Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: I have been given things which were not given to any prophet. We asked: O Messenger of Allah! What are those? He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: I have been helped with awe, the keys of the earth have been given to me, my name has been kept Ahmad, the earth has been made a purifier for me, and my Ummah has been made the best of all communities.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Amr bin Aas (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: The earth has been made a mosque and a purifier for me; wherever the time of prayer finds me, I perform tayammum and offer prayer. This was difficult for the people before me; they would only pray in their synagogues and churches.

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to go out and perform tayammum after urinating. When I would say that water is near you, he (peace and blessings be upon him) would say: I do not know, perhaps I may not be able to reach there.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him), he says: A Bedouin came to the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and said: O Messenger of Allah! I remain in the desert for four or five months, and among us are women in postnatal bleeding and menstruation, and people in a state of major ritual impurity (janabah). What is your opinion regarding this? The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Then adhere to the use of earth (i.e., perform tayammum).

Najiyah ‘Anazi reports: There was a disagreement between Sayyiduna ‘Ammar bin Yasir (ra) and Sayyiduna ‘Abdullah bin Mas‘ud (ra) regarding tayammum. Sayyiduna ‘Abdullah said: If I have to stay for a month and do not find water, I will not perform prayer. Sayyiduna ‘Ammar (ra) said to him: Do you remember when you and I were among the camels and I became junub, due to which I rolled in the earth like an animal? Then when I returned to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and informed him of what I had done, he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Tayammum alone would have sufficed you.

Sayyiduna Tariq bin Shihab (may Allah be pleased with him) reports: Two men became junub (in a state of major ritual impurity). One of them performed tayammum and offered the prayer, while the other did not pray. When both of them came to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), he did not find fault with either of them.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) that a man was wounded during the time of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). He was ordered to perform ghusl (ritual bath) due to janabah (state of major ritual impurity), and he died as a result of that ghusl. When this matter reached the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), he said: "The people have killed him; may Allah destroy them. Is not the cure for ignorance to ask a question?"

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Amr bin Al-Aas (may Allah be pleased with him), he says: When the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) sent him in the year of Dhat al-Salasil, it happened that on a night of severe cold I had a wet dream, so I feared that if I performed ghusl (ritual bath), I would die. So I performed tayammum (dry ablution) and led my companions in the Fajr prayer. When we returned to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), I informed him of this matter. He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: O Amr! Did you lead your companions in prayer while you were in a state of major impurity? I said: Yes, O Messenger of Allah! I had a wet dream on a night of severe cold and I feared that if I performed ghusl, I would die, and I remembered the saying of Allah Almighty: "And do not kill yourselves. Indeed, Allah is to you ever Merciful." So I performed tayammum and led the people in prayer. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) smiled and did not say anything further.

A man from Banu Amir (Amr bin Bajdan) says: I was a disbeliever, Allah Almighty guided me to Islam. I was far from water, while my wife was with me. Thus, I would become junub (in a state of major ritual impurity) and, due to the lack of water, I would perform tayammum. But a doubt arose in my heart, and I was told about Sayyiduna Abu Dharr (may Allah be pleased with him). So I performed Hajj and entered the mosque of Mina, and I recognized him by his descriptions. He was an elderly man, thin and wheat-colored, and was wearing a Qatari cloak. So I walked until I stood beside him and greeted him with salam while he was praying, so he did not reply to my salam. He performed a complete, beautiful, and lengthy prayer. When he finished, he replied to my salam. I said: Are you Abu Dharr? He said: Yes, my family thinks so (that I am Abu Dharr). I said: I was a disbeliever, Allah Almighty guided me to Islam, but my religion has made me restless, and the situation is that I am far from water and my wife is with me, so I become junub and perform tayammum for several days, and this has caused a doubt in my heart. He said: Do you recognize Abu Dharr? I said: Yes. Then he said: The climate and atmosphere of Madinah did not suit me, so the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) ordered for me some camels and goats, so I would be among them and far from water, while my wife was with me, and thus I would become junub. Because of this, a doubt arose in my heart, so I mounted a camel and reached the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). It was midday, and he (peace and blessings be upon him) was sitting in the shade of the mosque with a group of companions. So I dismounted and greeted him with salam. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) raised his head and said: Subhan Allah! Abu Dharr? I said: Yes, O Messenger of Allah! I am ruined. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: What has ruined you? I told him the whole matter. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) smiled and called a person from his household, so a black slave girl brought a large bowl of water, it was not full and water was spilling from it. So I made a screen with the camel, but the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) ordered a man from the people to screen me, so I performed ghusl and then came to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Indeed, pure earth is a purifier for you until you find water, even if you do not find it for ten years. Then when you find water, let it touch your skin.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Amr bin Aas (may Allah be pleased with him) that a man came to the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and said: O Messenger of Allah! A man goes far away and does not have the ability to obtain water, can he have intercourse with his wife? The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Yes.