ANSWERED: ghusl

[Cloud_Strife]

Salaam Aleikum.
i have a question abouit ghusl.
For ghusl to be valid, water has to reach all parts of the body.
However, what if you used a marker and got some ink on your finger and it won't come off? I mean, you do get water over that area but the ink's still there days later!! The ink's in the skin,but I mean you wash over that area-is this valid or is ghusl still incomplete? The ink stain on the finger's less than an inch in size.but still...does anyone know?


Reminds me of nail polish and ghusl being invalid unless it's taken off.

[abuhajira]

What is required of you is that you excercise to you ability to remove that which stops water from reaching the skin. For example if you have tippex/whiteout or nail polish on your finger tip. And you know that it not porous, then it is wajib on you to remove it. Once you have tried to remove it with any means you can, your wajub (obligation) has been fulfilled. Now if the water does not reach the skin, the ghusl will still be valid.

In case of ink, all inks are porous, i.e water penetrates them. What is left after washing is color or dye. Then you are not required to remove the dye after having washed the ink off. So your ghusl is valid. (Heavenly Ornaments)

[Talib84]

I just want to clarify something, as ghusl and wudu are very important.

Once you have tried to remove it with any means you can, your wajub (obligation) has been fulfilled. Now if the water does not reach the skin, the ghusl will still be valid.

Could you explain further what you mean by this?
If you try to remove paint, but still some spots remain which you cant remove , you can stil go ahead and do ghusl and it will be valid? Or do you have to keep trying to remove the paint?

In case of ink, all inks are porous, i.e water penetrates them. What is left after washing is color or dye. Then you are not required to remove the dye after having washed the ink off. So your ghusl is valid.

I just want to clarify this.

Are you saying that if we have marks on our hand from a ball point pen, we dont have to remove the ink stain from our hands in order to do wudu or ghusl?

(I always thought we had to remove the ink stain)

[abuhajira]

1. The best is to remove the paint completely. Use thinner , petrol etc if you have . But in case you dont then you wash it and try to remove asmuch of it as you can. Thereafter if it still remains, the ghusl will be valid. Because Islam dose not impose on you what is beyond your ability. you tried your best to remove it, now it should not be that the person doesnt pray thinking that since i wont get tahara , so why pray. Islam has given relaxation in this aspect. All you are required is to try your best to remove it.

2. In case of Ballpen ink, you washed your hand and the thick part of the ink is washed off. thereafter you try your soap to remove the stains but no matter what you do in your ability, the stain doesnt go away. In this case you will not be liable (i.e after trying to clean it off). And your ghusl or wudhu will be valid.

The mere stain does not prevent the watter. In paint its the oil based pain that forms a layer on your skin that prevents the water from touchingyour skin. And in ink , when ink is like a bloth, its the ink that doesnt let the water reach your skin.

The confusion that you mentioned comes from the ibarat of Bahishti Zewar which goes as :

"If one has applied tinsel or some other decorative paint on the forehead and does not wash it thoroughly, but just pours water over it, then wudhu will not be completed. It should be removed before washing the face.

However this only applies to the time when its not washed thoroghly. This was explained by Mufti M. Kadwa in his Fiqh Lessons.

[Cloud_Strife]

salaam aleikum.
abu hajira, jazak Allah.
The thing is, the color's from the marker and it's been on the hand for more than a week,it jus t won't wash off. The person tried putting baby oil on it, soaps, rubbing it, taking several baths to get rid of the remaining color, but it slowly with time is coming off;it doesn't come off just by putting on water though that's been tried,too obviously.
Jazak Allah again abu bajira, you've relieved a brother's worries. May Allah relieve some of yours on the day of judgment.