How Do I Deal With the Spreading of Filth That Dried on a Mattress a Decade Ago?

Question: 

I have a mattress that has urine on it from ten years ago. My mom has a habit when she washes her hand to rub them dry on her clothes, and then she sleeps on that mattress. This means that urine spread to her clothes. Then she touches everything. Does this mean that my meal, my clothes, my water, and everything in the house is impure?

Answer: 

Assalamu alaykum,

Thank you for your question. Do not assume that everything is impure in your house, and do not worry about filth transferring from your mother’s hand to anything as there is nothing visible on her hand in the first place. The Devil is just using this opportunity to make your life hard and cause doubt. In addition, if there is a sheet on the mattress, you can assume the sheet is pure, so there is no direct contact with the mattress.

Purifying your mattress will end your baseless misgivings, so please follow the steps in the link below to purify it. There really is no reason to leave urine dried up on a mattress anyway. We were taught by our teachers in Syria, that one’s home should be in a state of purity (even if not clean!) from top to bottom, without any areas of lingering filth, such that if Prophet, Allah bless him and grant him peace, were to enter the home, the state of the home would be suitable for him.

https://seekers.flywheelstaging.com/answers/hanafi-fiqh/mattress-big-washed-can-remove-filth/

May Allah give you the best of this world and the next.

[Ustadha] Shazia Ahmad

Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

Ustadha Shazia Ahmad lived in Damascus, Syria for two years where she studied aqidah, fiqh, tajweed, tafseer, and Arabic. She then attended the University of Texas at Austin, where she completed her Masters in Arabic. Afterward, she moved to Amman, Jordan where she studied fiqh, Arabic, and other sciences. She recently moved back to Mississauga, Canada, where she lives with her family.