A man performed wudu' and interrupted it for a need, and the water dried from his limbs; should he return to complete it?

The questioner : The second question, which concerns a man who performed wudu' and interrupted it, meaning, for example, after he washed his face three times, he interrupted his wudu' for a need, such as wanting to make a phone call or for some other necessity. He went to attend to this need, and the water with which he performed wudu' dried from the parts he had washed.

The Shaykh: Yes.

The questioner : Should he return to complete it?

The Shaykh : The issue differs if the interval is short and has no relation to the water drying, or if it did not dry, because dryness is a relative matter. It may dry quickly in one country and not in another, or it may dry quickly at one time in the same country and slowly at another, or even more slowly. This varies with the seasons in the same country, let alone the difference between one country and another. So the issue is not related to the drying of the water that remained on his limbs; rather, the matter relates to custom ('urf). If the interval between what he performed of his wudu' and what he completed is a wide one, such that one who sees him would say, "This man did not perform wudu'," then the issue reverts to custom. This is related to what is called in some schools of jurisprudence (madhahib) as continuity (muwalah), meaning that continuity is a condition for the validity of wudu'. This continuity is not a condition in the Hanafi school, but it is a condition in some other schools. This is what we adopt, because we do not imagine a person, for example, who washed his hands and rinsed his mouth, then after minutes came and washed his face and hands, then after minutes wiped his head and washed his feet. This is not called wudu'. But if the person, as you described, performed the first part of the wudu' and then became occupied with a matter and did not prolong the interval, then the wudu' is valid. Otherwise, he must restart it. In any case, if it is most likely in the mind of this person who performed wudu' that there is a problem in itself, in that he is able to complete his wudu', then the matter is easy; let him restart the wudu' anew. And Allah is sufficient for the believers in fighting.