Part 1
Wiping Over Shoes When Making Wudu
Compiled & Translated
By
Abbas Abu Yahya
The Ahadeeth
1 – From al-Mughira bin Shu’aba
أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ تَوَضَّأَ، وَمَسَحَ عَلَى الْجَوْرَبَيْنِ وَالنَّعْلَيْنِ
‘That the Messenger of Allaah ﷺ performed Wudu and wiped over the socks and shoes.’
[Collected by Abu Dawood, Tirmidhi and he said this Hadeeth is Hasan Saheeh, Nisa’ee & authenticated by Al-Albaani]
2 – From Aws bin Abi Aws who said:
‘One day I saw my father performing Wudu and he wiped over his shoes, so I asked: ‘Do you wipe over them?’
He replied:
هكذا رأيت رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم يفعل
‘I saw the Messenger of Allaah -sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam- do likewise.’
[Collected by Ahmad, Tabarani in ‘al-Kabeer’ & Al-Albaani said and this Isnaad is Saheeh, in ‘Thamaratul Mustataab fee Fiqh as-Sunnah wal Kitab’]
3 From Abdikhair who said: I saw Ali -RadhiAllaahu anhu- perform Wudu and wipe over his shoes, then Ali said:
لولا أني رأيت رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم فعل كما رأيتموني فعلت
لرأيت أن باطن القدمين هو أحق بالمسح من ظاهرهما.
‘If I had not seen the Messenger of Allaah sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam do as you have seen me just do, I would have held the opinion that the bottom of feet had more of a right to be wiped over than the top of the foot.’
[Collected by Ahmad, Darimi & Al-Albaani said: and this Isnaad is Saheeh]
From the Fatawa of Shaykh Al-Albaani
1 – What is the Ruling of wiping over shoes
Question:
Is it correct to wipe over shoes just like it is for wiping over the Khuff?
The Shaykh:
It is correct to wipe over shoes absolutely, just as it is correct to wipe over al-Khuff absolutely, just as it is correct to wipe over socks absolutely. Everyone who brings restraints for doing this action, then we go back to a previous discussion about (a principle in Usool al-Fiqh) that it is not permissible to place restraints for that which is absolute, nor to make absolute that which is restrained.
Therefore, when it is mentioned with recurring chains of narration from the Messenger alayhi as-Salam that he wiped over his Khuff, it is not allowed to restrain that with any conditions. For example, they may say, the Khuff must not have holes in them, and some of them apply a rule perhaps that the Khuff must be from a particular animal, this is all incorrect and a burden which the Ummah and I are free from burdening.
We say indeed the Ahadeeth which mention wiping over the Khuff, wiping over socks and wiping over shoes are Ahadeeth which are absolute, and it is not allowed to restrain and limit them with just an opinion. If it had not been authentic to limit the timing of wiping over Khuff, socks and shoes, then it would only be allowed for us to accept the Madhab of Malik which allows wiping over without any time limit.
As for what is indeed authentic in the Hadeeth in many narrations:
‘The Messenger of Allaah sallAllaahu alayhi wa ahlihi wa sallam placed a time period for wiping over Khuff, for a resident it is a day and a night, and for a traveller it is three days and nights.’
It is obligatory to accept this restraint. As for anything other than this from restraints, which are mentioned in some books of Fiqh even though between them they have a far greater difference of opinions, then nothing of that is authentically narrated from the Prophet sallAllaahu alayhi wa ahlihi wa sallam.
Perhaps you have read in some of the books of Fiqh of the permissibility of wiping over the Khuff with the condition that they do not have holes in them
But it has been mentioned from al-Hasan al-Basreeh that he said:
وهل كان جوارب الأنصار إلا مخرقة؟
‘Were not the socks of the Ansaar except that they had holes in them?’
This is what is in agreement with of the ease of Islaam, because if a person intends to restrain and limit matters with these types of conditions and due to that perhaps he would divorce from the Sunnah with the three complete divorces.
So, the concession would revert back to the original Islaamic ruling and then the people would have no need of it due to the restraints and conditions which are added to this concession.
There is no doubt that a concession necessitates by the nature of it being a concession that it is free from every restrain, or condition or a specific characteristic except with what has been mentioned in the Sharia, so we should be like those about whom Allaah Ta’ala said:
ويسلموا تسليما
<<and accept (them) with full submission>>
The matter which is the furthest away from the opinion of the majority is wiping over shoes because they claim that it does not cover the place where it is obligatory to wash the feet, however, since it is established firstly from the Prophet sallAllaahu alayhi wa ahlihi wa sallam.
Then it is established from some of the Khulafah Rashideen.
Secondly, and I specifically mean by this Ali RadhiAllaahu anhu, since indeed it has been affirmed from him that he wiped over his shoes, and when he came to the Masjid, he took them off and led the people in the prayer.
What we also understand here is another easy ruling, which is that removing the wiped over item (sock or shoe) does not invalidate Wudu, in fact, the ruling is not attached to washing feet again after having wiped over the covering.
Therefore, the obligation is, of adhering to the texts [of the Qur’aan and the Sunnah] whether they are in our favour or not in our favour, whether the texts illustrate something easy or difficult.
Allaah Azza wa Jal orders us to worship Him with whatever He wills. We never use our intellects towards these texts, whether they are absolute or restrained.’
[Taken from Fatawa Jeddah tape no. 5 @ 20:30 mins]