Would Remaining Traces of Soap after Cleaning Myself Invalidate My Prayer?
Hanafi Fiqh
Answered by Ustadh Sufyan Qufi
Question
Is it a concern if there is still soap on my private parts after washing them with water and soap? I scrubbed everywhere, but when I rinse with water, soap almost always remains.
Answer
In the name of Allah, Most Compassionate, Most Merciful,
I pray this finds you in the best of states.
Traces of soap left on your body after removing filth from it are not problematic regarding the soundness of your ritual purity and the validity of your prayer. [Ibn ‘Abidin, Radd al-Muhtar]
This ruling is because we were commanded to purify our bodies before praying. Allah, Most High, says: “Purify your garments.” [Quran, 74:4] and: “And if you are in a state of (full) impurity, then take a full bath. ” [Quran, 5:6] [Marghinani, al-Hidaya]
By washing your private parts with water and soap, you can reasonably be confident that no traces of filth are left on this area of your body. And this is enough. We are not asked to reach full certainty about this, as there is genuine hardship in this.
Allah, Most High, says: “Allah does not require of any soul more than what it can afford.” [Quran, 2:286] [Ibn ‘Abidin, Radd al-Muhtar]
You can be reasonably certain that no traces are left after the washing you have performed and that the traces of soap remaining are pure and free from any filth that was already gone at the beginning of your washing.
Thus, you have fulfilled the divine command to remove filth from your body, and your prayer will be valid. As for the remaining traces of soap, they are of no legal consequence.
And Allah knows best.
Wassalam
[Ustadh] Sufyan Qufi
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
Ustadh Sufyan Qufi is an advanced seeker of knowledge, originally from Algeria, who grew up in France. He began searching far and wide for answers to the fundamental questions of life and was disappointed at the answers he found. Then he connected with various traditional teachers and gradually connected with SeekersGuidance. He embarked on his journey of learning through the various teachers at SeekersGuidance, including his mentor Shaykh Faraz Rabbani. He studied numerous texts in Islamic Law, Theology, Hadith, and other areas with Shaykh Faraz Rabbani and other teachers, including Shaykh Abdurrahman al-Sha‘ar, Shaykh Ali Hani, and others. He is an active instructor at SeekersGuidance and answers questions through the SeekersGuidance Answers Service.
