“Cleanliness is half of faith”
Islam gives matchless instructions for the cleanliness of the body, declaring physical purity as the first step towards achievement of spiritual heights. Muslims are required to take care of their personal hygiene by ensuring they are well groomed and that their bodies, clothing and surrounding are clean. The Holy Prophet (saw) informed his companions that “Cleanliness is half of faith (emaan)”.
Personality of a person is a sum of a person’s attitude towards everything such as how they talk, walk, dress, eat and so on; cleanliness doesn’t only mean wearing a neat and clean dress but includes a clean body and cleanliness in thoughts as well. The word used to describe in this Hadith is “Tahara” which means “purity” – this is split into two types of tahara:
Inner tahara (purity)
Outer tahara (purity)
Inner tahara is achieved by upholding the 5 pillars of Islam, you must have a pure thinking process, make constant rememberance of Allah and work towards ridding one’s heart of anger, hatred, reliance on Allah, pride, arrogance and more.
Outer tahara is attained through bodily purification; this is done through the process of ablution (wudhu), taking a bath/shower, cleaning teeth, keeping house/ clothes clean and enhancing one’s body with use of subtle perfume.
Personal hygiene is desirable at all times but certain aspects of cleanliness are compulsory, these include:
Purification of mind
Purification of body
Clean environment
The Holy Qur’an is specific as stated in chapter 2, verse 223:
“Allah loves those who turn to Him and loves those who keep themselves clean”.
All the acts mentioned are ones we fulfil frequently in our routine life: we clean our homes, brush our teeth daily, bathe/shower, wash our clothes, wash our dishes and use perfume as well. Does this mean that we are automatically being rewarded by Allah? To gain the full benefits, we must make a conscious intention to be clean for Allah’s pleasure and turn to pray to Allah since we are obeying his commands.
The Holy Prophet (saw) made the importance of sanitation clear and gave suggestions to block possible avenues of infection and contamination. The Holy Prophet (saw) narrated (quoted by Hazrat Jabbir) many times how utensils and food must be covered during the day and at night. When a Muslim man named Abu Hameed brought a container full of milk for the Holy Prophet (saw), he was questioned why he had not covered it and thus the Holy Prophet (saw) gave the suggestion of a piece of wood to cover the milk. Following from this, the Prophet (saw) also brought attention to other forms of filth which comes from spitting; he emphasised how “Spitting in the mosque is a sin and its expiation is to bury it”. The mosque is a public place therefore it is not just mosques we have been commanded to avoid spitting in but other public places as well. Current scientific research has advanced to prove the causes for spread of infection. Spitting is an actual cause:
- Germs in the spittle of those suffering from diseases such as tuberculosis dry up in the dust and are blown into noses and mouths of healthy hosts
- Animals, insects and flies feed on the spittle in the street; this is spread when the carriers are in contact with our food, they are responsible for many fatal illness and epidemics.
There are so many risks associated to “poor hygiene practices”; this is not just “body odour” and “bad breath” but also a leading cause to both minor and major diseases; they may harm our body in certain areas or afflict it whole.
Written by: Mizna Uppal
REFERENCES:
http://islam.ru/en/content/story/cleanliness-half-faith-iman
https://www.islamreligion.com/articles/2149/personal-hygiene-part-1/
https://www.livestrong.com/article/107811-consequences-poor-personal-hygiene/
