The 365 · Sunnah · Day 54 · Quran
Honoring the Physical Muṣḥaf with Cleanliness, Care, and Respect
The hadith
لَا يَمَسُّ الْقُرْآنَ إِلَّا طَاهِرٌ
The Prophet ﷺ wrote in his letter to ʿAmr ibn Ḥazm: 'None should touch the Quran except in a state of purity (ṭāhir).' (Muwaṭṭa Mālik 468; cross-ref ad-Dāraquṭnī, al-Bayhaqī. Classed ḥasan by al-Albānī. The four madhāhib agree on the ruling, with internal debate on the scope of ṭahārah required.) Cross-ref Q 56:79: 'None can touch it except the purified.'
Svenska: Profeten ﷺ skrev i sitt brev till 'Amr ibn Hazm: 'Ingen ska röra Koranen utom i ett tillstånd av renlighet.' Cross-ref Q 56:79: 'Ingen kan röra den utom de renade.'
The story
The Companions modeled extreme reverence toward the muṣḥaf. ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb made wuḍūʾ before reading. ʿUthmān ibn ʿAffān, when he was the Caliph and gathered the muṣḥaf into the standardized recension, placed each completed copy on a high shelf with veneration. The classical mosques of the Ottoman, Mamlūk, and Mughal eras built dedicated kursī (book-stand) structures inlaid with mother-of-pearl for elevated placement of the muṣḥaf. The reverence was structural and visible.
Why it's here
The muṣḥaf is the physical container of the Speech of Allah. The Sunnah and the Quran establish the structural respect owed to it. The classical scholars elaborated: the muṣḥaf should not be touched without wuḍūʾ (the majority position; the Ḥanafī position adds tayammum is sufficient if water is unavailable; the Ẓāhirī minority allows touching without wuḍūʾ but considers it less preferable). The muṣḥaf should not be placed on the floor, should be stored above other books, should be approached with reverence.
Try it today
1. Make wuḍūʾ before reading the muṣḥaf. The classical-scholar position. 2. Store the muṣḥaf above other books, in a clean place, never on the floor. 3. Do not lean on it, sit on it, place feet near it, or step over it. 4. When reading, hold it with two hands or place it on a kursī or pillow. Do not allow it to touch the ground. 5. If you have an old muṣḥaf with damaged pages, do not throw it in regular trash; bury it, burn it, or take it to a masjid for proper disposal.
In your day
Digital muṣḥafs (apps, PDFs) have eased access but loosened reverence. The verses are the same; the respect should be similar. Do not scroll the Quran while in the bathroom. Do not read it lying down with the device on the chest. Do not let it become casual scroll-content. Build the digital equivalent of the classical reverence.
A reflection to carry
Etiquette of the muṣḥaf: how to carry the Speech of Allah. The believer treats the muṣḥaf with structural reverence: clean hands (in wuḍūʾ by majority view), elevated position, never on the floor, opened with bismi-llāh, closed with care.
Read the longer reflection
The Companions treated the muṣḥaf with severe reverence. ʿUmar would not touch the muṣḥaf without wuḍūʾ even when he had not yet entered Islam (the famous incident with his sister's muṣḥaf). The classical scholars: do not place the muṣḥaf lower than other books; do not stack other books on top of it; do not extend feet toward it; do not write on it without need; do not read it in unclean places. Cure: install structural reverence-habits with the physical muṣḥaf; teach children explicitly. Modern digital muṣḥaf on phones requires its own etiquette: do not place phone-with-muṣḥaf-open in pocket; close the app before bathroom-use.
Sources: Riyad as-Salihin. The Qur'an and its translation are verified; the scholarship is retold faithfully in our own words and credited to its sources, never reproduced verbatim.
A verse, a healing, and a Sunnah, every morning.
Subscribe, free