Some people hold the view that it is bid'ah to wipe the nape (back of the neck) while making wudu. What is the origin of wiping the nape?

Dear Brother / Sister,

In general, wiping the nape while making wudu is regarded as adab and mustahab in Hanafi madhhab. (see al-Mabsut, 1/8) According to the majority of scholars, it is makruh to wipe the nape. (see ad-Durrul-Mukhtar, 1/124; Zuhayli, 1/253)

According to Abu Bakr al-Amash, a Hanafi scholar, it is sunnah to wipe the nape; according to Abu Bakr al-Iskaf, it is adab, not sunnah. (see al-Badayi’, 1/107)

It is sunnah to wipe the back and sides of the neck, not the front part, with the back of hands. For, according to the narration of Lays from Talha b. Musawwif, him from his father and him from his grandfather, his grandfather saw the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) wipe his head, the back of his head between the ears and the front part of the neck next to it. (Ahmed b. Hanbal, Musnad, 3/48)

The majority of fiqh scholars say it is makruh, not mandub, to wipe the neck because such a deed is a kind of extremism in religion. (see Prof. Dr. Wahba Zuhayli, İslam Fıkhı Ansiklopedisi)

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