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Does Blood Break Wudu?

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Ustadh Tabraze Azam is asked if wudu is broken when one comes in contact with blood.

After coming home from a long day I went to the bathroom to make wudu. After doing wudu I noticed small bloodstains on the rug near my toes. I realized that some of my toes had dried blood on it which I hadn’t noticed before, and because of wetting my feet, the blood which didn’t wash away came off on the rug in the bathroom.

My question is: does this blood affect the wudu of other people when they step on it with their wet or damp feet? I am not sure if this dried blood is from bleeding or from a wound. I would wash this rug but it has a sticky film underneath, so it is hard to remove from the floor without leaving marks. I have told someone senior in my family but they don’t seem to think it’ll affect their wudu? Please answer my question clearly and directly.

Jazak Allah khayr.

No, the ritual ablution (wudu) is unaffected by coming into contact with blood or other ritually impure substances. Rather, the ablution is nullified by the exiting of filth from your own body. 

Nevertheless, impure substances can transfer to something pure, such as a hand or foot, if certain conditions are met. If somebody is affected by filth, they simply need to wash it away under the tap, for instance.

The solution, here, would be to clean up the blood stain so that its traces are no longer visible. If you would like to purify it, then you should wash the affected area by pouring a little water over it thrice, and then drying it up.

Please also see Filth, Carpets and Misgivings and A Reader on Waswasa (Baseless Misgivings).

And Allah Most High knows best.

Wassalam,

Tabraze Azam

Checked and approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani.

How to Handle Constant Waswasa in Acts of Purification and Worship

Key Principles Relating to Certainty, Doubt, and Baseless Misgivings (waswasa)

Advice for Sufferers of Extreme Waswasa or OCD in Issues of Purification

Does Presence of Blood Invalidate Prayer? (Shafi’i)

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Answered by Shaykh Jamir Meah

Question: Assalamu alaykum

Sometimes I get a cut and put a bandage on to help it heal and prevent the blood from spreading to my clothes. If I took it off, I know blood will likely spread to my clothes. Can I pray with a bandage on, even if I know blood will get on it? Would I have to change it before the next prayer?

Answer: Wa’alaykum assalam, I pray you’re well. Thank you for your question.

Blood is considered filth (najasa) but is however, excused when praying, whether on one’s body or clothes (including plasters and bandages etc.).

Conditions of Exemption

This exemption is on the following conditions:

1. The blood was not caused by the person himself, such as cutting himself on purpose

2. The blood is not mixed with something else, even something pure

3. The blood has not moved from the injured area to a ‘distant’ area of the body or clothes, such as blood from the head landing on the arms or feet (as opposed to a part of the body that is ‘near’ to the injured area, such as the face neck or shoulders in this scenario).

If any these conditions are not fulfilled, only a small amount of one’s own blood is excused.

[Hashiyat al Bajuri]

For further details, please refer to the following answer:

Are blood and pus considered impurities in the Shafi’i school?

Warmest salams,
[Shaykh] Jamir Meah

Shaykh Jamir Meah grew up in Hampstead, London. In 2007, he traveled to Tarim, Yemen, where he spent nine years studying the Islamic sciences on a one-to-one basis under the foremost scholars of the Ribaat, Tarim, with a main specialization and focus on Shafi’i fiqh. In early 2016, he moved to Amman, Jordan, where he continues advanced studies in a range of Islamic sciences, as well as teaching. Jamir is a qualified homeopath.

Is My Wudu Valid With Dry Pus on My Skin?

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Answered by Shaykh Umer Mian

Question: Assalamu alaykum

If blood or pus dries up on one’s skin, will that prevent water from reaching the skin during wudu or ghusl?

Answer: Wa alaikum as-salam wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu

If a person has a wound from which blood or pus exits, then the scab that forms over the wound is considered a part of one’s body. Hence, it is not necessary to wash underneath this dried blood/pus, neither for wudu nor for ghusl. Rather, one merely washes over the scab. If washing over it causes harm or excessive pain, then one may wipe over it. If even wiping is not possible, one leaves off washing/wiping that area (while washing the rest of the body part).

Sources: Fatawa Hindiyyah, al-Jawharah al-Nayyirah, al-Bahr al-Ra’iq, and Hashiyah al-Shilbi on Tabyin al-Haqa’iq

Arabic source texts are below.

Wassalam,
[Shaykh] Umer Mian

ولو كان به قرحة فارتفع جلدها وأطراف القرحة متصلة بالجلد إلا الطرف الذي كان يخرج منه القيح فغسل الجلدة ولم يصل الماء إلى ما تحت الجلدة جاز وضوءه ؛ لأن ما تحت الجلدة غير ظاهر فلا يفترض غسله . كذا في فتاوى قاضي خان . (الفتاوى الهندية)

وَفِي الْفَتَاوَى الْعَجِينُ فِي الظُّفْرِ يَمْنَعُ تَمَامَ الطَّهَارَةِ وَالْوَسَخُ وَالدَّرَنُ لَا يَمْنَعُ وَكَذَا التُّرَابُ وَالطِّينُ فِيهِ لَا يَمْنَعُ وَالْخِضَابُ إذَا تَجَسَّدَ يَمْنَعُ ، كَذَا فِي الذَّخِيرَةِ وَقِشْرَةُ الْقُرْحَةِ إذَا ارْتَفَعَتْ وَلَمْ يَصِل الْمَاءُ إلَى مَا تَحْتَهَا لَا يَمْنَعُ (الجوهرة النيرة)

وَلَوْ كَانَ فِي الْإِنْسَانِ قُرْحَةٌ فَبَرَأَتْ وَارْتَفَعَ قِشْرُهَا وَأَطْرَافُ الْقُرْحَةِ مُتَّصِلَةٌ بِالْجِلْدِ إلَّا الطَّرَفَ الَّذِي كَانَ يَخْرُجُ مِنْهُ الْقَيْحُ ، فَإِنَّهُ يَرْتَفِعُ وَلَا يَصِلُ الْمَاءُ إلَى مَا تَحْتَ الْقِشْرَةِ أَجْزَأَهُ وُضُوءُهُ ، وَفِي مَعْنَاهُ الْغُسْلُ كَذَا فِي النَّوَازِلِ لِأَبِي اللَّيْثِ وَنَقَلَهُ الْهِنْدِيُّ أَيْضًا (البحر الرائق)

وَالْخِضَابُ إذَا تَجَسَّدَ وَيَبِسَ يَمْنَعُ تَمَامَ الْوُضُوءِ وَالْغُسْلِ كَذَا فِي الْوَجِيزِ وَقِشْرَةُ الْقُرْحَةِ إذَا ارْتَفَعَتْ وَلَمْ يَصِلْ الْمَاءُ إلَى مَا تَحْتَهَا لَا بَأْسَ بِهِ فِي الْوُضُوءِ وَالْغُسْلِ ، وَالْفَرْقُ بَيْنَهُمَا وَبَيْنَ الْخِضَابِ أَنَّ قِشْرَةَ الْقُرْحَةِ مُتَّصِلَةٌ بِالْجِلْدِ اتِّصَالَ الْخِلْقَةِ (حاشية الشِّلْبِيُّ على تبيين الحقائق)

Are Blood and Pus Considered Impurities in the Shafi’i School?

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Answered by Shaykh Jamir Meah

Question: Assalamu alaykum

I am hearing to opposing versions of whether or not blood is filthy in Shafii fiqh. Please help me in clearing this confusion. Is blood actually filthy in Shafii fiqh?

Answer: Wa’alaykum assalam. I pray you’re well insha’Allah.

Both blood and pus are considered impure (najas) in our school. However, there is a difference between something being impure and an impurity being excused in certain scenarios, and perhaps this is where your confusion stems from.

Excused Impurity

While blood and pus are impure, their presence on one’s clothes and body, in prayer and outside of prayer, maybe excused. The summary of these rulings are:

– If the blood or pus is from another person, or an animal (except from swine or dog) or a swatted insect, then a small amount is excused.

– If the blood or pus is one’s own, then even a large amount of blood is excused. However, this is with the following conditions:

a) The blood was not caused by the person himself, such as cutting himself on purpose

b) The blood is not mixed with something else, even something pure

c) the blood has not moved from the injured area to a ‘distant’ area of the body or clothes, such as blood from the head landing on the arms or feet (as opposed to a part of the body that is ‘near’ to the injured area, such as the face neck or shoulders in this scenario).

If any these conditions are not fulfilled, only a small amount of one’s own blood is excused.

What does a small or large amount mean? This goes back to custom, ‘urf’, what would customarily be considered a small/large amount by most people in one’s area.

[Bushra al Karim, Hashiyat al Bajuri]

And Allah knows best.

Warmest salams,
[Shaykh] Jamir Meah

Shaykh Jamir Meah grew up in Hampstead, London. In 2007, he traveled to Tarim, Yemen, where he spent nine years studying the Islamic sciences on a one-to-one basis under the foremost scholars of the Ribaat, Tarim, with a main specialization and focus on Shafi’i fiqh. In early 2016, he moved to Amman, Jordan, where he continues advanced studies in a range of Islamic sciences, as well as teaching. Jamir is a qualified homeopath.

Does My Period Start Only When I See Red Blood?

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Answered by Ustadh Tabraze Azam

Question: Assalam alaykum

I’m really confused about my period.

I didn’t have my menses for 5 months then for 4 months I saw brownish, yellowish, Brown-orangish, yellow-orangish, and pinkish colors for four to six days each months but no bleeding (red blood). There is more than 15 days of Purity in between each. Are those days my menses?

Answer: Wa alaikum assalam wa rahmatullah,

In terms of determining your menstrual period, blood is legally defined as any discoloured discharge, namely, that which is not white. Hence, there is no condition that actual red blood appear at any point during your menstruation.

Accordingly, you should check your dates to ensure that you don’t have any missed prayers to take care of.

[Ibn ‘Abidin/Birgivi, Manhal al-Waridin Sharh Dhukhr al-Muta’ahhilin (122)]

Please also see: Discolored Menstrual Blood & When To Stop Praying and: Do Clear or White Vaginal Discharges Invalidate Wudu?

And Allah Most High alone knows best.

wassalam,
[Ustadh] Tabraze Azam

Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

Ustadh Tabraze Azam holds a BSc in Computer Science from the University of Leicester, where he also served as the President of the Islamic Society. He memorised the entire Qur’an in his hometown of Ipswich at the tender age of sixteen, and has since studied the Islamic Sciences in traditional settings in the UK, Jordan and Turkey. He is currently pursuing advanced studies in Jordan, where he is presently based with his family.

Is It Permissible to Clean Blood That Has Come From My Gums With Water When Fasting?

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Answered by Ustadh Tabraze Azam

Question: Assalam alaykum

Is it permissible to clean blood that has come from my gums with water when fasting as long as I make the effort to spit out the water?

Answer: Assalam alaykum wa rahmat Allah,

You should ignore the tiny traces. The taste of blood does not affect your fast, contrary to swallowing.

However, you aren’t expected nor required to spend your fasting day investigating. Rather, act on the basis of your reasonable surety, spit out if you can clearly taste blood, and ignore misgivings.

In cases of medical need, there is a more expansive position in the Hanafi School. But you should consult with scholars before resorting to this position if you feel it may be applicable to you.

Please see: Bleeding Gums While Fasting and Constantly Bleeding Gums & Fasting and Does Having Taste of Blood in One’s Mouth Invalidate the Fast?

And Allah Most High alone knows best.

Wassalam,

[Ustadh] Tabraze Azam

Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

Ustadh Tabraze Azam holds a BSc in Computer Science from the University of Leicester, where he also served as the President of the Islamic Society. He memorised the entire Qur’an in his hometown of Ipswich at the tender age of sixteen, and has since studied the Islamic Sciences in traditional settings in the UK, Jordan and Turkey. He is currently pursuing advanced studies in Jordan, where he is presently based with his family.

Is a Prayer Offered on a Carpet Stained With Blood Valid?

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Answered by Ustadh Tabraze Azam

Question: Assalam alaykum

I have a few pimples on my face and at times after performing wudu, blood flows from them. I have prayed in the Mosque with blood flowing from my face and the mosque’s carpet has some blood stains on it due to this. Is the prayer offered on such a carpet valid?

Answer: Assalamu alaikum wa rahmatullah,

Blood which appears on the surface of a wound and the like, without actually flowing, is not considered to be legally filthy. Consequently, the presence of stains from such blood on a carpet doesn’t affect the validity of your prayer.

Ignore misgivings, but if you are become aware of stains on the carpet after the prayer, from your own doing, please consider cleaning the area (1) for hygienic reasons, and (2) out of respect for the mosque.

[Shurunbulali, Maraqi al-Falah (1.140)]

Please also see: A Reader on Waswasa (Baseless Misgivings) and: Could You Please List All the Nullifiers of Ablution According to the Hanafi school?

And Allah Most High alone knows best.

wassalam,

[Ustadh] Tabraze Azam

Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

Ustadh Tabraze Azam holds a BSc in Computer Science from the University of Leicester, where he also served as the President of the Islamic Society. He memorised the entire Qur’an in his hometown of Ipswich at the tender age of sixteen, and has since studied the Islamic Sciences in traditional settings in the UK, Jordan and Turkey. He is currently pursuing advanced studies in Jordan, where he is presently based with his family.

Am I Allowed to Swallow My Saliva When There Is Blood in It?

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Answered by Ustadh Tabraze Azam

Question: Assalam alaykum

I have been seeing white/yellow substances in my saliva ever since the bleeding in my wound stopped. Am I allowed to swallow my saliva? If my saliva is impure, how do I purify everything?

Have all my prayer been invalid if I have been swallowing this saliva?

Answer: Wa alaikum assalam wa rahmatullah,

No, assuming no blood was flowing, your prayers were valid because swallowing blood doesn’t affect the validity of your ritual ablution (wudu).

If the colour of the blood preponderates over the colour of your normal saliva, your wudu would be invalidated. If this persists for lengthy periods, you may be able to consider yourself excused at times, but only if the conditions are met. [see: The Fiqh of Chronic Excuses and Ablution]

Ignore misgivings.

Please also see: A Reader on Waswasa (Baseless Misgivings) and: Could You Please List All the Nullifiers of Ablution According to the Hanafi school?

And Allah Most High alone knows best.

wassalam,

[Ustadh] Tabraze Azam

Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

Ustadh Tabraze Azam holds a BSc in Computer Science from the University of Leicester, where he also served as the President of the Islamic Society. He memorised the entire Qur’an in his hometown of Ipswich at the tender age of sixteen, and has since studied the Islamic Sciences in traditional settings in the UK, Jordan and Turkey. He is currently pursuing advanced studies in Jordan, where he is presently based with his family.

Is Donating Blood Permissible?

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Answered by Ustadh Salman Younas

Question: I am thinking of donating blood but before making any appointments I want to know if it is permissible?

Answer: assalamu alaykum

It would be permissible for you to donate blood to institutes like blood banks that utilize it for cases of medical need and necessity as long as it is safe for you to do so.

Although the default ruling is that blood transfusions are not permitted because blood is (a) part of the human body and (b) filthy, classical jurists made an exception when there was genuine need. [Fatawa al-Hindiya (5:355)]

[Ustadh] Salman Younas

Checked and approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

Ustadh Salman Younas graduated from Stony Brook University with a degree in Political Science and Religious Studies. After studying the Islamic sciences online and with local scholars in New York, Ustadh Salman moved to Amman. There he studies Islamic law, legal methodology, belief, hadith methodology, logic, Arabic, and tafsir.

Photo: U.S. Navy photo by Photographer’s Mate 3rd Class Jeremy L. Grisham

What If Menstruation Begins During Intercourse?

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Answered by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

Question: My wife and I became intimate and had sexual intercourse without realizing that she had begun menstruating. As soon as it became apparent (by seeing blood) that she was menstruating, we immediately stopped. Is an expiation due in this case?

Answer: Walaikum assalam,

I pray this finds you in the best of health and spirits.

In such a case, nothing is due and no ‘rectification’ is required.

First: We are only responsible to the extent of our reasonable ability and awareness. Allah Most High makes it clear that, “Allah does not make a soul responsible beyond its capacity” [Qur’an, 2.286]. This is part of the broader Divine Promise that, “He has placed no hardship for you in religion” [Qur’an, 22.78].

Second: It is understood from the Qur’an and Sunna, as the jurists explain, that, “Accidents are ascribed to the nearest time” [Ibn Nujaym, al-Ashbah wa’l Nadha’ir; Majalla]. Thus if you see bleeding, you assume that it just came out—and that it wasn’t present before. The assumption would be that the intercourse was initiated in a state of purity.

Third: You responded in the right manner, Alhamdulillah. If the couple realizes that menstrual bleeding has begun, they are obligated to end intercourse, immediately [Ibn Abidin, Radd al-Muhtar].

Fourth: Your concern for caution and upholding proper conduct is commendable. The best way of upholding caution is to root one’s understanding and practice in sound knowledge—and to never hesitate to ask. The Beloved Messenger of Allah (peace & blessings be upon him & his folk) said, “The only cure for confusion is to ask” [Related by Imam Ahmad, Ibn Maja, and others].

And Allah is the giver of success and facilitation.

Please see also: Confusion About Different Opinions Regarding What is Considered Menstruation

Wassalam,
Faraz Rabbani

Photo: garycycles8