Can the Quran be Recited without Ablution?
The word "abdest," also used in Turkish, is of Persian origin. Its dictionary meaning is "hand water," or water used for washing hands. Its Arabic equivalent, "wudu," does not appear in the Quran.
The command to perform ablution is mentioned in the Quran without explicitly naming anything, and it refers only to prayer.
O you who have faith! When you stand up for prayer, wash your faces and your hands up to the elbows, and wipe a part of your heads and your feet, up to the ankles. If you are junub, purify yourselves. But if you are sick, or on a journey, or any of you has come from the toilet, or you have touched women, and you cannot find water, then make tayammum with clean ground and wipe a part of your faces and your hands with it. Allah does not desire to put you to hardship, but He desires to purify you, and to complete His blessing upon you so that you may give thanks.
It is not necessary to perform ablution before touching or reading the Quran. There is no such command anywhere in the Quran.
Allah has only stipulated this one verse as a condition for reading the Quran:
When you read the Quran, seek refuge with Allah from Satan the outcast.
So we have been instructed to say "Taʿawwudh".(I seek refuge in Allah from Satan, the outcast.)
Due to a mistranslation of verse 79 of Surah Al-Waqi'ah, the notion of needing to perform ablution before touching the Quran has become dominant . Let's start with this excellent observation:
Surah Al-Waqi'ah(56) is the 46th surah according to the order of revelation. Surah Al-Maidah, on the other hand, is the 110th surah according to the order of revelation. There are exactly 63 surahs in between. When this verse was revealed, the Quran had not yet been completely revealed, written down, and compiled into a book. There was neither a physical copy of the Quran to touch nor a ritual ablution to perform. This information alone is sufficient for us.
Now let's look at the words in the verse.
1. lâ yemessu-hû: He will not touch it, he cannot touch it.
2. illâ: except, but, apart from
3. al-mutahharun: those who are purified, those who are cleansed
Translation by the Directorate of Religious Affairs in Turkey:
Verse 77: Indeed, it is a noble Qur'an.
Verse 78: It is in a preserved book.
Verse 79: Only those who are pure can touch it.
Verse 80: It has been revealed from the Lord of the worlds.
The Directorate of Religious Affairs translated it as "Only those who are pure can touch it," instead of "No one but the pure may touch it." A literal translation was not preferred.
The root of the word "Lâ yemessuhu" used in this verse is the verb "to touch [mess]" . The verb "to touch" (mess) is used 61 times in the Quran, and not all of them refer to physical touching. It expresses a touch in the sense of "influencing": for example, 'the touch of joy' (7:95), 'the touch of distress' (2:214), 'the touch of weariness' (35:35), 'the touch of evil' (3:174), etc. The touch of joy, distress, or weariness is not the same as touching a physical book. However, the Mushaf (Quran) is a physical book. Undoubtedly, touching it is also a physical touch.
Those who wish can check the verses one by one via this link ...
Furthermore, in the Quran, the verb '[lems]', which comes from a different root, is used to mean concrete touching by hand, not the verb '[mess: originally mss]'. The usage of the verb '[lems]' in the Quran is as follows:
And even if We had sent down unto you a Message written on paper so that they could touch it with their hands, the disbelievers would have said: "This is nothing but obvious magic!"
Furthermore, when telling someone they cannot do something, one doesn't say "don't do it," but rather "you cannot do it," just as we say, "You cannot touch the stars." (If the opposite were true, the expression in the verse should be "la yemesse" with a fatha (superior vowel) instead of "la yemessu" with a damma.) When we use this expression for the Quran, it becomes "You cannot touch this book," and if the being that cannot touch it is considered to be human, then this expression becomes meaningless given that so many people, both those with and without ablution, touch it. There is a great threat here, but everyone, unbelievers, believers, those with and without ablution, touches it, and nothing happens to those who touch it. Therefore, the being that can touch it and is pure is not human, but angels who have been purified directly by Allah.
Moreover, according to Arabic grammar rules, the verse is not an "instrumental sentence" expressing commands or prohibitions, but rather a "declarative sentence" providing information.
According to a general rule of Arabic grammar, unless there is a justifiable reason, "the pronoun always refers to the closest noun". The pronoun "it" in the verse refers not to the Quran, but to the closest noun, the 'protected book'. No one except those who are pure, neither jinn nor devils, can touch or interact with the protected book that is with Allah. The protected book is the main book with Allah (the Preserved Tablet). (See 13/39, 43/2-4, 50/4, 85/21-22)
The phrase "revealed from the Lord of the Worlds" in the next verse also supports this in terms of semantic coherence. Since it was revealed to our Prophet through angels via revelation, and the method used by angels to deliver the revelation is not like a human holding a book in their hand, it was stated by Allah in this way.
Turning to our other word, "Mutahharun," it's a passive expression, not an active one. Passivity indicates that the action is performed by someone else. Purification is done by Allah, not by the being itself. Unless there is a valid excuse, a person does not have someone else perform ablution for them; they perform it themselves. The purification mentioned in the verse is not physical purification, but spiritual purification . It is used not to mean a person who is washed and cleansed with water, but to mean a being that is not tainted by the defilement of sin, that is, a being that does not commit sin.
For physical purification, the Quran uses the words 'muttahhirun', 'muttahhirun'.
And they ask you about menstruation. Say, "It is harm, so keep away from wives during menstruation. And do not approach them until they are pure. And when they have purified themselves, then come to them from where Allah has ordained for you. Indeed, Allah loves those who are constantly repentant and loves those who purify themselves.
This purification refers to physical cleansing through ablution or ritual bathing. Indeed, the verse speaks of the purification of menstruating women.
Therefore, the translation of the verse should be as follows:
77. Indeed, it is a noble Qur'an.
78. It is in a hidden book.
79. No one can touch it except the purified ones (i.e. the angels).
80. It is a revelation from the Lord of all creation.
As can be seen, some interpretations have been distorted to create a basis for certain things. However, we can now read the Quran without touching it. For example, we use computers, phones, tablets, etc., even to go to the toilet. Moreover, people store the Quran in their own memories. If the main purpose is respect and not touching without ablution, then shouldn't we also refrain from touching these things without ablution? Isn't it inconsistent to apply respect so meticulously but not give equal consideration to its non-book form?
To deter people from reading and learning about it by imposing conditions that God did not set, all in the name of respect, is a game that some people have been playing against this nation for a long time.
- Therefore, people have not picked up and read the Quran; instead, they have kept it safe in ornate covers in their homes, placing it high up and isolating it from life.
- Until today, they have committed the sin of not reading, but they have not committed the sin of reading without ablution or touching without ablution.
- Disrespecting the Quran is understood not as refraining from reading it, but as extending one's legs towards it, holding it below one's navel.
- Ultimately, we have produced individuals who are as respectful as possible of the document they are given, but utterly indifferent to its rules.
- There are so many people who fear being struck down if they even touch the Quran without ablution, yet they violate its commands every day, commit polytheism, and even deny its verses whether they know them or not!
Considering the writing materials and the limited number of Quran copies available during the time of the Prophet, it becomes clear that it was more appropriate to touch the Quran with clean hands rather than with hands covered in dust, dirt, mud, dough, and grease. However, this was not a religious requirement, but rather a precaution taken to preserve the already scarce number of copies and prevent their deterioration.
You might say that you don't feel comfortable with it. Of course, that's perfectly normal, and no one would argue with that. But we shouldn't present a non-existent condition as if it were a religious decree.
The greatest respect we can show the Quran is to understand it correctly, to help more people understand it, to make it effective in our lives, and to facilitate these paths.
This text was never intended to suggest reasons such as "You should read the Quran without ablution," "We would be very pleased if you touched the Quran without ablution," or "If you are going to read the Quran, break your ablution first."
Our aim is to win the case of minds touching the Quran; otherwise, may Allah be pleased with those who perform ablution and read it, insha'Allah.