The Faith of Islam Part 13

The duties next in order as regards authority are the _sunnat_ ones. They are three in number and are based either on the practice of the Prophet, or are _fitrat_, that is practices of previous prophets, the continuance of which {188} Muhammad did not forbid. They are (1) circ.u.mcision; (2) shaving off the hair from the head and the body; (3) the paring of the nails. In addition to these there are actions which are _mustahab_. They are those which Muhammad sometimes did and sometimes omitted. There is a still lower cla.s.s of action which are _mubah_. These are works of supererogation. If omitted there is no fear of punishment.

It may be mentioned in pa.s.sing that unlawful actions and things are (1) _Haram_, actions and food forbidden either in the Quran or the Traditions; (2) _Mahruh_, actions the unlawfulness of which is not absolutely certain, but which are generally considered wrong; (3) _Mufsid_, actions corrupting or pernicious. It is necessary to bear these terms in mind as they will now frequently occur.

1. TASHAHHUD.--This is the recital of a confession of faith. There are several forms of this. A common one is: "I testify that there is no deity but G.o.d, I testify to His unity and that He has no partner; I testify that Muhammad is His servant and His messenger." The shorter form is: "There is no deity but G.o.d and Muhammad is the apostle of G.o.d." The power contained in this latter confession is extraordinary. It embodies the very spirit of Islam. "It has led everywhere the march of its armies, it has rung for twelve centuries in the morning air from its minarets, it has been pa.s.sed from lip to lip, as no other word has ever been pa.s.sed, by thousands of millions of the human race." The power of Islam, its proclamation of the Unity, is here seen in the closest contact with what is to Muslim theologians the equally fundamental truth--the apostleship of Muhammad, a dogma which r.e.t.a.r.ds the healthy development, explains the narrowness, and causes the prostration of Islam, as the world around grows luminant with the light of science and truth, of faith and reason.

2. SULaT.[185]--All the books on Fiqh (Law) which treat of {189} these Irkan-i-din, give in connection with Sulat the rules regarding the necessary purifications. It will be convenient to follow the same order.

Taharat or legal purification is of three kinds: (1) Wazu, the lesser l.u.s.tration; (2) Ghusl, the greater l.u.s.tration; (3) Tayammum, or purification by sand.

(1). Wazu is an ablution made before saying the appointed prayers. Those which are 'farz' are four in number, viz:--to wash (1) the face from the top of the forehead to the chin, and as far as each ear; and (2) the hands and arms up to the elbow; (3) to rub (masah) with the wet hand a fourth part of the head; also (4) the feet to the ankles. The authority for these actions is the text: "O Believers! when ye address yourselves to prayer, wash your hands up to the elbow, and wipe your heads, and your feet to the ankles" (Sura v. 8). The Sunnis wash the feet: the Shia'hs are apparently more correct, for they only wipe, or rather rub, (masah) them. In these ablutions, if the least portion of the specified part is left untouched, the whole act becomes useless and the prayer which follows is vain.

The act of making wazu, however, has not been allowed to remain in this simple form. The Sunnat regulations regarding it are fourteen in number.

They are, (1) to make the intention of wazu, thus: I make this wazu for the purpose of putting away impurity; (2) to wash the hand up to the wrist, but care must be taken not to put the hands entirely into the water, until each has been rubbed three times with water poured on it; (3) to say one of the names of G.o.d at the commencement of the wazu[186] thus: "In the name of the Great G.o.d," or "Thanks be to G.o.d for the religion of Islam;" (4) to clean the teeth; (5) to rinse the mouth three times; (6) to put water into the {190} nostrils three times; (7) to do all the above in proper order; (8) to do all without any delay between the various acts; (9) each part is to be purified three times; (10) the s.p.a.ce between the fingers of one hand must be rubbed with the wet fingers of the other; (11) the beard must be combed with the fingers; (12) the whole head must be rubbed once; (13) the ears must be washed with the water remaining on the fingers after the last operation; (14) to rub under and between the toes with the little finger of the left hand, drawing it from the little toe of the right foot and between each toe in succession. Imam Shafa'i holds that (1) and (7) are farz duties and that (12) should be done three times. Imam Malik considers (8) to be farz.

The actions may be done in silence, or prayer may be repeated. Such a recital is a mustahab, not a sunnat or farz order. It is not obligatory. A specimen of these prayers is given in a note.[187]

(2). Ghusl is an ablution of the whole body after certain legal defilements, and should be made as follows. The person should put on clean clothes and perform the wazu, then he should say: "I make ghusl to put away impurity." All being ready he should wash himself in the following order.

He must pour water over the right shoulder three times, then over the left three times and, lastly, on his head {191} also the same number of times.

The three farz conditions are that (1) the mouth must be rinsed, (2) water be put into the nostrils, and (3) the whole body be washed. If one hair even is left dry the whole act is rendered vain and useless. All other particulars are sunnat or mustahab.

There are obvious reasons why an explanation of the causes which vitiate a purification, or of the cases in which ghusl is required, cannot be given here. Every standard Muslim work on Fikh, or law, deals fully with the subject. Nothing is more calculated to show the student of Islam how much the Sunnat rules in the practical life of Muslims. The Traditions have raised the most trivial ceremonial observances into duties of the greatest importance. That there may be spiritually minded men in Islam is not to be denied; but a system of religion which declares that the virtue of prayer depends practically on an ablution, and that that ablution is useless unless done in the order prescribed, is one well calculated to make men formalists and nothing more. It comes to this, that, if a man when making wazu washes his left hand before his right, or his nose before his teeth, he cannot lawfully say the daily Namaz enjoined on all Muslims. None but those who have studied Muslim treatises on the subject can conceive of the puerile discussions which have taken place on points apparently trivial, but which from their connection with the Sunnat are deemed by learned Muslims of great importance.

(3). Tayammum, or purification by sand, is allowable under the following circ.u.mstances. (1) When water cannot be procured except at a distance of one kos (about 2 miles); (2) in case of sickness when the use of water might be injurious; (3) when water cannot be obtained without incurring danger from an enemy, a beast or a reptile; and (4) when on the occasion of the Namaz of a Feast day or the Namaz at a funeral, the worshipper is late and has no time to perform the wazu. On ordinary days this subst.i.tution of tayammum for wazu is not allowable.

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The ceremony is performed as follows. The person says: "I make tayammum to put away impurity;" then, "I seek refuge near G.o.d from cursed Satan. I commence in the name of G.o.d, most Merciful and most High, whose praises are in the religion of Islam." He then strikes the sand with open hands, rubs his mouth and, at last, the arms to the elbows. Not one hair must be left untouched or the whole ceremony is useless. The farz acts are to make the intention of tayammum, to rub the mouth and the hands. "If ye are sick, or on a journey, or if one of you come from the place of retirement, or if ye have touched women, and ye find no water, then take clean sand and rub your faces and your hands with it." (Sura v. 9.)

Minute regulations are laid down with regard to the water which may be used for purification. The following kinds of water are lawful:--rain, sea, river, fountain, well, snow and ice-water. Ice is not lawful. The first kind is authorized by the Quran. "He sent you down water from heaven that He might thereby cleanse you, and cause the pollution of Satan to pa.s.s from you." (Sura viii. 11.) The use of the others is sanctioned by the Traditions. I give one ill.u.s.tration. A man one day came to the Prophet and said: "I am going on a voyage and shall only have a small supply of fresh water; if I use it for ablutions I shall have none wherewith to quench my thirst, may I use sea water?" The Prophet replied: "The water of the sea is pure." Tirmizi states that this is a Hadis-i-Sahih. Great difference of opinion exists with regard to what const.i.tutes impurity in water, and so renders it unfit for ablutions. It would be wearisome to the reader to enter into all details, but I may briefly say that, amongst the orthodox, it is generally held that if a dead body or any unclean thing falls into flowing water, or into a reservoir more than 15 feet square it can be used, provided always that the colour, smell and taste are not changed. It is for this reason that the pool near a mosque is never less than ten cubits square. If of {193} that size, it is called a _dah dar dah_, (literally 10 x 10). It may be, and commonly is, larger than this. It should be about one foot deep.

The necessary ablutions having been made, the worshipper can commence the Namaz.

(4). Salat or Namaz. The Namaz can be said either in private or in public.

All that is required is that the clothes and person of the worshipper should be clean, the place free from all impurity, and that the face be turned towards Mecca. Whether the Namaz is said in public or in private, it must be preceded by wazu, except when tayammum is allowed. If the Namaz[188] is said in a mosque which is considered to be more meritorious than repeating it in private, it must be preceded by the Azan, or call to prayers, and the Iqamat. Minute particulars regarding the exact att.i.tude in which the Musalli, one who says the Salat, must stand and the words he is to say are given in Muslim books. The following account will give some idea of a Namaz, or Service.[189]

The Mu,azzin[190] calls out loudly in Arabic:--

"Allahu Akbar! Allahu Akbar! Allahu Akbar! Allahu Akbar[191]!"

All who hear it respond:--

"Allahu Akbar! Allahu Akbar! Allahu Akbar! Allahu Akbar!"

The Mu,azzin says:--

"I confess there is no G.o.d but G.o.d, I confess there is no G.o.d but G.o.d."

Each of his auditors replies:--

"I confess there is no G.o.d but G.o.d, I confess there is no G.o.d but G.o.d."

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Mu,azzin:--"I confess Muhammad is the apostle of G.o.d."

Auditor:--"I confess Muhammad is the apostle of G.o.d."

Mu,azzin:--"Come to prayer."

Auditor:--"I have no power or strength but from G.o.d most High and Great."

Mu,azzin:--"Come to do good."

Auditor:--"What G.o.d wills will be; what He wills not will not be."

If it is the time of morning prayer, the Mu,azzin adds the words: "Prayer is better than sleep," to which the response is given: "Thou hast spoken well." "Allahu Akbar," and "There is no G.o.d but G.o.d" are then repeated twice and so the Azan ends.

The Iqamat (literally, "causing to stand") is a repet.i.tion of the Azan, but after the words, "come to do good," the statement "prayer has commenced" is made.

These preliminaries being now over, the Namaz can commence. It is as follows:

The Musalli, or worshipper, stands with his hands close to his side and says in a low voice the Niyyat (intention):--

"I have purposed to offer up to G.o.d only, with a sincere heart this morning (or as the case may be), with my face Qibla-wards, two (or as the case may be) rak'at prayers, farz (or sunnat or nafl, as the case may be)."

Then follows the Takbir-i-Tahrimah, said with the thumbs touching the lobes of the ears. The palms of the hands are placed towards the Qibla. The fingers are slightly separated from each other. In this position the Musalli says:--"Allahu Akbar!"

The Qiam, or standing position. The palm of the right hand being placed on the back of the left, the thumb and little finger of the former seize the wrist of the latter. Both hands are then placed below the navel,[192] the eyes are {195} directed towards the spot where the head of the worshipper will touch the ground in prostration, and the Sana is said. It is:--

"Holiness to Thee O G.o.d! and praise be to Thee!

Great is Thy name! Great is thy Greatness!

There is no G.o.d but Thee!"

The Ta'awwuz is then said:--

"I seek refuge near G.o.d from cursed Satan."

Then follows the Tasmiyah:--

"In the name of G.o.d, the Compa.s.sionate, the Merciful."

Then follows the Fatiha,[193] or first chapter of the Quran:--

"Praise be to G.o.d, Lord of the worlds! the Compa.s.sionate, the Merciful!

King on the day of reckoning! Thee only do we worship, and to Thee do we cry for help. Guide Thou us on the straight path: the path of those to whom Thou hast been gracious: with whom Thou art not angry, and who go not astray."

After this the worshipper can repeat as many chapters of the Quran as he likes.[194] Some verses he must repeat.

The Surat-ul-Ikhlas (Sura 112) is generally said:--