that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: "Do you think that if there was a river by the gate of one of you, and he bathed in it five times each day that there would remain any filth on him?" They said: "No filth would stay on him." He said: "That is the parable of the five prayers, Allah wipes out the sins with them."
Hadith from Chapters on Parables - Jami' at-Tirmidhi
Reference: Jami` at-Tirmidhi 2868
The Parable of Purification
The Prophet (ﷺ) employs a tangible, physical analogy to illustrate the spiritual cleansing power of the five daily prayers. Just as bathing five times daily in a flowing river would remove all physical impurities, performing the five obligatory prayers cleanses the soul from spiritual stains and sins.
The Nature of Spiritual Cleansing
This hadith emphasizes that sins create spiritual filth (dhanb) upon the heart. The prayers act as a divine mechanism through which Allah, in His infinite mercy, erases these impurities. The comparison to water highlights the comprehensive and thorough nature of this purification.
The Significance of the Number Five
The specification of five times corresponds directly to the five daily prayers (Fajr, Dhuhr, Asr, Maghrib, Isha). This establishes a continuous cycle of purification throughout the day and night, preventing the accumulation of spiritual corruption and maintaining the believer's state of spiritual purity.
Scholarly Commentary on the River Analogy
Classical scholars note that a river by one's gate represents the extreme ease and accessibility of this means of purification. The prayers are not a burdensome, distant obligation but a readily available source of spiritual cleansing, placed at the very "doorstep" of the believer's life.
Conditions for Effective Purification
Commentators clarify that for the prayers to achieve this complete cleansing, they must be performed with their necessary conditions: proper ablution, facing the Qibla, at their prescribed times, and with presence of heart (khushu'), sincerity, and adherence to the Sunnah in their performance.