Leftover Water (Su'r): The Four Legal Categories

1. What Is Su'r?

• Meaning: السُّؤْرُ means what remains after a person or animal drinks.
• In this chapter the discussion concerns a small quantity of water from which a person or animal has drunk.
• Do not confuse سُؤْر (leftover) with سُور (a city wall). The plural used for سُؤْر is أَسْآر.
• The book divides such leftover water into four legal categories.

2. Category 1: Pure and Purifying

Source text
فَالْأَوَّلُ: طَاهِرٌ مُطَهِّرٌ، وَهُوَ سُؤْرُ آدَمِيٍّ أَوْ فَرَسٍ أَوْ مَا يُؤْكَلُ لَحْمُهُ

• This water is pure and may be used for Wudu and Ghusl.
• It includes the leftover of a human, a horse, and an animal whose meat is lawful to eat.
• The commentary includes a Muslim or non-Muslim, adult or child, and a person in Janabah or menstruation, provided no actual impurity is present in the mouth.

3. Category 2: Impure Leftover

Source text
وَالثَّانِي: نَجِسٌ لَا يَجُوزُ اسْتِعْمَالُهُ، وَهُوَ مَا شَرِبَ مِنْهُ الْكَلْبُ، أَوِ الْخِنْزِيرُ، أَوْ سِبَاعُ الْبَهَائِمِ

• The leftover of a dog, pig, or predatory land animal is impure.
• Examples include wolves, leopards and similar fanged carnivores.
• Such water is not valid for Wudu or Ghusl.

4. Category 3: Pure but Disliked When Other Water Exists

Source text
وَالثَّالِثُ: مَكْرُوهٌ اسْتِعْمَالُهُ مَعَ وُجُودِ غَيْرِهِ، وَهُوَ سُؤْرُ الْهِرَّةِ، وَالدَّجَاجَةِ الْمُخَلَّاةِ، وَسِبَاعِ الطَّيْرِ، وَسَوَاكِنِ الْبُيُوتِ كَالْفَأْرَةِ لَا الْعَقْرَبِ

• This leftover is pure, but using it for purification is disliked when ordinary pure water is available.
• Examples: a domestic cat, a free-roaming chicken, predatory birds, and house-dwelling creatures with flowing blood such as a mouse.
• The text expressly excludes the scorpion: لَا الْعَقْرَبِ.
• If no other suitable water is available, this pure water is used; one does not move to Tayammum merely because of this dislike.

5. Category 4: Pure, but Doubtful in Purifying Capacity

Source text
وَالرَّابِعُ: مَشْكُوكٌ فِي طَهُورِيَّتِهِ، وَهُوَ سُؤْرُ الْبَغْلِ وَالْحِمَارِ، فَإِنْ لَمْ يَجِدْ غَيْرَهُ تَوَضَّأَ بِهِ وَتَيَمَّمَ، ثُمَّ صَلَّى

• The leftover of a donkey, and of the relevant mule, is not called impure. The doubt concerns whether it can remove ritual impurity.
• If no other water is available, the person performs Wudu with it and also Tayammum, then prays.

6. The Mule: Why the Mother Matters

• The commentary explains that the doubtful ruling applies to a mule whose mother is a female donkey (أَتَان), not a mare (رَمَكَة).
• This follows the rule that the mother's species is considered for this hybrid-animal ruling.

7. Four Categories at a Glance

1. Pure & purifying: human, horse, lawful-to-eat animal.
2. Impure: dog, pig, predatory land beast.
3. Pure but disliked when other water exists: cat, free-roaming chicken, predatory birds, mouse and similar cases; scorpion is excluded.
4. Pure but doubtful in purifying capacity: donkey and the relevant mule; if no other water exists, combine Wudu with Tayammum.