Imagine if you were invited to meet the President, your favorite celebrity. Would you go to the meeting without making sure you were clean? Certainly, you would at least make sure your teeth were brushed and your deodorant was working.
Ablution, or wudu, serves a similar purpose for Muslims. Before we pray to Allah, we must be properly cleansed.
How To Perform the Wudu, or Ablution
An ablution is a form of ritual washing. For Muslims, the ablution we do before prayer is called wudu. We have been given specific instructions on how to make wudu in both the Quran and the hadith (statements of Prophet Mohammad, may Allah be pleased with him).
Muslims are obliged to perform the Salah, or formal Islamic prayers, five times a day. But before we can make these prayers, we must be in a state of cleanliness. In order to enter this state, we make ablution. However, a Muslim must be sure their bodies are free from all impurities, or the ablution is invalid.
The ablution must be made with clean, flowing water. If water is not available, then a Muslim can perform tayammum with sand.
What Breaks the Wudu, or Ablution?
You break your ablution, or “break wudu”, if any of the following takes place.
Using the bathroom – When a person urinates or defecates, the wudu is broken and must be performed again before prayer.
Passing gas – When a person breaks wind, or “farts” the wudu is broken and must be made again before prayer.
Sleeping – When a person falls into a deep sleep, the wudu is broken.
Losing consciousness – If a Muslim becomes unconscious, or is “knocked out”, wudu is broken.
Touching the private area – If a Muslim touches their penis or vagina, the wudu is broken.
Bleeding from anus, penis, or vagina – If a Muslim bleeds from their anus, penis or vagina the wudu is broken. However, bleeding from a wound does not break wudu.
Sexual intercourse – Sex breaks wudu, even if there is no seminal discharge. However, a Muslim must take a full bath, or ghusl, before prayer.
Secretions from penis or vagina – Any secretion from the penis or vagina would break the wudu. For men, discharge of semen would require a full bath.
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I am an American Muslim. I was born Muslim, but both of my parents were born Christian. I grew up mostly in Brooklyn, New York. Let me first tell you that I love Islam. I have studied Islam in West Africa and Darul Uloom...
asslamuilalkum how r u im nashad my wudu is break in every salah like gas i make wudu once twice each part prayer is accptable and allah ask me about wudu three times each part is sunnah our prophet muhammed made wudu once twice in hadith sahih bukhari imnot get fajr satan make waswas in wudu and distrub in fajr prayer replynow
[...] Make wudu before making dua. [...]
Salam, if i pass wind do i need to wash my anus with water before performing steps of wudu for my Salah to be accepted or is it ok for me just to perform wudu. I have IBS so i pass wind quite often. JazakAllah
As-Salaamu Alaikum,
I am honored you trusted me with this important questions. I am not a faqih (jurist) so I could not answer you on my own.
Instead, I referred to people who have more knowledge than I do, and they say that you only have to make wudu. However, you must make wudu before every prayer.
If any najas (filth) comes on your clothes, you must clean that before praying.
And Allah knows best.
[...] how vital water is in Muslim life. Not just for drinking, but also for religious reasons such as wudu and [...]
[...] of his behavior, Umar asked to see what they were reading. After they showed him how to make ablution, Umar read some verses of Surah Ta [...]