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Purifying carpet

Answered as per Hanafi Fiqh by Fatwa.org.au
1) If impurity, like urine or vomit etc, fell on the carpet, will the carpet become pure by cleaning the impurity with a wet sponge thrice?

2) Will the impure sponge become pure by cleaning it thrice?

Answer:

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

1) Impure carpet does not become pure by merely wiping the carpet with a sponge thrice.

Depending on the nature of the impurity that soiled the carpet, you could purify the carpet in the following ways:

First method:
This first method is for purifying a carpet which is soiled by an impurity that is not visible after it dries up, such as urine: Repeat the following procedure three times:

Pour water over the impure section of the carpet. Then dry the carpet with a clean sponge, cloth, hair dryer or steam cleaner; or let it dry naturally. It is not necessary that the carpet becomes completely dry; however, it must dry at least to the extent that it does not drip water if you were to lift it up (This is for thick carpets that cannot be squeezed. If the carpet is thin and can be squeezed then it will be necessary to squeeze out the water after pouring water each time. When squeezing out the water the third time, one must squeeze hard so that it will not drip water if squeezed again).

Once the procedure above is carried out three times, the carpet will become pure. [1]

Second method:
This second method is also for purifying a carpet which is soiled by an impurity that is not visible after it dries up, such as urine: Estimate how much water would be needed to immerse the impure section of the carpet in a utensil. Thereafter, pour the estimated amount of water multiplied by three on the impure section of the carpet. For example, if you estimated that one litre of water would be needed to immerse the impure section of the carpet in a utensil, three litres of water will have to be poured over the impure section of the carpet. Doing this once will purify the carpet. You may then dry the carpet with a sponge or cloth. [2]

Third method:
This third method is for purifying a carpet which is soiled by an impurity that is visible after it dries up, such as blood: Pour water over the impure section of the carpet until the impurity disappears. This is regardless of how much water is poured and how many times water is poured i.e. whether water is poured less than three times, three times or more than three times. The condition is that the impurity must disappear. However, if the trace of the impurity, such as colour of the blood, cannot be removed with water (although it can be removed with soap or detergent), it will not be necessary to remove the trace of the impurity. [3]

2) If the impurity on the sponge is of the type that is not visible when it dries up, such as urine, then to purify the sponge, wash it three times and squeeze out all the water each time. When squeezing out the water the third time, squeeze hard so that it will not drip water if you squeezed it again.

Alternatively, you may hold the sponge under running tap until three times the amount of water needed to immerse the sponge in a utensil flows through the sponge. This method does not require washing three times and squeezing.  

If the impurity on the sponge is of the type that is visible when it dries up, such as blood, then to purify the sponge, hold it under running water until the impurity disappears. However, if the trace of the impurity, such as colour of the blood, cannot be removed with water (although it can be removed with soap or detergent), it will not be necessary to remove the trace of the impurity. [4]

And Allah knows best.

Mufti Faizal Riza

This answer was collected from Fatwa.org.au, which is connected to Darul Ifta Australia, based in Melbourne, Australia.
It is operated by Mufti Faizal Riza, a student of Mufti Ebrahim Desai from South Africa.

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