What is the ruling on water used for ritual purification (*ta'abbud*) without an existing state of major or minor impurity (*hadath*)?
Chapter on what purification is achieved with regarding water
Al-Mughni
Book of Purification
Primary text
The effect of using water for an act of worship (*ta'abbud*), such as washing the hands after waking from night sleep, depends on the ruling concerning the obligation of that specific act. If the act of washing is deemed non-obligatory, the water used remains unaffected in its purity and purifying capacity. If the act is deemed obligatory, according to Al-Qadi (The Judge), the water remains pure (*tahir*) but loses its capacity to purify others (*ghayr mutahhir*).
Supporting text
There are two transmitted narrations regarding obligatory use without an existing state of impurity. The first view is that the water loses its general permissibility (*ikhraj 'an itlaqihi*) because it was used in an act of ritual purification, analogizing it to water used to remove an existing impurity. This is supported by the Prophet's prohibition against dipping the hand from night sleep into the water container before washing it, which indicates the water is restricted in use. The second view maintains that the water retains its general permissibility because it did not remove an existing impurity, making it similar to water used merely for cooling off, or analogous to water used for washing the private parts due to pre-seminal fluid (*madhy*) if that washing is considered obligatory.