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Fatwa CenterA case of waswaas regarding the impurity of shoes
Question
Assalaamu alaykum, I am suffering from the problem of waswaas (devilish whisperings), and I have OCD. Recently, I went to play soccer in a field that was covered in a lot of dung. I was unsure whether it was the dung of dogs or ducks etc. I mentioned ducks because a friend of mine said it could be from ducks while another friend of mine said it would be from dogs. I have read that the dung and urine of the animals that are permissible to eat are pure. I still played in the field wearing my boots. Now I am having so much waswaas as to whether my boots are covered with impurity or not. So since I do not know what animal's dung it was, can just assume them to be pure? What should I do? There is a possibility that it was from dogs since there were fields there, and people mostly take dogs to fields. I am having waswaas that I am intentionally taking the easier option by assuming it to be pure. I am getting thoughts in my mind that dogs are the more likely option, but I am not sure. If I have to clean the boots from impurity, how would I clean it? Do I have to do it seven times or only once? And do I just pour water on it like seven times or also rub with my hand while water is flowing? Then would my hand not also become impure? I am afraid of washing because I get waswaas that a little spot was not washed and then keep washing too much. And I keep getting thoughts that I broke my intention and so start over and over again from the beginning. I have heard that thinking of breaking your intention or hesitating would break the intention and I have to start over again. I fear that I may get covered in dog impurity and that my prayers would not be valid. Please advise me.
Answer
All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah and that Muhammad 
is His slave and Messenger.
The optimal solution for overcoming waswaas (obsessive whispering) is to disregard it totally and pay absolutely no attention to it. You should not declare anything ritually impure unless it has been verified to be so with certainty.
As long as you doubt the impurity of such feces, then the basic principle is that they are ritually pure until proven otherwise with certainty, to the extent that you could swear to it. Hence, your shoes are regarded ritually pure, and you do not need to purify them.
We advise you to strive in repelling such waswaas whenever it crosses your mind; you should totally disregard it until Allaah blesses you with total recovery from such whisperings.
For more benefit, please refer to fataawa 199253and 90425.
Allaah knows best.
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