Islam is a religion of purity. You can well imagine the meaning of cleanliness in Islam by this hadith of Holy Prophet Hazrat Muhammad (P.B.U.H.);
“Cleanliness is half of faith.”
It means the faith of a Muslim is not complete without cleanliness. Personal hygiene in Islam is the most critical debate that is also narrated in Holy Quran.
“Truly, God loves those who turn unto Him in repentance and loves those who purify themselves.”
Cleanliness and purity are fundamental units in every religion. The cleanliness standards of any society determine its civilization. And indeed, Islam is the most civilized religion. In Islam, you need to be pure, both physically and spiritually. Even spiritual purity is linked with physical purity.
Let’s discuss some of the vital hygiene and purity practices according to Islam.
Table of Content
Purity And Cleanliness In Islam:
Islam is the religion that gives the teachings of cleanliness and purity. If you are a Muslim, you must take ghusal and do wudhu. Similarly, Muslims follow the cleanliness rules for their surroundings.
To perform the fundamental rituals of Islam like salah and fasting, cleanliness and purity of your body is a must. There are some conditions in which ghusal becomes obligatory to Muslims.
In Islam, it is essential to take care of your personal hygiene. Your self-grooming, cleanliness of your bodies, purity of clothes, and hygiene of your surroundings are like ritual obligations.
Cleanliness Of Home In Islam:
In Islam, it is essential to maintain hygiene in your homes. Especially, the praying areas should be clean and without any impurities.
To have a pet in your home, you should keep them away from your praying areas. Some animals, like dogs, are not considered pure to keep them inside your homes.
It is also essential to clean your house or any specific space of your home if any impure thing like urine is present.
The ritual cleanliness in your house is also maintained by taking off the shoes outside the home.
How To Clean Yourself In Islam?
In Islam, cleanliness is not limited to ghusal only. Instead of your hair to toenails, you should maintain your ritual cleanliness.
Cutting nails is an integral part of your self-hygiene in Islam. And according to science, it is also proved that the long overgrown human nails are full of germs. So cutting the nails helps maintain your overall hygiene and health.
On the other hand, keeping the cleanliness of your hair on your head is also important. It is obligatory to wet the hair during the ghusal.
Removing your body hair is also part of your self-purification in Islam. It is a must to cut or remove the hair of your armpits and pubic region. Science has also proved this point as the hair in private promotes sweating and increases the chances of skin infection in these parts.
The clothes of a Muslim should also be neat and clean. They should be ritually cleansed or purified and also look presentable to the eyes.
Applying a perfume/attar on your body is also an Islamic way to keep your body pure and clean.
Female Hygiene In Islam:
In Islam, the obligation of ghusal on males and females are different. Women should take a bath in three conditions;
- At the end of menstruation
- After intercourse,
- Bleeding that follows childbirth (nifas)
The way of ghusal is almost identical for men and women. It starts with washing your hands till your wrists, wash your private parts with your left hand and removes any impurities from them, perform wudu (ablution), pour water on your head in a way that water can reach every root of your hair, and pour water on your whole body.
Women must remove hair from their pubic area and not let them grow more than a size grain.
Male Hygiene In Islam:
In Islam, ghusal is also very important for males’ hygiene. There are some conditions in which ghusal becomes a must for the men to purify themselves ritually. They are;
- Intercourse
- Sleep ejaculation
- Masturbation
Like females, males should also remove hair from their bodies to ritually purify themselves.
How To Clean Private Parts In Islam?
It is essential to wash your private parts with water during the ghusal or after urination or defecation in Islam.
The penis, in the case of men and the vulva in women, are appropriately washed with water to purify themselves.
On the other hand, you can use any method to remove the hair from your private parts.
Importance Of Personal Hygiene In Islam:
Ghusal and wudu become a must in many conditions. If your ghusal is due, because of the reasons mentioned above, and you want to eat or drink something, it is better to wash your hands, face, and mouth before eating.
You cannot offer your salah, read Quran or fast if you are not ritually pure and your ghusal is due.
Ghusal would become a mustahabb for you if you gave a bath to a dead body. If any non-muslim accepts Islam, it is mustahabb for them to take ghusal.
Importance Of Circumcision and Hygiene In Islam:
According to the sunnah of Holy Prophet Hazrat Muhammad (P.B.U.H.), circumcision is a must ritual to maintain hygiene and cleanliness of the male reproductive part. It is performed to cut the foreskin of the penis so that hygiene can be kept of male genitals. It is proved by scientists that circumcision helps in preventing many infections and problems in males.
How Cleanliness Affects Your Health:
The cleanliness of your body helps in maintaining your health in many ways. Firstly, the hygienic conditions help prevent many diseases as you get rid of many microbes and infections by following the cleanliness methods.
Washing your hands before eating anything is also a Sunnah of the Holy Prophet (P.B.U.H.). And science has proved the benefits of washing your hands before taking your meals.
On the other hand, in these days of the pandemic, we all have realized the importance of cleanliness. If you want to keep yourself well-protected from the COVID-19 infection, you should wash your hands properly. The Islamic teachings have mentioned this way of preventing infections more than 1400 years ago.
Similarly, your physical cleanliness also benefits your inner purity. This helps in maintaining your mental health. If you feel low, take a shower, put on some nice clean clothes, and use your favourite fragrance. You will notice a sudden change in your mood.
Islam is a religion that is very close to nature. All the teachings of Islam are for the benefit of humankind and other creatures of Allah.
If you follow the teaching of Islam, you will benefit from them, especially in your health.
F.A.Q.s Related To Personal Hygiene in Islam
In which conditions ghusal is a must for males in Islam?
Ghusal is a must for males after intercourse, sleep ejaculation, masturbation, or release of semen.
Is ghusal obligatory for women after childbirth bleeding?
Yes, the ghusal is a must for women after childbirth bleeding for almost 30-40 days.
What are the ways to clean your body in Islam?
In Islam, Muslims should cut their nails, remove unwanted body hair like armpit hair, pubic hair, and taking ghusal are the essential ways to keep yourself clean.
What is the Hadith of Holy Prophet (P.B.U.H.) related to cleanliness?
According to the Hadith of Holy Prophet (P.B.U.H.);
“Cleanliness is half of faith”.
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