The
Preventive and Healing Wonders of Wudhu (Ablution)
By Lamya Tawfik
-----------------
"Nor does he say (aught) of (his own) Desire.
It is no less than inspiration sent down to him" (Chapter
53, Verse 3 & 4).
Fourteen centuries ago, our Prophet SAW gave us a prescription
of 26 washing movements to be carried out 5 times a day,
a total of 130 daily washing movements, to grant us optimum
health.
"O
ye who believe! when ye prepare for prayer, wash your faces,
and your hands (and arms) to the elbows; Rub your heads
(with water); and (wash) your feet to the ankles. If ye
are in a state of ceremonial impurity, bathe your whole
body. But if ye are ill, or on a journey, or one of you
cometh from offices of nature, or ye have been in contact
with women, and ye find no water, then take for yourselves
clean sand or earth, and rub therewith your faces and hands,
Allah doth not wish to place you in a difficulty, but to
make you clean, and to complete his favour to you, that
ye may be grateful. " (Chapter 5, Verse 6)
Before
a Muslim performs his prayers, he carries out the ablution
movements mentioned in the above verse as well as others,
which Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam has shown us.
Thus, the ablution comprises of washing the hands, arms
right up to the elbow, face, mouth, nostrils, and feet up
the ankle, all three times each. The inside and behind the
ears, as well as the part of the head above the forehead
is wiped once. Done five times a day, it not only cleanses
these vital parts of the body from dust and dirt but also
"softens" and refreshes them. [Health and Fitness
in Islam, Halal.com]
Interestingly
enough, Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam also encouraged
doing ablution before going to bed. This same ritual is
also encouraged by Yoga experts who say that washing important
motor and sensory organs such as the hands, arms, eyes,
legs, mouth and genitals before sleep using cool water relaxes
the body preparing it for a deep sleep. [Avadhuta, Vedprajinananda,
Yoga Health Secrets]
Stimulating
the Biological Rhythms
In an article titled "Muslims Rituals and their Effect
on the Person's Health", Dr.. Magomed Magomedov, assistant
to the department of the Man's General Hygiene and Ecology
in the Daghestan State Medical Academy , speaks about how
ablution stimulates the biological rhythms of the body and
specifically Biological Active Spots (BASes), very much
like the idea behind Chinese reflexotherapy. Presently
we know that a man is a complex system of electromagnetic
fields, meridians, biological rhythms and so on. Man's internal
organs, in their turn, present a no less sophisticated bioenergetical
whole; they all have indissoluble multi-channel bilateral
connections with the skin, which hosts special spots, whose
functions resemble those of buttons on "control"
and "recharge boards" responsible for particular
organs. These spots are called biologically active spots
(BASes). [Magomedov, Magomed, Muslim Rituals & their
effect on the person's health]
While
pointing out to the similarities between ablution and the
science of Chinese reflexology in his fascinating article,
Dr. Magomedov also states the main different points. To
become a doctor in reflexology, he says, one has to take
a 15 to 20 year course of study, incomparable with the simple
learning techniques of ablution. In another comparison,
reflexotherapy was primarily used to cure diseases and very
rarely for prevention, while, as we shall see, ablution
has many preventive benefits. There was also a negative
side to reflexotherapy, he says, one that is not found in
ablution; a patient was exposed to traumas since doctors
used cauterisation. "The majority of the most powerful
BASes are being washed during the Muslim ritual. It is not
the doctor, who had studied for many years, who does it,
but every Muslim by himself. Besides, praying five times
a day obliges a Muslim to take the preventive measures against
diseases beforehand."[Magomedov, Magomed, Muslim Rituals
& their effect on the person's health]
According
to Dr. Magomedov, Chinese medicine says that there are more
than 700 BASes, and sixty-six of them have quick reflex
therapy effects and are named the drastic (or aggression
or antique or prime-elements) spots. Out of these sixty-six
spots, sixty-one of them are located in zones required for
ablution while the other five are located between the ankle
and knee. Thus, ablution becomes a kind of treatment complex,
which includes the hydromassage of the BAS, their thermal
and physical stimulation.[Magomedov, Magomed, Muslim Rituals
& their effect on the person's health]
Preventive
Cleansing
From a non-alternative medicine perspective, Mukhtar Salem,
in his book titled 'Prayers: a Sport for the Body and Soul',
speaks about the health benefits of every aspect of ablution.
He does not speak about the BASes in one's body, but nevertheless,
he describes the preventive benefits of ablution.
SKIN:
Ablution, he says, helps prevent skin cancer. This is his
explanation… the areas that are washed during ablution are
the parts of the body that are most prone to be exposed
to pollution, whether it is pollution from the internal
secretions of the body on to the skin surface, such as sweat,
or whether it is external. Ablution, removes this 'pollution'
five times a day, and hence maintains a clean outside layer
of skin, which in turn helps the cells underneath to function
properly. Also, washing with water helps invigorate the
ends of the blood vessels, as well as the nerves and glands
that are near the skin surface, and hence helps them perform
their functions efficiently.[Salem, Mukhtar, Prayers:
A sport for the soul and body, CAIRO, The Arab Modern Centre
(1990), pg. 52.]
Salem adds that research has proven that one of the main
reasons behind skin cancer is that the skin is exposed to
chemicals, especially petrochemicals, and that the best
way to prevent skin cancer is by constantly removing these
chemicals.
MOUTH:
The obvious reason behind washing the mouth during ablution,
Salem says, is to remove the food particles, which could
cause teeth and gum problems. That is also one of the reasons
why siwak (brushing one's teeth) is also encouraged before
ablution.
NOSTRILS:
When washing one's nostrils, one is also performing
a preventive health measure as the germs trapped in the
nostrils are removed and do not pass on to the respiratory
system. According to a study conducted by a team of doctors
in Alexandria University, the Prophetic tradition, which
urges the exaggeration of washing the nostrils by introducing
the water in the nostril then blowing it out, positively
affects the inner coating of the nostrils. Those who carried
out the washing in the correct form had clean, shiny nostrils
with no dust clinging to the small hair inside. However,
those who did not perform ablution had light coloured, greasy
nostrils and their nostril hairs fell off easily.
FACE:
Repeated washing of the face invigorates the facial skin
cells and helps prevent early wrinkles as well as having
a cleansing effect on the inside of the eyes, which prevents
eye infections, says Salem. Washing the ear helps rid them
from wax accumulation, which may cause ear infections as
well as affecting the inner ear, which eventually causes
body imbalances.
FEET:
The Prophetic tradition of encouraging one to wash between
the toes while washing the feet, is also extremely important,
says Salem, as it prevents the foot, which in our modern
times is trapped most of the day inside shoes, from acquiring
athlete's foot. Over all, he adds, ablution also has an
exercising effect on all the muscles involved in its movement,
which are thus being stimulated five times a day or even
more according to repetition.
Extinguishing
the Fires of Anger
Prophetic tradition, with regards to ablution, is also ecologically
friendly, as Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam repeatedly
encouraged water conservation, even if abluting from a running
river. Ibn Majah related that Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi
wa sallam said, "There is a Shaytaan (devil) for ablution
called `walhan', meaning greedy, avoid the waste of water."
We are also encouraged to make ablution while being in a
state of anger for the cooling and refreshing effect of
the water, as we are told that anger is from the devil who
is made out of fire and can therefore be put off by water.
Finally,
there is a moral to this article, besides understanding
the benefits of ablution. One should never take things at
face value, and must have strong faith that everything that
Allah prescribes has wisdom behind it that we may or may
not know. "And they say: 'We hear, and we obey:
(We seek) Thy forgiveness, our Lord, and to Thee is the
end of all journeys.'" (Chapter 2, Verse 285). "Nor
does he say (aught) of (his own) Desire. It is no less than
inspiration sent down to him " (Chapter 53, Verse 3
& 4).