Removing Impurities: Najasah is Removed When the Colour and Smell Ceases (Part 7)

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-Impurities are not purified by tanning from the sun.

Al-Uthaymeen states that the Hanablees Madhab states that anything that has impurities on it, be it clothing or the floor or a wall etc. then it can never be purified by the sun.

They use as evidence the following:

-Allaah mentions water specifically, “and He caused water (rain) to descend on you from the sky, to clean you thereby and to remove from you the Rijz.” [8:11]

-The Hadeeth, “Water is a purifier.” [Reported by Ahmad (2/361), Abu Dawood (83), an-an-Nasai (59), at-Tirmidhi (69), Ibn Majah (386) and others]

-The Hadeeth, “It is a purification for the fasting person (when he breaks his fast)” [Ahmad (4/17), Abu Dawud (2355), at-Tirmidhi (695), Ibn Majah (1699) and others]

-The Hadith if the bedouin above and the fact that the Prophet washed the area of urine and didn’t leave it for the sun to purify it.

So the Madhab state that it must be washed with water, even if all traces of the impurities have ceased and the area has changed in its colour and/or smell.

The Hanafis were of the view that impurities are removed by the sun. They argued that as long as the impure substance ceased to exist or is removed, then the place becomes pure.

This view is the correct view based on the following evidences:

             -If the impurity is no longer there then the ruling of impurity cant be applied.

-The Shariah commands us to avoid impurities but doesn’t command us to remove them (as removing impurities is not an act of worship). So if the impurity removed without any interference then the objective has been achieved.

The Hanbalees would disagree with this, so if it rained and the impurity was removed but the impurity wasn’t washed by the rain by seven separate drops, then according to them the impurity remains.

Similarly, if a man has impurities on his hand and then makes Wudhoo and the impurity has been removed, but if he hadn’t washed his hand seven times, it will be still be Najis with the Hanbalees.

None of this is correct with al-Uthaymeen.

Also in responding to their evidences:

-Its true that water is mentioned in the Quran as a purifier but this doesn’t mean purification is exclusive to water and washing.

PRINCIPLE: If a particular method is not specified then this doesn’t mean there is only one method of doing something. (أن عدم السبب المعين لا يقتضي انتفاء المسبب المعين)

-As for the Hadith of the bedouin, then water was used in order to hasten purification, not that washing the urine was the only method of purification. In fact, what the Hadith shows is that the Masjid should be hastened to be purified.

A – The Hanbalee Madhab extend the above to wind also, that impurities cant be purified by wind.

The other view is that it can be as long as the impurity it completed removed in smell and colour.

B – Dipping or soaking the impurity doesn’t purify the afflicted area with the Hanbalees.

Uthaymeen explains that sometimes dipping something into water removes the impurity immediately. The correct view is that the impurity ceases in this case.

It may be that soaking or dipping the afflicted area into water doesn’t remove the impurity, then in this case one must wash or scrub until the impurities are completed removed (in colour and smell, even if a stain remains).

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and Allaah Knows best