Question (Q-21):
Is it permissible to recite the Holy Qur’an, words of remembrance of Allah and supplication without Wudhū? What is the ruling in relation to doing Dhikr (remembering Allah) and Supplicating on an impure bed?
Answer:
If a person is not in the state of Wudhū, in fact even if he is in a state of major impurity (Janābah), it is permissible for him or her to remember Allah (Dhikr), to supplicate (Du’ā) and to recite Verses of the Holy Qur’ān with the intention of Du’ā. However, it is not permissible for the person in the state of major impurity to recite even one Verse with the intention of reciting the Noble Qur’ān.
If the impurity on the bed is less than the size of one dirham (the size of a fifty pence coin) then performing Dhikr (remembrance of Allah) or Tilāwah (recitation of the Holy Qur’ān) is permissible whilst sitting down or lying down upon the bed. However it is more respectable and safer to purify the bed nevertheless. The same ruling applies if the impurity is the size of a dirham or more and you sit away from it. If the impurity is equivalent to or more than the size of a dirham and the person is sat on top of it or is lying down upon it, it is against etiquette but Dhikr and Du’ā are still not forbidden.
Al Imām Ahmad Ridhā (رضى الله عنه) has written a detailed and blessed thesis on this matter entitled, “Irtifā’ ul hujub ‘an wujūhi Qirā’atil junub” which is very beneficial and and comprehensive.
Allah تعالى knows best and His Knowledge is Absolutely Complete.
Written by: Muftī Shamsulhudā Khān Misbāhī (Allah preserve him)
