Is It Permissible to Use Water Mixed with Dust for Ritual Purity?

Answered by Ustadh Sufyan Qufi

Question

There is a bucket filled with tap water. There are some dust-like particles in the water beneath the bucket. Is it okay to use that water for ablution?

Answer

In the name of Allah, Most Compassionate, Most Merciful,

I pray this finds you in the best of states.

Tap water mixed with some dust remains pure and purifying. [Shurunbulali, Nur al-Idah]

The reason for this ruling is twofold. First, this water has remained pure because purity is the default assumption about things. Thus, We can assume the purity of the dust mixed with this water. This water has remained pure. [Ibid.]

Secondly, water mixed with a solid remains purifying as long as it retains its subtle and flowing quality. This is obviously the case in the situation you have described. [Ibid.]

For example, it has been narrated that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings upon him) has performed a ritual bath with water showing some traces of dough. [Nassa’i]

For these reasons, this water, mixed with dust, has remained pure and purifying and can be used for ritual purification.

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.