Principle of Continuity

I said to Abi Ja’far عليه السلام – my clothes come into contact with blood either because of nose-bleeding or some other reason or it comes into contact with some amount of semen … and the time to pray arrives and I forget that my clothes have something (impure in them) – so I pray and then remember after finishing? He said: you repeat the prayer and you wash it off (the impurity) … I said: if I only suspect that it has come into contact with it and am not certain of that, and I try to inspect (to look for it) but find nothing, then I inspect it again after finishing the prayer and find it? he said: you wash it and do not repeat the prayer, I said: how come it is like that (repeat the prayer in the former case and not here)? he said: because you were certain of its purity (when you began praying) and then you doubted later, so it is not appropriate for you to override your certainty because of doubt ever … (Zurara said): what if I see it on my clothes whilst I am praying? He said: you will only break the prayer and repeat it anew if you had doubt about where exactly it was (the location of it – having not found it before) and go on to find it (while praying), but if you had no doubt [of having contracted impurity at all] and then see it (the impurity) – still wet – you cut off your prayer and wash it, then you continue with the same prayer [where you left off], because you just don’t know perhaps it is something that fell on you [while praying], for it is not appropriate for you to override certainty by doubt.

I said to him: a man in Wudhu falls asleep – closing his eyes for a beat or two – does this mean that he is obliged to renew Wudhu? he said: O Zurara, the eye may sleep while the heart and the ear are awake, only when the eye, the ear and the heart all sleep does Wudhu become obligatory, I said: what if something moves near him while he is not even aware of it, he said: no [that does not mean he has to renew Wudhu], unless he is certain that he has fallen asleep and unless there manifests a clear sign indicating that, if not then he was certain about his initial Wudhu and certainty is never overriden by doubt rather what overrides it [certainty] is another certainty [he become sure of a new event].

4. [4/97] al-Khisal: In the ‘Four Hundred’ Narration: the commander of the faithful عليه السلام said: whoever is upon certainty – and then doubts – should continue upon his certainty for doubt does not override certainty.

Abu Abdillah عليه السلام said to me: if you are sure that you have broken your Wudhu then renew it, beware of ever renewing a Wudhu unless you are certain that you have broken it.