How Should a Person Correct Dry Spots in Wudu and Mistakes in Sujud?
Question
Salaam alaikum warahmatuLlah wabarakaatu.
Sheikh, please can you share some authentic evidences on how to rectify the following mistakes in wudu and prayer:
- a person washes his face in wudu and then notices that some parts of his face are dry while others are wet and he has started washing his left arm in wudu or he notices a handful size of dryness under the elbow of his left arm while wiping his head.
- what if he notices a dry spot on his arm after he has finished wudu? Should he make wudu again in both cases (case 1 is he notices during wudu and case 2 is he notices the dry spot after completing his wudu and has even started his Salah) or should he simply wipe that area and move on to pray? Let’s assume he is certain that water didn’t reach that area at all during Wudu.
- he makes sujud with his hands on the floor. But after rising from sujud, he realized that his thumb or another finger was raised from the ground during sujud while the other four fingers and parts of the hand were placed on the ground.
So two cases of this,
- he’s certain that he didn’t place his thumb on the floor during sujud while the other parts of hand were on the floor (perhaps he’s carrying an infant during prayer and uses his thumb to support the infants head in prayer.
- he doubts whether he placed his thumb, or index finger on the floor or he raised them. How should he rectify this if he doesn’t have waswas (I mean he’s a normal person without waswas and this doubt happens to him rarely)?
How should he rectify it if he has waswas everyday and almost every prayer? Is it the same ruling for both types of people.
JazakaLlahu khairan.
Answer
Alhamdulillah, wassalatu wassalamu ala rasulillah, wa ala alihi wa sahbihi ajmain.
1. The Shari Context
Wudu and salah are acts of worship whose validity depends upon fulfilling the required pillars. Allah says:
“O you who believe, when you rise to pray, wash your faces and your hands up to the elbows, wipe your heads, and wash your feet up to the ankles.”
Surat al Ma’idah 5:6
Completeness of washing is therefore required for the limbs mentioned.
Regarding sujud, the Prophet ﷺ said:
“I have been commanded to prostrate on seven bones: the forehead, the two hands, the two knees, and the toes of the two feet.”
Sahih al Bukhari and Sahih Muslim
Thus the basis is that these body parts must touch the ground in sujud.
2. Scholarly Discussion
The jurists discuss two principles in wudu:
First is muwalat, meaning maintaining continuity between the limbs. In the Maliki and Hanbali schools it is required that the limbs are washed in sequence without long interruption.
Second is the requirement that the entire obligatory area must receive water. If a portion remains dry intentionally or due to negligence, the wudu is incomplete.
Regarding sujud, the majority of scholars (Hanafi, Shafii, Hanbali) hold that placing the palms on the ground is required, while touching with all fingers is recommended. The Malikis emphasize placing the hands generally but do not require every finger to touch.
Therefore missing a single finger touching the ground usually does not invalidate the prostration.
3. Application to the Question
First case: discovering dryness during wudu.
If a person notices during wudu that a portion of the face or arm remained dry, he should immediately wash that dry area and continue. The wudu remains valid as long as the limbs have not dried significantly and continuity remains.
For example, if he is washing the left arm and realizes part of the face was dry, he should simply wash that spot and proceed.
Second case: discovering dryness after finishing wudu.
If he is certain that water never reached that area, then that limb was not fully washed.
If only a short time has passed and the limbs are still wet, he may simply wash that specific area.
However, if a longer time has passed and the limbs have dried, many scholars say the safer approach is to repeat the wudu because the continuity of wudu has been broken.
If he discovered this after starting the prayer, he stops the prayer, completes the missing washing or renews wudu, and then prays again.
Third case: a finger or thumb not touching the ground in sujud.
If a person is certain that one finger such as the thumb did not touch the ground but the palm and other fingers did, the sujud is still valid according to the majority of scholars because the obligation relates to placing the hands.
If someone is holding an infant and one finger is raised for support, the prayer remains valid.
Fourth case: doubt about whether the finger touched.
If he only doubts whether a finger touched the ground, then the prayer is valid and nothing is required. Doubt does not invalidate worship once it has been performed.
Fifth case: frequent doubts due to waswas.
If someone experiences frequent doubts in almost every prayer, he must ignore them entirely and continue his worship without repeating actions. The scholars are very strict in instructing people with waswas to ignore doubts so that worship is not corrupted by constant repetition.
4. Relevant Usul Principle
اليقين لا يزول بالشك
Certainty is not removed by doubt
In usul al fiqh, when a person is certain that an act was performed correctly, later doubt does not invalidate it. Therefore doubts about finger placement in sujud or small uncertainties after completing wudu are ignored unless one has clear certainty of a missing obligation.
المشقة تجلب التيسير
Hardship brings facilitation
The Sharia does not intend excessive hardship in acts of worship. For this reason, minor matters such as a single finger not touching the ground do not invalidate prayer, and people afflicted with waswas are instructed to ignore recurring doubts.
Final Ruling
If a dry spot is discovered during wudu, wash that area immediately and continue. If it is discovered after finishing wudu and the limbs have dried, the safer approach is to repeat wudu. If discovered during prayer, the prayer should be stopped and wudu corrected. In sujud, if one finger such as the thumb did not touch the ground while the hand was placed, the prayer remains valid. Doubts should be ignored, especially for those who experience recurring waswas.
And Allah knows best.