Wudu Steps – How should a Muslim Perform Wudu or Ablution?

Wudu Steps

Islam encourages a believer to be in a physically and spiritually clean state all the time. For example, a person is required to be in a clean state and to perform ablution (wudu) before starting the prayers (salat). This article discusses the steps of ablution (wudu) in detail and presents related evidences.

Steps for performing Wudu / Ablution

The following steps should be followed when performing wudu / ablution. These steps are ‘mustahab’ unless indicated as obligatory. The obligatory steps are mentioned in the following Quranic verse:

“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. And if you are in a state of janabah, then purify yourselves. But if you are ill or on a journey or one of you comes from the place of relieving himself or you have contacted women and do not find water, then seek clean earth and wipe over your faces and hands with it. Allah does not intend to make difficulty for you, but He intends to purify you and complete His favor upon you that you may be grateful.” Surah Al-Maeda (5:6)

1. Having the Intention for Wudu

The intention has to be from the heart. Nothing needs to be verbalized.

2. Saying Bismillah Before Starting Wudu (Ablution)

Similar to starting any action, one should say bismillah-hiir-Rahman-Ar-Raheem (In the Name of Allah, the Most Benevolent, the Most Merciful)

3. Washing hands three times

This requires washing the hands until the wrist area.

4. Washing the mouth three times

This means cleaning the inside the mouth by rinsing thoroughly.

5. Cleaning the Nose

This requires putting water in the nose and blowing the water out so as to clean the inside thoroughly. This should be done three sides.

6. Washing the face 

This should be done three times. The area should include from the hairline to the jawbone and chin and from ear to ear. A person who has a beard should wash the hair inside and out. For those who have a thick beard, the surface should be washed while running fingers through the hair of the beard so as to clear it of any dirt.

7. Washing the Arms

This involves washing  the arms three times all the way from the finger nails to the elbows and a little past the elbows to ensure the elbows are cleaned fully.

8. Wiping the Head

This involves wetting the hands with water and the wiping the head starting from around the hairline to the back and then bringing the hands in reverse motion back to where one started. As for a woman, she should wipe her hair whether it is loose or braided from the front of her head to the roots of the hair at the nape of her neck. However, she does not have to wipe the entire length of her hair.

9. Cleaning the ears

This step involves taking the wet clean index finger and putting it into the ear and while cleaning it to use the wet clean thumb to clean the back of the ear. This should be done for both ears using the two hands simultaneously.

10. Washing the feet

The last washing step of the wudu involves washing the feet thoroughly until the ankles.

11. Ending the Wudu

At the end of the wudu, it is recommended to say,

“Ashhadu an laa ilaaha ill-Allaah wahdahu laa shareeka lah, wa ashhadu anna Muhammadan ‘abduhu wa rasooluhu (I bear witness that there is no god except Allaah alone with no partner or associate, and I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah),”

Evidence of Wudu Steps

Additional evidence of wudu is from this hadith of Prophett Muhammad (saws). In a hadeeth narrated by Humraan the freed slave of ‘Uthmaan, who said that ‘Uthman ibn ‘Affaan (may Allah be pleased with him) called for water to do wudoo. He washed his hands three times, then he rinsed his mouth and nose, then he washed his face three times, then he washed his right arm up to the elbow three times, then he washed his left arm likewise. Then he wiped his head, then he washed his right foot up to the ankle three times, then he washed his left foot likewise. Then he said, “I saw the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) doing wudoo as I have done it, then the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said, ‘Whoever does wudoo as I have done it, then prays two rakaahs in which he focuses completely on his prayer, his previous sins will be forgiven.’” (Narrated by Muslim, al-Tahaarah, 331)

Blessings of Wudu

The following shows stalls installed within a mosque where prayer goers can perform ablution / wudu before prayers.

JAMB Enables Portal To Check Institution You Have Been Posted For 2016 Admission

 As promised by the Joint Admission And Matriculation Board (JAMB), the portal for candidates to determine the institution they have been posted for 2016 admission has been enabled.
Candidates can actually check the institutions they have been posted for 2016 admission.
The portal is yet to be made official on its website, which goes to show that the candidates details are still being uploaded.
So if you check and it does not display your details, you can always check back.
How To Check Institution You Have Been Posted For 2016 Admission

-On the page that opens, enter your JAMB Registration Number in the space provided.
-Click on "Check where you have been posted for admission" to access the details.

Dua to Allah for Health and Healing

Here are three Du’as you can recite for Health and Healing.

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Quranic Reflections – Pondering over the Last Verses of Surah Yaseen

These verses of the Quran were revealed at the time when non-believers of Makkah asked the Holy Prophet that how could they become alive after they die. In these verses, Allah asks these people how they came into being for the first time. Allah mentions that it is not difficult for Him to do such things and that He is omnipotent, powerful and supreme and none can equal Him. He is the master who gives orders and commands that are to be fulfilled.
In Makkah, addressing to the Holy Prophet, the chiefs of the disbelievers of Makkah were constantly carrying out campaigns of vilification against the prophet (s). However, they knew in their hearts and acknowledged in their private assemblies that the charges they brought against him were absolutely baseless. In order to create suspicions against him in the minds of the people, they branded him a poet, sorcerer, magician, madman, etc. But their consciences recognized, and they also acknowledged before one another, that whatever they were uttering Was false, which they were forging only to frustrate the prophet’s mission. That is why Allah says to His Prophet earlier in this Surah: “Do not grieve at their absurd and meaningless talk.”
According to the traditions related by Ibn ‘Abbas, Qatadah and Said bin Jubair, one of the chiefs of Makkah, on this occasion, came up with a rotten bone of a dead person, from the graveyard. He broke and crushed it into pieces before the Holy Prophet and scattering its particles in the air, said.-“O Muhammad, you say that the dead will be raised back to life. Tell us who will give life to these decayed and rotten bones?” The answer was given immediately in the form of these verses.

Translation (Interpretation of the meaning)

77. Does not man see that We have created him from Nutfah (mixed male and female sexual discharge – semen drops). Yet behold he (stands forth) as an open opponent.
78. And he puts forth for Us a parable, and forgets his own creation. He says: “Who will give life to these bones after they are rotten and have become dust?”
79. Say: (O Muhammad sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) “He will give life to them Who created them for the first time! And He is the All-Knower of every creation!”
80. He Who produces for you fire out of the green tree, when behold you kindle therewith.
81. Is not He Who created the heavens and the earth, Able to create the like of them? Yes, indeed! He is the All-Knowing Supreme Creator.
82. Verily, His Command, when He intends a thing, is only that He says to it, “Be!” – and it is!
83. So glorified be He and exalted above all that they associate with Him, and in Whose Hands is the dominion of all things: and to Him you shall be returned.
Quran (Surah Yaseen, Verses 79 – 83)

Reflections from the above verses of Surah Yaseen

• In these verses Allah (SWT) chides those who in their insolence doubt the concept of resurrection on the Day of Judgment.
• The verses exhort us to ponder upon our own creation and what we are created from. If we do it we would be in awe of our Creator instead of daring to oppose The Almighty or doubting His Word, The Quran.
• People commit the foolish blunder of using their own limited intelligence to draw conclusions about what can happen (and what can’t) to oneself after death. Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) urges us to realize that He The All- Powerful is capable of bringing back to life a body that rots and becomes dust after death – just the way He created life and the body when it didn’t even exist.
• Allah reminds us that these people came to life while at one time they did not exist. Thus, the all-powerful is capable of bringing them back to life after their death. He knows how to create for the first time and to recreate again.
• The verses give an example of the green tree drying up and being used as firewood. Allah (SWT) gives this one example to highlight one of his infinite powers that many times we don’t pay attention to or take for granted.
• Since we can never comprehend how the heavens and earth and all the creation came about, it rightly follows that we believe and trust the All-Knowing Supreme Creator Who just has to say “Be!” and whatever He intends takes form.
• Allah speaks to us through the Quran in a manner that is suitable to our understanding. He asks a question to make us reflect and then answers it to clear any doubt any one might have.
• If influenced by Satan, some people adopt a defiant attitude. Instead, they should realize that they possess the abilities bestowed by Allah to observe and think. Allah urges us to use these abilities to acknowledge the Supremacy of The Lord of the worlds to Whom we eventually will return.

Reference: Tafsir of Ibn Kathir and Abul Ala Maududi

KWASU 1st Batch Admission List 2016/2017 Released

The management of Kwara state University has released the 1st Batch of admitted candidates for 2016/2017 academic session.
Candidates are to follow the instructions below to check their admission status and proceed to make the necessary fees.
How To Check Your Admission Status
Candidates are to visit http://www.kwasu.edu.ng/portal/
1. Click on Login under POST-UTME Candidates
2. Provide your JAMB Registration Number and your Surname (as provided during registration) as Username and Password respectively
3. View you Admission Status and continue to payment
4. All newly admitted students MUST note that the following fees are COMPULSORY:
i. Acceptance Fee
ii. School Fee
iii. Hostel Accommodation Fee
iv. Departmental Fee
v. Handbook Fee
vi. Guidance and Counselling Fee
vii. Matriculation Gown Fee
viii. Change of Institution Fee (for candidates who did not make KWASU their first or second choice).
5. Admitted students MUST pay ALL their Fees within TWO WEEKS after admission has been given. Failure to pay will lead to the withdrawal of admission.
6. Note that all payments are to be made online from your registration/student’s portal.
7. You are required to download and complete the screening form placed on the University's website. The completed screening form should be taken along with the original and photocopies of your Results and Certificates of State/Local Government Citizenship to your College Officer for Admission Clearance.
Congratulations!

UNIBEN Portal For Screening Registration 2016/2017 Now Enabled

This is to inform 2016/2017 eligible candidates of University of Benin that the portal has been enabled for admission screening registration.
Candidates are advised to register as soon as possible because the deadline for registration is June 22nd, 2016.
For complete details on registration, screening details and other relevant information visit this link: UNIBEN Admission Screening 2016: Eligibility, Screening And Registration Details

UNIBEN Admission Screening 2016: Eligibility, Screening And Registration Details

The University of Benin (UNIBEN) ADMISSION Screening Exercise for 2016/2017 Academic Session will take place between 27th June, 2016 to 9th, July 2016 in designated centres within Ugbowo Campus of the University.
The Screening Exercise shall be Computer Based. All candidates are expected to be seated, latest one hour before the stipulated time for the screening exercise.
PLEASE NOTE: Only candidates who applied through JAMB for UTME Admission and chose University of Benin as First Choice and scored 200 and above are eligible for this Screening Exercise.
METHOD OF APPLICATION:
The procedure for the 2016/2017 Admission Screening application is as follows:
Candidates are advised to have a valid e-mail account before starting the application process.
1.Visit www.uniben.edu
2.Click on Student Portal
3.Click on Register for application at the top left of the display page to proceed.
Enter your Surname exactly as written on the JAMB Registration slip and your JAMB Registration Number immediately, your ID and Password will be displayed on the browser.
On the https://uniben.waeup.org click on ‘Login’ (top right of front page).
Enter your Username and the password to login.
To start the application process, please click on ‘Application record’, provide all required information and upload your passport photograph.
Upload a RECENT and CLEAR “1×1” COLOUR PASSPORT PHOTOGRAPH WITH RED BACKGROUND IN JPEG FORMAT ONLY. NOTE that the photograph uploaded will be the only valid ID for all admitted candidates throughout their stay in the University of Benin. FAILURE TO UPLOAD THE SPECIFIED PASSPORT PHOTOGRAPH WILL LEAD TO DISQUALIFICATION and failure/forfeitures of admission.
To pay for the Application, click on “Add online payment ticket” at the bottom of the page, then click on “College Pay” on the top left corner of the page, follow the instruction to pay the application fee of N 2,000:00; (The fee excludes other charges), the admission screening exercise past questions for N1,000:00 (optional); excluding Interswitch and Portal Services charges with an ATM-Enabled Verve or Master Card from any Commercial Bank
A link is displayed “Download past questions to practice". Candidates can also access the UNIBEN Post-UTME past-questions via this link: http://myschool.com.ng/shop/post-utme/basic-post-utme-past-questions-and-solutions/
Preview and confirm your information before submitting your application online. (No correction will be accepted after the closing date).
Print out an acknowledgement slip that contains the screening schedule.
The grouping of courses for Screening
GROUP 1
Social Sciences
Management Sciences
Education – Social Sciences
Education – Management Sciences
Mathematics and Economics
Statistics
GROUP 2
Engineering
Physical Sciences
Education – Physical Sciences
Technical Education
GROUP 3
Medicine
Dentistry
Basic Medical Sciences
Pharmacy
Life Sciences
Education Life Sciences
Agriculture
GROUP 4
Law
Arts
Education Arts
Candidates should go back on-line on 25th June, 2016 to check for the Day, Venue and Time for the Screening
NOTE; That GSM phones and calculators are NOT allowed.
Closing Date:
Application website closes by 22nd, June 2016 (i.e. all applications must be concluded online not later than 22nd June, 2016). Candidates, who pay after the deadline of Midnight 22nd June, 2016 will not be Screened.