For the next 4 weeks Sr. A will be teaching all the girls Fiqh for women. Its fascinating and finally makes some sense! We are even going to get to why a period makes you impure and how to purify it. ROCK. So here is what I learned.
Fiqh is the law which comes from Shariah Law and thus from the Ulama not Muhammad. I have issues with Shariah mostly because it seems like there would be an easier way to explain things (ex you touch a pig you should wash your hands cause its a pig and they are always physically dirty). I will site what questions I am going to email Sr A for more clarification. They will be in light blue.
You have what is called Najis or impure items and creatures. There are different criteria that make them impure. Najasaat can make clean things unclean when touched. A dry najasaat does not make something najis, the item must be wet (Thus the wetness travels from the najis to the clean item). Lets say your hand touches blood. Blood is wet and travels onto your dry hand so your hand becomes najis. Lets say your hand is wet and you touch a pig that is dry the pig makes your hand najis. If the pig and your hand are wet the hand also becomes najis.
Q: Does a dog only turn your hand or clothing najis if he or your hand (clothes etc) is wet?
Some common Najasaat are: pigs, dogs, blood, urine and stool, dead bodies, and a kafir (by ruling of Sistani this refers to Atheists only). If one is not sure something is najis than one should assume it is NOT najis.
You have two kinds of cleaning for najis: Hadath and Kabath. Hadath is when you have to clean yourself, Kabath is when you have to clean an item. Niyyat (or intention) is only required when ghusl or wudu becomes necessary for the cleaning. Ex you just had sex with your husband and you go to do ghusl you must say before you start "I intend to purify myself through ghusl from sex" or something like that. Sex, touching a dead body, and your period are considered Big Hadath and require ghusl to be clean. Smaller ones such as falling asleep, using the bathroom only require Niyyat and wudu before prayer.
Kabath is when you only need to purify an item (your clothes, your hand etc). These do not require niyyat, ghusl, or wudu. You simply must wash the part of you that touched the najasaat. Examples are: Alcohol, a dog, blood, a kafir, cleaning a dead body, and semen. If any of these things touch you or get on you, you only have to clean the area of contact. Sr. A's example was if you say bite your lip you only need to wash your mouth out until the blood stops. No need to do ghusl or wudu.
Q: So if I were to own a dog and I pet him would I then only have to wash my hands? Or, because a dog is a higher level of najis, do I need to do ghusl?
Urine and stool, Semen and Dead Bodies
Urine and stool of any animal who's meat is haram and whose blood comes out with a gush is najis. However, Urine and stool of any animal who does not have BOTH these requirements is Pak (clean).
Ex: Dog meat is haram, dog's blood gushes dog is najis
Cow meat is halal, cow gushes blood cow is Pak
Snake meat is haram, snake blood does not gush, snake is Pak
Seamen: the semen of all human beings, and every animal whos blood comes out with a gush is najlis
Dead Bodies: all living things become Najis when they die. The dead body of a muslim becomes Pak after being given ghusl. A dead body does not become najis until after it has cooled.
Blood is najlis if it comes from an animal who's blood gushes. It is Pak if the blood does not gush.
Q: Why are things which gush blood najis?
Dogs, Pigs, and Kafirs are at a higher level of najlis to the extent that their fur, hair, teeth, nails, bones and even sweat are najlis.
Q: Why are dogs at the same level as a pig or a kafir?
We then discussed dogs. Sr A wanted to make it VERY clear that dogs are not inherently evil. That they are wonderful and she had one as a young woman in Iran and they loved their dog very much. He just lived outside or in the garage. The fur is an issue because it gets everywhere and dogs tend to bring in a lot of dirt. Your clothes gets full of hair and thus gets dirty. But we are to be very aware that there is nothing inherently bad about dogs, they just are extra dirty.
I think the Ulama just really didn't like dogs.
Q: If dogs are najis, cats should be too. And cats should be for similar reasons (aka fur, meat is haram, blood gushes). So why are muslims allowed to have cats and do not have to worry about their fur or stool being najis?
I will let you know what Sr A says.
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I'll be interested in the responses about dogs. As you pointed out to her, dogs and cats really seem no different! I still see no difference despite what the scholars say on this issue. I'm still interested in hearing more about it though.
ReplyDeleteI heard of a hadith where a cat came into the masjid and Pr. Muhammad let it stay there while he prayed, thus putting it in a special category even though its characteristics are otherwise similar to a dog.
ReplyDeleteIt doesn't make sense to me either.
Its funny because I asked Sis this (My Love's sister) and she said you have to take the same procautions with a cat but many dont. Its all subjective really.
ReplyDeleteInteresting stuff.Thanks for sharing. I'm eager to hear your friend's answers to your good questions.
ReplyDeleteThere's also a hadith about dogs going in and out of the mosque and urinating there, and it not being cleaned or even rinsed.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.usc.edu/schools/college/crcc/engagement/resources/texts/muslim/hadith/bukhari/004.sbt.html
hadith number 174
I refuse to believe that any creature of any species that is impartially loving - even when food is not forthcoming - is unclean. Such a creature is living in obedience to God's commandments - and many animals do so better than any human I have ever met. At the risk of sounding like a troll, let me venture the idea that there is no such thing as ritual purity - only moral purity. God has already by His Sovereign Hand made provision for our 'ritual purity' - once for all, for anyone who will accept it and via true repentance allow it to change their life. Let's say that the question of whether Jesus actually died on the cross before being raised up to heaven is not immaterial here.
ReplyDeleteI honestly think this whole "clean unclean" thing was an effort by the Ulama to explain why we need to wash or hands or clean our clothing after being around certain items. Like Cows are fine because if they weren't and you lived it Arabia you'd be screwed because they are EVERYWHERE! You'd be cleaning yourself constantly so they made an exception for cows.
ReplyDeleteI also don't know why they didn't just say" If you touch an animal wash your hands. If you get fur on you change your clothes". Would have been simpler because that is essencially what they are getting at.
That is what you need to understand. These rules were not put in place by Muhammad. Muhammad did not create the Shariah. The Ulama did.
ReplyDeleteAs far as I know, as long as the dog is dry and your hand is dry, it's fine to pet them and you won't have to wash afterwards. If the dog is wet or your hand is wet, or the dog licks you, then you need to wash up. I am totally fine with this; my parents have a standard poodle who I absolutely love, but I think it's totally gross when he licks me or gets his wet fur on me (wet dog smell is awful, and there's something about the stickiness of dog saliva that's really nasty). However, in the Maliki school of thought (which I tend to lean towards), any part of a dog is pure and does not require ritual washing afterwards, even if the dog licks you. I'm not sure what the ruling is in any of the Shi'a schools.
ReplyDeleteAnne: The entire dog is considered najis, even his hair. So its really annoying. Im waiting for Sr A to get back to me.
ReplyDeleteWhere I live most people are Maliki so we see dogs everywhere. My friend prays with the dog sitting next to her! She wears hijab and all, is very religious and she owns two dogs.
ReplyDeleteYes but most Malikis would not keep black dogs because apparently there is a hadith that Satan lives in them and they should be killed. I haven't checked it, though.
Cats and dogs carry the same germs. They have the same bacteria. A cat's litter can cause serious harm to a fetus and cat scratch fever is often lethal. They both bring in dirt, fleas and rabies. I worked briefly with a stray rescue team and the doctor there told us often that the diseases that a dog's saliva carries are the same as that of a cat's.
LK, I agree with your cultural interpretation. This is one reason I understand why camel meat was never made haram. It was everywhere! And while it is not allowed to Jews, Muslims allowed it eventhough an Arab would never allow his pregnant wife to eat it because it is dangerous for the fetus and one has to make wadu after eating camel meat before prayer.
Kafir is najis? If you use public transport in the Netherlands you will be doing an awful lot of hand washing!
LOL to your last statement Achelois. A Kafir (for my classes purpose is Atheist) is only najis if you know for sure the person is atheist. So unless you know everyone in the Netherlands is atheist you'd be fine haha.
ReplyDeleteI just don't get why the Ulama made everything so complicated! Just wash after you touch an animal and don't pray in clothes covered in fur. Problem solved. No one can remember all of this. Its unreasonable. You end up remembering basics. Im not going to remember how many cubic inches are needed for me to clean myself. Im not going to remember which animals are and are not najis. Im only going to remember to wash my hands after touching an animal because that is just common sense. And to do wudu after the restroom. Because these things make sense!
The loophole with the dog I think is to get one that doesnt shed. Most of the issue is their fur (I know from having one it gets everywhere!). If the dog doesnt shed you eliminate half the problem. And I agree with you about cats. Sometimes I wonder if they are worse.
I think My Love is afraid of dogs though lol. He sides with getting a cat.
Too complicated for the layman. I bet a lot of people dont even know about this stuff anyway.....
I pray in clothes covered with fur because it's impossible to do otherwise in my household. And no, I am not going to tell my cats to live outside where they could get run over or freeze to death in minus 30 Celsius weather. I am going to tell them 'Welcome, my little prince, Welcome my little princess' and give them the best life possible. Which particularly in the case of my 'little prince' involves spending at least 12 hours a day in my lap (sharing it with the computer, which he shoves onto my abdomen so that as I write, I am in a semi-reclining position with my feet up on the coffee table). And that is what really makes it worthwhile for him to give up the freedom of living outside... Why would I not do this for such an impartially loving creature as he is? I am so grateful for his kindness to me - even if I don't feed him every time he wants food, even if I get annoyed at him sometimes. His reaction is, 'Aww, cut it out and let me come sit in your lap!' Lalcia may not be quite as impartial, but she is probably the most exuberantly joyful creature I have ever met. I don't know if I am a Law of Attraction adherent or not, but it certainly can't do harm, if I want to surround myself with love, to spend my days loving those whom God has brought into my life, namely my kitties...
ReplyDeleteCarboska: Turns out cat fur is Pak. So your little kitties don't cause a problem anyway :) But I see what you are saying and it does seem a bit off, this view of dogs.
ReplyDeleteLK, :D:D:D Where did you get the idea my kitties are little? OK, they are smaller than I am - which is I guess why I call them my little prince and my little princess. But I am a BIG GIRL :D Lalcia weighs maybe 8 pounds, and Itsy - a good 10 or 11. Heavy enough to give me a good back rub. His habit of lying on my lap for hours on end has exacerbated my varicose veins. Ah, the things we do for love...
ReplyDeletePS My mom used to breed VERY furry dogs. Wonderful, loving creatures, even for a dog. I would indeed say the same thing about them as I do about my kitties...
ReplyDeleteCaraboska: I do believe it is in its root an over exaggerated superstition. I can totally agree with not having dog hair all over me when I pray because when I have fur all over me I feel dirty. So for me I would want to be free of fur. and you should wash your hands after touching an animal because that is just good hygene. But I think the extent to which Shariah Law has made dogs unclean is unreasonable. Especially when cats, who should have the same qualifications, are not considered remotely najis.
ReplyDeleteSo yeah its totally an issue. I think this is the first thing that I find simply illogical. Note though, it doesn't come from Muhammad or the Qur'an. Tends to work that way. Shariah Law and I are not friends.
Kind of hard to think of washing as the solution if you have an animal who views your lap as his home and spends the majority of each day in that particular location. Of course I wish he and his companion wouldn't shed so much, but I figure it's a small price to pay...
ReplyDeleteTeehee Yeah they own your lap. It no longer belongs to you!
ReplyDeleteI hear if you brush them every day they don't shed so much. Works on dogs I would think it works for cats too. But the cat might be all "Oh no way! You aren't brushing me!" Because cats do as they want lol
Mine let me comb them and it helps :) A LOT. And to think that they are shorthairs - imagine what my situation would be if I had Persians... They probably shed so much every year that you could make an entire sweater out of the brushed out undercoat of one cat...
ReplyDeleteOH I would never own a long hair. TOO MUCH FUR! lol And hair balls yuck!
ReplyDeleteI love furry creatures. But as you mention, for the sake of the animal's health, especially in the case of a cat, you have to be willing to put in substantial amounts of time daily grooming it...
ReplyDelete