By Luqman Sadiq
Purity is highly valued in Islam and is even mentioned as half of faith by the Prophet (pbuh) (Sahih Muslim). Both spiritual and physical purity have a significant role in Islam. Taharah, overall purity, is required by all Muslims before performing any kind of worship. You must be in a pure state if you are going to read the Quran, offer prayer (salah), or any other religious duty. This article examines whether wudhu is obligatory for touching and reading the Quran according to the Quran and sunnah.
Touching the Quran without Wudhu
لَّا يَمَسُّهُۥٓ إِلَّا ٱلْمُطَهَّرُونَ
None can touch it except the purified.
(Quran, Surah Al-Waqi-‘ah 56:79)
This verse contains the word ٱلْمُطَهَّرُونَ which can mean ‘angels’ or be used in the sense of human beings who are purified (from major impurity and also minor impurity). Here, Qurtubi and Azhari (Quran commentators) are in support of interpreting this word as ‘purified human beings.’ Thus, the explanation of the word ٱلْمُطَهَّرُونَ ‘purified ones,’ are people free from both major impurity (hʾadath al-akbar) and minor impurity (hʾadath al-asghar).
Major impurity: The state of impurity which is caused by sexual intercourse and seminal/menstrual/postpartum discharge. Ghusl (full-body ablution) is the only way to achieve purity from this state.
Minor impurity: The state of impurity after urination, defecation, passing gas, and sleeping. This state can be remedied by making wudhu or tayammum (dusting of hands and face when water is not available.)
Before Umar (ra) embraced Islam, he asked his sister to give him what she was reading (pages of the Qur’an). She recited the above verse (56:79) that only the purified can touch it. Thus Umar performed the bath before he was able to read the pages of the Quran. This incident supports the interpretation that prohibits impure people from touching the Qur’an. Moreover, Imam Malik also cited a Prophet’s letter in his Muwatta, as an evidence, in which the Prophet (pbuh) advised Amr Ibn Hazm by the statement: لَا یَمَسُّ القُرآنَ اِلَّا طَاھِرُ – don’t let anyone touch the Quran except tahir (pure).
Hence, the majority of scholars agreed that the person who wishes to touch the Qur’an needs to be purified of the visible (minor) as well as the invisible (major) impurities by making wudhu or ghusl, if required.
Some scholars permit touching the Quran without wudhu. Ayah 56:79 mentions only the pure ones (ٱلْمُطَهَّرُونَ) can touch the Quran. According to these scholars, the absolute pure ones are only the angels, and the Quran in this verse does not refer to the present day hard copy (Mushaf) of the original Quran. To them wudhu is not compulsory for touching the Quran, just as it is essential for offering prayers, but it is preferable to be in the state of wudu while touching/reading the Quran.
Touching the Quran without Wudhu when Selling/Purchasing:
It is not necessary to be in the state of wudhu while purchasing a copy of the holy Quran. However, in order to touch the Quran while purchasing, you must be in the state of wudhu. If one wants to purchase the holy Quran from a market, he must first do wudhu and then touch it. If there is no arrangement for wudhu, it should be transported home after being wrapped in a clean cloth or covering, and it is not required to remain in the state of wudhu throughout the journey. However, wudhu is obligatory for touching the holy Quran.
Reading the Quran without Wudhu
As mentioned earlier in this article, you cannot touch the Holy Quran when you are not in the state of wudhu. Also, there is no question about reading the mushaf Quran (when you are reading from a hardcopy book of the Quran. It is because you have to touch it, which is not permissible at all, in the impure state. But, on the other hand, anyone can read the Quran if another person is holding it and asking him to read for the correction. In conclusion, there is a need for proper wudhu to read the Quran from a book.
Reciting Quran by Memory without Wudhu
Reading or reciting the Quran from memory does not necessarily mean you are going to touch it, which is prohibited. But, the word tahir mentioned in the Hadith, implies that your entire body, including your tongue, should be pure.
Imam Ahmad narrated with a sahih isnad from Ali (ra) that the Prophet (pbuh) came out from the toilet and recited something from the Quran and he said, “This is for the one who is not junub (in the state of major impurity); but the one who is junub should not do this, not even one ayah.”
Thus a person in the state of major impurity should not recite the Quran, either from the mushaf or from memory, until he has bathed (performed ghusl). However, if a person has broken his wudhu and is impure in the sense of minor impurity, he can recite the Quran from memory but should not from the mushaf.
Reading Quran on Mobile without Wudhu
People used to read the Holy Quran after performing wudhu during the time of the Holy Prophet (pbuh). Because there was no idea of a virtual Quran, the Holy Quran was only read after ablution. That is why it is preferred to read the Holy Quran in the state of wudhu whether you are reading it from a mobile, laptop, or any other device. But it is not compulsory to perform wudhu in this situation. You can read the Quran without wudhu on your mobile or laptop.
Despite the fact that you are not physically touching the verses of the Quran, you are saying them. Your tongue must completely be pure from major impurity, according to hadith mentioned earlier. That is why, before reading the Quran, you must do ghusl to purify yourself from major purity. Performing wudhu is not compulsory (if you are not touching the Quran) but it can be done to get full reward.
Other Situations
There are some other situations when you can touch/read the Quran without wudhu such as:
- Touching the Quran while rearranging the shelf of your library.
- Picking up and transporting the Mushaf (Quran Hard Copy).
- If another person is holding it and asking you to read for the correction.
- Reciting the Quran from memory.
- Reading or reciting from an electronic device.
- Woman in her menstrual period reciting the Quran (out of fear of forgetting the Quran).
It is permissible to touch the Quran if there becomes a need to handle it, occasionally. Otherwise, it is necessary to be in the state of purity to touch the Mushaf for reading and reciting.
Conclusion
Based on the Quran verse and Prophetic ahadith, the vast majority of the ummah and the fiqh scholars agree that wudhu is a prerequisite for touching and reading the Holy Qur’an. Therefore, one can recite the Quran without wudhu from his memory and either reading it from a mobile or tablet. However, while reading the Quran from memory or on mobile, it is necessary to not be in the state of major impurity (junub). Hence, before touching or reading the Holy Qur’an, make sure that no najasah; things declared by Shari’ah as filth, is attached to one’s hand, and that he or she is in the state of wudhu and is not in the state of janabah; the state in which it is obligatory to take bath.
What do you think? Share your reflections below!
References
Fatawa, 10/150. Fatawa al-Shaykh Ibn Baz. s.l., al-Shaykh Ibn Baz.
Fatwa 1510, 1431. Fatwa 1510/1510, 1431. s.l., Dar ul-uloom deoband.
Fatwa 366/366, 04/1436. Is wudhu necessary for touching Quran. s.l., Dar ul-uloom deoband.
Naik, 2012. Public Speech by Dr. Zakir Naik on Youtube Channel: “Dr. Zakir Naik”
Shafi, M., 2017. Maarif ul-Quran. urdu ed. s.l.:Jamia Naeemia Book Center.
Quran, 56:79. Quran 56:79. [Online] Available at: http://tafsir.io/56/79
The first Quran was not even written until the reign of H Usman. So there was no concept of touching the Quran. It was memorized or found written in scattered form on leaves, leather, stone etc etc. To think of Quran as a bounded book is a more modern idea. Kitab in Arabic does not mean a bounded paper book. Its meaning is more like “teaching, narration, ideas, revelation etc” that is compiled — not as book but more as interconnected. So the touching or reciting the Quran only with wudu is not correct. But out of respect it’s better to be clean but not mandatory
Yes, it is not mandatory but if Prophet SAW prohibited to recite the Quran in certain conditions (for example, in major impurity), then we must honour Prophet’s teaching rather following our own conceptions of thing.
Note: This article is not Author’s opinion rather it is only the narration of scholarly/prophetic/Quranic view. JazakAllah Khair
What if one makes wudu but wudu breaks during reciting the Quran ayahs from the phone?
If your wudu (ritual ablution) breaks while you are reciting the Quran from your phone, you will need to renew your wudu before continuing with your recitation. This is because it is necessary to be in a state of wudu in order to touch and recite the Quran. If your wudu breaks, you can renew it by performing the steps of wudu again, which include washing your face, arms, and feet. Once you have renewed your wudu, you can continue with your recitation of the Quran.
It is important to note that if you are unable to renew your wudu due to certain circumstances (such as not having access to water), you can still recite the Quran without touching the physical text. This is called “qira’at al-qalb” in Arabic, and it is a valid way to recite and remember the Quran even if you are unable to physically touch it. May Allah bless you and grant you success in your studies of the Quran. Ameen
Is it the same ruling for people who are memorizing the Quran?
Can menstrual women cannot even read Quran from memory? because I heard you can read from memory of you are in that state or we have the danger of forgetting the verses we have memorized
The Maliki scholars maintains the permissibility for a woman in her menstrual period to recite the Quran (her fear of forgetting the Quran for example). And once the menstrual period ceases she is not permitted to recite the Quran until she takes a purificatory bath. As for touching a copy of the Quran during the menstrual period, though the majority of the Muslim scholars disallow it, the Maliki scholars maintain its permissibility in case of a woman who learns or teaches the Quran.
The ayah has been out of context. Pls read the above verse which will reveal the main objective of this verse.
Which says “In a Book well guarded (with Allah in the heaven i.e. Al-Laugh Al-Mahfuz) not the copy of the Qur’an which is with us today. And read the verse again” which none can touch but the purified means (i.e. Only the Angels)
For more detail refer 80:11-16 verses you will understand whom Allah has addressed as Purified.
And then the hadith quoted about Umar (Radiyallahu anhu) is from Musnadu Al Bazzari is weak narration. And in the chain of narrators the person Usama bin Zaid is weak narrator
Al-Haythami mentions in his book Majmous Zawaid.
Even assuming that this hadith is valid for an argument, it cannot be argued on this basis that the impure should not touch the Qur’an. Because the hadith does not mention that the Prophet (ﷺ) said it, or that He ordered it. Umar (Radiyallahu anhu ) is quoted as his sister’s own opinion. So this not valid as a hadith reference.
Rather refer Sahih al-Bukhari Hadith 7 & 2941
The Prophet (ﷺ) wrote the verse “Bismillahir Rahmanir Rahim” and a verse from chapter 3:64 to the non-Muslim king. If the impure were not to touch the Qur’an, then He would not have written it like this to a non-Muslim.
Conclusion :
So the Quran can be touched at any situation. Allah says “He send this As a reminder to all of mankind not only for Muslims” refer 38:87 & 68:52 then from where the point arises of touching???