“The texts of Islamic law sought to eradicate these organisms from their reservoirs in humans, or to clean those reservoirs as far as possible. They established personal cleanliness for society, calling it purification and making it half of religion. They put this into practice through ablution, bathing and the practices of natural cleanliness: the tooth-stick, rinsing the mouth and nose, circumcision, trimming nails, removing pubic hair, washing finger joints, cleaning the private parts, avoiding impurities, and keeping clothes and appearance clean. These prescriptions protected Muslims against the harms of communicable and organic diseases.”
