691. Tayammum performed on sand, gravel, lumps of clay, stones and anything that is considered a part of the earth in the common understanding, is valid. The recommended precaution is that as long as sand is available, one should not perform tayammum on other things. If sand is not available, he should perform it on gravel or lumps of clay, and if these two are not available, he should perform it on stone.
692. The tayammum performed on gypsum and limestone is also valid. The recommended precaution is that one should not perform tayammum on baked gypsum, baked limestone or baked bricks when other alternatives are available. However, tayammum on stones such as aqÐq (carnelian) and fÐrÙzaj (turquoise) is not permissible.
693. If a person cannot find sand, gravel, lumps of clay, stones, gypsum or limestone, he should perform tayammum on the dust particles that settle on clothes, carpets, or similar items. If one cannot find dust either, he should perform tayammum on mud. If he is not able to find mud either, the recommended precaution is that he should pray without performing tayammum. However, it is obligatory upon him to offer its qaÃÁ later.
694. If one is able to gather sand by shaking a carpet or similar item, then performing tayammum on dust particles is invalid. Similarly, if he is able to gather some sand by drying an amount of mud, then performing tayammum on mud is invalid.
695. If a person who does not possess water, possesses some ice or snow, if possible, he should melt it and perform wuÃÙ or ghusl with the melted water. If melting it is not possible, and neither does he have anything on which tayammum is valid, the recommended precaution is that he should dampen his parts of wuÃÙ or ghusl with the snow or ice, and offer his prayer. However, he must offer the qaÃÁ of the prayer (offered with the aforementioned wuÃÙ).
696. If some straw or similar substance on which tayammum is not valid, is mixed in with the sand or gravel, one cannot perform tayammum on it. However if its quantity is so insignificant that it is considered to have disappeared in the sand or gravel, then the tayammum performed on it will be valid.
697. If one does not possess anything on which tayammum is valid, he should procure it by buying it or by carrying out a similar transaction, if it is possible to do so and does not entail hardship.
698. The tayammum performed on a mud wall is valid. The recommended precaution is that as long as dry earth or sand is available, one should not resort to wet earth or sand for tayammum.
699. The thing on which tayammum is performed must be ÔÁhir. If a person does not possess a ÔÁhir thing on which he can perform tayammum, the recommended precaution is that he should perform tayammum on the najis thing, and offer his prayer with it. He must later offer the qaÃÁ of that prayer.
700. If a person has certainty that tayammum on a particular substance is valid, and performs tayammum on it, realizing later on that tayammum on that substance is invalid, he must offer once again all the prayers that he offered with such a tayammum.
701. The thing on which a person performs tayammum and the place in which it is situated should not be usurped. Hence in a person performs tayammum on usurped sand, or pours the sand that he owns on another person’s property without his permission, and then performs tayammum on it, his tayammum will be invalid. However, the condition that the location of the one performing tayammum not be usurped is not legitimate for the validity of the tayammum.
702. Precaution dictates that the tayammum performed in a usurped area is invalid. An example of this would be a person who strikes his hands on his own land, and then enters another person’s property without his permission, and wipes his hands on his forehead.
703. The tayammum performed on a usurped thing or a thing that is located on a usurped property is invalid, even if the person does not know of it being usurped. The same will apply to a tayammum performed in a usurped area, based on obligatory precaution.
However if the person forgets that it is usurped or becomes negligent of it, it will be valid, unless he himself is the usurper and has not repented for usurping it. In this case the tayammum performed on a usurped thing or a thing which is on usurped land is invalid. As for the case wherein he has repented, his tayammum will similarly be invalid based on obligatory precaution.
704. If a person is imprisoned in a usurped area, and the water and sand in the area are both usurped, he should offer his prayer with tayammum.
705. Obligatory precaution dictates that the thing on which tayammum is performed should have some dust which sticks to the hands. It is also recommended to shake one’s hands after striking them on the thing.
706. It is makrÙh to perform tayammum on the earth in a pit, sand on the streets, and saline earth which is not covered with a layer of salt. If it is, the tayammum performed on it is invalid.
