Is it true that you have reconsidered your ruling that the sock must be thick in order to wipe over it?
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The questioner : May Allah forgive us, you, and all the Muslims.
The Shaykh : Ameen
The questioner : We heard a ruling on wiping over socks that you do not require the sock to be thick, and then we heard from some of the noble brothers that you retracted this ruling. We want the truth in this matter, may Allah bless you?
The Shaykh : Yes, the truth in my view is that I did not retract it, and I still issue the ruling that there is no harm in a person wiping over thin socks.
The questioner : Even if it is transparent?
The Shaykh : Even if it is transparent, because there is no evidence requiring it to be covering. Consequently, the scholars who hold that it is a condition differed, saying: If water does not pass through it, but because of its thinness it reveals what is behind it, as if it were plastic in the present day, some scholars say: Wiping over it is not permissible, and this is the well-known position of Imam Ahmad’s school among his followers. Some of them say: It is permissible, and this is the position of the Shafi'is. None of them have evidence. The Shafi'is say: It is permissible because water cannot reach from behind it, so the obligation of washing does not apply in this case. And these [others] say: Wiping over it is not valid because it reveals the skin. In our view, none of them has evidence, and it is permissible to wipe over thin and thick socks.
The questioner : Even if it has a tear?
The Shaykh : Even if it has a tear, yes.
The Shaykh : Ameen
The questioner : We heard a ruling on wiping over socks that you do not require the sock to be thick, and then we heard from some of the noble brothers that you retracted this ruling. We want the truth in this matter, may Allah bless you?
The Shaykh : Yes, the truth in my view is that I did not retract it, and I still issue the ruling that there is no harm in a person wiping over thin socks.
The questioner : Even if it is transparent?
The Shaykh : Even if it is transparent, because there is no evidence requiring it to be covering. Consequently, the scholars who hold that it is a condition differed, saying: If water does not pass through it, but because of its thinness it reveals what is behind it, as if it were plastic in the present day, some scholars say: Wiping over it is not permissible, and this is the well-known position of Imam Ahmad’s school among his followers. Some of them say: It is permissible, and this is the position of the Shafi'is. None of them have evidence. The Shafi'is say: It is permissible because water cannot reach from behind it, so the obligation of washing does not apply in this case. And these [others] say: Wiping over it is not valid because it reveals the skin. In our view, none of them has evidence, and it is permissible to wipe over thin and thick socks.
The questioner : Even if it has a tear?
The Shaykh : Even if it has a tear, yes.