Lesson 26
Cleanliness and the Environment
النظافة والبيئة
Islamic teachings on cleanliness (ṭahāra) connect naturally to environmental stewardship. Complex sentences with multiple connectors build your ability to write coherent paragraphs.
Environment and Cleanliness Vocabulary
ArabicTransliterationMeaning
طَهَارَةṭahāraritual purity / cleanliness
بِيئَةbīʾaenvironment
نَظَافَةnaẓāfacleanliness
مُحَافَظَةmuḥāfaẓapreservation / conservation
مُلَوِّثَاتmulawwithātpollutants
قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ: النَّظَافَةُ مِنَ الإِيمَان
Qāla rasūlu llāhi ﷺ: An-naẓāfatu min al-īmān
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: "Cleanliness is part of faith."
يَجِبُ عَلَيْنَا الْمُحَافَظَةُ عَلَى الْبِيئَةِ لِأَنَّ اللَّهَ اسْتَخْلَفَنَا فِيهَا
Yajibu ʿalaynā l-muḥāfaẓatu ʿalā l-bīʾati liʾanna llāha stakhalafanā fīhā
We must preserve the environment because Allah made us stewards of it.
- مِنَ الإِيمَان: "Part of faith" the partitive genitive expressing category membership.
- يَجِب عَلَيْنَا: "It is obligatory upon us" stronger and more formal than يَجِب أَنْ.
- اِسْتَخْلَفَ: Form X "appointed as khalīfa/steward" the Quranic concept of human stewardship of the earth.
- لِأَنَّ: "Because" introduces a causal subordinate clause with an accusative subject.