Ablution

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The closest I can think of is Holy Water.

That helps with hygiene?

Well, wudu is largely symbolic anyway. When I lived in Karachi, Pakistan, for example, many people would do wudu at work. The tap water is so contaminated there that you can’t drink it and get sick if it gets in your mouth; it is contaminated with all sorts of things, including human waste. So, no, it doesn’t help with hygiene. Symbolic gesture only.

Everyone freely throws rubbish on the ground and in water and knows how filthy the air/water is, so clearly they are ok with the symbolic-only nature of wudu.

Those are logistical issues, not related to concept of wudu.

But pp's point that wudu is "largely symbolic" is well taken.

It was largely symbolic in that particular setting. Islam allows for this in settings where water isn’t accessible, so people are not deterred from praying. Where they are fully able to do Wudu, they absolutely do.