When I wash my children’s soiled clothes, drops from the washing water fall on my clothes. What is the ruling on these drops? Do they make my clothes impure, and is it obligatory to change them before
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner : Her question states: When I wash my children’s soiled clothes, drops from the washing water fall on my clothes. What is the ruling on these drops? Do they make my clothes impure, and is it obligatory for me to change them before prayer? Also, what is the ruling on door handles that children touch with their impure hands, which then dry in the air? If I touch them with a wet hand, does the hand become impure or not?
The Shaykh : In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and I send prayers and peace upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and all his Companions. The answer to the first question, regarding drops falling on her clothes when washing the impure garments of her children, is that we say: if these drops fall before the clothes are purified, they make what they touch impure, because the place has not yet been purified, and these drops are impure because they separated from the place of impurity. However, if this happens after purification, meaning after these clothes have been purified, then it does not harm her if some of it falls on her clothes. Purification from urine is not that difficult a matter, because urine is quickly removed. Look at what happens if a drop of urine falls on a tile: if you pour water on it, it is washed away with the water and removed. Likewise, if it is on a piece of cloth, if you pour water on it and rub it, it is removed. In any case, if these drops fall after the clothes have been purified, they have no effect. But if they fall before the clothes are purified, they are impure, and it is obligatory to wash what they touched.
As for the second question, regarding children touching door handles with their impure hands, we say: how does she know that the children’s hands are impure? As long as she does not know with certainty that these hands have been contaminated by impurity, the original state is purity. We do not rule that the children are impure if we do not know that they have been contaminated by impurity, whether in their bodies or their clothes. Yes, if we are certain that the child touched this handle and the handle became contaminated by his impurity, then it is necessary to wash this handle with water. Some scholars hold that if a smooth object is wiped thoroughly until the trace of impurity is removed, it becomes pure. The important point is that if we are certain that the boy’s hands are impure and that the door handle has been contaminated by them, then it is necessary to remove this impurity that has contaminated the handle. Otherwise, the original state is purity.
The Shaykh : In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and I send prayers and peace upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and all his Companions. The answer to the first question, regarding drops falling on her clothes when washing the impure garments of her children, is that we say: if these drops fall before the clothes are purified, they make what they touch impure, because the place has not yet been purified, and these drops are impure because they separated from the place of impurity. However, if this happens after purification, meaning after these clothes have been purified, then it does not harm her if some of it falls on her clothes. Purification from urine is not that difficult a matter, because urine is quickly removed. Look at what happens if a drop of urine falls on a tile: if you pour water on it, it is washed away with the water and removed. Likewise, if it is on a piece of cloth, if you pour water on it and rub it, it is removed. In any case, if these drops fall after the clothes have been purified, they have no effect. But if they fall before the clothes are purified, they are impure, and it is obligatory to wash what they touched.
As for the second question, regarding children touching door handles with their impure hands, we say: how does she know that the children’s hands are impure? As long as she does not know with certainty that these hands have been contaminated by impurity, the original state is purity. We do not rule that the children are impure if we do not know that they have been contaminated by impurity, whether in their bodies or their clothes. Yes, if we are certain that the child touched this handle and the handle became contaminated by his impurity, then it is necessary to wash this handle with water. Some scholars hold that if a smooth object is wiped thoroughly until the trace of impurity is removed, it becomes pure. The important point is that if we are certain that the boy’s hands are impure and that the door handle has been contaminated by them, then it is necessary to remove this impurity that has contaminated the handle. Otherwise, the original state is purity.