Can I take wudhu till my ears, in the kitchen toilet. Stop and continue at another toilet to wash my feet
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Short interruptions are fine
There's a consensus of scholars that a short interruption of the ablution (wudu') doesn't count, so you could go ahead from where you stopped. Examples for that are: interrupting wudu' to open a door or answer (briefly) a phone call ...
Imam an-Nawawi pointed at this in his al-Majmo'
المجموع saying:
Here and in the following I'll be translating from Arabic language, as these translation are of my own take them with the necessary care!
فالتفريق اليسير بين أعضاء الوضوء لا يضر بإجماع المسلمين نقل الإجماع فيه الشيخ أبو حامد والمحاملي وغيرهما. (Source)
A slight interruption between the members of ablution does not harm according the consensus of Muslims. The consensus was reported by the Sheikh Abu Hamed(al-Ghazaly), Al-Mahamili and others.
Long interruptions are a matter of of scholarly dispute
But if the interruption is of a longer time then among the most crucial conditions are the state of the last organ on which the interruption took place. If it dried(*) already a majority of scholars defined the interruption as long and according the strongest views one must restart the ablution, scholars holding this position use as an evidence the following hadith compiled by the imams Ahmad, abu Dawod and an-Nasa-i:
Anas reported:
A person came to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ). He performed ablution and left a small part equal to the space of a nail upon his foot. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said to him : Go back and perform ablution well. (Sunan abi Dawod)
see also in Sunan abi Dawod:
Narrated Some Companions of the Prophet:
The Prophet (ﷺ) saw a person offering prayer, and on the back of his foot a small part equal to the space of a dirham remained unwashed; the water did not reach it. The Prophet (ﷺ) commanded him to repeat the ablution and prayer.
See also for example Fatwa islamweb #85526 on a person wanting to start wudu' at home and complete it at a mosque where it says:
If the distance between the mosque and your home is so short that you can perform some of your ablution at home and complete the remaining at the mosque without the last organ you washed at home becoming dry, then it is lawful to do so. But if the last organ you washed at home dries before you get to the mosque then you cannot consider what you washed at home as the continuation of washing organs because continuation is an obligation in ablution.
(*) Inside the hanbali schoool of fiqh dryness is not the only definition for a long interruption. While ibn Qudamah presented it as such, ibn 'Uqayl however reported another view of Ahmad saying it depends on customs and habits agreed upon people.
What is the subject of dispute on the longitude of such interruptions?
The dispute here is on the different interpretations on how doing an act or member of ablution after another within a reasonable time gap is qualified it's also called:
al-Muwalaat الموالاة
It means: performing acts of ablution or ghusl without pauses that might cause an invalidation of the wudu' or ghusl. So scholars indirectly discussed whether the intention for ablution or ghusl was invalidated by a long interruption.
And there are mainly three different scholarly opinions on that:
- Maintaining al-Muwalaat is obligatory with no excuses, which is the view of the hanbali scholars. So a long interruption would mean invalidity of wudu' or ghusl.
- Maintaining al-Muwalaat is obligatory, but excuses can keep the interrupted wudu' or ghusl valid, this view is held by the Maliki's and the choice of ibn Taymiyyah. As you may read later below this can be regarded as the strongest view.
- It is sunnah only as per the new madhhab of imam a-Shafi'i and the view of the hanafi's.
Here again an-Nawawi explained in al-Majmo' discussion the arguments of the major parties:
في مذاهب العلماء في تفريق الوضوء.
On the scholarly views on interrupting wudu'قد ذكرنا أن التفريق اليسير لا يضر بالإجماع وأما الكثير فالصحيح في مذهبنا أنه لا يضر وبه قال عمر بن الخطاب وابنه وسعيد بن المسيب وعطاء وطاوس والحسن البصري والنخعي وسفيان الثوري وأحمد في رواية وداود وابن المنذر
We have mentioned that a little separation (or interruption) does not harm by consensus, and as for a lot, the correct view in our madhhab is that it does not harm, and it was said by 'Umar ibn al-Khattab, his son, Saeed ibn Al-Musayyib, 'Ataa', Tawoos, al-Hasan al-Basri, an-Nakhai'i, Sufyan a-Thawry, Ahmad in a narration, Dawood and ibn al-Mundhir.وقالت طائفة يضر التفريق وتجب الموالاة حكاه ابن المنذر عن قتادة وربيعة والأوزاعي والليث وأحمد قال واختلف فيه عن مالك رضي الله عنه وحكى الشيخ أبو حامد عن مالك والليث إن فرق بعذر جاز وإلا فلا while a group said that separation harms and al-Muwalaat is obligatory. It was narrated by ibn al-Mundhir on the authority of Qatada and Rabi'a, al-Awza’i, al-Layth and Ahmad said and disagreed about it on the authority of Malik, may God be pleased with him, and sheikh abu Hamid narrated on the authority of Malik and al-Layth that if he parted with an excuse, it is permissible, otherwise it is not.
واحتج من أوجب الموالاة بما رواه أبو داود والبيهقي عن خالد بن معدان عن بعض أصحاب النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم إن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم رأى رجلا يصلي وفي ظهر قدمه لمعة قدر الدرهم لم يصبها الماء فأمره أن يعيد الوضوء والصلاة وعن عمر ابن الخطاب رضي الله عنه أن رجلا توضأ فترك موضع ظفر على قدمه فأبصره النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم فقال ارجع فأحسن وضؤك فرجع ثم صلى رواه مسلم وعن عمر أيضا موقوفا عليه أنه قال لمن فعل ذلك أعد وضؤك وفي رواية اغسل ما تركت
And those who enjoin al-Muwalaat argued with what was narrated by abu Dawud and al-Bayhaqi on the authority of Khalid ibn Maadan on the authority of some of the companions of the Prophet(see the 2nd hadith above), may Allah’s prayers and peace be upon him, that the Prophet, may Allah’s prayers and peace be upon him, saw a man praying and with the back of his foot a lick of the size of a dirham that did not get water, so he commanded him to repeat the ablution and prayer On the authority of 'Umar ibn Al-Khattab, may Allah be pleased with him On his authority that a man performed ablution and left a place with a fingernail on his foot, so the Prophet, may God’s prayers and peace be upon him, saw him and said, "Go back and improve your ablution." Then he went back and prayed. It was narrated by Muslim and on the authority of Umar also, according to him, that he said to the one who did that, repeat your ablution, and in another narration, wash what you left.واحتج لمن لم يوجب الموالاة بأن الله تعالى أمر بغسل الأعضاء ولم يوجب موالاة وبالأثر الصحيح الذي رواه مالك عن نافع أن ابن عمر توضأ في السوق فغسل وجهه ويديه ومسح برأسه ثم دعي إلى جنازة فدخل المسجد ثم مسح على خفيه بعد ما جف وضؤه وصلى قال البيهقي هذا صحيح عن ابن عمر مشهور بهذا اللفظ وهذا دليل حسن فإن ابن عمر فعله بحضرة حاضري الجنازة ولم ينكر عليه.
والجواب عن حديث خالد أنه ضعيف الإسناد وحديث.
While those who did not require al-Muwalaat argued that Allah Almighty commanded washing the organs and did not require al-Muwalaat, and with the correct Athar that Malik narrated on the authority of Nafi’i that ibn 'Umar performed ablution in the market, washed his face and hands, wiped his head, then was called to a funeral, entered the mosque, then wiped over his leather socks after his ablution had dried and prayed. Al-Bayhaqi said this is authentic on the authority of ibn 'Umar and famous with this wording, and this is good evidence, because ibn 'Umar did it in the presence of those present at the funeral, and he was not denounced for it.
The answer to Khalid’s hadith is that it is weak in chains of narrators and hadith.
(Source and the next page)
The above discussion actually supports the two first views against the view of the shafi'i and hanafi schools of fiqh.
