Why Nail Polish Won't Break Your Wudu: 4 Powerful Hadiths
20/05/2020
The main argument by those who forbid women and girls from putting nail polish is that nail polish prevents water from reaching the nails and therefore ablution is to be invalid. This is not true. Putting nail polish is not haram in Islam and taking wudu (ablution) by putting nail polish will not break the wudu.
The traditional conservative belief is that the fingernails and toenails must be clear, so most Muslim women do not use nail polish unless it was for a short period of time. If you are a person who has been grilled with false information and have been unethically indoctrinated in to believing that you must remove your nail polish in order to make ablution, remember that this is a false belief held by the majority of Muslims. In this article I will give you four powerful hadiths to prove why taking ablution while wearing nail polish is not haram and will not break the wudu but before that let me refute the main argument put forward to forbid women from putting nail polish. The argument that putting nail polish is haram is based on the following hadiths,
Umar ibn al-Khattab (rali) reported: A man performed ablution and he left out a
spot on his foot the size of a fingernail. The Prophet, peace and blessings
be upon him, said, “Go back and perform ablution well.” The man went back
and then prayed.
(Ṣaḥih Muslim)
It was narrated from Khalid ibn Ma‘daan, from one of the Companions of the
Prophet (sal) that the Prophet
(sal) saw a man praying, and on the
back of his foot there was a spot the size of a dirham that the water had
not reached, so the Prophet (sal)
instructed him to repeat his wudu and his prayer.
(Abu Dawud-graded sahih by Albani)
The above hadith have been used as proof to argue that nail polish will prevent water to reach the skin and will invalidate the prayer. The above hadiths are only mentioning the importance of making all the necessary limbs of your body to get wet with water. The nail polish argument cannot be used with these hadiths because even if you wear nail polish the water will still wet the nails irrespective of whether there is a barrier or not. If water has to reach all the necessary parts without a barrier then why did the prophet(sal) make ablution by stroking his hands with water on his socks and kuff(leather shoes) on?
The argument that putting nail polish and taking ablution with it is haram is an argument mainly stemming from the four madhabs and wrong fatwas of scholars.
Al-Mawsoo‘ah al-Fiqhiyyah-43/329 mentions that The four madhabs of fiqh are unanimous that for wudu to be valid, it is essential to remove anything that may prevent the water from reaching
the parts of the body that are to be washed. This is an erroneous argument which is based on the erroneous understanding of the hadiths. It is unfortunate that nowadays people fiving importance to various interpretations rather than the Quran or the authentic hadiths. When making wudu it is essential for all the parts of ablution to get wet by water but stating that there should not be any barrier between the water and the skin is a baseless argument.
The below four hadith evidence will prove my point so keep reading.
1. Wiping Over the Socks
Ali (rali) narrated, the prophet (sal) permitted wiping over leather socks for three day and nights for the traveller, and one day and night for the resident.
(Muslim)
Al-Mughirah ibn Shubah (rali) reported: "The Prophet (sal), performed ablution by wiping over non-leather socks and sandals"
(Tirmidhi graded sahih by Imam Tirmidhi)
According to the above hadiths it is permissible to wipe your socks and sandals while taking ablution and if there should not be any barrier between the skin and water then why did the prophet(sal) permit wiping over the socks? These hadiths clearly prove that there is nothing wrong in taking ablution by having a barrier. There is no clear evidence to prove that nail polish is haram when taking ablution. Even for the sake of argument if we agree that nail polish should not be applied, now the point here is the nails in the fingers are a barrier between the skin and water. I am asking those who are against nail polish, doesn’t the nail act as a barrier between the skin and the water? Dirt can get in to your finger and toe nails and nowhere in the authentic hadiths did the prophet (sal) tell us to busy ourselves removing the dirt from our nails. Islam is a religion of mercy and ease and not hardship.
2. Wiping Over the Shoes
The prophet (sal) not only did he wipe over his socks, he wiped over his shoes too while performing ablution.
Narrated by Aws ibn Abu Aws ath-Thaqafi (rali),
"The prophet (sal) performed ablution and wiped over his shoes and feet."
Abbad (a sub-narrator) said: The Messenger of Allah (sal) came to the well of a people. Musaddad did not mention the words Midat (a place where ablution is performed), and Kazamah (well). Then both agreed on the wording: “He performed ablution and wiped over his shoes and feet."
(Abu Dawud-graded sahih by Albani)
Ali (rali) narrated,
"If the religion were based on opinion, it would be more important to wipe the under part of the shoe than the upper but I have seen the Messenger of Allah (sal) wiping over the upper part of his shoes."
(Abu Dawud-graded sahih by Albani)
Hummam (rali) reported:
"Jarir urinated, then performed ablution and wiped over the socks. It was said to him: Do you do like this? He said: Yes, I saw that the Messenger of Allah (sal) urinated, then performed ablution and then wiped over his shoes. A ‘mash said: Ibrahim had observed that this hadith was a surprise for them (the people) because Jarir had embraced Islam after the revelation of Surat al-Mā’idah"
(Muslim)
Shuraib bin Hani (rali) reported:
"I asked 'Aisha about wiping over the shoes. She said: You better go to 'Ali, for he knows more about this than I. I, therefore, came to 'Ali and he narrated from the Apostle (sal) like this"(wiping over the shoes)
(Muslim)
Ata’ bin Yasar quoting Ibn ‘Abbas (rali) said:
"Do you like that I should show you how the Messenger of Allah (sal) performed ablution? He then called for a vessel of water and took out a handful of water with his right hand. He then rinsed his mouth and snuffed up water. He then took out another handful of water and washed his face by both his hands together. He then took out another handful of water and washed his right hand and then washed his left hand by taking out another. He then took out some water and shook off his hand and wiped his head and ears with it. He then took out a handful of water and sprinkled it over his right foot in his shoe and wiped the upper part of the foot with his one hand and beneath the shoe with his other hand. He then did the same with his left foot"
(Abu Dawud-graded hasan sahih by Albani)
It is clear from all these hadiths that the prophet (sal) wiped his shoes with water over it without removing it. If water touching the skin during ablution was a must the prophet (sal) would have removed the shoes or would have forbidden his companions to do so.
3. Wiping over the Turban
Some argue that you should remove the cap or turban if you are making ablution. This argument is proven wrong by the following hadiths,
Ibn Mughirah narrated it from his father:
"The Apostle of Allah (sal) wiped over his socks and over his forehead and over his turban"
(Muslim)
Narrated Thawbaan (rali:
"The Messenger of Allah (sal) sent out an expedition. They were affected by cold. When they returned to the Messenger of Allah (sal), he commanded them to wipe over turbans and stockings."
(Abu Dawud-graded sahih by Albani)
Abu ‘Abd al-Rahman al-Sulami said that he witnessed ‘Abd al-Rahman bin Awf asking Bilal (rali) about the ablution of the Prophet (sal). Bilal (rali) said:
"He went out to relieve himself. Then I brought water for him and he performed ablution, and wiped over his turban and socks"
(Abu Dawud-graded sahih by Albani)
All of the bove hadiths prove that the prophet (sal) wiped over his turban while performing ablution without the need to remove it. If water reaching the skin was a must while performing ablution then the prophet (sal) would not have wiped over his turban.
4. Putting Henna on the Skin
Putting henna on the hands and feet are a common thing among young girls and women in the Muslim world. We have seen some people taking the trouble to take away paint or any other substance stuck in their body before taking ablution. All of this is refuted in the below hadiths where henna was applied to the body and hair.
Aisha (rali) narrated,
"A woman gestured from behind a screen, with a letter to the Messenger of Allah (sal) in her hand. The Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) withdrew his hand and said: “I do not know whether it is the hand of a man or a woman.” She said: It is a woman. He said: “If you were a woman, you would have changed your nails,” meaning, with henna"
(Abu Dawud-graded sahih by Albani)
This hadith clearly proves that nail polish is similar to applying henna and if it were a condition for water to reach skin then the prophet (sal) would not have told the woman who was gesturing to put henna.
Narrated AbuDharr (rali),
The Prophet (dal) said: "The best things with which grey hair are changed are henna and katam"
(Abu Dawud-Graded Sahih by Albani)
Narrated AbuRimthah (rali):
"I went with my father to the Prophet (sal). He had locks hanging down as far as the lobes of the ears stained with henna, and he was wearing two green garments."
(Abu Dawud-graded sahih by Albani)
In the above two hadiths it is clear that the prophet (sal) encouraged to dye the hair with henna and he too dyed his hair with henna. There is no hadith forbidding Muslims from removing the henna from their hair and body while taking ablution and if it was a must for the skin, hair or nails to touch the water then the prophet (sal) would not have told to put henna. Some try to falsely argue that water goes through the skin if you put henna but not for nail polish. I would like to ask them from where did they get this opinion. There is no evidence to prove that water reaches the skin if henna is applied. Even if we agree for the sake of argument that water does penetrate the skin where henna is applied, it is clear that the prophet (sal) encouraged applying olive oil to the body and here is the proof for this.
Umar (rali) narrated,
“Eat olives and use the oil and anoint yourselves for indeed it is a blessed tree.”
(Tirmidhi graded sahih by Albani)
Olive oil is oil like all the other main oils where water does not mix so if the "water touching the skin" argument is true then why did the prophet (sal) tell us to use olive oil to anoint our body?
Conclusion
It is clear from all the authentic hadiths that nail polish will not break the ablution and the ablution and prayer is valid for a Muslim.
C.J Ahmed
The main argument by those who forbid women and girls from putting nail polish is that nail polish prevents water from reaching the nails and therefore ablution is to be invalid. This is not true. Putting nail polish is not haram in Islam and taking wudu (ablution) by putting nail polish will not break the wudu.
The traditional conservative belief is that the fingernails and toenails must be clear, so most Muslim women do not use nail polish unless it was for a short period of time. If you are a person who has been grilled with false information and have been unethically indoctrinated in to believing that you must remove your nail polish in order to make ablution, remember that this is a false belief held by the majority of Muslims. In this article I will give you four powerful hadiths to prove why taking ablution while wearing nail polish is not haram and will not break the wudu but before that let me refute the main argument put forward to forbid women from putting nail polish. The argument that putting nail polish is haram is based on the following hadiths,
Umar ibn al-Khattab (rali) reported: A man performed ablution and he left out a
spot on his foot the size of a fingernail. The Prophet, peace and blessings
be upon him, said, “Go back and perform ablution well.” The man went back
and then prayed.
(Ṣaḥih Muslim)
It was narrated from Khalid ibn Ma‘daan, from one of the Companions of the
Prophet (sal) that the Prophet
(sal) saw a man praying, and on the
back of his foot there was a spot the size of a dirham that the water had
not reached, so the Prophet (sal)
instructed him to repeat his wudu and his prayer.
(Abu Dawud-graded sahih by Albani)
The above hadith have been used as proof to argue that nail polish will prevent water to reach the skin and will invalidate the prayer. The above hadiths are only mentioning the importance of making all the necessary limbs of your body to get wet with water. The nail polish argument cannot be used with these hadiths because even if you wear nail polish the water will still wet the nails irrespective of whether there is a barrier or not. If water has to reach all the necessary parts without a barrier then why did the prophet(sal) make ablution by stroking his hands with water on his socks and kuff(leather shoes) on?
The argument that putting nail polish and taking ablution with it is haram is an argument mainly stemming from the four madhabs and wrong fatwas of scholars.
Al-Mawsoo‘ah al-Fiqhiyyah-43/329 mentions that The four madhabs of fiqh are unanimous that for wudu to be valid, it is essential to remove anything that may prevent the water from reaching
the parts of the body that are to be washed. This is an erroneous argument which is based on the erroneous understanding of the hadiths. It is unfortunate that nowadays people fiving importance to various interpretations rather than the Quran or the authentic hadiths. When making wudu it is essential for all the parts of ablution to get wet by water but stating that there should not be any barrier between the water and the skin is a baseless argument.
The below four hadith evidence will prove my point so keep reading.
1. Wiping Over the Socks
Ali (rali) narrated, the prophet (sal) permitted wiping over leather socks for three day and nights for the traveller, and one day and night for the resident.
(Muslim)
Al-Mughirah ibn Shubah (rali) reported: "The Prophet (sal), performed ablution by wiping over non-leather socks and sandals"
(Tirmidhi graded sahih by Imam Tirmidhi)
According to the above hadiths it is permissible to wipe your socks and sandals while taking ablution and if there should not be any barrier between the skin and water then why did the prophet(sal) permit wiping over the socks? These hadiths clearly prove that there is nothing wrong in taking ablution by having a barrier. There is no clear evidence to prove that nail polish is haram when taking ablution. Even for the sake of argument if we agree that nail polish should not be applied, now the point here is the nails in the fingers are a barrier between the skin and water. I am asking those who are against nail polish, doesn’t the nail act as a barrier between the skin and the water? Dirt can get in to your finger and toe nails and nowhere in the authentic hadiths did the prophet (sal) tell us to busy ourselves removing the dirt from our nails. Islam is a religion of mercy and ease and not hardship.
2. Wiping Over the Shoes
The prophet (sal) not only did he wipe over his socks, he wiped over his shoes too while performing ablution.
Narrated by Aws ibn Abu Aws ath-Thaqafi (rali),
"The prophet (sal) performed ablution and wiped over his shoes and feet."
Abbad (a sub-narrator) said: The Messenger of Allah (sal) came to the well of a people. Musaddad did not mention the words Midat (a place where ablution is performed), and Kazamah (well). Then both agreed on the wording: “He performed ablution and wiped over his shoes and feet."
(Abu Dawud-graded sahih by Albani)
Ali (rali) narrated,
"If the religion were based on opinion, it would be more important to wipe the under part of the shoe than the upper but I have seen the Messenger of Allah (sal) wiping over the upper part of his shoes."
(Abu Dawud-graded sahih by Albani)
Hummam (rali) reported:
"Jarir urinated, then performed ablution and wiped over the socks. It was said to him: Do you do like this? He said: Yes, I saw that the Messenger of Allah (sal) urinated, then performed ablution and then wiped over his shoes. A ‘mash said: Ibrahim had observed that this hadith was a surprise for them (the people) because Jarir had embraced Islam after the revelation of Surat al-Mā’idah"
(Muslim)
Shuraib bin Hani (rali) reported:
"I asked 'Aisha about wiping over the shoes. She said: You better go to 'Ali, for he knows more about this than I. I, therefore, came to 'Ali and he narrated from the Apostle (sal) like this"(wiping over the shoes)
(Muslim)
Ata’ bin Yasar quoting Ibn ‘Abbas (rali) said:
"Do you like that I should show you how the Messenger of Allah (sal) performed ablution? He then called for a vessel of water and took out a handful of water with his right hand. He then rinsed his mouth and snuffed up water. He then took out another handful of water and washed his face by both his hands together. He then took out another handful of water and washed his right hand and then washed his left hand by taking out another. He then took out some water and shook off his hand and wiped his head and ears with it. He then took out a handful of water and sprinkled it over his right foot in his shoe and wiped the upper part of the foot with his one hand and beneath the shoe with his other hand. He then did the same with his left foot"
(Abu Dawud-graded hasan sahih by Albani)
It is clear from all these hadiths that the prophet (sal) wiped his shoes with water over it without removing it. If water touching the skin during ablution was a must the prophet (sal) would have removed the shoes or would have forbidden his companions to do so.
3. Wiping over the Turban
Some argue that you should remove the cap or turban if you are making ablution. This argument is proven wrong by the following hadiths,
Ibn Mughirah narrated it from his father:
"The Apostle of Allah (sal) wiped over his socks and over his forehead and over his turban"
(Muslim)
Narrated Thawbaan (rali:
"The Messenger of Allah (sal) sent out an expedition. They were affected by cold. When they returned to the Messenger of Allah (sal), he commanded them to wipe over turbans and stockings."
(Abu Dawud-graded sahih by Albani)
Abu ‘Abd al-Rahman al-Sulami said that he witnessed ‘Abd al-Rahman bin Awf asking Bilal (rali) about the ablution of the Prophet (sal). Bilal (rali) said:
"He went out to relieve himself. Then I brought water for him and he performed ablution, and wiped over his turban and socks"
(Abu Dawud-graded sahih by Albani)
All of the bove hadiths prove that the prophet (sal) wiped over his turban while performing ablution without the need to remove it. If water reaching the skin was a must while performing ablution then the prophet (sal) would not have wiped over his turban.
4. Putting Henna on the Skin
Putting henna on the hands and feet are a common thing among young girls and women in the Muslim world. We have seen some people taking the trouble to take away paint or any other substance stuck in their body before taking ablution. All of this is refuted in the below hadiths where henna was applied to the body and hair.
Aisha (rali) narrated,
"A woman gestured from behind a screen, with a letter to the Messenger of Allah (sal) in her hand. The Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) withdrew his hand and said: “I do not know whether it is the hand of a man or a woman.” She said: It is a woman. He said: “If you were a woman, you would have changed your nails,” meaning, with henna"
(Abu Dawud-graded sahih by Albani)
This hadith clearly proves that nail polish is similar to applying henna and if it were a condition for water to reach skin then the prophet (sal) would not have told the woman who was gesturing to put henna.
Narrated AbuDharr (rali),
The Prophet (dal) said: "The best things with which grey hair are changed are henna and katam"
(Abu Dawud-Graded Sahih by Albani)
Narrated AbuRimthah (rali):
"I went with my father to the Prophet (sal). He had locks hanging down as far as the lobes of the ears stained with henna, and he was wearing two green garments."
(Abu Dawud-graded sahih by Albani)
In the above two hadiths it is clear that the prophet (sal) encouraged to dye the hair with henna and he too dyed his hair with henna. There is no hadith forbidding Muslims from removing the henna from their hair and body while taking ablution and if it was a must for the skin, hair or nails to touch the water then the prophet (sal) would not have told to put henna. Some try to falsely argue that water goes through the skin if you put henna but not for nail polish. I would like to ask them from where did they get this opinion. There is no evidence to prove that water reaches the skin if henna is applied. Even if we agree for the sake of argument that water does penetrate the skin where henna is applied, it is clear that the prophet (sal) encouraged applying olive oil to the body and here is the proof for this.
Umar (rali) narrated,
“Eat olives and use the oil and anoint yourselves for indeed it is a blessed tree.”
(Tirmidhi graded sahih by Albani)
Olive oil is oil like all the other main oils where water does not mix so if the "water touching the skin" argument is true then why did the prophet (sal) tell us to use olive oil to anoint our body?
Conclusion
It is clear from all the authentic hadiths that nail polish will not break the ablution and the ablution and prayer is valid for a Muslim.
C.J Ahmed