Wednesday, February 8, 2023

Islam promotes cleanness and purification of mind body and environment.


Islam orders cleanliness of mind, body and environment

Story by  Eman Sakina | Posted by  Aasha Khosa • 7 Months ago
Muslims on Eid day at Jama Masjid, Delhi (Image: Ravi Batra)

Eman Sakina

The cleanliness of the heart and the body is an important essential of Islam. The Prophet pointed to those two issues with the following hadith: “Islam was built on the foundation of cleanliness.” Another hadith that reminds us of the principle of cleanliness is as follows: “Allah is clean; He loves clean.”

 

One of Islam's greatest advantages is the practice of cleanliness and cleansing. Islam has placed such a high value on cleanliness that it has been regarded as one of the religion's goals. In Islam, maintaining one's hygiene is not only seen as a healthy habit but also made into rituals that are integral to the religion. When participating in daily prayers, a Muslim must be clean, which includes thoroughly cleaning himself after using the restroom and completing ablution.

 

Friday Musings

 

Many acts of worship in Islam necessitate that one is physically and ritually pure. On the physical side, Islam requires the Muslim to clean his body, his clothes, his house, and the whole community, and he is rewarded by God for doing so.

There are many instructions in connection with health, hygiene, and nutrition and about the cleanliness of air and environment in Islam. Some of them are listed below:

Wash your mouth and hands before and after a meal.

Take a bath and perform ablution for offering prayers.

Go to bed early and rise early in the morning.

Keep your clothes and body clean.

Use fragrance or perfume.

Do Miswak regularly.

Go for a walk in the morning.

Keep food and water covered.

Comb your hair and use oil on the hair.

Offer Salah with clean body and clothes.

Keep your house, streets, and environment clean.

While most people view cleanliness as a desirable attribute, Islam argues that it is a necessary element of the faith. A Muslim must be physically healthy as well as morally and spiritually clean. Islam demands that the serious believer sanitize and cleanse his entire manner of life following the Quran and Sunnah.

 

Cleanliness and purification are of two types in which we have inner purification and outer purification.

 

Inner Purification: Inner purification can be achieved by encouraging the five pillars of Islam. Having clean and pure thinking, avoiding sins, making a lot of dhikrs, and most importantly making sure the heart is pure of spiritual affliction such as anger, hatred, relying on other people than Allah, pride, arrogance, etc.

 

Outer Purification: Outer purification can be obtained by proper bodily purification e.g. making ablution, taking bath, cleaning teeth, using fragrance, keeping house and clothes clean, etc.

Cleanliness is the pathway to health and strength. Islam wants a healthy and strong Muslim society that is capable of understanding and applying Allah’s message and carrying it away to the whole world and not only to oneself. The Holy Quran says: “You are the best community that has been raised up for mankind, enjoining what is right, forbidding what is wrong, and believing in Allah.” (Quran, 3:110)

Besides the cleanliness of the body, Islam requires a Muslim to keep his clothes, houses, and streets clean. A Muslim cannot offer his prayers with an unclean body, clothes, or using dirty premises. They are asked to use clean water and keep it safe from impurities and pollution.

 

In our environment, Muslims are also instructed in Islam to maintain the cleanliness of the roads and streets. This is considered a charity to ridding the streets of impurities and filth. In hadith from Abu Dawud No.26 tells:

 

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“Beware of the three acts that cause others to curse you: relieving yourselves in a watering place, on footpaths or shaded places.”



Islam encourages cleanness religion and Muslim is the most clean community in the world.

 


CLEANLINESS AND HYGIENE IN ISLAM

 
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Islam places great emphasis on cleanliness, in both its physical and spiritual aspects. On the physical side, Islam requires the Muslim to clean his body, his clothes, his house, and the whole community, and he is rewarded by God for doing so. Prophet Muhammad (SallAllahu Alayhi Wa Sallam) said, for example:

“Removing any harm from the road is charity (that will be rewarded by Allah).” [Bukhari]

While people generally consider cleanliness a desirable attribute, Islam insists on it , making it an indispensable fundamental of the faith. A Muslim is required to be pure morally and spiritually as well as physically. Through the Qur’an and Sunnah Islam requires the sincere believer to sanitize and purify his entire way of life.

In the Qur’an Allah commends those who are accustomed to cleanliness:

“Allah loves those who turn to Him constantly and He loves those who keep themselves pure and clean.” [2: 22]

In Islam the Arabic term for purity is Taharah. Books of Islamic jurisprudence often contain an entire chapter with Taharah as a heading.

Allah orders the believer to be tidy in appearance:

“Keep your clothes clean.” [74:4]

The Qur’an insists that the believer maintain a constant state of purity:

“Believers! When you prepare for prayer wash your faces, and your hands (and arms) to the elbows; rub your heads (with water) and (wash) your feet up to the ankles. If you are ritually impure bathe your whole body.” [5: 6]

Ritual impurity refers to that resulting from sexual release, menstruation and the first forty days after childbirth. Muslims also use water after eliminating body wastes.

Prophet Muhammad (SallAllahu Alayhi Wa Sallam) advised the Muslims to appear neat and tidy in private and in public. Once when returning home from battle he advised his army:

“You are soon going to meet your brothers, so tidy your saddles and clothes. Be distinguished in the eyes of the people.” [Abu Dawud]

On another occasion he said:

“Don’t ever come with your hair and beard disheveled like a devil.” [Al-Tirmidhi]

And on another:

“Had I not been afraid of overburdening my community, I would have ordered them to brush their teeth for every prayer.” [Bukhari]

Moral hygiene was not ignored, either, for the Prophet (SallAllahu Alayhi Wa Sallam) encouraged the Muslims to make a special prayer upon seeing themselves in the mirror:

“Allah, You have endowed me with a good form; likewise bless me with an immaculate character and forbid my face from touching the Hellfire.” [Ahmad]

And modesty in dress, for men as well as for women, assists one in maintaining purity of thought.

Being charitable is a way of purifying one’s wealth. A Muslim who does not give charity (Sadaqah) and pay the required annual Zakah, the 2.5% alms-tax, has in effect contaminated his wealth by hoarding that which rightfully belongs to others:

“Of their wealth take alms so that you may purify and sanctify them.” [9: 103]

All the laws and injunctions given by Allah and His Prophet (SallAllahu Alayhi Wa Sallam) are pure; on the other hand, man-made laws suffer from the impurities of human bias and other imperfections. Thus any formal law can only be truly just when it is purified by divine guidance – as elucidated by the Qur’an and the Sunnah – or if it is divinely ordained to begin with – the Shari’ah.

There is nothing wrong with being self-critical. In fact, it is desirable to self-criticize.

Let us make sure that our house, street, neighborhood, surrounding… etc are clean and hygienic.

This post was last modified on March 18, 2020 12:10 pm