Ritual Impurity of Vomit

16-7-2020 | IslamWeb

Question:

Assalamoalikum
I struggle with OCD and had some questions about newborn and purity
1 - If the baby vomits then do we have to wash the baby's face and rinse mouth? If we don't do this and only wipe the face clean with cloth, then will the baby spread najasa anytime the face is wet or the baby spits?
2 - Right before childbirth, if the mother had impurity on her private parts then will the baby born need to be washed? Also if the newborn has blood on it does the baby have to be washed? If the baby is not washed and feeds from the mother at the hospital, does this mean mother now has najasa on her too?
3 - I don't know if the nurse will eventually wash the baby or not at the hospital and how they wash it. If nurse washes the baby, maybe she will spread najasa with the sponge from private parts to the rest of the baby (if it is sponge bath). Or in a water bath maybe the baby lies in the dirty water. Does that mean we should assume the baby is completely najas if nurse gives a bath?
Thank you

Answer:

All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allah, and that Muhammad,  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allaah exalt his mention ) is His slave and Messenger.

The scholars held different opinions regarding the ritual impurity (Najaasah) of vomit. The majority of the scholars held that it is ritually impure in absolute terms, but the Maaliki scholars held that it is ritually impure if the vomited food has already changed (from its original state when consumed) and is ritually pure if it has not changed. You may act upon the opinion of the Maaliki scholars to avoid hardship and inconvenience. It is not obligatory to wash the child’s face or the inside of his mouth and the like. Rather, the child’s saliva purifies his mouth, as established by Ibn Al-Qayyim  may  Allaah  have  mercy  upon  him in Tuhfat Al-Mawdood. It is not obligatory to purify any object unless it is known that the ritual impurity has transferred to it. Some scholars held that insignificant ritual impurity is pardoned in all cases, and this was the chosen opinion of Shaykhul-Islaam Ibn Taymiyyah  may  Allaah  have  mercy  upon  him. You may follow it since you suffer from OCD. It cannot be judged that the impurity has transferred to anything else except in the case of certainty. In the event of doubt, purity is the default state.

We conclude our answer with the advice that would save you from such questions and others, namely to disregard obsessive whisperings completely and pay no attention to them at all because excessive indulgence in them incurs grave evils.

Allah Knows best.

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