And when He overcame you with sleep, making you feel se-
cure, and sent you down water from heaven to purify you and
remove the taint of Shaytan from you, and to fortify your
hearts and make your feet firm. (Surat al-Anfal: 11)
Water is the basic requirement needed for people to clean their
bodies, their possessions and their houses. Besides being able to
clean visible dirt and invisible bacteria, water also has the ability to
help one relax. When water pours over the body, it can disperse the
static electricity that makes people fatigued and out of sorts. We
can't see the static electricity produced on our bodies, but it some-
times makes itself noticeable by a crackling sound when we take off
our sweaters, a mild electric shock when we touch something or by
the movement of our hair. When we wash ourselves, we rid our-
selves of this accumulation of static electricity and our bodies feel
light and comfortable as a result. The freshness of the air after rain
has fallen also comes from the fact that water has cleaned the air of
static electricity.
Allah is pleased when people are
clean and well-groomed. This can be seen
in a few verses in the Qur'an that allude
to the physical cleanliness of people in
the Garden.
Allah says that
"… there will be youths
like hidden pearls."
(Surat at-Tur: 24), and in
other verses Allah says that there are
"purified
wives"
for those in the Garden. (Surat al-Baqara: 25;
Surah Al 'Imran: 15; Surat an-Nisa': 57)
22
24 Hours in the Life of a Muslim
i
i
li
