How Do I Deal with My Doubts about Ghusl?

Answered by Shaykh Yusuf Weltch

Question

How do I deal with my doubts about Ghusl because I suffer from waswasa? If I did not perform a ghusl (that I had doubts about) and then prayed have I committed disbelief? If I have committed disbelief, is my marriage affected?

Answer

In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate.

As you have admitted to suffering from misgivings and doubts (waswasa), you will deal with such doubts and misgivings by ignoring them and not acting upon them whatsoever.

You should only act on reasonable surety or certainty. Any “what ifs” and “maybes” are not to be taken into action, ever.

That said, you were correct not to perform ghusl. Therefore, your prayer is valid, you have not committed disbelief, and your marriage remains intact.

Please see this link for a Reader on Waswasa

Disbelief

Another area in which people with misgivings suffer in is in regards to beliefs. There is a constant fear that the smallest transgression is disbelief.

Rejecting Tenets of Faith

Disbelief occurs when one rejects a tenet of faith required for one to believe in order to enter the fold of Islam – like the oneness of God and the finality of the prophethood of the Prophet Muhammad. [Tahawi, al-‘Aqida al-Tahawiyya]

Showing Disrespect to the Symbols of Islam

Aside from this, deliberately, voluntarily, and knowingly doing an action that disgraces Islam or any of the symbols of Islam. [Ibn ‘Abidin, Radd al-Muhtar]

An example of this is throwing the Quran on the ground. It is inconceivable that a sincere Muslim would do something like this.

Praying Without Purification

Some Hanafi scholars included under this intentionally performing the prayer without purification; however, it is not a black-and-white issue. This would depend on their intention, their level of knowledge, etc… [Tahanwi, Behisti Zewar]

Hope this helps
Allah knows best
[Shaykh] Yusuf Weltch
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

Shaykh Yusuf Weltch teaches Arabic, Islamic law, and spirituality. After accepting Islam in 2008, he completed four years at the Darul Uloom Seminary in New York, where he studied Arabic and the traditional sciences.

He then traveled to Tarim, Yemen, where he studied for three years in Dar al-Mustafa under some of the most outstanding scholars of our time, including Habib Umar Bin Hafiz, Habib Kadhim al-Saqqaf, and Shaykh Umar al-Khatib.

In Tarim, Shaykh Yusuf completed the memorization of the Quran and studied beliefs, legal methodology, hadith methodology, Quranic exegesis, Islamic history, and several texts on spirituality. He joined the SeekersGuidance faculty in the summer of 2019.