The Excellence of Miswaak

[Noori]

The Excellence of Miswaak

The Holy Prophet صلی اللہ علیہ وآلہ وسلم said,

If I had not found it hard for my followers or the people, I would have ordered them to clean their teeth with Miswaak for every Prayer.

The Holy Prophet صلی اللہ علیہ وآلہ وسلم also said,

Make the (brushing with) Miswaak a must - for it cleans the mouth, and the Lord also gets pleased.[1]

Scholars say that using the Miswaak has 70 benefits, of which one is the remembrance of the Kalima Tayyiba (the Pure Words) at the time of death and ease in death.

 

Using the Miswaak is a Sunnah in ablution. The Miswaak should neither be very hard nor very soft. It is better to use a Miswaak made from branches of the olive, pilu or neem trees. The Miswaak should be as thick as the little finger, and a maximum of one span in length. It should also not be very short so as to make it difficult to use.

 

Hold the Miswaak in your right hand - little finger at the bottom, three middle fingers at the centre, and the thumb at the top bottom side of the Miswaak. Do not close the fist. Brushing should be done in 'horizontal' movements, not in the vertical. Begin with the right upper teeth, followed by the left upper teeth. Then brush the right lower teeth followed by the left lower teeth. All these should be done thrice, and the Miswaak should be rinsed every time.

 

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[1] Imam Ahmad Bin Hanbal’s, Musnad