Any
type of ritual prayer:
This involves only obligatory, voluntary, or funeral prayers,
not the supplications (du'a). This is based on Allah's
statement, "O you who believe. When you get up to perform
a prayer (salah) wash your face and your arms up to the
elbows and wipe your head and feet to the ankles." Also,
the Messenger of Allah, upon whom be peace, said, "Allah
does not accept a prayer (that was performed while the
person) was not in a state of purity. Nor does he accept
charity from misappropriated booty." (Related by "the
group," except for al-Bukhari.)
Circumambulating
the Ka'bah:
Ibn 'Abbas reported that the Messenger of Allah said, "Circumambulation
is a type of prayer, but Allah has permitted speaking during
it. Whoever speaks during it should only speak good." This
hadith is related by at-Tirmidhi, ad-Daraqutni, al-Hakim,
Ibn as-Sakin and Ibn Khuzaimah, who classified it as sahih.
Touching
a copy of the Qur'an:
Abu Bakr ibn Muhammad related from his father on the authority
of his grandfather that the Prophet, upon whom be peace,
sent a letter to the people of Yemen which stated, "No one
is to touch the Qur'an except one who is purified."
This
hadith is related by an-Nasa'i, ad-Daraqutni, al-Baihaqi
and al-Athram. Of its chain, Ibn 'Abdul-Barr says, "It appears
to be a continuous transmission." 'Abdullah ibn 'Umar reported
that the Prophet, upon whom be peace, said, "No one is to
touch the Qur'an unless he has purified himself." (Al-Haithami
mentioned it in Majma' az-Zawaid and said its narrators
are trustworthy.) Apparently, this hadith has a problem.
The word "purify" must have one particular meaning here.
Therefore, to say that one who has a minor defilement may
not touch the Qur'an makes no sense. Concerning Allah's
statement, "...which none touches save the purified," (alWaqi'ah
79), apparently the pronoun refers to "the Book kept hidden"
(from the preceding verse) and that is "the well-preserved
tablet" and the "purified" refers to the angels, which is
similar to the verses, "On honored scrolls, exalted, purified,
(set down) by scribes, noble and righteous" (Abasah 13-16).
Ibn 'Abbas, ashSha'bi, adh-Dhahak, Zaid ibn 'Ali, al-Mu'aiyad
Billah, Dawud, Ibn Hazm and Hammad ibn Abu Sulaiman are
of the opinion that one who has a minor defilement may touch
the Qur'an. Most of the scholars, however, agree that such
people may recite the Qur'an without touching it.
