The Muslim Student Association is seeking help in improving the conditions of the room they have been given for a ritual called wudhu.

Wudhu, or partial ablution, is the act of washing parts of the body with clean water to prepare for ritual worship. Muslims are instructed to do this before prayer in their religious text, the Qur’an.

The Qur’an instructs Muslims to practice wudhu in the Sixth Ayat of Sura 5 which says, “O you who believe! when you rise up to prayer, wash your faces and your hands as far as the elbows, wipe your heads and your feet to the ankles…”

The room given to the student association for wudhu by the university two years ago is an old janitor’s closet. It is located on the third floor of Hughes Trigg and is about 3 feet by 4 feet. There are two drains on the floor and a shower head hose is attached to the wall.

Shakeel Mehdi, a member of the MSA, says once the water is running it takes almost five minutes for the drains to clear which makes it difficult to properly wash their feet.

Several students practice wudhu in the nearby bathrooms because there are sinks and much more room.

Mehdi said, however, that signs were put up in the restrooms asking people to please not perform wudhu there. He said this is just as well because it is unclean to do wudhu where people use the restroom.

Having a clean and convenient place for Wudhu is important because it must be done before the five daily prayers, explains Aisha U-Kiu, member of the MSA. Muslim students can complete these prayers in a quiet room found on the third floor of Hughes Trigg.

“This Friday a prayer will be held at 2 p.m. in the Hughes Trigg commons to kick off Islam Awareness Week,” said U-Kiu.

Each day next week aspects of Islam including culture, politics and more will be discussed at Hughes Trigg.

For more information on Islam Awareness Week contact Aisha U-Kiu, or the Muslim Student Association.