Question
Assalamu Alaikum.
I follow the Hanafi madhhab and I have a question about masah over socks.
I recently learned that, for masah over socks, the socks need to have been put on while I was in a state of complete wudu. I had previously put my socks on without wudu and, during later wudus, I wiped over the socks instead of washing my feet.
I may have prayed approximately 20 prayers this way, including one prayer yesterday. I genuinely did not know that the socks needed to be put on after complete wudu.
The socks were normal cotton socks that some may had holes in them
Could you please tell me:
Whether those previous wudus and prayers were valid according to the Hanafi madhhab.
Whether I need to repeat any of those prayers.
What I should do going forward.
Jazakumullahu khayran.
Answer
In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
As-Salāmu ʿAlaykum Wa-Raḥmatullāhi Wa-Barakātuh
In principle, wiping over ordinary socks even after a complete wudu is not valid, as they do not fulfil the conditions required for wiping.
Therefore, the approximately twenty ṣalāhs mentioned above, limited to the farḍ and Witr ṣalāhs, should be repeated as qaḍāʾ. There is no qaḍāʾ for the Sunnah ṣalāhs. If the exact number is uncertain, a reasonable estimate should be made and that number should be repeated. [1]
The fact that the ruling was genuinely unknown does not make the invalid wuḍūʾ valid, although the person did not deliberately neglect the obligation.
Going forward, the feet should be washed when performing wuḍūʾ. If one wishes to perform masah, the entire wuḍūʾ, including washing the feet, should first be completed, after which khuffs (leather socks) or socks that fulfil the conditions of masah may be worn. However, it is safer to use genuine khuffs, as many socks marketed as “waterproof” do not necessarily fulfil all the conditions required for valid masah. [2]
Note: The masah (wiping) will remain valid for 24 hours for a muqīm (non-traveller) and 72 hours for a traveller, calculated from the time his wudhu breaks.
Example: A muqīm performs wudhu and puts on his khuffs at 8:00 a.m. His wudhu breaks at 2:00 p.m. His period of masah will then begin from 2:00 p.m. and remain valid until 2:00 p.m. the following day.
And Allah Taʿāla Knows Best.
Baba Abu Bakr
Student -Darul Iftaa
Accra, Ghana
Checked and Approved by
Mufti Muhammad Zakariyya Desai
https://iftaa.co.za/20000/past-salah-after-wiping-over-socks/
