In the Hanafi view, effective cleansing (inqa’) is decisive and three wipes are not a universal validity requirement.
The report says:
مَنْ اسْتَجْمَرَ فَلْيُوتِرْ
Translation: Whoever cleanses with stones should use an odd number.
It also says:
وَمَنْ لَا فَلَا حَرَجَ
Translation: And whoever does not, there is no blame.
Read together, these encourage an odd count without making it a condition of validity. If filth remains, further cleansing is still required.
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Istinja: Methods, Preference and Juristic Differences
In the Hanafi view, effective cleansing (inqa’) is decisive and three wipes are not a universal validity requirement.
The report says:
مَنْ اسْتَجْمَرَ فَلْيُوتِرْ
Translation: Whoever cleanses with stones should use an odd number.
It also says:
وَمَنْ لَا فَلَا حَرَجَ
Translation: And whoever does not, there is no blame.
Read together, these encourage an odd count without making it a condition of validity. If filth remains, further cleansing is still required.