What is the ruling on ritual purity for tawaf?
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The questioner : Your Eminence, the Shaykh
The Shaykh : Yes, on the left.
The questioner : ...
The Shaykh : ...
The questioner : Your Eminence, is ritual purity obligatory for tawaf if there is severe crowding?
The Shaykh : The majority of scholars hold that it is obligatory, and that if a person performs tawaf while in a state of ritual impurity, his tawaf is invalid. If he becomes ritually impure during the tawaf, he must exit. However, Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him) held that it is not obligatory; that performing tawaf in a state of purity is more complete and better, but not obligatory. There is no doubt that the statement of Shaykh al-Islam is the most appropriate in the present time, during days of crowding, because sometimes in the tawaf of ifadah during Hajj, a person, whether male or female, becomes ritually impure during the tawaf. According to the opinion of the majority of scholars, he must exit the tawaf and perform wudu. According to the opinion of the Shaykh (may Allah have mercy on him), he does not continue in his tawaf; he completes it and there is no blame on him. There is no doubt that this opinion is more lenient for people, because there is no evidence that wudu is necessary for tawaf. There is no evidence. Wudu is for prayer So, according to the opinion of the Shaykh (may Allah have mercy on him), he continues and completes it, and there is no blame on him. This is what we see and what we issue as a ruling. According to the opinion of the majority, if we say, "Go, perform wudu," what will get him out of the crowd first?
If he gets out of the crowd, what will enable him to perform wudu? All the bathrooms, what are they? Crowded... If he manages to perform wudu and then returns to perform tawaf and becomes ritually impure, we say, "Go a second time." And every time he returns and becomes ritually impure, we say, "Go a second time!" This is a hardship! And this occurs during days of crowding. Many people cannot bear the crowding at all, and they become ritually impure, either a drop of urine comes out or they pass wind. Yes. So we say, our ruling is that the best, without doubt, is to perform tawaf in a state of purity, because if he performs tawaf, he will pray two rak'ahs after the tawaf, and this must be in a state of purity for the two rak'ahs. But in the case of hardship, we see that there is nothing wrong with performing tawaf without purity. Likewise, if a person comes to us and says that he performed tawaf without purity, we do not ask if there was hardship or not; we say, "The tawaf is valid." Yes.
The Shaykh : Yes, on the left.
The questioner : ...
The Shaykh : ...
The questioner : Your Eminence, is ritual purity obligatory for tawaf if there is severe crowding?
The Shaykh : The majority of scholars hold that it is obligatory, and that if a person performs tawaf while in a state of ritual impurity, his tawaf is invalid. If he becomes ritually impure during the tawaf, he must exit. However, Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him) held that it is not obligatory; that performing tawaf in a state of purity is more complete and better, but not obligatory. There is no doubt that the statement of Shaykh al-Islam is the most appropriate in the present time, during days of crowding, because sometimes in the tawaf of ifadah during Hajj, a person, whether male or female, becomes ritually impure during the tawaf. According to the opinion of the majority of scholars, he must exit the tawaf and perform wudu. According to the opinion of the Shaykh (may Allah have mercy on him), he does not continue in his tawaf; he completes it and there is no blame on him. There is no doubt that this opinion is more lenient for people, because there is no evidence that wudu is necessary for tawaf. There is no evidence. Wudu is for prayer
When you rise to perform prayer, wash your faces
إذا قمتم إلى الصّلاة فاغسلوا وجوهكمIf he gets out of the crowd, what will enable him to perform wudu? All the bathrooms, what are they? Crowded... If he manages to perform wudu and then returns to perform tawaf and becomes ritually impure, we say, "Go a second time." And every time he returns and becomes ritually impure, we say, "Go a second time!" This is a hardship! And this occurs during days of crowding. Many people cannot bear the crowding at all, and they become ritually impure, either a drop of urine comes out or they pass wind. Yes. So we say, our ruling is that the best, without doubt, is to perform tawaf in a state of purity, because if he performs tawaf, he will pray two rak'ahs after the tawaf, and this must be in a state of purity for the two rak'ahs. But in the case of hardship, we see that there is nothing wrong with performing tawaf without purity. Likewise, if a person comes to us and says that he performed tawaf without purity, we do not ask if there was hardship or not; we say, "The tawaf is valid." Yes.