I was travelling in the car with my father to go to Jumu‘ah prayer, and I saw part of the area above my father’s ankle bone, the colour of which was lighter than the colour of the foot and ankle bone, and it was as if it was not washed, but I did not say anything to my father.
Is the ankle included in the rough area where no hair grows above the ankle bone, or not? If it is included, what should I have done?
Praise
be to Allah
The ankles are the two prominent bones at the bottom of the
leg, on the two sides of the foot. Each foot has two ankle bones.
It says in al-Mawsoo‘ah al-Fiqhiyyah (34/259):
The word ka‘b (ankle) linguistically refers to the node
between two segments of a stem. The ka‘b of a man refers to the prominent
bone on the two sides of the foot. Al-Azhari said: The two ka‘bs are the
prominent points on the right and left of the foot, where the leg meets the
foot.
Ibn al-A‘raabi and a number of others said: The ka‘b is the
joint between the leg and the foot. The plural forms are ku‘oob, ak‘ub and
ki‘aab. Al-Asma‘i rejected the popular view that the ka‘b is the back of the
foot (the heel).
According to the majority of fuqaha’, the ka‘b is the bone
that protrudes where the leg and the foot meet.
Ash-Shaafa‘i (may Allah have mercy on him) said: I do not
know of anyone who disagrees with the view that the two ka‘bs are the two
bones at the joint of the leg and foot. End quote.
Secondly:
Washing the feet and ankles is one of the obligatory parts of
wudoo’. Allah, may He be exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning):
“and
(wash) your feet up to the ankles”
[al-Maa’idah 5:6].
Muslim (246) narrated that Nu‘aym ibn ‘Abdullah al-Mujmir
said: I saw Abu Hurayrah doing wudoo’. He washed his face and did wudoo’
properly, then he washed his right arm as far as the first part of the upper
arm, then his left arm as far as the first part of the upper arm. Then he
wiped his head, then he washed his right foot as far as the first part of
the calf, then his left foot as far as the first part of the calf. Then he
said: This is how I saw the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah
be upon him) doing wudoo’.
An-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
The words “as far as the first part of the upper arm” and “as
far as the first part of the calf” mean that the washing includes these
areas. End quote.
It says in al-Mawsoo‘ah al-Fiqhiyyah (22/121):
The majority of fuqaha’ are of the view that washing the feet
with the ankles – which are the two bones that protrude where the leg and
the foot meet – is one of the obligatory parts of wudoo’ because Allah, may
He be exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning):
“O you who
believe! When you intend to offer As-Salat (the prayer), wash your faces and
your hands (forearms) up to the elbows, rub (by passing wet hands over) your
heads, and (wash) your feet up to the ankles”
[al-Maa’idah 5:6].
End quote.
Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
The ankles are the two prominent bones at the base of the
leg; the ankles are included in the instruction to wash the feet.
End quote from Majmoo‘ Fataawa wa Rasaa’il al-‘Uthaymeen
(12/484)
Shaykh Ibn Jibreen (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
The ankle is the bone that protrudes where the leg and foot
meet. Each foot has two anklebones, one on either side. The ankle ends where
the calf narrows on the leg. The end of the ankle and its veins, and of the
area that must be washed, is where the calf narrows, so the foot and ankle
must be washed up to that point. End quote.
Sharh Akhsar al-Mukhtasaraat
(2/4)
Conclusion:
What must be done is to include the ankles and other parts
that are to be washed in wudoo’; if the individual omits any part of that,
he must repeat the wudoo’ and the prayer, so long as the time for the prayer
has not yet ended.
If the time has ended, then he does not have to do any of the
past prayers, unless he was heedless, or it was pointed out to him but he
refused to rectify the matter. In that case he must repeat the prayer
concerning which he was heedless.
The scholars of the Standing Committee said:
The individual must do wudoo’ properly, washing all the parts
that are meant to be washed. If he omits any of those parts and the water
does not reach them, he must make sure that the water reaches it. If a long
time has elapsed and that part has dried off, then he must repeat his wudoo’,
and if he prayed before that, he must repeat the wudoo’ and the prayer. End
quote.
Fataawa al-Lajnah ad-Daa’imah
(4/71-72)
So you have to tell your father about the shar‘i ruling, and
tell him that he has to wash the ankles properly, and if he prayed without
washing them properly, he must repeat the prayer, with a complete, valid
wudoo’.
For more information, please see the answer to question no.
11497
And Allah knows best.
