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What is the ruling on praying in a garment that has been stained with some impurity, and it is impossible to change it due to the unavailability of an alternative?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

If clothes become impure and there are no other clothes available, and there is not enough time to wash them, then the issue is a matter of scholarly disagreement:

First opinion: One prays with the impure garment and then repeats the prayer if a pure garment is found or if one is able to purify their garment. This is the view of Ahmad, Malik, and Al-Muzani, and it is the preponderant opinion. Their evidence is that covering the 'awrah is more emphatic than removing impurity.

Second opinion: One prays naked, and there is no repetition of the prayer upon them. This is the view of Al-Shafi'i and Abu Thawr. Their evidence is that it is an impure covering in which prayer is not permissible.

Third opinion: If the entire garment is impure, then the worshipper has a choice between the two actions. This is the view of Abu Hanifa.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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