Ruling on wiping over socks and removing them for prayer
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
Question:
The message from Umm Abdullah al-Salim al-Abd al-Majid, she sent this message saying: I am a blind, elderly woman, and it is difficult for me to remove the socks, then wipe over the stockings, then put the socks back on. Is it permissible for me to wipe only over the socks, and when I pray or reach the prayer mat, I remove the socks and pray?
Answer:
Wiping over what covers the legs, whether socks or stockings, is permissible; it is a dispensation from Allah (Exalted and Majestic is He), and it is a relief for the Muslim community. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to wipe over his leather socks and his stockings, and he would pray for a day and a night while resident, and for three days and their nights while traveling. This is prescribed, and praise be to Allah. However, the wiping must be over a covering item: either a covering stocking, or a covering leather sock. One wipes over it for a day and a night while resident after breaking the state of ritual purity, and the wiping is for a day and a night.
As for the sock, one does not wipe over it if it is not covering; one does not wipe over it unless one wipes over it together with a stocking, in which case there is no harm. One wipes over both: over the sock and over what is visible of the stocking. One wipes over both, and there is no harm. If one wipes over both, one does not remove them. If one removes them, the ablution becomes invalid. Rather, one prays in the leather sock and the stocking together. If one removes all of them, or removes the sock, the ablution becomes invalid. If this woman wants to be safe, she wipes over the stocking only, and leaves the stocking in a slipper or something else that makes it easy for her to remove, or in a light sock that is easy to remove. She wipes over the stocking, and when she comes to the place of prayer, she removes the sock and the stocking suffices her. She does not wipe over the sock; she wipes over the stocking that covers the foot, and praise be to Allah.
And as for the sock, she does not wipe over it until she removes it whenever she wishes, or she puts the stocking in a slipper that protects it from the ground, then she removes the slipper.
The point is: if she wipes over the sock, it does not suffice; because the sock does not cover if it is short. However, if the sock is wide and covers the entire foot, including the heels, she wipes over the sock. And whenever she wipes over it, she does not remove it until after the prayer. She prays first. If she removes it before the prayer, the ablution becomes invalid. She should be careful of this. The woman should be careful, and the one who reads to her should hear this answer and make her understand that wiping over the sock does not suffice if it is short and does not cover the heels, and if she removes it, her ablution becomes invalid. So what she should do is wipe over the stocking and be content with that, and remove the sock whenever she wishes. Yes.
The presenter: So what we understood, O honorable Shaykh, is that if a Muslim has a stocking and a sock and wipes over the stocking and the sock, he does not remove the sock.
The Shaykh: Except when he wants to invalidate the ablution. And if he wants to pray in them, he keeps them until he prays. Yes.
The message from Umm Abdullah al-Salim al-Abd al-Majid, she sent this message saying: I am a blind, elderly woman, and it is difficult for me to remove the socks, then wipe over the stockings, then put the socks back on. Is it permissible for me to wipe only over the socks, and when I pray or reach the prayer mat, I remove the socks and pray?
Answer:
Wiping over what covers the legs, whether socks or stockings, is permissible; it is a dispensation from Allah (Exalted and Majestic is He), and it is a relief for the Muslim community. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to wipe over his leather socks and his stockings, and he would pray for a day and a night while resident, and for three days and their nights while traveling. This is prescribed, and praise be to Allah. However, the wiping must be over a covering item: either a covering stocking, or a covering leather sock. One wipes over it for a day and a night while resident after breaking the state of ritual purity, and the wiping is for a day and a night.
As for the sock, one does not wipe over it if it is not covering; one does not wipe over it unless one wipes over it together with a stocking, in which case there is no harm. One wipes over both: over the sock and over what is visible of the stocking. One wipes over both, and there is no harm. If one wipes over both, one does not remove them. If one removes them, the ablution becomes invalid. Rather, one prays in the leather sock and the stocking together. If one removes all of them, or removes the sock, the ablution becomes invalid. If this woman wants to be safe, she wipes over the stocking only, and leaves the stocking in a slipper or something else that makes it easy for her to remove, or in a light sock that is easy to remove. She wipes over the stocking, and when she comes to the place of prayer, she removes the sock and the stocking suffices her. She does not wipe over the sock; she wipes over the stocking that covers the foot, and praise be to Allah.
And as for the sock, she does not wipe over it until she removes it whenever she wishes, or she puts the stocking in a slipper that protects it from the ground, then she removes the slipper.
The point is: if she wipes over the sock, it does not suffice; because the sock does not cover if it is short. However, if the sock is wide and covers the entire foot, including the heels, she wipes over the sock. And whenever she wipes over it, she does not remove it until after the prayer. She prays first. If she removes it before the prayer, the ablution becomes invalid. She should be careful of this. The woman should be careful, and the one who reads to her should hear this answer and make her understand that wiping over the sock does not suffice if it is short and does not cover the heels, and if she removes it, her ablution becomes invalid. So what she should do is wipe over the stocking and be content with that, and remove the sock whenever she wishes. Yes.
The presenter: So what we understood, O honorable Shaykh, is that if a Muslim has a stocking and a sock and wipes over the stocking and the sock, he does not remove the sock.
The Shaykh: Except when he wants to invalidate the ablution. And if he wants to pray in them, he keeps them until he prays. Yes.
Source
binbaz.org.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.