ISLAM places much emphasize upon cleanliness. Purity of the body, mind and the soul
are inextricably intertwined in Islam, for physical cleanliness is central to
spiritual purity. In his Friday Sermon
of 13 July 2012, Khalifatullah Hadhrat
Munir Ahmad Azim (atba) of Mauritius explained the Prophetic traditions on body hygiene
and respect for the natural environment in the wider context of leading a
healthy and long life in the Islamic way.
Drawing upon his own close study and
analysis of the subject, the Khalifatullah observes: “[t]he absence
of tobacco and alcohol consumption, consumption of five fruits and vegetables
daily, physical exercise half an hour a day can contribute to the prolongation
of life. Certainly it is the cleansing of the body, whether
of our internal systems and our soul which each contributes to make us human
beings capable of living a long life, according to the will of God in good physical, moral and spiritual health...”
Read the Extracts from the Friday Sermon:
“The human
being who lives temporarily on earth will be compensated after his death
according to his beliefs, his actions as well as his intentions. In Islam, acts
of goodness not only reveal the spiritual and cultural, but they (also) concern
different aspects of man’s life.
Islam has
taught rules under the name which is now commonly called hygiene. The Holy
Prophet Muhammad (sa) said: “Ten
things are part of (what the human being does by) natural predisposition:
trimming his moustache, keeping the beard, brushing the teeth, rinsing his
nostrils, trimming his nails, washing his finger joints, removing the hair of
the armpits, shaving the pubic hair, using water after relieving him (after
going to the toilet), and (one link in the chain of transmission says
he remembers the tenth thing vaguely, that is) rinsing his mouth.” (Reported by Muslim, Tirmidhi, Abu
Dawud, An-Nasaa’i)
According to
other links in the chain of transmission, the tenth thing is circumcision. In
another famous Hadith reported by Muslim, the Holy Prophet Muhammad (sa)
considers purification as being half of faith. So we see that Islam has
put much emphasis on how Muslims must cultivate a healthy (clean) lifestyle.
Staying clean means getting rid of germs and dirt;
which means protection against various skin and mouth disease. Therefore, the Muslim constantly washes his face
and hands during the ablution which is performed several times daily to reduce
the amount of germs that invade our body through the mouth and nose.
Consequently this helps to protect oneself against digestive and respiratory
diseases. It is also illegal to urinate in stagnant water so as to prevent the
spread of germs from one person to another and the risk of spreading infectious
diseases such as cholera, typhoid fever and paralysis.
Just as we are
required to wash the hands properly and keep the premises where we have
relieved ourselves (that is, the toilets) clean, the health specialists
strongly recommend keeping those places clean so as also to prevent other
several inflammations and suppurations. The believer must wash his body at
least once a week (during the Ghusl of Jumu’ah) to clean his skin of
dirt, bacteria, microbes and other impurities, which guarantees us the
prevention against skin infections, and helps keep the skin healthy. It is to
be noted that this same bath should be taken at different times of the
existence of a Muslim, for example: after having sex, and for the woman
specifically at the end of the excessive bleeding after childbirth but also
after menstruation, and other circumstances specified by the Shariah.
Without this bath, the daily prayers, the reading
the Quran and other sacred rites will be void. The small ablution or Wu’zu
must be done before every prayer if needed.
The prophetic
tradition tells us that one must wash his hands as soon as he wakes up so as to
get rid of all uncleanness due to nocturnal secretions of the body such as
sweating and other. That is why the following Hadith has all its importance
whereby the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: “When one of you wakes up, let him refrain
from putting his hand in a utensil before having well washed it (that is, his
hand) three times.” (Bukhari and Muslim). Therefore, we come to
understand that the purity of the body is a necessary element for those who
want to get closer to Allah the Almighty, which leads us to consider corporal
hygiene as essential.
The Quran is clear about this: “Purify your clothes!” (74: 5) or “Allah loves those who are constantly repentant and loves those who purify themselves.” (2: 223).
But the
lifestyle does not stop only to personal hygiene because in Islam the hygienic
principles of the body through fasting
can detoxify the body. Similarly with regard to food, we know how much food
taboos are justified both by the actual harmful effects on the body than the
mind. Therefore, Allah the Almighty has forbidden consumption of alcohol and
pork for the constant or perpetual wellbeing of humanity. Nowadays, more and
more science progresses along and proves the correctness of Islam in this
regard. Scientific studies show that among all kinds of meat known to humanity,
pork contains more germs, and most of these meats are most infectious and other
life-threatening.
Moreover, according to an analysis and reflection that
I have made on tobacco and alcohol, I note that the absence of tobacco and
alcohol consumption, consumption of five fruits and vegetables daily, physical
exercise half an hour a day can contribute to the prolongation of life.
Certainly it is the cleansing of the body, whether of our internal systems and
our soul which each contributes to make us human beings capable of living a
long life, according to the will of God in good physical, moral and spiritual health.
Respect the Environment and Keep it Clean
Cleanliness
concerns also our environment. The Holy Prophet Muhammad (sa) exhorts us in
this way: “Keep the place in front of
your house clean so as not to offend the passersby.”
Then we understand how essential it is to keep our interior in good state but also to respect the environment in which we live, in this case (it is) our neighbourhood, our city and above all nature. In another Hadith the Holy Prophet Muhammad (sa) said: “Beware of committing the three great sins which the author shall be cursed, namely, to relieve oneself from the water points, on the roads and dark places.”
This explains how much the Muslim should respect the areas frequented by people as well as animals. It is our duty to not only preserve nature but also to prevent others from dirtying or destroying it. But unfortunately, we see that despite everything, it’s the other people (nation from other faiths) who invest in this field which is Islamic.
Finally, we return to our key point, the practice of Islam is based primarily on healthy living. Being Muslim is not limited only to our acts of worship but also to the integral part of several other aspects. So we should be a thousand times pickier than other communities that have not received any orders from their “Lords”.
May Allah increase our
knowledge and may we Muslims keep ourselves clean, both at the physical and
spiritual level. Insha-Allah, Ameen".