Wudhu’ Is Light

Almighty Allah says in the Holy Qur’an:

اللَّهُ نُورُ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ

Allah is the light of the heavens and the earth… (Surah an-Noor, 24:35).

اللَّهُ وَلِيُّ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا يُخْرِجُهُمْ مِنَ الظُّلُمَاتِ إِلَى النُّورِ

Allah is the guardian of the faithful, He removes them from darknesses towards light… (Surah al-Baqara, 2:257).

The word Nur (lit. light) is defined as الظاهر في نفسه و المظهر لغيره The self-apparent one that makes others apparent. If taken in its most accurate sense, it is nothing but existence (wujud) in its purest form, which is self- apparent and makes other entities appear. The above verse tells us that only Allah is the Nur of the heavens and the earth.

All else gain their appearance from Him alone. Only He in the independent sense is self-apparent and renders all other entities to appear. This is because He alone is the primal and causeless cause or in subtler mystical terms the only cause. Mawlana Jalal al-Din Rumi (d. 672/1273), who asks us to seek a vision of sabab- surakh-kun (that pierces the apparent causes) so that we can apprehend the ultimate reality, in his Mathnawi says:

ديده اي بايد سبب سوارخ کن

تا حجب را برکند از بيخ و بن

تا مسبب بيند اندر لامکان

هرزه بيند جهد و اسباب و دکان

از مسبب می رسد هر خير و شر

نيست اسباب و وسايل ای پدر

An eye that can penetrate the cause is needed to extirpate (these) veils from root and bottom,

So that it may behold the Cause in (the world of) non-spatiality and regard exertion and earnings and shops as (mere) nonsense.

Everything good or evil comes from the Causer; causes and means, O father, are naught…1

In the well-known supplication of the Big Armour (al-Jawshan al-Kabir) we address Allah as follows:

ياَ نُوْرَ كُلِّ نُوْر، يَا نُوْرًا قَبْلَ كُلِّ نُوْر، يَا نُوْراً بَعْدَ كُلِّ نُوْرٍ، يَا نُوْرًا فَوْقَ كُلِّ نُوْرٍ، ياَ نُوْرًا لَيْسَ كَمِثْلِهِ نُوْرٌ

O Light of every light, O Light before every light, O Light after every light, O Light above every light, O Light the like of which there is no light.2

Hence, He alone is Nur in the truest meaning of the word and all other anwar (lights) are only His manifestations.

Every entity in as much as it possesses perfection and bestows the same enjoys Nur. If one is knowledgeable, for example, and bestows knowledge to others, he is a manifestation of Allah’s name al-Nur, if he is open-handed and educates others to be the same, he is a manifestation of the divine name al-Nur. In short, whenever one possesses perfect attributes and enables others to possess the same, he manifests light.

In our traditions, Wudhu’ is also introduced as Nur. The Holy Prophet (S) is reported to have said:

اَلْوُضُوْءُ عَلَى الْوُضُوْءِ نُوْرٌ عَلَى نُوْرٍ

Wudhu’ upon Wudhu’ is light upon light.3

Perhaps the reason why it is called Nur is that it serves as an agent of the enlightenment of the human being with excellent traits that the human being was fundamentally created to manifest. Considering the definition of Nur we say that Wudhu’, which is an action of guidance in itself, bestows the human being with inner guidance and enlightenment. Hence it really serves as al-zahiru fi nafsihi al-muzhiru lighayrihi (the self-apparent one that makes others apparent), which is the reality of Nur. According to one opinion4 the etymology of the word Wudhu’ is daw’ (light) and ida’ah (to enlighten); and that Wudhu’ is named as such because it enlightens the parts of the body and makes them effulgent. The Holy Prophet (S) is reported to have said:

يَحْشَرُ اللهُ أُمَّتِيْ يَوْمَ القِيَامَةِ بَيْنَ الأُمَمِ غُرًّا مُحَجَّلِيْنَ مِنْ آثاَرِ الْوُضُوْءِ

Allah will resurrect my nation among other nations in the state of being radiant and beautiful5 due to the effects of the Wudhu’6

Imam ‘Ali ibn Muhammad al-Hadi (‘a) is reported to have said:

لَمّا كَلَّمَ الله عَزَّ وجلَّ موسَى بنَ عِمرانَ عَلَيْهِ السَّلاَمُ … قَالَ: إِلَهِيْ، فَمَا جَزاءُ مَن أتَمَّ الوُضوءَ مِن خَشيَتِكَ؟ قالَ: أبعَثُهُ يَومَ القِيامَةِ ولَهُ نُورٌ بَينَ عَينَيهِ يَتَلألأُ

When Allah, the Invincible and Majestic, spoke to Musa ibn ‘Imran… He said: O God, then what is the recompense of one who performs Wudhu’ perfectly out of your fear and awe? He said: I will resurrect him on the Day of Resurrection in a state whereby he has light sparkling before his eyes.

A majority of lexicographers, however,7 mention in their works that the word Wudhu’ originates from the word wada’ah which means beauty (al-husn) and purity (al-nazafah), and that it is named as such because it instils beauty and purity.

Ibn Faris (d. 395/1004), the well-known lexicographer, for example, in his lexicon Mu‘jam Maqayis al-Lughah says:

والوضوء فعلك إذا توضأت من الوضاءة وهي الحسن والنظافة كأن وجهه وضأه أي حسنه

Wudhu’ is your action when you perform the minor religious ablution. It comes from the word wada’ah which means beauty and purity. It is as though the one who washes his face makes it beautiful (wadda’ahu ay hassanahu)…8

The eminent Shi‘ah religious authority al-Sharif al-Murtada (d.436/1044) in his al-Amali when discussing the etymology of Wudhu’ says:

فأما اشتقاق الوضوء فهو من الوضاءة التي هي الحسن فلما كان من غسل يده ونظفها قد حسنها قيل وضأها

And as for the etymology of Wudhu’ it is from wada’ah which means beauty; and because whosoever washes his hand and cleans it makes it beautiful, it is said ‘wadda’aha (he made it beautiful)’9

Whether derived from al-daw’ or al-wada’ah, the crux of the meaning of Wudhu’ is purity, beauty, and light.

A number of works10 have been written about the secrets (asrar) of Wudhu’ and many of them have contributed enormously to the treasures of Islamic thought. The present work, however, is somewhat different. It tries to understand the secrets of Wudhu’ from some of its recommended supplications narrated by Imam ‘Ali (‘a).

If one carefully ponders over them, one would realise that Wudhu’ is a reminder of some of the most important stations (mawaqif) of the Hereafter. For those, however, who have attained a sharper vision (al-basar al-hadidiyyah11 and can pierce the veils of the material world and behold the realms of the Hereafter, it is not far-fetched to apprehend the realities of the stations of the Hereafter while they continue residing in the narrow straits of this darkest realm of divine manifestation.

The lives of the infallible progeny of the Holy Prophet (S) are replete with examples worthy of consideration. When they would stand for Wudhu’, due to their lofty state of realisation, they would undergo great transformations, tremble in fear and be overtaken by divine awe.

It is reported about Imam al-Hasan (‘a) that whenever he would perform Wudhu’ his colour would change, and his limbs would shake. He was [once] asked about this and he said: It behoves of one who stands before the Owner of the [Divine] Throne (‘Arsh) to turn pale and tremble.12

A similar case is related regarding Imam Zayn al-‘Abidin (‘a). According to a narration, whenever he would begin ablution for prayers, his face would turn pale, and fear would overcome him.13

The effulgent soul,14 Sayyid Radi al-Din ibn al-Tawus (d. 664/1266) after narrating this in his excellent work Falah al-Sa’il, says:

فهل يجوز في ميزان العقل أن يخاف هو (عَلَيْهِ السَّلاَمُ) وهو مستقيم، وتأمن أنت وأنت سقيم؟ فإن كل من يريد الدخول إلى حضرة ملك لمناجاته يتأهب بإصلاح كل ما يقع الملك عليه وبكلما يكون أقرب إليه

Does the scale of the intellect permit that he (peace be upon him) should be afraid despite being on the straight path, while you be safe and free from worries despite your state of spiritual illness? Indeed, whosoever wishes to enter the presence of a king to intimately converse with him, prepares himself by reforming whatever would catch the glance of the king and whatever would be dear to him…15

Therefore, it is imperative for us to know the secrets of every action that we perform in Wudhu’ so that we can cleanse ourselves and naturally experience what the purified ones would experience.

In this work we have tried to draw inspiration and understand the secrets of Wudhu’ from a hadith narrated by a number of Shi‘ah hadith scholars (muhaddithun), examples of which are Shaykh Abu Ja‘far al-Barqi (d. 274/887), Shaykh Abu Ja‘far al- Kulayni (d. 329/941), and Shaykh Abu Ja‘far al-Saduq (d.381/991). The version we have relied on in this work16 is the one from Shaykh Saduq in his Thawab al-A‘mal.

In this hadith Amir al-Mu’minin ‘Ali ibn Abi Talib (‘a) teaches specific supplications to his son Muhammad ibn Hanafiyyah17 while performing Wudhu’. It actually makes every high-spirited believer want to engage in the process of purification actively.

The following is the version of Shaykh al-Saduq under the title Thawab man tawadda’a mithla Wudhu’ Amir al-Mu’minin (S) wa qala mithla qawlihi (The reward of one who performs Wudu like the Wudhu’ of Amir al-Mu’minin (S) and says like what He said).

The Wudhu’ Of Amir Al-Mu’minin (‘A)

Al-Shaykh al-Saduq in his Thawab al-A‘mal narrates from Muhammad ibn al-Hasan who said: Muhammad ibn al-Hasan al-Saffar18 [the author of the well-known treasure Basa’ir al- Darajat] narrated to me from ‘Ali ibn Hassan al-Wasiti from his paternal uncle ‘Abd al-Rahman ibn Kathir al- Hashimi, a companion of Muhammad ibn ‘Ali [al-Baqir (‘a)], from [Imam] Abu ‘Abdillah [al-Sadiq (‘a)] who said:

بَيْنَا أَمِيرُ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ (عَلَيْهِ السَّلاَمُ) ذَاتَ يَوْمٍ جَالِساً مَعَ ابْنِ الْحَنَفِيَّةِ إِذْ قَالَ: يَا مُحَمَّدُ ائتِنِي بِإِنَاءٍ فِيهِ مَاءٌ أَتَوَضَّأْ لِلصَّلَاةِ فَأتَاهُ مُحَمَّدٌ بِالْمَاءِ فَأَكْفَأَ بِيَدِهِ الْيُمْنَى عَلَى يَدِهِ الْيُسْرَى ثُمَّ قَالَ: بِسْمِ الله الْحَمْدُ للهِ الَّذِي جَعَلَ الْمَاءَ طَهُوراً وَلَمْ يَجْعَلْهُ نَجِساً

قَالَ ثُمَّ اسْتَنْجَى فَقَالَ: اَللَّهُمَّ حَصِّنْ فَرْجِي وَأَعِفَّهُ وَاسْتُرْ عَوْرَتِيْ وَحَرِّمْنِي عَلَى النَّارِ

ثُمَّ تَمَضْمَضَ فَقَالَ: اَللَّهُمَّ لَقِّنِّي حُجَّتِي يَوْمَ أَلْقَاكَ وَأَطْلِقْ لِسَانِيْ بِذِكْرِكَ

ثُمَّ اسْتَنْشَقَ فَقَالَ: اَللَّهُمَّ لَا تُحَرِّمْ عَلَيَّ رِيحَ الْجَنَّةِ وَاجْعَلْنِيْ مِمَنْ يَشَمُّ رِيحَهَا وَرَوْحَهَا وَرَيْحَانَهَا وَطِيبَهَا

قَالَ ثُمَّ غَسَلَ وَجْهَهُ فَقَالَ: اَللَّهُمَّ بَيِّضْ وَجْهِي يَوْمَ تَسْوَدُّ فِيهِ الْوُجُوهُ وَلَا تُسَوِّدْ وَجْهِي يَوْمَ تَبْيَضُّ فِيهِ الْوُجُوهُ

ثُمَّ غَسَلَ يَدَهُ الْيُمْنَى فَقَالَ: اَللَّهُمَّ أَعْطِنِي كِتَابِي بِيَمِيْنِيْ وَالْخُلْدَ فِي الْجِنَانِ بِيَسَارِيْ وَحَاسِبْنِيْ حِسَاباً يَسِيراً

ثُمَّ غَسَلَ يَدَهُ الْيُسْرَى فَقَالَ: اَللَّهُمَّ لَا تُعْطِنِيْ كِتَابِيْ بِشِمَالِيْ وَلَا تَجْعَلْهَا مَغْلُولَةً إِلَى عُنُقِيْ وَأَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنْ مُقَطَّعَاتِ النِّيرَانِ

ثُمَّ مَسَحَ رَأْسَهُ فَفَالَ: اَللَّهُمَّ غَشِّنِي بِرَحْمَتِكَ وَبَرَكَاتِكَ وَعَفْوِكَ

قَالَ ثُمَّ مَسَحَ رِجْلَيْهِ فَقَالَ: اَللَّهُمَّ ثَبِّتْنِي عَلَى الصِّرَاطِ يَوْمَ تَزِلُّ فِيهِ الْأَقْدَامُ وَاجْعَلْ سَعْيِيْ فِيمَا يُرْضِيْكَ عَنِّي يَا أَرْحَمَ الرَّاحِمِينَ

ثُمَّ رَفَعَ رَأْسَهُ فَنَظَرَ إلَى مُحَمَّدٍ فَقَالَ: يَا مُحَمَّدُ مَنْ تَوَضَّأَ مِثْلَ قَوْلِي خَلَقَ اللهُ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ مِنْ كُلِّ قَطْرَةٍ مَلَكاً يُقَدِّسُهُ وَيُسَبِّحُهُ وَيُكَبِّرُهُ وَيَكْتُبُ اللهُ تَعَالَى لَهُ ثَوَابَ ذَلِكَ إِلَى يَوْمِ الْقِيَامَةِ

One day Amir al-Mu’minin [‘Ali ibn Abi Talib (‘a)] was sitting with his son Muhammad ibn Hanafiyyah, when he said: O Muhammad bring me a vessel of water, so that I perform Wudhu’ for prayer. So, his son Muhammad brought him water, and the Imam (‘a) took some water by his right palm and placed it on his left, and thereafter said: I begin with Allah’s name, praise belongs to Allah who made water a purifying agent and did not make it impure.

Then he (‘a) cleaned himself from impurities (istanja), and prayed: O Allah, protect my shame and make me chaste, and cover my private organs and forbid me upon the Hell-Fire.

Then the Imam (‘a) gargled (tamadmada) and prayed: Inculcate in me my clear proof the Day I shall meet You, and open my tongue with Your remembrance.

Then the Imam (‘a) inhaled water through the nose (istanshaqa), and prayed: O Allah, forbid on me not the fragrance of the Garden of Heaven, and make me among those who smell its fragrance, its scent, its perfume and its pleasant smell.

Then he washed his face and prayed: O Allah, brighten my face on the Day when [some] faces are dark, and do not darken my face on the Day when [some] faces are bright.

Then he (‘a) washed his right hand, and prayed: O Allah, give me my book [of deeds] in my right hand, and a permanent stay in the abodes of Heaven without difficulty, and account me [for my deeds] with an easy accounting.

Then he (‘a) washed his left hand and prayed: O Allah do not give to me my book of deeds in my left hand nor chain it to my neck, and I seek refuge in You from the clothes of the Hell-Fire.

Then he (‘a) wiped over his head, and prayed: O Allah, cover me with Your mercy, Your abundant bounties and Your forgiveness.

Then he (‘a) wiped over his two feet and prayed: O Allah make my two feet firm on the path, the Day when feet will slip, and render my struggle in that which makes You pleased with me, O Most Merciful of the merciful ones.

Then the Imam (‘a) raised his head and looked at Muhammad [ibn Hanafiyyah] and said: O Muhammad, whosoever performs Wudhu’ the way I [just] performed it, and says what I [just] said, Allah will create from every drop [of the water used or dropped], an angel that will sanctify, glorify and magnify Him, whereupon Allah will record for him the reward of that until the Judgement Day.

Commenting on this radiant tradition19 in his Asrar al-Salat, the contemporary exegete of the Qur’an, Ayatullah ‘Abdullah Jawadi Amuli (b. 1933), says that not just any kind of Wudhu’ coupled with any kind of supplication would result in the aforementioned powerful effects; rather, the Wudhu’ must be performed in the same manner as Imam ‘Ali (‘a) performed it. The intention, state, and presence of heart are all important elements that can reap such great results.20

One of the fundamental sources of our research has been the work al-Arba‘in of al-Shaykh Baha’ al-Din Muhammad ibn Husayn al-‘Amili (d. 1031/1622), a powerful scholar of the Shi‘ah world.

He has tackled the Wudhu’ of Amir al-Mu’minin (‘a) in detail while discussing the fifth tradition of his work.21

Other invaluable sources of our research which have also covered the secrets of Wudhu’ are: Asrar al-Shari‘ah of Sayyid Haydar Amuli (d. 787/1385), the Asrar al-Salat of al-Shahid al-Thani (d. 1011/1602), the Nibras al-Huda and Asrar al-Hikam of Mulla Hadi Sabzawari (d. 1289/1873), the Asrar al-Salat of Mirza Maliki Tabrizi (d. 1343/1924) and the Asrar al-Salat of Ayatullah Shaykh ‘Abdullah Jawadi Amuli (b. 1933).

We pray to Allah to enable us to perform Wudhu’ as He desires, and to bestow us with the succour of always remaining in the state of purity.

In the end I wish to express my sincere gratitude to all those who helped me in completing this project. My special thanks to Shaykh ‘Abbas Mulla Asgharali Jaffer who read through parts of the work and gave invaluable suggestions.

• 1. Mawlana Jalal al-Din Rumi, The Mathnawi, Eng tr. R. A. Nicholson, v.V, p.94.
• 2. Du’a al-Jawshan al-Kabir, Shaykh ‘Abbas Qummi, Mafatih al-Jinan, pp. 163-186.
• 3. Shaykh Saduq, Man la yahduruhu al-Faqih, v.1; al-Jassas, Ahkam al-Qur’an, v.2, p. 416; al-Qurtubi, Tafsir al-Qurtubi, v.6, p. 82; Ibn al-‘Arabi, al-Futuhat al- Makkiyyah, v.1, p. 342
• 4. Al-Jabrayn, Sharh ‘Umdat al-Ahkam.
• 5. The word ghurr which is the plural of agharr is a quality of the horse with a white mark on the upper side of its face. It is employed here to signify the light on the forehead of the believer on the Judgement Day. And the word muhajjal is also employed as a quality of a horse the lower side of whose hands and legs are also white. It has been employed here also to show the beauty and radiance of the believer who always performs Wudhu’. It is interesting to note that the Holy Prophet (S) had named Amir al-mu’minin ‘Ali (‘a) as Qa’id al-ghurr al-muhajjalin (the Leader of the brilliant-faced and beautiful) [Shaykh al-Saduq, al-Amali, p.250], which reveals the fact that one who really would like to attain or maintain the inner effulgence and beauty must learn from the school of Amir almu’minin. He is the teacher of light and he is the teacher of how to gain light.
• 6. Al-Qadi al-Nu‘man al-Maghribi, Da‘aim al-Islam, v.1, p. 100.
• 7. Al-Shahid al-Thani, Sharh al-Lum‘ah, v.1, p. 317; al-Hindi, Kashf al-Litham, v.1, p. 119; al Jawahiri, Jawahir al-Kalam, v.1, p. 39
• 8. Ibn Faris, Mu‘jam Maqayis al-Lughah, v.6, p. 119
• 9. Sharif Murtada, al-Amali, v.2, p. 59.
• 10. A good example of a work written on secrets of Wudhu’ is The Inner Secrets of the Path by the great mystic Sayyid Haydar Amuli (d. 787/1385). In this work he has apportioned a whole chapter to Wudhu’ where he discusses three different levels of Wudhu’. This book has been rendered into the English language and a digital version of the same is available at the following link: https://www.al-islam.org/inner-secrets-path-sayyid-haydar-amuli [20-4-2013].
• 11. This is a reference to the following verse of the Holy Qur’an: (fa basaruka al-yawma hadid)
  ‘You were certainly oblivious of this. We have removed your veil from you, and so your sight is acute today.’ (50:22)
• 12. Sayyid Radi al-Din ibn Tawus, Falah al-Sa’il, p. 124.
• 13. Sayyid Radi al-Din ibn Tawus, Falah al-Sa’il, p. 124.
• 14. The late mystic Ayatullah Muhammad Taqi Bahjat is reported to have said: ‘I have not seen anyone like Sayyid Ibn Tawus from among the former and latter Shi‘ahs.’ [Rayshahri, Zamzam-e ‘Irfan, p. 99]. On many occasions Ayatullah Bahjat is reported to have said: ‘The seminarian who has not seen the works of Sayyid Ibn Tawus, is like he who has not seen anything. (talabe-i ke kitabha-ye Sayyid ra nadide bashad misl-e in ast ke hich nadide ast)’ [http://www.tebyan.net] (3-5-2013).
• 15. Sayyid Radi al-Din ibn Tawus, Falah al-Sa’il, p. 124.
• 16. In the course of our exposition wherever we deemed necessary we have alluded to some differences of the other versions of the tradition.
• 17. He was called Ibn al-Hanafiyyah after his mother, Khawlah bint Ja‘far who was known as Hanafiyyah (the Hanafi woman) after her tribe Banu Hanifah. When the people of Yamamah were declared apostates for refusing to pay zakat and were killed and their womenfolk were brought to Madinah as slave girls, this lady also came with them. When her tribesmen came to know of this, they approached Amir al-mu’minin ‘Ali (‘a) and requested him to save her from the blemish of slavery and protect her family honour and prestige. Consequently he set her free after purchasing her and married her, whereafter Muhammad was born.
• 18. Muhammad ibn al-Hasan al-Saffar (d. 290/902-903) also known as Abu Ja‘far al-Qummi, was a companion of Imam Hasan al-‘Askari (‘a) and a resident of Qum. He is known to be among the reliable and trustworthy narrators of hadith by well-known scholars of ‘ilm al-rijal like ‘Abdallah alAsadi al-Najashi (d. 450/1058), who describes him in his authoritative work Rijal al-Najashi as ‘thiqatun ‘azim al-qadr (highly esteemed and trustworthy)’ [al-Najashi, Rijal al-Najashi, p. 354].
• 19. Ayatullah Jawadi Amuli comments on the version of this tradition narrated in al-Mahasin of al-Barqi.
• 20. Ayatullah Jawadi Amuli, Asrar al-Salat, pp. 16-17.
• 21. This work has been rendered into the Persian language by Shaykh ‘Abd al- Rahim ‘Aqiqi Bakhshayishi (d. 1433), and the contemporary scholar Sayyid Muhammad Rida Ghiyathi Kirmani.