How Can I Avoid to Spend Too Much Time in Cleaning My Clothes and Performing a Ritual Bath?

Answered by Ustadh Tabraze Azam

Question: As salam alaikum

I am Maliki, and I suffer great distress from the ruling of my school that mani (sperm) and wadi (post urinal liquid) are impure, as it leads me to obsessive lengths in cleaning my clothes and body and bedding from it. I also usually spend hours doing and repeating my Ghusl (Ritual bath). May I follow as dispensation the position of the Shafi’i school that these are pure?

Answer:Assalamu alaikum wa rahmatullah,

With modern day bathing facilities, a complete ritual bath (ghusl) can be performed in under one minute. If this appears impossible, it is very likely that you are suffering from some degree of neurotic misgivings (waswasa). As such, you need to ignore the thoughts that you are having, identifying them as from the devil, and then ask Allah Most High to remove them from you. Having done that, take a bath as per the sunna, and don’t do anything extra.

Next, the way to remove impurity is to simply wash it away, if visible, or to wash it thrice if otherwise; thereafter, you can consider the item purified. Note that if you aren’t intending to pray on your bed covers, nor will the filth get onto your person, you need not worry about the matter religiously. Rather, simply wash it when you plan to use the washing machine next.

I’d advise reading The OCD Workbook.

And see: A Reader on Waswasa (Baseless Misgivings)

And Allah Most High alone knows best.

wassalam,
[Ustadh] Tabraze Azam

Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

Ustadh Tabraze Azam was born and raised in Ipswich, England, a quiet town close to the east coast of England. His journey for seeking sacred knowledge began when he privately memorized the entire Qur’an in his hometown at the age of 16. He also had his first experience in leading the tarawih (nightly-Ramadan) prayers at his local mosque. Year after year he would continue this unique return to reciting the entire Quran in one blessed month both in his homeland, the UK, and also in the blessed lands of Shaam, where he now lives, studies and teaches.