Wudu – Its Secrets and Rewards

Do you know what the first act of worship which Allah legislated and taught to our Prophet Muhammed ﷺ? What was the first ritual that was legislated in Islam? Some might say salah or zakah or tasbeeh or dua. It is actually wudu. After the second revelation, which is the verse 
يٰۤاَيُّهَا الۡمُزَّمِّلُ, 
Angel Jibreel came to the Prophet ﷺ and spent a day with him and taught the Prophet ﷺ wudu and then salah. So, in one day, Jibreel taught him how to wash the different body parts and then how to pray. Wudu is a topic that is very important in our religion and so we should spend some time researching its significance and rewards. 

The command to do wudu before prayer has been mentioned only once in the Quran. Allah says, 
 يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا إِذَا قُمْتُمْ إِلَى الصَّلَاةِ فَاغْسِلُوا وُجُوهَكُمْ وَأَيْدِيَكُمْ إِلَى الْمَرَافِقِ وَامْسَحُوا بِرُءُوسِكُمْ وَأَرْجُلَكُمْ إِلَى الْكَعْبَيْنِ 
“O you who have believed, when you rise to [perform] prayer, wash your faces and your forearms to the elbows and wipe over your heads and wash your feet to the ankles …” [5:6] 

Here Allah has connected belief with wudu and salah. Scholars say that a person who does wudu and prays is outwardly demonstrating his belief in Allah.  

Now let us go over some of the benefits of doing wudu. One of the benefits of doing Wudu is that it removes sins. The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ said,“When a believer washes his face, every sin which he committed with his eyes, will be washed away from his face with water, when he washes his hands, every sin which is committed by his hands will be effaced from his hands with the water; and when he washes his feet, every sin his feet committed will be washed away with the water; until he finally emerges cleansed of all his sins.” [Muslim] 

Subhanallah, Allah is giving us easy opportunity to get rid of all of our minor sins. No one can say that they do not commit sins. In fact, we commit sins between one prayer to the next, but by doing wudu for each prayer, we are technically washing away the sins we end up committing during the course of the day.  

Another benefit of doing wudu is that it is one of the actions that, if performed  sincerely, will earn you a place in Paradise. Yes, that is right, something as simple as sincere, regular wudu and prayer can earn you Paradise. Our Prophet ﷺ said to the companion, Bilal, “Oh Bilal, when I visited Jannah, I heard your flip flops already there in Jannah. How did you get there? What do you do?” Bilal famously said that he didn’t  know anything except that every time he lost his wudu, he would do it again and pray two rakahs. This shows that constantly being in the state of wudu will lead to entering Jannah and having a high position in Jannah.  

The day of Judgement is a very tough day. On this day people will not be able to help each other because everyone will be concerned about their own selves and their own deeds; a child will not be able help his parents, a friend will not be able to help even his own best friend. The whole of humanity will be running from one place to another. People will be hungry, thirsty, tired and scared. However, on the Day of Judgment, with the permission of Allah, our Prophet Muhammad ﷺ will be able to help us and will give his followers water to drink. But there will be billions of people on that day and so how will the Prophet Muhammad  ﷺ recognise us? This question was answered by the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ  himself. He said“They (my followers) will come with bright faces and white limbs because of wudu; and I will arrive at the Haud (Al-Kauthar) ahead of them.” [Muslim]  

So, my brothers, wudu will help you in the afterlife as well, so let us keep on doing wudu, at least few times a day.  

We all want to please Allah, right? There are some actions that are more beloved to Allah than others. Our Prophet  ﷺ said,“The most beloved of deeds to Allah is that which is constant but small.” (Bukhari) 

Wudu is small, but if we do it regularly, we shall InshaAllah attain the love of Allah in this world and the hereafter.  

Paradise has 8 gates and so there are multiple ways to enter Jannah. If someone is regular with his prayer then we hope that he will enter Paradise through the Gate of Prayer. If someone gives charity regularly then we hope that he will enter Paradise through the Gate of Charity. If someone is obedient and looks afters their parents, then we hope that they will enter Paradise through the gate titled Kindness to Parents. However, to emphasise the immense reward associated with doing wudu, the Prophet ﷺ actually said that all the gates will open up for the one who regularly does wudu. The Prophet ﷺ said,“Whoever of you performs wudu carefully and then affirms: `Ash-hadu an la ilaha illallahu Wahdahu la sharika Lahu, wa ash-hadu anna Muhammadan `abduhu wa Rasuluhu [I testify that there so no true god except Allah Alone, Who has no partners and that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger],’ the eight gates of Jannah are opened for him. He may enter through whichever of these gates he desires (to enter)” [Muslim] 

Subhanallah, this hadith coupled with the other ones should really make us want to do wudu regularly. I know doing wudu can be difficult in some situations, for example in a school environment or when it is cold. However, this struggle is not new and thousands of people before you went through it. In fact, 1400 years ago when the commandment to do wudu was revealed, there was no central heating. The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ and his companions would perform wudu with cold water. We have a central heating system and so we can do wudu comfortably. However, when laziness does kick in, then we should remind ourselves of the reward associated with wudu.  

In conclusion, wudu is one of the important rituals in Islam. Next time when you are standing in front of the sink and doing wudu, remind yourself that your sins are being washed away, this is how our Prophet ﷺ  will recognise us and that our wudu will help us enter through the gates of Paradise. We need to increase in our knowledge about wudu and other rituals in Islam. The one who studies Islam begins to enjoy Islam. The one who studies how to worship Allah will begin to enjoy the worship of Allah.  

May Allah us the tawfeeq to perfect our wudu, be recognised by the Prophet ﷺ on the Day of Judgement and allow us to enter Paradise.