The Book of Ghusl and Tayammum - Sunan an-Nasa'i

Hadith Reference: Sunan an-Nasa'i 447

Hadith Text

"Whoever touches his penis, he should not perform Salah until he performs Wudu'."

Abu 'Abdur-Rahman (An-Nasa'i) said: Hisham bin 'Urwah did not hear this Hadith from his father.

Scholarly Commentary

This hadith addresses the ruling concerning touching the private parts and its effect on ritual purity. The scholars have differed in their interpretation of this narration. The apparent meaning indicates that touching the penis invalidates wudu and requires renewal before prayer.

However, the chain of transmission contains a weakness as noted by Imam an-Nasa'i himself, who indicates that Hisham bin 'Urwah did not directly hear this from his father. This weakens the authenticity of the narration according to the principles of hadith criticism.

The majority of scholars, including the Hanafi, Maliki, and Shafi'i schools, hold that merely touching the penis without any discharge does not break wudu. They base this on other authentic narrations and the principle that acts of worship require clear evidence.

The Hanbali school, however, gives weight to this hadith and considers touching the private parts as nullifying wudu, regardless of whether any discharge occurred. This demonstrates the diversity of scholarly opinion within the Islamic tradition.

Practical Ruling

Given the weakness in the chain and the difference of opinion among the scholars, the preponderant view is that mere touching of the private parts without any discharge does not invalidate wudu. However, out of caution, some scholars recommend renewing wudu when possible.

The seeker of knowledge should follow the opinion of their qualified scholar or madhhab in this matter, recognizing that there is legitimate difference of opinion among the righteous predecessors.