has missed a spot the size of a fingernail where water had not reached. The Prophet said to him: 'Go back and perform ablution properly.'"