Pillars of Ablution

The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) warns against negligence in the performance of ablution and encourages us to perform it perfectly and completely. As the back of the foot (the heel bone) is normally somewhere that water does not reach, it leads to a deficiency in ablution and therefore in prayer, so the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) informs us that the heel bones, along with the one who is careless about including them in his Shariah-required purification, will be targeted by torment in the Hereafter.

الإلمام بشرح عمدة الأحكام لإسماعيل الأنصاري، ط1، دار الفكر، دمشق، 1381هـ تيسير العلام شرح عمدة الأحكام للبسام، حققه وعلق عليه وخرج أحاديثه وصنع فهارسه: محمد صبحي بن حسن حلاق، ط10، مكتبة الصحابة، الإمارات - مكتبة التابعين، القاهرة، 1426 هـ تنبيه الأفهام شرح عمدة لأحكام لابن عثيمين، ط1، مكتبة الصحابة، الإمارات، 1426هـ عمدة الأحكام من كلام خير الأنام صلى الله عليه وسلم لعبد الغني المقدسي، دراسة وتحقيق: محمود الأرناؤوط، مراجعة وتقديم: عبد القادر الأرناؤوط، ط2، دار الثقافة العربية، دمشق، بيروت، مؤسسة قرطبة، 1408 هـ. صحيح البخاري، تحقيق: محمد زهير بن ناصر الناصر، ط1، دار طوق النجاة (مصورة عن السلطانية بإضافة ترقيم: محمد فؤاد عبد الباقي)، 1422هـ. صحيح مسلم، تحقيق: محمد فؤاد عبد الباقي، دار إحياء التراث العربي، بيروت، 1423 هـ.

‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) saw a man who had just finished performing ablution leaving a spot on his foot, the size of a fingernail, unwashed. He said to him while pointing to the place that was not properly washed: Go back and perform your ablution properly and perfectly and wash each organ properly with water. So, the man went back, performed ablution perfectly, and then prayed.

1. Hastening to enjoin good and guide the ignorant and the heedless is obligatory, especially if the evil involved results in invalidating his act of worship.
2. It is obligatory to thoroughly wash the body parts required in ablution and whoever leaves out any spot - even a tiny one - his ablution will be invalid and he is required to repeat it if such a spot is noticed after some time.
3. It is permissible to perfect ablution by performing it completely in the manner prescribed by the Shariah.
4. The feet are from the body parts required in ablution and wiping them is not sufficient; rather, they must be washed.
5. The prescribed succession between the body parts required in ablution should be observed in such a way that each part is washed before the one preceding it becomes dry.
6. Ignorance and forgetfulness do not make an obligation cease to be due but they absolve the sin. This man who did not perform ablution perfectly due to his ignorance, the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) did not exempt him from the obligation, namely ablution; rather, he ordered him to repeat it.

صحيح مسلم (1/ 215) (243). توضيح الأحكام مِن بلوغ المرام، لعبد الله البسام (1/ 247). شرح سنن أبي داود، لعبد المحسن العباد (29/ 13 بترقيم الشاملة آليا).