Wudu (वुज़ू / وضو) is the washing a Muslim does before salah, tawaf and touching the Mushaf. Allah says: "When you rise for prayer, wash your faces and your arms up to the elbows, wipe your heads and wash your feet up to the ankles." (Al-Ma'idah 5:6)
The 4 fara'id of wudu (वुज़ू के 4 फ़र्ज़)
These four are fard in the Hanafi school, followed by most Muslims in India and Pakistan. If one is missed, the wudu is not valid.
| # | Fard | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wash the whole face once | Hairline to chin, ear to ear |
| 2 | Wash both arms | Including the elbows |
| 3 | Masah of the head | Wipe at least a quarter of the head |
| 4 | Wash both feet | Including the ankles |
Other schools (Shafi'i, Hanbali) also count intention and the order of steps as fard — follow your local scholar.
Sunnah method, step by step
This is the wudu of Uthman ؓ as he showed the Prophet ﷺ made it (Bukhari 159, Muslim 226):
1. Intention and Bismillah — intend wudu in your heart and say Bismillah (Abu Dawud 101).
2. Wash the hands up to the wrists, 3 times, between the fingers too.
3. Rinse the mouth 3 times — use miswak if you can.
4. Rinse the nose 3 times — water in with the right hand, out with the left.
5. Wash the face 3 times (fard). Men run wet fingers through the beard.
6. Wash the arms to and including the elbows, 3 times, right first (fard).
7. Masah — wipe the head front to back and back once, then the ears (fard: a quarter of the head).
8. Wash the feet including the ankles and between the toes, 3 times, right first (fard).
Du'a after wudu
أَشْهَدُ أَنْ لَا إِلٰهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَحْدَهُ لَا شَرِيكَ لَهُ، وَأَشْهَدُ أَنَّ مُحَمَّدًا عَبْدُهُ وَرَسُولُهُ
Ashhadu an la ilaha illallahu wahdahu la sharika lah, wa ashhadu anna Muhammadan 'abduhu wa rasuluh.
"I bear witness that none has the right to be worshipped but Allah alone, without partner, and that Muhammad is His servant and Messenger." The Prophet ﷺ said the eight gates of Jannah are opened for whoever says it (Muslim 234).
What breaks wudu (वुज़ू किन चीज़ों से टूटता है)
- Passing urine, stool or wind
- Blood or pus flowing from the body
- Vomiting a mouthful
- Sleeping lying down or leaning
- Losing consciousness
- Laughing aloud during salah
These follow the Hanafi school; details differ in other schools.
Learn it in the app
Miftah has a free Namaz & Wudu guide with a small diagram for every step, the fara'id highlighted, and the du'as with their references — in English, Hindi (हिन्दी), Urdu, Arabic and Indonesian.
