The Amount of Little Water and Its Impurity by Dipping the Hand

Question:
He asks: Does the vessel have a specific amount, and is it difficult to define it such that if a person dips his hand in it with less than two qullahs, the water does not become difficult to use?

Answer:
Some jurists derived from this hadith that if water is little, it becomes impure if impurity touches it, based on his statement, "Do not dip your hand in the vessel." They said that the implication is that if one dips his hand in the vessel, the water in it becomes impure. However, there is a problem with this; there is a problem with this view. The correct view, as mentioned previously, is that water does not become impure unless one of its characteristics is changed by the impurity. As long as none of its characteristics are changed by the impurity, it remains purifying. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: except if its color, taste, or smell is changed.