Purity comes before prayer: In Islam, worship begins with purity. There is no prayer without Taharah (طہارت). Before you stand before Allah, your body, your clothes, and your place of prayer must be pure. That is why the rules of purity are the very first chapter in books of fiqh.
Tahir and Najis: Things are of two kinds. Tahir (طاہر) means pure — clean in the eyes of Shariah. Najis (نجس) means impure — something that must be washed away before prayer. If a Najis thing touches your body or clothes, you must purify it first.
The impure things: The source course lists the things that are Najis and need purification if contact occurs: blood, urine, faeces, semen, the dog, the pig, Khamr (wine and intoxicating drink), and the corpse. (Whether a non-Muslim is Najis is a matter on which scholars differ — the course notes "Kafir (dispute)" — so this point should be learned from a scholar, not assumed.)
How things become pure again: Allah has given us ways to purify impure things, called Mutahhirat (مطہرات). The most important purifier is pure water: washing a Najis thing with water makes it Tahir again. Clean earth and the sun also purify in specific cases, as do other means described in the books of fiqh, such as change of form (Istihala) and transfer (Intiqal). The details are in the Tawdhih al-Masa'il, Issues 1–330. — to be checked.
Two kinds of impurity: Some impurity is on the outside — Najis on your clothes or body. Some impurity is a state of the person — after using the toilet, sleeping deeply, or after Janabah (sexual discharge), a person is without Wudu or in need of Ghusl, and must purify himself before prayer. The next topic explains exactly how.
Example
Imagine you spill ink on your white shirt before going to college. You cannot just wear it and say it does not matter — you wash it first. In the same way, if something Najis touches your clothes, you wash it with water first, and then you pray. Purity is part of the prayer itself, not an extra formality.
Key Terms
- Taharah (طہارت) — purity; being clean in the eyes of Shariah
- Najis (نجس) — impure; something that must be washed away before prayer
- Tahir (طاہر) — pure; clean in the eyes of Shariah
- Mutahhirat (مطہرات) — the things that purify, such as water, earth, and the sun
Quran or Hadith
Quran 2:222 — "Indeed, Allah loves those who constantly repent and loves those who purify themselves." — to be checked.
Quran 5:6 — "And if you are in a state of Janabah — purify yourselves." — to be checked. This verse is given in the source course as the command for Ghusl.
Imam al-Sadiq (as): "There is no prayer without Taharah." — Wasail al-Shia, Vol. 2, p. 5. — to be checked.
Fresh diagram to be drawn: Two columns — a red "Najis" column listing blood, urine, faeces, semen, dog, pig, Khamr, corpse; and a green "Mutahhirat" column listing water, earth, sun — with an arrow showing water washing a Najis thing clean.
- There is no prayer without Taharah — body, clothes, and place of prayer must be pure.
- Najis things include blood, urine, faeces, semen, dog, pig, Khamr, and the corpse.
- Pure water is the main purifier; earth and the sun also purify in specific cases.
- Impurity can be on your clothes or a state of your body — both must be dealt with before prayer.