As a Muslim living in a non-Muslim household, it has been quite a challenge to adjust to Islamic life. One of the biggest changes was trying to keep clean with a dog living in the house… I thought I’d write this post, so if any reverts are reading, they can perhaps be helped by anything I wrote.
In a way, I believe that Allah Ta’ala prepared me for my reversion to Islam from an early age. So when I embraced Islam it was natural in a way; just as it is taught that each human being has a natural disposition (fitrah) for Islam ingrained in them from birth. As I grew up, I moved from the Western culture’s values to Islamic values, via devout Christian practice. But it also seems that I had a natural preference for some of what Islam practices and believes. Along with an early love for hijab and natural aversion to alcohol and dating, I also was not majorly fond of dogs.
In the West, we say a person is either a “cat” person or a “dog” person. I was much more the “cat person” and also happen to be a “bird person” too (keeping budgies as pets over the last 13 years or so) – as long as the two don’t mix! I grew up from the age of four with two cats in the house, one which gradually became “my” cat. When I was 22, she died at 18 years of age. I was devastated, and ever since, I wanted to get another cat. Unfortunately it has not been possible yet but, insha’Allah, one day I will. For now, my budgie brings me great joy. J
As for dogs… I never disliked them as such, but it has been a case of “liking” them, not “loving” them. I am not one to want to go over and pet dogs lavishly when I see them (but get a cat around me and it is quite a different story!). Before I go on, let me make it clear here, that if a person is a dog lover it certainly doesn’t disqualify them for reversion to Islam! Dogs are permitted to be kept as guard dogs or to help man in his work. If they are housed outside, it is possible to combine Islamic life with a love for dogs. After all, they are creatures fashioned by our Creator, so as His stewards on earth, we are commanded to look after them well and not hurt them, as with all animals, halaal or not.
Before my reversion, I did not think of dogs as unclean, although I preferred cats because they were cleaner, more sedate and smelt nicer. (Even their toilet habits are clean – digging holes and covering up their waste. I love that they are so dainty in their habits! On the other hand, dogs do not cover up their waste nor are their eating habits as clean as cats.) Nevertheless, over the years I did tolerate our dog/s living in the house. My mom is a dog lover, and she has kept dogs for many years as pets. As seen in the West, they were more pets than anything else, and sometimes treated like children. Hence they were permitted to sit on our furniture and eat from the same plates used by us. Oblivious to the teachings of Islam, I was not upset about it, but had some instinctual aversion to it. Perhaps I can say, I never really noticed it until I became Muslim. Then life changed a lot!
At first, I was not able to understand why dogs were seen in Islam as unclean (najaasah) – especially their saliva. So it was difficult at first, to have to adjust to the new way of doing things. Then my one friend told me it is because they sometimes eat their waste like pigs do. This reminded me of a verse in the Bible in Proverbs, about the dog turning back to its own vomit, and one day, I witnessed our dog doing this with my own eyes, yeeeeUCK!!! Knowing this, I was now determined to figure out how to adapt my life to fit in the household, and I must say, it is still an ongoing process…
The first thing I did on reversion, was forbid the dog from coming into my room. If I was not able to live in an Islamic-friendly house, I wanted to at least make my room into an “angel-friendly” Muslim house in our non-Muslim house (in one Hadith our Prophet (SAW) says that the angels will not enter a house in which is a dog, or pictures of animals or people). I think our dog realised quite soon that I didn’t want her coming in, and was quite obedient when I shooed her out! Sometimes it is hard, because in winter my room is the only one in our house which gets the sun. (Here in South Africa
A funny incident happened one day when I was preparing for As’r salaah. I had laid my prayer mat (more accurately described a “prayer towel”!) out and went to the bathroom to make wudhu. When I returned to my room, lo and behold, our dog was sitting on my prayer mat! As a new Muslim, it was quite a shock, and before I did anything else, I raised my voice in surprise and told her to “GET OFF my mat!” Anger quickly turned to amusement, because she had gotten quite a fright at my voice, and left with ears down! J Soon afterwards, I went to stroke her and gently admonish her not to come in my room. It was harder to explain to my mom afterwards why she was not allowed in my room! … After shooing the dog off my mat, I washed it well and hung it out to dry, using another towel temporarily.
Another change in my life, was that I began to sweep my room more regularly, because of the dog hairs which still found a way in. Eventually, I got over my bad habit of walking on socks in the house in winter, because the hairs stuck on the socks and got carried to my room. So I began to wear slippers instead. (I had to become a Muslim before I finally listened to my mom when she said I must put on something on my feet, and that I would make holes in my socks by walking on them! J)
The most challenging aspects were the question of clean clothes and separate dishes. How on earth would I keep my clothes clean for prayer if I sat on the same couch which the dog sat on? Her saliva was on it, after all! To begin with, I removed my dress every time I needed to make salaah, and put on one of my abayas kept for prayer and going out. Then when finished, I would have to change back into my dress.
Eventually, I found a solution – I wore my usual clothes for home wear, under a thin dress sewn from lining material which slips on and off easily. By chance I had bought inexpensive material to sew a dress, and found out only after it was cut that it was meant for linings! It would not be very suitable for hijab as it was so transparent on its own! After time, I found this a very practical over-all dress for home use, and it kept my clothes clean. It was hard sometimes, because I hardly ever wore my usual clothes (skirt and blouse) on their own as I would if living in an Islamic home, but it would do for now… at least, I could relax and not worry all the time if I had dog najaasah on my clothes ! In any case, it solved another problem – our house is built on the top of a hill slope and both doors are visible from the street, so if I went out into the garden, passers by would see me over the low wall. Therefore the over-all dress was like a “house hijab”, too!
As for the dishes – I immediately put a stop to the dog licking off my plates and eased into washing my own utensils immediately after supper, so my mom didn’t need to! (Another good habit gained, alhamdulillah! Mom was always reminding me to wash my things after I ate a snack!) If I knew a plate was contaminated with najaasah – or the dog could have licked it at the last meal – I would wash it myself seven times before the dishes were done or before I used it. and if I did the dishes, I would leave them for last.
I hope anything I said would be of help to those living with the same situation as me. It really does requires creativity to work around these challenges. I must say, Islam is a jolly good way to overcome bad habits! Another subject worth a post of its own in the future sometime, insha’Allah. J
Salaam
Saadiqah
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