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CASES WHEN IT IS NOT NECESSARY FOR THE BODY AND CLOTHING OF SOMEONE PERFORMING PRAYERS TO BE PURE →
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CONDITIONS OF CLOTHING WORN BY SOMEONE PERFORMING PRAYERS
Ruling 785. The clothing worn by someone performing prayers must meet six conditions:
1. it must be pure (ṭāhir);
2. it must be permissible (mubāḥ) [i.e. it must not be usurped], as an obligatory precaution;
3. it must not be made from the parts of the carcass [of an animal that has not been slaughtered according to Islamic law];
4. it must not be from a predatory animal; and based on obligatory precaution, nor must it be from an animal whose meat is unlawful to eat;
5.–6. if the person performing prayers is male, it must not be made from pure silk nor embroidered with gold.
The details of these conditions will be explained in the following rulings.
Ruling 786. The first condition: the clothing worn by a person performing prayers must be pure. If someone voluntarily performs prayers with an impure body or with impure clothing, his prayers are invalid.
Ruling 787. If on account of being negligent in learning the religious ruling a person does not know that prayers performed with an impure body or with impure clothing are invalid, or that, for example, semen is impure, and he performs prayers with it, the obligatory precaution is that he must perform the prayer again; and if the prescribed time has expired, he must make it up.
Ruling 788. If on account of not knowing the ruling a person performs prayers with an impure body or with impure clothing, and if he was not negligent in learning the ruling, then it is not necessary for him to perform the prayer again or make it up.
Ruling 789. If someone is certain that his body or clothing is not impure and after prayers he realises it was impure, his prayers are valid.
Ruling 790.* If someone forgets that his body or clothing is impure and remembers it during or after prayers, in the event that his forgetfulness was due to carelessness and heedlessness, he must perform the prayer again based on obligatory precaution. If the prescribed time for the prayer has expired, he must make it up. [If his forgetfulness was not due to carelessness and heedlessness and] he remembers after prayers [that his body or clothing was impure], it is not necessary for him to perform the prayer again. However, if he remembers this during prayers, he must act according to the instructions that will be mentioned in the next ruling.
Ruling 791. If a person starts performing a prayer when there is ample time, and during it he becomes aware that his body or clothing has become impure, and he deems it probable that it became impure after he started his prayer, then, in case his prayer would not be broken up by washing his body, changing his clothes, or taking them off, he must during the prayer wash his body or clothes, change his clothes, or take them off, as long as another thing covers his private parts. However, in the event that washing his body or clothes, or changing or removing his clothes, would break up the prayer, or if by removing his clothes he would become naked, then based on obligatory precaution, he must perform his prayer again with pure clothes.
Ruling 792. If a person starts performing a prayer when time is short, and during it he realises that his clothing has become impure, and he deems it probable that it had become impure after he started the prayer, then, in case his prayer would not be broken up by washing or changing his clothes or taking them off, and he can remove them, he must wash his clothes, change them, or take them off – as long as another thing covers his private parts – and he must then complete his prayer. However, if nothing else covers his private parts and he cannot wash nor change his clothes, he must complete his prayer with the impure clothing.
Ruling 793. If a person starts performing a prayer when time is short, and during it realises that his body has become impure, and he deems it probable that it became impure after he started his prayer, then, in case washing his body would not break up the prayer, he must wash his body. If it would break up the prayer, he must complete it just as he is and it will be valid.
Ruling 794. If someone has a doubt about his body or clothing being pure, in the event that he investigates and does not see anything on it and performs prayers, and after prayers he realises that his body or clothing was impure, his prayers are valid. However, if he does not investigate, then based on obligatory precaution, he must perform his prayer again; and in the event that the time has expired, he must make it up.
Ruling 795. If a person washes his clothing and is certain that it has become pure and performs prayers with it, and afterwards he realises that it had not become pure, his prayers are valid.
Ruling 796. If someone sees some blood on his body or clothing and is certain that it is not impure blood – for example, he is certain that it is the blood of a mosquito – then, in the event that after prayers he realises that it was a type of impure blood with which prayers cannot be performed, his prayers are valid.
Ruling 797. If someone is certain that the blood on his body or clothing is impure blood with which prayers can be performed – for example, he is certain that it is the blood of a wound or a boil – then, in the event that he realises after prayers that the blood was of the type with which prayers cannot be performed, his prayers are valid.
Ruling 798. If a person forgets that something is impure and his wet body or clothing touches it, and while he is in the state of forgetfulness he performs prayers with it and remembers it after prayers, his prayers are valid. However, if his wet body touches an impure object that he had forgotten was impure, and without washing himself he performs ritual bathing (ghusl) and prayers, his ghusl and prayers are invalid unless by performing ghusl his body also becomes pure and the water does not become impure, like when ghusl is performed in running water. Furthermore, if a wet part of the body on which wuḍūʾ is performed touches an impure object that he had forgotten was impure, and before washing it he performs wuḍūʾ and prayers, his wuḍūʾ and prayer are invalid unless by performing wuḍūʾ the impure part on which wuḍūʾ is performed also becomes pure and the water does not become impure, like when wuḍūʾ is performed with kurr[1] or running water.
Ruling 799.* If someone possesses only one piece of clothing and his body and clothing become impure, and the water in his possession is enough to wash only one of them, the obligatory precaution is to wash the body and perform prayers with the impure clothing. And based on obligatory precaution, it is not permitted to wash the clothing and perform prayers with an impure body. However, in case the impurity on his clothing is more than what is on his body, or there is an impurity on his clothing that has an additional prohibitive element, such as the blood of a predatory animal,[2] then in such a case, he has the choice of washing whichever one he wants.
Ruling 800. Someone who does not have any other clothing apart from impure clothing must perform prayers with impure clothing, and his prayers will be valid.
Ruling 801. If someone who has two sets of clothing knows that one of them is impure but he does not know which one it is, in the event that he has sufficient time, he must perform prayers with each of them. For example, if he wants to perform the ẓuhr and ʿaṣr prayers, he must perform one ẓuhr prayer and one ʿaṣr prayer with each. However, if time is short and neither of them can be preferred based on the strength of probability, then whichever one he performs his prayer with will be sufficient.
Ruling 802. The second condition: based on obligatory precaution, the clothing with which a person performing prayers covers his private parts must be permissible (mubāḥ) [i.e. it must not be usurped (ghaṣbī)]. If a person knows that wearing usurped clothing is unlawful, or he does not know the ruling due to his negligence, and he intentionally performs prayers with that clothing, then based on obligatory precaution, his prayers are invalid. However, with regard to usurped things that do not on their own cover the private parts, and things that the person performing prayers is not currently wearing – such as a big handkerchief or a loincloth in his pocket, even though they could cover his private parts – and things that he is currently wearing but under which he has some other clothes that are not usurped and which cover his private parts, in all of these cases, the fact that these things are usurped do not affect the validity of the prayer, although as a recommended precaution using such things should be avoided.
Ruling 803. If someone knows that wearing usurped clothing is unlawful but does not know the ruling on performing prayers with it, and he intentionally performs prayers with usurped clothing, then as per the details mentioned in the previous ruling his prayers are invalid based on obligatory precaution.
Ruling 804. If someone does not know his clothing is usurped or forgets that it is and performs prayers with it, his prayers are valid. However, if someone usurps some clothing himself and forgets that he has usurped it and performs prayers with it, then based on obligatory precaution, his prayers are invalid.
Ruling 805. If someone does not know or forgets that his clothing is usurped and realises this during prayers, in the event that something else covers his private parts and he can immediately or without breaking the close succession (muwālāh) – i.e. by maintaining continuity in the prayer – remove the clothing and continue praying, he must do so. If there is nothing else that covers his private parts from an onlooker [as defined in the footnote pertaining to Ruling 784] or he cannot remove the usurped clothing, he must continue the prayer with that clothing and the prayer will be valid.
Ruling 806. If someone performs prayers with usurped clothing to protect his life, then in case he cannot perform prayers with other clothing by the end of the prescribed time, or he has to wear it out of necessity due to no fault of his own – for example, he did not usurp it himself – his prayers are valid. Similarly, if he performs prayers in usurped clothing so that a thief does not steal it and he cannot perform prayers before the end of the prescribed time with other clothing, or he keeps it with the intention of returning it to its owner as soon as possible, his prayers are valid.
Ruling 807.* If a person purchases clothing with money on which the one-fifth tax (khums) has not been paid, and the purchase is a non-specified undertaking (al‑kullī fī al‑dhimmah),[3] as most purchases are, the clothing will be lawful (ḥalāl) for him. However, because he used money on which khums had not been paid, and he delayed paying the khums that was due on it, he will have sinned and must pay khums on the money he gave to the seller. However, if a person purchases clothing with the actual money on which khums has not been paid,[4] then performing prayers with that clothing without the authorisation of a fully qualified jurist (al‑ḥākim al‑sharʿī) is ruled to be the same as performing prayers with usurped clothing.
Ruling 808. The third condition: the clothing that is large enough to cover the private parts on its own of someone performing prayers must not be made from the carcass [of an animal that has not been slaughtered according to Islamic law] and whose blood gushes out when its jugular vein is cut. Based on obligatory precaution, this condition also applies to clothing that cannot cover the private parts on its own. And the recommended precaution is that one should not perform prayers with clothing that has been made from an animal whose blood does not gush out, such as a snake.
Ruling 809. If a person performs prayers while he has with him something from an impure carcass that contained life – such as a piece of meat or skin – his prayers are valid.
Ruling 810. If a person performs prayers while he has with him something from the carcass of an animal whose meat is lawful to eat, and that thing is not something that contains life – such as fur or wool – or, if he performs prayers with clothing made from it, his prayers are valid.
Ruling 811. The fourth condition: the clothing of a person performing prayers – apart from things that do not cover the private parts on their own, such as socks – must not be made from a predatory animal; in fact, based on obligatory precaution, it must not be made from an animal whose blood gushes out when its jugular vein is cut. Similarly, a person’s body and clothing must not be tainted with the urine, faeces, sweat, milk, or hair of such an animal. However, there is no problem if, for example, one strand of hair of such an animal is on his clothing, and the same applies if he carries something on his person from that animal; for example, in a container or box.
Ruling 812. If saliva, nasal mucus, or any other moisture from an animal whose meat is unlawful to eat, such as a cat, is on the body or clothing of someone performing prayers and it is wet, his prayers are invalid. However, his prayers are valid if it has dried up and the actual substance has been removed.
Ruling 813. There is no problem if someone’s hair, sweat, or saliva is on the body or clothing of a person performing prayers, and the same applies to pearls, wax, and honey.
Ruling 814. If a person doubts whether some clothing is made from an animal whose meat is lawful or unlawful to eat – irrespective of whether it was made in an Islamic country or not – it is permitted to perform prayers with it.
Ruling 815. It is not known if seashells are from the parts of animals whose flesh is unlawful to eat; therefore, it is permitted for one to perform prayers with them.
Ruling 816. Wearing the fur of a squirrel in prayers is not a problem, although the recommended precaution is that prayers should not be performed with it.
Ruling 817. If a person performs prayers with clothing about which he does not know or has forgotten that it was made from an animal whose meat is unlawful, his prayers are valid.
Ruling 818. The fifth condition: wearing clothing embroidered with gold for men is unlawful, and prayers performed with it are invalid. However, for women, wearing it in prayers and at other times is not a problem.
Ruling 819. Wearing gold, such as a gold necklace, ring, and wristwatch, is unlawful for men, and performing prayers with it is invalid. However, for women, wearing it in prayers and at other times is not a problem.
Ruling 820.* If a man does not know the previous ruling, or he does not know that his ring or clothing is made from gold, or he forgets or doubts [that it is made from gold], and he performs prayers with it, his prayers are valid. However, if he was culpably ignorant (al‑jāhil al‑muqaṣṣir)[5] about the ruling, his prayers are invalid and he must perform them again.
Ruling 821. The sixth condition: the clothing of a man performing prayers that can cover the private parts on its own must not be made of pure silk. Furthermore, it is unlawful for a man to wear such clothing at other times.
Ruling 822. If an entire sleeve or part of it is made out of pure silk, it is unlawful for a man to wear it, and prayers performed with it are invalid.
Ruling 823. It is permitted for one to wear clothing about which he does not know whether it is made out of pure silk or something else, and there is no problem in performing prayers with it.
Ruling 824. There is no problem if a silk handkerchief or similar item is in a man’s pocket, and it does not invalidate prayers.
Ruling 825. For women, there is no problem in wearing silk clothing in prayers and at other times.
Ruling 826. [For a man,] there is no problem in wearing pure silk clothing or clothing embroidered with gold if he is compelled to. Also, someone who is compelled to wear clothing and does not have any clothing except this type can perform prayers with it.
Ruling 827. If a person does not have clothing other than clothing that is usurped, or made of pure silk, or embroidered with gold, and if he is not compelled to wear clothes, he must perform prayers according to the instructions that were mentioned regarding a naked person.[6]
Ruling 828. If a person does not have clothing other than that made from a predatory animal, in the event that he is compelled to wear it, he can perform prayers with it provided that the necessity for him to do so remains until the end of the prescribed time. However, if he is not compelled, he must perform prayers according to the instructions that were mentioned regarding a naked person. If a person does not have clothing other than that made from an animal whose meat is unlawful to eat but is not a predatory animal, in the event that he is not compelled to wear it, the obligatory precaution is that he must perform prayers twice: once with that clothing, and once according to the instructions that were mentioned regarding a naked person.
Ruling 829.* If a person does not have anything with which he can cover his private parts in prayers, it is obligatory for him to procure such a thing even if he has to hire or purchase it. However, if procuring it would cause him excessive difficulty due to his poor financial situation, or the item being expensive, or him suffering some injustice – then it is not necessary for him to procure it and he can perform prayers according to the instructions that were mentioned regarding a naked person.
Ruling 830. If someone who does not have clothing is gifted or loaned some clothing by someone else, in the event that accepting it does not cause him excessive difficulty (mashaqqah), he must accept it. In fact, if borrowing or asking for clothing is not difficult for him, he must borrow or ask for it from someone who has it.
Ruling 831. Wearing clothing made of a material, colour, or style that is not normal for someone who wants to wear it is unlawful if it would cause him disrespect and humiliation. However, his prayers are valid if he performs prayers in that clothing, even if that is his only covering.
Ruling 832. It is not unlawful for a man to wear a woman's clothing, nor for a woman to wear a man’s clothing, and performing prayers with such clothing does not invalidate the prayer. However, based on obligatory precaution, it is not permitted for a man to appear in the form of a woman, and similarly vice versa.
Ruling 833. With regard to the bed sheet or quilt that is used by someone who must perform prayers while lying down, it is not necessary for it to fulfil the conditions of clothing of someone performing prayers unless it is used in such a way that it can be said to be worn, like if he were to wrap himself in it.
1. it must be pure (ṭāhir);
2. it must be permissible (mubāḥ) [i.e. it must not be usurped], as an obligatory precaution;
3. it must not be made from the parts of the carcass [of an animal that has not been slaughtered according to Islamic law];
4. it must not be from a predatory animal; and based on obligatory precaution, nor must it be from an animal whose meat is unlawful to eat;
5.–6. if the person performing prayers is male, it must not be made from pure silk nor embroidered with gold.
The details of these conditions will be explained in the following rulings.
Ruling 786. The first condition: the clothing worn by a person performing prayers must be pure. If someone voluntarily performs prayers with an impure body or with impure clothing, his prayers are invalid.
Ruling 787. If on account of being negligent in learning the religious ruling a person does not know that prayers performed with an impure body or with impure clothing are invalid, or that, for example, semen is impure, and he performs prayers with it, the obligatory precaution is that he must perform the prayer again; and if the prescribed time has expired, he must make it up.
Ruling 788. If on account of not knowing the ruling a person performs prayers with an impure body or with impure clothing, and if he was not negligent in learning the ruling, then it is not necessary for him to perform the prayer again or make it up.
Ruling 789. If someone is certain that his body or clothing is not impure and after prayers he realises it was impure, his prayers are valid.
Ruling 790.* If someone forgets that his body or clothing is impure and remembers it during or after prayers, in the event that his forgetfulness was due to carelessness and heedlessness, he must perform the prayer again based on obligatory precaution. If the prescribed time for the prayer has expired, he must make it up. [If his forgetfulness was not due to carelessness and heedlessness and] he remembers after prayers [that his body or clothing was impure], it is not necessary for him to perform the prayer again. However, if he remembers this during prayers, he must act according to the instructions that will be mentioned in the next ruling.
Ruling 791. If a person starts performing a prayer when there is ample time, and during it he becomes aware that his body or clothing has become impure, and he deems it probable that it became impure after he started his prayer, then, in case his prayer would not be broken up by washing his body, changing his clothes, or taking them off, he must during the prayer wash his body or clothes, change his clothes, or take them off, as long as another thing covers his private parts. However, in the event that washing his body or clothes, or changing or removing his clothes, would break up the prayer, or if by removing his clothes he would become naked, then based on obligatory precaution, he must perform his prayer again with pure clothes.
Ruling 792. If a person starts performing a prayer when time is short, and during it he realises that his clothing has become impure, and he deems it probable that it had become impure after he started the prayer, then, in case his prayer would not be broken up by washing or changing his clothes or taking them off, and he can remove them, he must wash his clothes, change them, or take them off – as long as another thing covers his private parts – and he must then complete his prayer. However, if nothing else covers his private parts and he cannot wash nor change his clothes, he must complete his prayer with the impure clothing.
Ruling 793. If a person starts performing a prayer when time is short, and during it realises that his body has become impure, and he deems it probable that it became impure after he started his prayer, then, in case washing his body would not break up the prayer, he must wash his body. If it would break up the prayer, he must complete it just as he is and it will be valid.
Ruling 794. If someone has a doubt about his body or clothing being pure, in the event that he investigates and does not see anything on it and performs prayers, and after prayers he realises that his body or clothing was impure, his prayers are valid. However, if he does not investigate, then based on obligatory precaution, he must perform his prayer again; and in the event that the time has expired, he must make it up.
Ruling 795. If a person washes his clothing and is certain that it has become pure and performs prayers with it, and afterwards he realises that it had not become pure, his prayers are valid.
Ruling 796. If someone sees some blood on his body or clothing and is certain that it is not impure blood – for example, he is certain that it is the blood of a mosquito – then, in the event that after prayers he realises that it was a type of impure blood with which prayers cannot be performed, his prayers are valid.
Ruling 797. If someone is certain that the blood on his body or clothing is impure blood with which prayers can be performed – for example, he is certain that it is the blood of a wound or a boil – then, in the event that he realises after prayers that the blood was of the type with which prayers cannot be performed, his prayers are valid.
Ruling 798. If a person forgets that something is impure and his wet body or clothing touches it, and while he is in the state of forgetfulness he performs prayers with it and remembers it after prayers, his prayers are valid. However, if his wet body touches an impure object that he had forgotten was impure, and without washing himself he performs ritual bathing (ghusl) and prayers, his ghusl and prayers are invalid unless by performing ghusl his body also becomes pure and the water does not become impure, like when ghusl is performed in running water. Furthermore, if a wet part of the body on which wuḍūʾ is performed touches an impure object that he had forgotten was impure, and before washing it he performs wuḍūʾ and prayers, his wuḍūʾ and prayer are invalid unless by performing wuḍūʾ the impure part on which wuḍūʾ is performed also becomes pure and the water does not become impure, like when wuḍūʾ is performed with kurr[1] or running water.
Ruling 799.* If someone possesses only one piece of clothing and his body and clothing become impure, and the water in his possession is enough to wash only one of them, the obligatory precaution is to wash the body and perform prayers with the impure clothing. And based on obligatory precaution, it is not permitted to wash the clothing and perform prayers with an impure body. However, in case the impurity on his clothing is more than what is on his body, or there is an impurity on his clothing that has an additional prohibitive element, such as the blood of a predatory animal,[2] then in such a case, he has the choice of washing whichever one he wants.
Ruling 800. Someone who does not have any other clothing apart from impure clothing must perform prayers with impure clothing, and his prayers will be valid.
Ruling 801. If someone who has two sets of clothing knows that one of them is impure but he does not know which one it is, in the event that he has sufficient time, he must perform prayers with each of them. For example, if he wants to perform the ẓuhr and ʿaṣr prayers, he must perform one ẓuhr prayer and one ʿaṣr prayer with each. However, if time is short and neither of them can be preferred based on the strength of probability, then whichever one he performs his prayer with will be sufficient.
Ruling 802. The second condition: based on obligatory precaution, the clothing with which a person performing prayers covers his private parts must be permissible (mubāḥ) [i.e. it must not be usurped (ghaṣbī)]. If a person knows that wearing usurped clothing is unlawful, or he does not know the ruling due to his negligence, and he intentionally performs prayers with that clothing, then based on obligatory precaution, his prayers are invalid. However, with regard to usurped things that do not on their own cover the private parts, and things that the person performing prayers is not currently wearing – such as a big handkerchief or a loincloth in his pocket, even though they could cover his private parts – and things that he is currently wearing but under which he has some other clothes that are not usurped and which cover his private parts, in all of these cases, the fact that these things are usurped do not affect the validity of the prayer, although as a recommended precaution using such things should be avoided.
Ruling 803. If someone knows that wearing usurped clothing is unlawful but does not know the ruling on performing prayers with it, and he intentionally performs prayers with usurped clothing, then as per the details mentioned in the previous ruling his prayers are invalid based on obligatory precaution.
Ruling 804. If someone does not know his clothing is usurped or forgets that it is and performs prayers with it, his prayers are valid. However, if someone usurps some clothing himself and forgets that he has usurped it and performs prayers with it, then based on obligatory precaution, his prayers are invalid.
Ruling 805. If someone does not know or forgets that his clothing is usurped and realises this during prayers, in the event that something else covers his private parts and he can immediately or without breaking the close succession (muwālāh) – i.e. by maintaining continuity in the prayer – remove the clothing and continue praying, he must do so. If there is nothing else that covers his private parts from an onlooker [as defined in the footnote pertaining to Ruling 784] or he cannot remove the usurped clothing, he must continue the prayer with that clothing and the prayer will be valid.
Ruling 806. If someone performs prayers with usurped clothing to protect his life, then in case he cannot perform prayers with other clothing by the end of the prescribed time, or he has to wear it out of necessity due to no fault of his own – for example, he did not usurp it himself – his prayers are valid. Similarly, if he performs prayers in usurped clothing so that a thief does not steal it and he cannot perform prayers before the end of the prescribed time with other clothing, or he keeps it with the intention of returning it to its owner as soon as possible, his prayers are valid.
Ruling 807.* If a person purchases clothing with money on which the one-fifth tax (khums) has not been paid, and the purchase is a non-specified undertaking (al‑kullī fī al‑dhimmah),[3] as most purchases are, the clothing will be lawful (ḥalāl) for him. However, because he used money on which khums had not been paid, and he delayed paying the khums that was due on it, he will have sinned and must pay khums on the money he gave to the seller. However, if a person purchases clothing with the actual money on which khums has not been paid,[4] then performing prayers with that clothing without the authorisation of a fully qualified jurist (al‑ḥākim al‑sharʿī) is ruled to be the same as performing prayers with usurped clothing.
Ruling 808. The third condition: the clothing that is large enough to cover the private parts on its own of someone performing prayers must not be made from the carcass [of an animal that has not been slaughtered according to Islamic law] and whose blood gushes out when its jugular vein is cut. Based on obligatory precaution, this condition also applies to clothing that cannot cover the private parts on its own. And the recommended precaution is that one should not perform prayers with clothing that has been made from an animal whose blood does not gush out, such as a snake.
Ruling 809. If a person performs prayers while he has with him something from an impure carcass that contained life – such as a piece of meat or skin – his prayers are valid.
Ruling 810. If a person performs prayers while he has with him something from the carcass of an animal whose meat is lawful to eat, and that thing is not something that contains life – such as fur or wool – or, if he performs prayers with clothing made from it, his prayers are valid.
Ruling 811. The fourth condition: the clothing of a person performing prayers – apart from things that do not cover the private parts on their own, such as socks – must not be made from a predatory animal; in fact, based on obligatory precaution, it must not be made from an animal whose blood gushes out when its jugular vein is cut. Similarly, a person’s body and clothing must not be tainted with the urine, faeces, sweat, milk, or hair of such an animal. However, there is no problem if, for example, one strand of hair of such an animal is on his clothing, and the same applies if he carries something on his person from that animal; for example, in a container or box.
Ruling 812. If saliva, nasal mucus, or any other moisture from an animal whose meat is unlawful to eat, such as a cat, is on the body or clothing of someone performing prayers and it is wet, his prayers are invalid. However, his prayers are valid if it has dried up and the actual substance has been removed.
Ruling 813. There is no problem if someone’s hair, sweat, or saliva is on the body or clothing of a person performing prayers, and the same applies to pearls, wax, and honey.
Ruling 814. If a person doubts whether some clothing is made from an animal whose meat is lawful or unlawful to eat – irrespective of whether it was made in an Islamic country or not – it is permitted to perform prayers with it.
Ruling 815. It is not known if seashells are from the parts of animals whose flesh is unlawful to eat; therefore, it is permitted for one to perform prayers with them.
Ruling 816. Wearing the fur of a squirrel in prayers is not a problem, although the recommended precaution is that prayers should not be performed with it.
Ruling 817. If a person performs prayers with clothing about which he does not know or has forgotten that it was made from an animal whose meat is unlawful, his prayers are valid.
Ruling 818. The fifth condition: wearing clothing embroidered with gold for men is unlawful, and prayers performed with it are invalid. However, for women, wearing it in prayers and at other times is not a problem.
Ruling 819. Wearing gold, such as a gold necklace, ring, and wristwatch, is unlawful for men, and performing prayers with it is invalid. However, for women, wearing it in prayers and at other times is not a problem.
Ruling 820.* If a man does not know the previous ruling, or he does not know that his ring or clothing is made from gold, or he forgets or doubts [that it is made from gold], and he performs prayers with it, his prayers are valid. However, if he was culpably ignorant (al‑jāhil al‑muqaṣṣir)[5] about the ruling, his prayers are invalid and he must perform them again.
Ruling 821. The sixth condition: the clothing of a man performing prayers that can cover the private parts on its own must not be made of pure silk. Furthermore, it is unlawful for a man to wear such clothing at other times.
Ruling 822. If an entire sleeve or part of it is made out of pure silk, it is unlawful for a man to wear it, and prayers performed with it are invalid.
Ruling 823. It is permitted for one to wear clothing about which he does not know whether it is made out of pure silk or something else, and there is no problem in performing prayers with it.
Ruling 824. There is no problem if a silk handkerchief or similar item is in a man’s pocket, and it does not invalidate prayers.
Ruling 825. For women, there is no problem in wearing silk clothing in prayers and at other times.
Ruling 826. [For a man,] there is no problem in wearing pure silk clothing or clothing embroidered with gold if he is compelled to. Also, someone who is compelled to wear clothing and does not have any clothing except this type can perform prayers with it.
Ruling 827. If a person does not have clothing other than clothing that is usurped, or made of pure silk, or embroidered with gold, and if he is not compelled to wear clothes, he must perform prayers according to the instructions that were mentioned regarding a naked person.[6]
Ruling 828. If a person does not have clothing other than that made from a predatory animal, in the event that he is compelled to wear it, he can perform prayers with it provided that the necessity for him to do so remains until the end of the prescribed time. However, if he is not compelled, he must perform prayers according to the instructions that were mentioned regarding a naked person. If a person does not have clothing other than that made from an animal whose meat is unlawful to eat but is not a predatory animal, in the event that he is not compelled to wear it, the obligatory precaution is that he must perform prayers twice: once with that clothing, and once according to the instructions that were mentioned regarding a naked person.
Ruling 829.* If a person does not have anything with which he can cover his private parts in prayers, it is obligatory for him to procure such a thing even if he has to hire or purchase it. However, if procuring it would cause him excessive difficulty due to his poor financial situation, or the item being expensive, or him suffering some injustice – then it is not necessary for him to procure it and he can perform prayers according to the instructions that were mentioned regarding a naked person.
Ruling 830. If someone who does not have clothing is gifted or loaned some clothing by someone else, in the event that accepting it does not cause him excessive difficulty (mashaqqah), he must accept it. In fact, if borrowing or asking for clothing is not difficult for him, he must borrow or ask for it from someone who has it.
Ruling 831. Wearing clothing made of a material, colour, or style that is not normal for someone who wants to wear it is unlawful if it would cause him disrespect and humiliation. However, his prayers are valid if he performs prayers in that clothing, even if that is his only covering.
Ruling 832. It is not unlawful for a man to wear a woman's clothing, nor for a woman to wear a man’s clothing, and performing prayers with such clothing does not invalidate the prayer. However, based on obligatory precaution, it is not permitted for a man to appear in the form of a woman, and similarly vice versa.
Ruling 833. With regard to the bed sheet or quilt that is used by someone who must perform prayers while lying down, it is not necessary for it to fulfil the conditions of clothing of someone performing prayers unless it is used in such a way that it can be said to be worn, like if he were to wrap himself in it.
[1] A quantity of water greater or equal to approximately 384 litres. See Ruling 14.
[2] The blood of a predatory animal has two prohibitive elements: 1) it is impure; and 2) it is from an animal whose meat is unlawful to eat (Tawḍīḥ al‑Masāʾil‑i Jāmiʿ, vol. 1, p. 291, Ruling 941, part b).
[3] This refers to a purchase in which the actual thing with which the payment is made is not specified. For example, a buyer purchases some goods for £20 without specifying to the seller that he is purchasing the goods with a particular £20 note.
[4] This is known as a ‘specified’ (shakhṣī) purchase and is not common. Here, the transaction takes place over money that has been singled out for that purchase. For example, a buyer tells the seller that he is purchasing the goods with such and such £20.
[5] ‘Culpably ignorant’ is a term used to refer to someone who does not have a valid excuse for not knowing; for example, he was careless in learning religious laws.
[6] See Rulings 781–784.