Of quirks.
1, 2, 3… easy as A, B, C…
So I was making (taking?) wudu’ the other day and suddenly realised I was counting to myself as I washed my arms. I chuckled, then felt glad nobody was around. Three times… Is it that hard to keep track of that I have to make mental note with every part?
Do you count?
(Erm, as in during wudhu’. So yeah, this isn’t some counselling session where you express how unworthy you feel. :-/ Although you’re welcome to, of course. If you’re feeling down, depressed and lonely. Or stuff. Aha.)
Yes, but if I catch myself doing it I try to stop.
Even sometimes after I run my wet fingers through my beard (as per the Sunnah) and start on my arms I’ll say “2, 3… hold up! Did I start my right arm on 1 or did I carry the beard’s 1 over and start my arm at 2?”
But I assume you don’t suffer from that problem.
same as the above - minus the beard bit..
Yeah, I do that too. Its silly and sad at the same time. Cause I think it just goes to show how weak my memory is.
:(
Im aaaaginngg!
Walaikum salaam warahmatullahi wabarakatuh =D
Strangely enough, I count too. I don’t usually forget about which arm I started with, but i think counting keeps us accurate ;)
Thanks for the comment on the pictures. Yep, I went to Atlanta and saw the famous whales and belugas. It was a really awesome experience, Alhamdulillah. Its really hard to get good pictures with the glass, lack of lighting and swimming that’s going on, so I opted for quantity over quality, hoping I’d catch some in a good light. It’s an HP camera, 3.9 megapixels, its not really high tech but it serves its purpose. =)
Okay, i think im done making a post when i just wanted to comment. Take care =)
So it’s not too weird after all! It’s really good though, considering it’s placing importance on a sunnah.
Abu Ilyas, good assumption. Shall I open the floor for the wiping neck discussion then? :P
Traveller, glad it’s no beard for you either, lol.
Umm Khawla, uhh, I should’ve known you’d be the one to take up my counselling offer! Haha. But nah, as I said above, it’s good if we’re taking care in performing a sunnah. So no be sad please.
sammerai! Indeed. Accuracy zindabad.
Omg, you saw the belugas! That’s so cool. Hey, did they blow them air bubbles… or was that at a Japanese aquarium? Hmm. Anyway, super coolness. Sounds like a good camera, 3.9mp. But as you said, the lighting and movements make it hard for fine shots. Please share if you have more pictures! :D
as-Salaamu `alaykum
I count all the time too. I may be sadder because I count, but still I forget sometimes.
LOL I so do that! I think it just comes natural cuz of how we are taught as kids. :D
wa ‘alaykum as-salam wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh
Umm Layth, you know what I think it is? I mean you’re definitely not alone in that. But it’s probably how routine it’s become for us. As was the point I made in The du’a is the message. Except you can’t bring much variety in wudhu’ lol. Hmm, would taking it from different spots help, you think? Kitchen sink, using the shower, etc. *shrug*
Bottom line though, we need to be more sincere in our basmalah and ta’awwudh. It’s a cycle whereby one thing we do affects all other things. And how important is the wudhu’ as the precursor to other forms of worship which in turn affect it too.
Kalam, really? As in you’re taught to count aloud? As a kid, I used to count my steps as I walked hehe.
no i dont think i do that
Actually do you (or anyone else) think that there’s something culturally wrong with making wudu’ in the kitchen sink?
I remember being at my in-laws’ house when someone was taking a bath at maghrib time and rather than delay the salah I opted to make wudu’ in the kitchen sink (note: I moved the dirty dishes to one side first). I was slightly frowned upon for doing so.
Also at work in our staff room there’s a kitchen sink for our kettle and a grotty bathroom adjacent which has its own set of sinks. I incline towards making wudu’ in the kitchen sink but one of my colleagues took me to one side to explain that some of the Arabic staff found it strange that I use the kitchen and not the bathroom sink.
I explained that I prefer using the kitchen sink because it’s not in the same room as grotty toilet.
Anyway, what’s the cultural ruling on this? Am I weird, do I need to mend my ways?
Isn’t the kitchen sink (generally) more up-raised therefore making it difficult to wash the feet?
Yes, but I tend to wear socks and I’m not referring to the first wudu’ of the day.
i’ve noticed this also.
could be because wudu involves clearing out the nose and mouth and when this is done within the vicinity of an area where dishes -from which food is eaten- are washed, it might be looked upon as unhygenic. plus, the whole yuck factor involved in washing feet in the same place utensils are washed etc.
muwahidah, great! You’re normal, just like the rest of us. Heh.
Abu Ilyas, if it doesn’t include washing the feet, then I think Traveller came up with the most plausible reason for it being frowned upon - ie. rinsing the nose and mouth. I’ve never particularly minded it myself, especially in the scenario you brought up, where it’s the only place you’re able to make wudhu’ at the time. I suppose if you’re outside or at someone’s place, the best thing is to seek permission beforehand. For us ladies, at someone else’s house, we’re restricted to the bathrooms anyway since non-mahrams might enter the kitchen. Eh.
Catalyst, and I guess Abu Ilyas and Traveller too, I was thinking of the feet being washed separately. Which, in the end, one goes to the bathroom anyway heh. But I do realise there is an issue with regards to washing the feet separately? From what I understand, it just has to be done immediately. Wallahu a’lam.
Anyway, a little Google search on wudhu’ gave some results from a couple of hate-sites spewing vitriol on Muslims performing it in public washrooms. The contention arises mainly when specific building administrators decide to install separate sinks (a lower one for washing the feet) or a completely separate area for the Muslims to perform ablution.
Really funny that they’d view this accommodating step by the officials as some sort of threat. Allahul musta’an.
Surely though, I must say…
Make wudhu’, not war!
Haha, and I thought I was the only one with this problem!! I do it all the time… although instead of going “1, 2, 3″ I’ll go “1, 2; 1, 2; 1,2″ - 1 referring to the right limb, 2 referring to the left one…
Which is okay when I’m at home, but when in public bathrooms I sometimes forget to count mentally and it results in looks weirder than the ones I’m *already* getting!
Lol, interesting. 1,2. 1,2. mic test. Hehe.
Which is okay when I’m at home, but when in public bathrooms I sometimes forget to count mentally and it results in looks weirder than the ones I’m *already* getting!
Innit!
hehe lisa its normal :p
reminds me of this incident…
before Bob woolmer died.. he was traveling in a plane and the hostess asked him why all the pakistani cricketers wash their feet? so he explained to her that the muslims do wudu before praying and they have to wash their feet and asked her that why is she asking. she replied because they used to make the whole plane wet!
i dont know hows it there but in pakistan the washrooms are all wet :| (public washrooms)
Haha, yeah I heard that one before. Well I don’t get why public washrooms would be wet over there though. I’d imagine masajid are within reach everywhere no? Heh.
We tend to get ablution areas even in prayer rooms in official buildings - which is a great thing, alhamdulillah. Where I work, because it’s a makeshift office building, the washrooms serve as the place for ablution as well. But eh, even then it’s not all wet. Then again, we have a lower tap in the corner for the feet. Hehe. I dunno, eh.
not really. I don’t really go and count how many times i make wudu.
Well, good for you!
I just realised another thing I count to. When I’m pouring hot water for my coffee. “1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10.” As if my consistency in pouring makes for accurate measurement. :-/