To perform wudu, women begin with the intention and say “Bismillah.” Wash your hands, rinse your mouth and nose, and wash your face and arms thoroughly. Wipe your head and ears, then wash your feet, ensuring water reaches every part. Remember to remove any barriers like waterproof makeup.
This process not only purifies but also enhances your spiritual and physical beauty, reflecting your devotion. For detailed steps and additional insights, explore more on wudu for women.
Table of Contents
What is Wudu?
“Wudu” which is an Arabic word that is linguistically derived from “wada’ah” which means beauty, delight and cleanness. Juristically, wudu refers to an act of worship, performed with using water to wash certain organs in a certain manner. Wudu is the same for men and women, but the reason of specification in question “how to perform wudu for females?” is that women have different physical nature from men which causes different reasons from those of men, in which may affect on the validity of taharah.
Wudu Steps For Women / Females:
Here is a detailed guide on how females should perform wudu (ablution):
1. Intention (Niyyah):
Begin by silently intending to perform wudu for purification. Say “Bismillah” (In the name of Allah).
2. Wash the hands:
Wash both hands up to the wrists three times, ensuring water reaches between the fingers.
3. Rinse the mouth:
Take water into the mouth three times, swishing and spitting it out each time.
4. Rinse the nose:
Inhale water into the nostrils three times and expel it.
5. Wash the face:
Wash the entire face three times from the hairline to the chin and from ear to ear. Make sure no makeup, creams, or any substances block water from reaching the skin.
6. Wash the arms:
Wash both arms up to the elbows three times, starting from the fingertips and ensuring no area is left dry.
7. Wipe the head (Masah):
Wet your hands and wipe your head once, moving from the front to the back and then returning. Also, wipe your ears by inserting wet fingers into the ear canals and using your thumbs to wipe the outer portion of the ears.
8. Wash the feet:
Wash both feet up to the ankles three times, ensuring water reaches between the toes. Removing any obstacles like socks or tight-fitting shoes is important to ensure water access.
9. Special Considerations:
- Ensure no barriers, such as waterproof makeup, prevent water from reaching the skin.
- If performing ghusl (ritual bath), wudu is part of the process after cleaning private parts.
This process is the same for both males and females, with attention to modesty and thoroughness in following the Sunnah steps for a perfect wudu.
Wudu For Female in The Quran:
The way of performing ablution has been mentioned in Quran without mentioning the recommended steps, stated in Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), which means if you stick to what mentioned in Quran, your wudu would be valid.
And if you follow the other steps mentioned in the Sunnah, your wudu would be perfect. You can clearly find the main steps of wudu in the following Ayah:
“O believers! When you rise up for prayer, wash your faces and your hands up to the elbows, wipe your heads, and wash your feet to the ankles. And if you are in a state of ˹full˺ impurity, then take a full bath. But if you are ill, on a journey, or have relieved yourselves, or have been intimate with your wives and cannot find water, then purify yourselves with clean earth by wiping your faces and hands.” 5:6
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Virtues and Benefits of Wudu for Females
Wudu serves as a vital form of purification for Muslim women, cleansing sins while enhancing both spiritual and physical beauty. The practice, linked to the radiant identity of believers on the Day of Resurrection, encourages women to embrace wudu as a means to achieve inner and outer purity.
1. Wudu as a Form of Purification
Wudu is a crucial means of purification or taharah in Islam, washing away sins and enhancing spiritual radiance. As narrated by Abu Huraira, the Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) said that on the Day of Resurrection, Muslims who performed wudu regularly will be known as “Al-Ghurr-ul-Muhajjalun” due to the radiant glow on their hands, faces, and feet from ablution.
2. Inner and Outer Beautification for Women
For women, wudu offers both spiritual purification and a sense of beautification. The term “Ghurr” symbolizes brilliance, while “Muhajjalun” refers to the radiant light on the Day of Resurrection.
The Messenger of Allah also stated that with each part washed during wudu—hands, face, forearms, head, and feet—sins are cleansed from that area. This inner purification reflects the outer glow women seek.
3. Hadith Explanation and Encouragement for Women
Women are often drawn to concepts of beauty, and knowing the deep meanings behind “Al-Ghurr-ul-Muhajjalun” encourages women to perform wudu correctly. “Ghurr” refers to a white mark on the face of animals, symbolizing the light of purity from wudu.
Similarly, “Muhajjalun” alludes to the brightness that will emanate from believers on the Day of Judgment. Thus, wudu serves as an opportunity to achieve both spiritual and physical purity, making it a vital practice for Muslim women.[Sahih al-Bukhari]
What breaks wudu for a woman?
To answer this simply – we can gather a list of some things that invalidate the wudu of women Briefly, we can say all things come out from the front and back passages, all acts lead to a state of unconsciousness, in addition to specific physical behaviors irritate one’s lust would break wudu, including the following:
1. Vaginal Discharge
The first is discharge, which is any fluid secreted from the front passage, which is referred to as vaginal discharge.
2. Menstrual Periods
Wudu is broken by periods. Although your wudu is broken while you’re on your period, some ladies are recognized for performing wudu; therefore, it’s a nice and practical habit to preserve it through your menstruation.
3. Passing Wind
Passing wind, discharging urine, and evacuation are also considered to invalidate wudu.
4. Intoxication
Intoxication breaks wudu because it causes you to lose consciousness.
5. Deep Sleep
Sleeping to the point when the mind is unaware of the body’s response and cannot tell if the wind has passed causes the wudu to be broken.
6. Touching Private Parts
Touching private parts can break the wudu, whether it will cause discharge or not.
7. Physical Intimacy
Physical intimacy, such as kissing and cuddling that result in discharge, will undoubtedly break the wudu.
8. Contact with Non-Mahram Men
Touching a man who is not Mahram of her (husband or any other relative to whom she is prohibited to marry for non-religious reasons).
Okay! These seven points are understood, but various people think looking into mirror, cutting nails or having a light sleep – breaks the wudu too, is that true?
Certainly, no! You only need to recall these points before discussing how to perform wudu for females? Do you have any additional questions?
Do females have to wash their private parts before Wudu?
It is not compulsory for wudu, but it is a must during ghussl. The important thing to remember is that you should wash your body if you have urine or discharge on it before conducting wudu and salah, but you do not have to wash your private parts every time you do wudu.
What to do if I can’t remember if I broke Wudu?
The most important point to remember is that if there are any causes that invalidate wudu, it would be notable for any human being to record it, thus it is undoubtedly a notable thing and the wudu must be repeated at that time. To put it another way, you must be 100 percent certain that you broke the prior wudu in order to make wudu again.
This decision must be viewed with consideration, as Salah is based on it. On the other hand, it is allowed to renew wudu, even you did not break the previous one, despite of being recommended to do so.
Some people always have doubts about wudu validity on a continuous path, for those it should be made clear that there can be misunderstandings or obsession, guiding them to create confusions about taharah.
This case has been interpreted by the hadith when a man mistakenly believed he had broken his wudu while praying, the Prophet (Peace be upon him) advised, “Do not stop praying until you hear a sound or smell an odor.” So, if anything happens in your stomach and you’re not sure if you’ve broken your wudu or not, the original rule is that your wudu is still valid!
Do you have to do full wudu if you break the wind?
Consider the following analogy of a nullified action: when opening the door, you would desire the key. The key would not fit the door lock if it was out of shape or if it was too big or too small. Similarly, if you miss any part of the wudu process or invalidate it in any manner it is considered invalid and must be redone.
Do you have to perform Wudu For Every Prayer?
Even I am preparing for how to perform wudu for females, it seems necessary to inquire do you have to do wudu for every prayer?
Although it is recommended, Wudu is not required to be performed before every prayer. For most people, one wudu can last up to a day, but it must be repeated after going to the bathroom, passing wind, coming into contact with excrement, vomiting, falling asleep, consuming intoxicating substances or any other act that breaks wudu.
Wudu And Makeup And CosmeticsFor Female:
Perfect! The biggest issue I face as a woman is that while being home i sometimes need to apply make up on my face, How to do wudu with makeup on?
Yes, we can definitely do wudu while wearing makeup. We can perform our salah prayer while wearing cosmetics as long as it is free of impurities.
One thing to keep in mind, when practicing wudu is to avoid wearing waterproof cosmetics, since they can form a film on top of your skin and include silicone, as well as a lot of chemical processing.
There are some cosmetics on the market that allow you to perform wudu; the point is that when performing ablution, the water should reach your skin, and if the makeup enables it, it should be a valid wudu.
Henna, for example, does not form a coating that prevents water from reaching the skin and is made up of colors that dye the skin, thus it is a permissible sort of makeup. This is probably true of most types of makeup, thus neither ablution nor the ghussl are invalidated. If there is any remnant of henna, fat, or oil on the skin and water flows over it and reaches that area, the wudu is valid.
Can you do istinja after wudu?
To know if you can do it after wudu or do you have to wash private parts before Wudu? You must first comprehend the concept of istinja. It is a distinct type of purification from wudu which is neither an independent act of worship nor restricted to Muslims.
Rather, it’s a human necessity to keep the private parts clean. It is supposed that it comes before wudu. If you wait you’ll have to be careful not to touch the private parts, as this will break your wudu.
How To Perform Wudu For Females After The Period?
You should ask me first how to perform ghusl after the period? As ghusl has to come first before wudu. If a woman observes the sign of achieving purity from menses following her regular monthly cycle, either by witnessing a white discharge or a cessation of bleeding, she must do ghussl (ritual bath) first, then she can perform wudu according to the steps previously mentioned and pray.
So, after reciting Allah’s name, the first main thing would be to remove the filth by washing both private parts, performing complete ablution and rinsing each part of the body by water.
Tahera, we hope you have a pure life, as we know that each Muslim woman is a “Tahera” with purified thoughts and mature behaviors.
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Conclusion
Wudu, derived from the Arabic word for beauty and cleanliness, is an important ritual purification practice for Muslim women. Although the steps are the same for both genders, women may face unique considerations due to their physical nature. The process includes intentions, washing hands, rinsing the mouth and nose, washing the face and arms, wiping the head, and washing the feet, ensuring all barriers, such as makeup, are removed to allow water to reach the skin.
In addition to its spiritual significance, wudu offers women both inner and outer beauty. The Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) highlighted that those who regularly perform wudu will have a radiant glow on the Day of Resurrection, symbolizing their purity. For women, this practice serves as a means of purification from sins and enhances their spiritual and physical beauty, making it an essential aspect of their daily worship.
Finally, we hope we covered some of the questions that pop up in your mind and we are looking forward to increasing your knowledge by taking online Fiqh of Worship course. You will know more about how to perform wudu for females? And find detailed answers for similar questions; such as how to perform wudu for beginners? Do you have to do wudu for every prayer? How to perform Salah for females? And so on…
May Allah make us from those who always turn to Him in repentance and those who purify themselves..
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